Schloss Eckartsau, Imperial hunting lodge in Eckartsau, Austria.

Schloss Eckartsau is a two-storey building with a pale yellow facade and dark brown roof, arranged symmetrically around a raised central section topped by a triangular pediment with sculptural figures and a cartouche. Three tall arched windows sit above the arched main entrance and its small balcony; rectangular windows with dark grilles run along both wings, and dormer windows pierce the roof. It was rebuilt from a medieval water castle into a hunting lodge by Joseph Emanuel Fischer von Erlach after 1720.

The original four-sided water castle of the Eckartsau family was first recorded in 1175. In 1720 Count Franz Ferdinand Kinsky had Joseph Emanuel Fischer von Erlach rebuild it as a Baroque hunting lodge, and Emperor Franz I Stephan bought it in 1760. After decay, Archduke Franz Ferdinand restored it in 1896–97. From November 1918 it sheltered Karl I and Zita until their departure for Switzerland on 23 March 1919.

The museum displays interiors from around 1900 and mementos of Karl I and Empress Zita, who moved here from Schönbrunn on the night of 11–12 November 1918 with their children, including six-year-old Otto. About 100 people made up the small court. On 23 March 1919 the imperial family attended a final mass in the palace chapel, where the Volkshymne was sung for the last time, before leaving for Kopfstetten station.

The castle can only be explored through guided tours, which operate on a limited schedule throughout the year. Check opening times ahead of your visit and dress appropriately, as some interior spaces can be cool.

In 1912 Archduke Franz Ferdinand had the white stone staircase of the former Harrach garden palace in Vienna-Landstraße dismantled and its pieces brought to Eckartsau. The stone came from the hard Kaisersteinbruch quarries. The palace also served as a filming location in autumn 2024, when scenes for a documentary on Alfred Nobel and Bertha von Suttner were shot there.