History
The medieval fortress was built in the 11th century, when both the castle and the town were in the hands of the Salzburg archdiocese. The first written documents mentioning the castle date to the 1170s. At that time a group of buildings with a palatium and a mighty keep, known as Conrad's Tower, already stood at the central part of the hill. The Archbishops let the Castle out to the Lords of Ptuj, who founded, during their three-hundred-year-long stay in Ptuj, the Dominican and Minorite monasteries, and built the pilgrimage church at Ptujska Gora. The gravestone of the last Lord of Ptuj, Friedrich IX, is built into the wall of the castle’s ground floor. After several changes of ownership, in 1656 the castle was acquired by Field Marshal Walter Leslie, Baron of Balquhain, a Scot who had won considerable imperial favor on the battlefield during the Thirty Year's War. The castle remained in the Leslie family until they died out in 1802. Their relatives, the Dietrichsteins, inherited the castle, but then they also died out in 1864. After long conflicts over inheritance, the castle and associated properties were finally bought by Countess Theresia of Herberstein, who was a Dietrichstein by birth. The Counts of Herberstein lived in the castle from 1873 to 1945, when it was nationalised and became, together with its rich furnishings, part of the Ptuj Museum.
The castle has undergone a great deal of change over the centuries and consequently displays Romanesque, Renaisance and Baroque elements. The Western Tower is the only remaining structure dating to the earliest part of the castle's history. The appearance of the castle was dramatically changed in the 16th century by Italian master-builders, who were commissioned to fortify the town and the castle to withstand attacks by the Ottoman Turks. In the 17th century, the Turkish threat diminished, which led to the demolition of Conrad’s Tower. The castle was enlarged, and horse stables and a tower were constructed on the eastern part of the hilltop. In the 18th century, the Leslies had an administrative building constructed along the southern wall and a granary in the flat area in the western part of the complex, as well as a large agricultural building below it. The castle complex fell into disrepair after the Dietrichsteins died out, but Countess Theresia of Herberstein saved it from ruin, undertook extensive renovations and outfitted it with entirely new furnishings, which are now part of the Ptuj Museum's collections. In 1999 Ptuj Castle was declared a cultural heritage resource of national importance.
Museums
Ptuj Regional Museum is a special museum with collections and sections for archaeology, history, cultural history, ethnology, restoration workshops and other services. It was founded in 1893, when the Museum Society in Ptuj was established, and archaeological finds were exhibited in the then lower grammar school.
In 1895 Professor Franc Ferk donated numerous artefacts of various types to the museum, which was then named after the donor – Ferk’s Municipal Museum. Over the years, the exhibition area became too small, so the museum moved to the former Dominican monastery in 1928.
After 1945 the castle complex was placed under the management of the museum, and so it acquired most of its present facilities. The museum continued to extend the geographical scope of its activities, and so in 1963 it was renamed, Ptuj Regional Museum. At present the museum covers the wider area of Ptuj and Ormož, famous for its rich prehistoric and ancient sites (Roman Poetovio), the period of the migrations of peoples, medieval and modern monuments, which bear witness to the cultural and economic importance of Ptuj and its surroundings, as well as of rich folklore traditions.
Ptuj Castle virtual tour
Weddings
Wedding in the Festival hall of Ptuj Castle.
Couples can get married in the Festival Hall of Ptuj Castle every Saturday from 2:00 to 5:00pm, excluding public holidays. To register for a castle wedding, couples need to request permission by completing an application form which is available here. Confirmation of permission may be collected personally or we can send it by mail to the Administrative Unit of Ptuj. Wedding ceremonies in the Festival Hall must be registered no later than 45 days before the desired date.
Contact & Info
Castle of Ptuj
Pokrajinski muzej Ptuj Ormož,
SI 2250 Ptuj, Muzejski trg 1
Phone: +386 (0)2 7879230
muzej-ptuj.uprava@pmpo.si
www.pmpo.si
Ptuj Castle opening hours:
From October 15 to April 30: daily from 9:00am to 5:00pm
From May 1 to October 15: daily from 9:00am to 6:00pm
Saturdays and Sundays in July and August: from 9:00am to 8:00pm
On Christmas Eve and Shrove Tuesday from 9:00am to 12:00pm
The castle is closed on New Year's Day, Easter, All Saints' Day and Christmas Day
