The House of Abensberg und Traun (now usually written Abensperg-Traun) is the name of an ancient

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

n noble family, originally from the

Upper Austria Upper Austria (german: Oberösterreich ; bar, Obaöstareich) is one of the nine states or of Austria. Its capital is Linz. Upper Austria borders Germany and the Czech Republic, as well as the other Austrian states of Lower Austria, Styria, an ...

n ''Traungau''. It is considered one of the oldest extant aristocratic families in Central Europe.

History

The Abensberg und Traun family was first mentioned with ''Pernhart de Trune'' in 1114.

Traun Traun () is an Austrian city located on the north bank of the river Traun and borders Linz, the capital of Upper Austria, to the east. The name ''Traun'' is derived from the Celtic word for river (''dru''). Traun is the fifth largest city in U ...

Castle is still today owned by the family. The Trauns are one of the 12 so-called "Apostle Houses", i.e. the families which had already played a historical role during the period of

Babenberg The House of Babenberg was a noble dynasty of Austrian Dukes and Margraves. Originally from Bamberg in the Duchy of Franconia (present-day Bavaria), the Babenbergs ruled the imperial Margraviate of Austria from its creation in 976 AD until its ...

rule of Austria (976 to 1246). They were elevated to

Imperial Count Imperial Count (german: Reichsgraf) was a title in the Holy Roman Empire. In the medieval era, it was used exclusively to designate the holder of an imperial county, that is, a fief held directly ( immediately) from the emperor, rather than from ...

s in 1653, receiving the name ''Counts of Abensperg and Traun'', after a Bavarian family, the counts of Abensperg, who had a similar coat of arms, and had ruled the county of

Abensberg Abensberg () is a town in the Lower Bavarian district of Kelheim, in Bavaria, Germany, lying around southwest of Regensburg, east of Ingolstadt, northwest of Landshut and north of Munich. It is situated on the river Abens, a tributary of t ...

(Bavaria) from the 12th century until they extinguished with Niclas, Graf von Abensberg in 1485. Only count Ernst von Abensperg und Traun (1608–1668) was very shortly granted the fief of Abensberg when the Habsburg emperor Leopold I occupied Bavaria during the

War of the Spanish Succession The War of the Spanish Succession was a European great power conflict that took place from 1701 to 1714. The death of childless Charles II of Spain in November 1700 led to a struggle for control of the Spanish Empire between his heirs, Phil ...

. From 1656 the Abensperg and Traun family held a seat on the "Swabian counts' bench" of the Imperial Diet and in 1662 purchased the

Lordship of Eglofs The Lordship of Eglofs was an estate of the Holy Roman Empire, in the Württemberg Allgäu, located around the village of Eglofs, now in Argenbühl in the rural district of Ravensburg in southern Baden-Württemberg, Germany. From 1668 it wa ...

, a lordship with

Imperial immediacy Imperial immediacy (german: Reichsfreiheit or ') was a privileged constitutional and political status rooted in German feudal law under which the Imperial estates of the Holy Roman Empire such as Imperial cities, prince-bishoprics and secular pri ...

. It was sold to the

Windisch-Graetz The House of Windisch-Graetz, also spelled Windisch-Grätz, is an Austrian-Slovenian aristocratic family, descending from Windischgraz in Lower Styria (present-day Slovenj Gradec, Slovenia). The noble dynasty serving the House of Habsburg achieved ...

family in 1804.Hormayer, "Österreichischer Plutarch" To this day, the Abensperg und Traun family owns large estates in Austria, as well as a number of castles and fortresses.

Notable family members

Otto Ferdinand von Abensberg und Traun Otto Ferdinand Graf von Abensperg und Traun (or sometimes Otto Ferdinand von Abensperg und Traun), (27 August 167718 February 1748) was an Austrian ''Generalfeldmarschall''. The current spelling of the name, and the spelling used in his time, is ...

(1677-1748), Austrian aristocrat

Residences

File:SchlossTraun.jpg,

castle (owned since 1120) File:Salomon Kleiner 002.JPG, Palais Abensperg-Traun, Herrengasse, Vienna (1401-1855) File:Burg Maissau.jpg, Maissau Castle (owned since 1526) File:Schloss Petronell.jpg,

Petronell Petronell-Carnuntum is a community of Bruck an der Leitha in Austria. It is known for its annual World Theatre Festival. History The village derives the second half of its name, Carnuntum, from the ancient Roman legionary fortress and headquar ...

Castle (1656-2006) File:Groß Schweinbarth Schloß.jpg,

Groß-Schweinbarth Groß-Schweinbarth is a town in the district of Gänserndorf in the Austrian state of Lower Austria. Geography Groß-Schweinbarth lies in the hills between Bad Pirawarth and Gänserndorf Gänserndorf () is a town on the Marchfeld, Lower Austr ...

Castle (owned since 1661) File:Rappottenstein - Burg (1).JPG,

Burg Rappottenstein Burg Rappottenstein is a castle in Rappottenstein, Lower Austria, Austria. Burg Rappottenstein is above sea level. See also *List of castles in Austria This page is a list of castles and castle ruins in Austria, arranged by state. A ''Burgruin ...

(owned since 1664) File:Abensperg-Traun Weihburgg 26.JPG, Palais Abensperg-Traun, Weihburggasse, Vienna (owned since 1872)

References

External links

* Counties of the Holy Roman Empire {{UpperAustria-geo-stub