The existence of a Roman settlement where the community of Tadten is located today was verified already in 1928. West of the street which leads to St. Andrä, in the reeds of ‘Salzlacke’ a stone cist grave from the 2nd century B.C. was discovered. The discoverers were the siblings Josef, Anna and Michael Wurzinger (Editor’s note: Anna Wurzinger was my mother). In the process valuable artifacts, such as glass vases, gold jewelry an exciter lamp, a coin, as well as various iron and bronze wares, were discovered and became part of the collection in the Eisenstadt National Museum.

In 1936 a cemetery from the 11th century was found on a hill with the remains of old frontier guards, the Pechenegs. The discovery of around 2000 silver coins, which were buried around 1130, prove that Tadten was also settled in the 12th century. The coins stem from the times of the Hungarian kings from the house of Arpaden.

In the Middle Ages the area belonged to lesser aristocrats; in 1357 the name ‘Tentun‘ was first mentioned in a document referencing a dispute of ownership. In 1451 the capital Buda, castles Rotenstein, Scharfeneck and Hungarian-Altenburg were among the corresponding localities, including ‘Theten’, which came into the hands of the Count of Bösing, the Count Ellerbach of Eberau, as well as the Counts de Zeech (Pirichendorf). Tadten had the following names during the course of history: Tetun 1357, Theten, Thethen 1451, Thaton 1550, Taton 1570/71, Teteny 1680, Taden 1786.

At the end of the Middle Ages the Eisenburg cathedral chapter occupied a large space in Tadten. The local churches and the patron saint of the Eisenburg cathedral, St. Michael, were also sanctified and because of this the old Tadten community coat of arms featured the likeness of the saint.

In 1529 the Turks through Haideboden and left eleven burned and desolated houses in Tadten. Until the 17th century the locality Tadten was in the ownership of various lesser nobles. First the Pannonian Visitation in the year 1713 reports the Esterhazy family as the sole proprietors of Tadten. Documented mention of a school first appears in 1683. At that time the teacher also had to serve as sacristan and assist the pastor. In 1798 the community of Tadten had a coat of arms. However because the adoption of the coat of arms was forgotten, Tadten received permission in 1957 to create a new community coat of arms.

Protestantism spread quickly within the village. In the 17th century the community was divided among several aristocrats who owned land in Tadten. At the end of the 17th century the Esterhazy family bought out the former owners and instigated the recatholization of the community.

The Roman Catholic parish church was built in 1804 by Patron Prince Nikolaus Esterhazy with the support of the community’s inhabitants and was consecrated to the holy Archangel Michael. Glass windows were put into the Roman Catholic parish church for the first time during an expansion in 1954. During the last renovation a new tabernacle and relief were prepared by Burgenland sculptor Thomas Resetarits.

The Evangelic parish church in the community was built in 1913 using the church in Wieselburg as an model.

Caspar Haydn, the great grandfather of the famous musician Joseph Haydn was born in Tadten in 1630. In 1740 an additional member of the Haydn family, Michael Haydn, was a judge in Tadten.

Johannes Goldenits had the Johannes chapel built in 1870. He had hoped this would improve his deaf-muteness. Unfortunately his illness only became worse as the chapel was finished.

During the warlike times of the Turkish wars, the insurgencies of the Hungarian magnates, the Kuruzzenrummel and the French war Tadten shared the fate of the neighboring communities. The two World Wars also brought sorrow to the population and claimed victims from the populace. After the second World War reconstruction and repairs began. With the construction of the municipal office, elementary school, kindergarten, fire department and sewage system, the community was equipped with good infrastructure. For expansion of the village new building lots created and streets and markets were improved and expanded.

Renate Payer, a dedicated Austrian painter, was born in Tadten in 1955. The artist, who is well known for her cultural work in the so-called third sector (projects with schools, social and charitable organizations), now lives in Vienna. http://www.public-art.at/

99 more Tadten pictures are available at the Village Pictures Page on Hannes' current website, Scholem & Friends