Grein on the Danube - Strudengau

Castle Grein © Hannelore Tik

Grein on the Danube is perhaps best remembered for its dominating castle overlooking the old

town and the river.

Being situated at the beginning of this very narrow passage of the Danube the town’s wealth

in the past depended on

its many skilled boat men. They guided boats of all sizes through the narrow passage of the

Strudengau (the word derives

in German from the word Strudel which is not only for a sweet dessert like Apfelstrudel, but

also for whirlpools in a

river). The Strudengau = marks the area from Grein, Struden, St. Nikola to the mountain

Sarmingstein and the castle

Werfenstein.

The town had its peak time during the reign of the Babenbergs who gave reigning power to

the lords of Castle Werfenstein

in 1250. The parish church of Grein was first mentioned in 1147 in documents kept at the

nearby monastery in Waidhausen.

The castle Schloss Greinburg, which looks down from its elevated position on the high rock

by the river, was founded in

1491 with the permission of Emperor Friedrich III. Especially worth seeing are the arcades of

the inner court yard, of

the late Renaissance period, as well as the big knights' hall and the museum on the history of

the navigation of this

difficult part of the Danube.

If you can spare a little time, take a stroll through the narrow streets lined with beautifully

kept houses from the

Baroque and Rococo periods. The parish church is dedicated to Saint Ägidius who is depicted

in the painting on the high

altar. The old town hall dates back to 1563. The Alte Stadttheater is the oldest theatre in

Rococo style that is still

in use in its old form. The fountain in front of the new town hall near the Danube is said to be

from 1636. People say

if you drink from its water you will come back to Grein. Following are some legends told and

heard of in the Strudengau.

A-4360 Grein an der Donau, OÖ =Oberösterreich (Upper Austria) Getting there by car: A1 to

Melk, cross bridge,

turn left to go on the B3 Romantik Straße through the Nibelungengau and Strudengau past

Maria Taferl and Burg

Werfenstein to Grein; approx. 122 KM from Vienna.

The Cobbler’s Stone of Grein

A cobbler lived once in Grein who was a real drunkard. His wife pleaded desperately with

him to stop drinking.

He should spend more time in his workshop making and repairing shoes so that she could

feed the hungry children.

The cobbler, however, continued drinking at his local inn where he still had credit. The

innkeeper kept note of what

he had consumed. One day the innkeeper wanted his money and said to him that he would

give him no more wine until he

had paid his debts. Now the cobbler was really desperate as he had not earned anything for the

last few weeks and didn’t

know from where to get any money. Next day however, he came again, paid his debts in cash

and got wine again. He

continued drinking and paying cash for his wine now. The innkeeper did not ask from where

he had the money all of a

sudden. He was only to glad to have a paying customer.

One day the people of Grein heard that the most valuable painting of the Holy Virgin had

been stolen from the church’s

altar. People were outraged by this sacrilege and the mayor promised a big reward for the one

who could name the thief

and bring him to justice.

At that time it was the custom for towns to have a night watchman who made his rounds at

night to see if everything was

all right. After the church theft he watched things especially carefully. Maybe the thief was

still in town and he could

catch him and thus earn the reward. One night he saw the cobbler leaving the inn just before

midnight. He hid behind a

bush and listened to what the cobbler was saying to himself in his drunken state. The cobbler

went past the church door,

raised his hand and said laughing: “Today, you, Virgin Mary, paid for my drinks, tomorrow

it's you, St. Peter’s offertory

box.” Hearing this, the night watchman jumped out of his hiding place, grabbed the cobbler

and locked him up for the night.

Next day the cobbler was brought before the judge and indeed admitted his crime. The judge

sentenced him to death, as

there was no lesser punishment for the theft of church objects. This put the cobbler’s wife into

total despair and she

pleaded with the count to spare her husband’s life for the sake of their children. The count felt

pity for the poor woman

and changed the judge’s sentence. He said the cobbler would be free if he managed to make a

pair of shoes sitting on the

highest point of the cliff without plunging into the Danube, which would have been his death

anyway.

This was not an easy task, because the cliff was high and steep and very small at its top. They

gave the cobbler a piece

of leather and nails. He took his tools and climbed up the cliff. He sat down with his back to

the Danube and started

to work. He took no notice neither of the danger he was in, or the people who had gathered at

the bottom of the cliff

to watch him. Some were just curious, others sympathetic with his wife. The cobbler

concentrated on his work, cutting

and nailing the leather to form a pair of shoes. He did not show any fear or nervousness.

Secretly, however, he promised

himself that he would, in future, abstain from alcohol and work every day to feed his family

properly. Finally he finished

the shoes and when he had polished them to shine nicely; he took the pair, held it high above

his head and slid down the

cliff. Not looking at the crowd he ran towards his waiting wife and children thanking her for

her unchanged love and

devotion.

The steep high cliff, on which the cobbler had made that pair of shoes, is still called

Schusterstein (Cobbler’s Stone)

by the local people of Grein.

Source: Josef Pöttinger: Donausagen. © Kremayr & Scheriau, Wien 1973, pg. 72

The Ferryman and the Water Nymph

Once upon a time a young fisherman called Kilian lived with his old mother at the Hößgang

side of the Danube

near Grein. Following his father’s death he had to earn a living for both of them. As there was

never enough money to

live off his fishing skills, he also worked as a ferryman.

One hot summer Sunday he had to row a few drunken young men over the river. They

behaved very irresponsibly, shaking

the boat so that he thought it would capsize. He told them to stop the nonsense but they only

laughed at him and called

him a coward. They even stood up in the small boat swinging it even more to the tunes of

their wicked songs. When they

passed the island of Wörth, Kilian saw a beautiful water nymph sitting on the rock. She

frowned at them and shook her fist

at the unruly party, warning them to stop behaving like this on a Sunday. The drunken young

men saw her too, but only

laughed and mocked her.

Kilian, however, got really angry with his customers and ordered them to stop immediately.

He said: “I will put your

heads under the water until the wine pours out of your ears if you don’t stop now!” After that

they got a bit quieter

and Kilian could finally row the boat to the other side of the river.

At that time a large army of Turkish soldiers was besieging Vienna, some of them ventured

further along the Danube,

looting the villages and raping the women. People fled their villages and castles in fear of

them.

One night Kilian was woken by a loud knocking on his window. A woman and her two

children begged him to take them over

the river. She and her children were the only ones who had been able to escape from the Turks

who were burning down

her husband’s castle.

At first Kilian did not want to go. He was concerned about his mother’s safety. His mother,

however, told him to go

and help the woman. So he went with them down to the river, got in the boat and started

rowing. It was a very stormy

night and the turbulent waters with the rapids and the many dangerous whirlpools made it

difficult for him to keep his

direction in the darkness. His boat was sucked into whirlpools and turned round and round

several times. Just as he was

most desperate, he heard a high voice calling him from the river bank: “Come here, come

here!” He could not see who was

calling but followed the voice and was soon at the bank. He brought the woman and her

children to a little hut nearby

where they could stay for the night. As the weather was getting worse by the hour, he

wondered if he should stay as well

and return next morning. But then he thought of his mother and went back to the river to row

back. He started rowing in

the right direction but was soon lost in a whirlpool that turned his boat round and round.

When he thought that his end

was near, he heard the nymph's voice calling him. This time a glowing figure suddenly

appeared in his boat, taking the

oars and steering the boat round the rocks and past the whirlpools towards the bank. Within

minutes they reached the

quieter waters near the bank and the nymph disappeared silently.

Kilian was so surprised that he couldn’t even thank her. He was sure that it was the same

nymph whom he had saved from

the mischievous drunken young men a few days earlier and now she had helped him in return.

Source: Josef Pöttginger: Donausagen. © Kremayr & Scheriau, Wien 1973, pg.74

The Sad Count on the Island of Wörth

A little downstream from Grein, the river Danube is divided into two arms by an island called

Wörth.

The waters run quietly in the side arm that is called the Hößgang, but the main riverbed is a

very dangerous part

of the Danube. Here the river runs with a strong current and has many whirlpools which suck

everything to the bottom

of the river. Because of these difficulties, Grein has always provided trained helmsmen to

pilot the big ships of

merchants and pilgrims through the passage. Most captains were glad to have an experienced

helmsman on board to steer

them safely past the whirlpools and rocks. It sometimes happened that the ship owners wanted

to save money and thought

they could get through the passage without taking a pilot with them. This sometimes ended in

disaster. This must have

been the case in 1540, when a big ship full of travellers came downstream towards Grein and

did not stop to take a pilot

on board. Although they got past the whirlpools, the ship crashed at full speed against the

rocks and broke apart shortly

beyond the island of Wörth. The ship sank immediately, taking most of its passengers with it.

Among the few that survived

was a Tyrolean count with his servant. They were able to swim to the island. His wife,

however, was separated from him

in the chaos. The count and his servant searched the bank and the water for her but couldn't

find anybody from the ship.

Realizing that she must have drowned made the count very sad. He decided to spend the rest

of his life as a hermit on the

island mourning his wife. His servant stayed with him to take care of their daily needs. He

found the ruins of an old

castle and made one of the rooms habitable for his master and himself. He gathered fruit and

fished to keep them both

alive. The count himself almost went mad with sadness and did nothing but stare over the

water.

Days, months and even years went by. Many ships went through the rough whirlpools; some

of them sank just like their own

had done. The news of the two men living on the island slowly spread downstream, from

village to village. One day the

news even got as far as Vienna where the countess lived with some kind relatives who looked

after her. Hearing that two

men had been seen alive on an island in the Danube, she thought that this must be her husband

and his servant and nothing

could hold her any longer in Vienna. She travelled back to the village St. Nicola where the

ship had sunk. A ferryman

took her over to the island where she discovered that very old and sad looking man, who

really was her husband. At

first neither of them could believe that they had finally found each other again, but then they

were extremely happy

and returned to their castle in the Tyrol.

The count later ordered a stone cross to be made and put up on the island of Wörth in

gratitude for their survival

and re-union. The stone cross with the date 1552 is still on the island.

Source: Josef Pöttinger: Donausagen. ©Kremayr & Scheriau, Wien 1973, pg. 77

The Waterman in the Strudengau

When people wander along the Danube in the Strudengau they sometimes hear the wail of the

water nymphs who moan

the loss of their master, the Danube waterman.

Many years ago an old fisherman lived alone with his daughter in their hut near the river.

Everyday he went fishing for

many hours, while his daughter looked after the house and cooked supper for him. One

evening he saw a huge crowd

gathering outside his hut and he asked anxiously what had happened. They told him that the

waterman had come and lured

his daughter to the river promising her whatever she wished for. This was his usual way to

capture his victims. All his

treasures were in his palace on the bottom of the river so they all had to follow him down

there to get it.

From that day on, the fisherman was terribly sad and did not leave his hut any more. He only

thought of revenge. Suddenly,

he remembered people saying that the waterman showed himself to people on stormy, dark

nights when they carried nothing

holy on their body. So he waited for such a night to row his boat out into the middle of the

river. There he sat waiting

and staring gloomily in the water. He had almost given up hope when suddenly a ghastly

looking male figure rose from the

water. He was clad in a wide green cloak and wearing a crown made of shells and glittering

diamonds. His unkempt hair and

beard looked like seaweed growing on him. While talking to the fisherman and promising him

the treasures of his palace,

he kept coming closer and closer towards the boat. When he was close enough to touch it, the

fisherman lifted his oar

high up in the air and, with all his strength, brought it down on the waterman’s head. The

crown crashed down and four

diamonds broke off. They flew everywhere, not only in the water but also on the bank. The

waterman let go of the boat

with a terrible curse and immediately started looking for his diamonds.

He is still searching for them as he is not allowed to go back to his palace as long as he hasn’t

found them.

The fisherman had escaped the waterman’s punishment by protecting his oar with a rosary

wound around it. So the holy

rosary was not on his body but still protected him from the waterman’s curse.

Source: Josef Pöttinger: Donausagen. ©Verlag Kremayr & Scheriau, Wien 1973 pg. 79

Werfenstein © Hannelore Tik