A March evening at SCHLOSS ORTH, a castle on a tiny island in the Traunsee Lake, Upper Austria.
Built during the 10th century, a wooden bridge connects it to the beautiful lakeside town of Gmunden and a second castle.
It is one of the oldest buildings of the Salzkammergut, was the "star" of Schlosshotel Orth, a very popular TV series about an hotel, and has an interesting history.
There is a legend that Erla, a giant, built the castle out of love for the fairy-tale Traunsee mermaid "Blondchen", although the first mentioned owner was a knight, Hartneid von Ort.
In the 16th century brutally cruel Count Herbestorff was the owner, and in 1867 it was bought by Leopold II of Tuscany who put the castle in the civilized hands his son, Archduke Johann Salvator of Austria-Tuscany.
The Archduke gave up all his titles to make it possible to marry his long-term companion, as an actress not an aristocrat definitely a "no-no", and chose to be known as Johann Orth, but in 1890 he disappeared. Together with his wife, he was presumed to have drowned while circumnavigating Cape Hoorn Valparaiso on his own ship, the St. Margaret.
He was declared dead in 1911 and the castle was acquired by the Austrian Emperor Franz Joseph I.
Photo Schloss Ort, Oberoesterreich, copyright FotoRossi, via Flickr
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