Schloss Gatterburg, Retz, Baroque castle in Retz, Austria

Schloss Gatterburg is a Baroque castle in the southeast corner of Retz's historic centre, built from 1660 by the Counts Hoyos and remodelled in 1712 for Konstantin Josef von Gatterburg. It is a four-winged block (Vierkanter) around a nearly square inner courtyard, with a three-storey southern main front.

The site began as a Meierhof in the southeast corner of Retz's town fortifications and was rebuilt as a Gothic town castle at the end of the 15th century under Burggraf Nikolaus Bethlen. The counts of Hoyos acquired the estate in 1630 and from 1660 built the present castle. In 1709 Konstantin Josef von Gatterburg bought it and had it remodelled in Baroque style in 1712; the family was raised to the rank of counts in 1717.

The name Gatterburg comes from Konstantin Josef von Gatterburg, the imperial court and war councillor who bought the estate in 1709 and gave the building its Baroque form in 1712; in 1717 his family was raised to the rank of counts as Grafen von Gatterburg, Freiherren auf Retz. The estate remains in the hands of the Suttner-Gatterburg family, so the castle is private property and its rooms are not open to visitors.

The castle sits in the southeastern section of the old town center and is easy to spot from the outside, though it remains privately owned. Visitors should know that access is limited and it is worth checking ahead for any opportunities to view the building or its exterior.

The Gatterburg family, raised to the rank of imperial counts in 1717 as Grafen von Gatterburg, Freiherren auf Retz, still owns the estate today through the Suttner-Gatterburg line. The castle has thus stayed in the same family for more than three centuries.