The castle ruin Dürnstein is a castle ruin in the Wachau above the village of Dürnstein. The rock castle was built by the people of Kuenring in the middle of the 12th century.
The castle is known because the English King Richard the Lionheart, who returned from the Third Crusade, was imprisoned from December 1192 to March 1193 on the initiative of Duke Leopold V under Hadmar II in Dürnstein or a neighboring castle and then passed on to the German Emperor Heinrich VI . was delivered.
In 1306 a castle chapel was first mentioned, consecrated to the evangelist Johannes. In 1588 the castle was restored as a fortress by Streun von Schwarzenau. In 1645, in the final phase of the Thirty Years’ War, the Swedes also conquered Dürnstein under Lennart Torstensson. When they withdrew, the Swedes blew up the castle gates.
In 1662 the castle was no longer inhabited, but could have been repaired. A year later, “Dürnstein Castle” appeared among the places of refuge in the face of the Turkish threat. In 1679 the castle house was finally no longer habitable and from now on it was left to decay.
In 1882 the Starhembergwarte was built above Dürnstein. Prince Camillo Starhemberg had the access route laid out at his own expense. Today this path is part of the Wachau World Heritage Trail.