Ptuj Castle

Built in the mid-twelfth century on the hill above the town to defend against the Hungarians, when Ptuj belonged to the Archdiocese of Salzburg. The Jesuits of Zagreb held it for a time and, in financial trouble, sold it in 1656 to Field Marshal Walter Leslie, a Scot by birth. With the Turkish invasions over, the castle lost its defensive purpose and Leslie rebuilt it in Baroque as a rural residence and the seat of an estate. His line held it until 1802, the Dietrichsteins until 1864, and the Herberstein family from 1873 until nationalisation in 1945.