Secrets of Silence – Magic At Grad Matzenau (Lost Lands #79)

There is a feeling I get from those rare magic moments when I happen upon a place that seems as much part of fantasy as it does reality. A place that adds to my knowledge of the world and sends my imagination soaring. Such places give me a feeling that is timeless and eternal. These unexpected discoveries make me feel like I could live forever. And for a few moments, minutes, or hours I do. One of those places is Grad Matzenau.

Bearing Witness – Within The Walls

I have never been to Grad Matzenau, and I have no idea if I will ever get there. And yet I feel like I have already been there. There is a part of me that never left and never will. This feeling is a product of instinct and intuition, The first time I saw photos of Grad Matzenau, I knew this was a place for me. On the face of it, that may sound odd since I never knew any of the owners, nor do I have any ancestors who might have been there before. When I first saw photos of Grad Matzenau, I was transported to somewhere beyond the present, to a place of infinite possibilities. A place where the imagination runs wild. In this case, I was transported through the woods of northern Prekmurje until I found myself standing before Grad Matzenau (Schloss Matzenau, Matzenauer-kastély). It is a ruined, palatial residence of timeless appeal. I felt like I had been there before, I also felt as though I had never left. Immediately I wanted to know everything about Grad Matzenau’s architectural and human history.

I know all this sounds bizarre, since I have never visited Grad Matzenau. As of a few days ago, I was unaware of its existence. And yet something profound spoke to me, The manor house’s history is not defined by a single family. Instead, it had many different owners in a century and half of history. All except one enjoyed a short tenure. And none of them ever stayed as long as they would have liked to. In this respect, the house was a lot like life where plenty of people get an opportunity, but none of them last. This befits a place that looks like it is ready for a starring role as a haunted house. That goes right along with the air of mystery about it. Much of this has to do with the house being partially covered by foliage. Adding to the mystery, it is not shown on very many maps. Those who do find Grad Matzenau have one thing in common with its former residents, none of them stay for very long. Everyone associated with the house had a transitory existence. The only thing that remained was the house that bore witness to every single one of them and keeps their secrets in silence.

Napoleon Slept Here - A Legendary Beginning

Mystique and legends are synonymous. The latter infuses the former. The power of a legend does not lie in whether it is literally true or not. Rather its power comes from whether some part of the legend is believable, but not completely verifiable. That adds to an air of intrigue. Grad Matzenau’s history begins with a legend that is easy to believe, impossible to verify, and almost certainly not true. This legend starts with the lack of an exact date for the mansion’s construction. That has been lost in the shroud of time, despite construction occurring in the early 19th century, likely during the Napoleonic Wars. Anyone who has studied Napoleon’s military campaigns understands that his lust for conquest led him deep into Central and Eastern Europe. Even when Napoleon did not visit a specific region, his influence could still be felt. In 1809, Napoleon created the Illyrian Provinces which Slovenia was part of. The provinces did not last for very long as Napoleon soon met his demise, but their creation did give Slovenes a taste of life without the Habsburgs ruling over them.

Today, Slovenes still have a fondness for Napoleon because of this. A monument to him can be found in the Slovenian capital of Ljubljana on the Square of the French Revolution. Perhaps this affinity was also the reason that a legend persists that Napoleon spent the night at Grad Matzenau. I can find no evidence that he spent time in Prekurmje, nor Slovenia. That has not kept the legend from living on to the present day. At the very least, this makes for a good story. It also acts as a substitute for the early documented history of Grad Matzenau, which is vague to the point of non-existent. The manor house’s first owners are unknown. The documented history of Grad Matzenau begins in 1866. That same year, the widow of its first known owner transferred the estate to her father. This started a revolving door of owners. Over the next fourteen years, Grad Matzenau had four different owners. Contrary to popular opinion, many holders of estates had financial difficulties. Many of them were living on the edge of financial insolvency. Instead, they were trying to run their estates as a business. For most it would eventually turn out to be a losing proposition. The burden of operating an estate fell upon its owners. ?Those who were not up to the task would look to sell their estates.?

Life In The Country - On The Margins

Grad Matzenau was a difficult place to run properly due to its size. The entirety of the estate was just 150 hectares, taken up by the manor house and a large garden. The woods and foliage engulfing the house today add to its aesthetics, but the soil from which they sprung was not fertile. Trying to care for the house was a burden. Life in the country could be wonderful, only if you could afford it. Grad Matzenau was always going to be like its geographic location, on the margins. The manor house finally got some much-needed stability in ownership at the turn of the 19th century when it was sold to Karl Friedrich Matzenau. He would be its longest lasting owner and his surname was to be forever attached to it.?