Stunning photos show the abandoned homes of the once-rich and powerful families of Europe
MOST of the buildings were left to decay due to the owners having financial problems
A COLLECTION of abandoned yet extravagant homes of the elite families of Europe have been snapped in their current state of decay.
Austrian Youth Worker Stefan Baumann, 34, photographed the crumbling chateaus and villas, and despite being dangerously in ruins the buildings still boast some of their former elegance.
The images give a glimpse into the history of the now empty and haunting residences that look as though eerie happenings could be lurking.
Here are Stefan's stunning images of derelict Chateaus in Europe...
Failed career
A former owner of a local factory once lived in this chateau but he had to leave when his business failed.
The main entrance hall in a Chateau which was abandoned almost 20 years ago
Arabic design influences
This snap shows the grand main entrance hall of the chateau which has been empty for almost 20 years.
This villa was the home of an industrial boss and this image shows an oriel window which is popular in Arabic architecture.
This striking window looks as though it could have a view of a huge lawn
Devastating family history
This photo shows a main hall in an abandoned castello in Italy.
The home was emptied after a marriage that was arranged between the owner's son and the daughter of a wealthy couple resulted in tragedy when the bride-to-be shot herself the night before the wedding.
This castello has a heartbreaking history
Would you feel relaxed in this bathroom?
As one of the main bathrooms in a chateau, it appears to be in fairly good condition compared to most rooms.
Would you be tempted to have a bath here?
Slowly falling apart
After several earthquakes this villa was badly damaged and it was abandoned years ago.
This villa was ruined in an earthquake
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Fine living
This red, gold and green room used to be the elegant master bedroom in a chateau in France.
Austrian Stefan Baumann snapped the images of the chateaus
A beautiful shell
This once beautiful chateau was completely burned down in one night and now only the stone-made structures are left standing.
This chateau was the victim of a savage fire
Empty wallet
This French chateau used to be occupied by a wealthy and powerful family who had to leave the home due to financial problems.
Many of the stunning buildings were abandoned because the families suffered financial difficulty
A multi-purpose building
This building was a home in Belgium before it was abandoned and left unoccupied for several centuries.
It was then used as an administration building for a period of time.
In good condition after 10 years
This French castle was owned by a family who are now unable to afford the costs of renovating and fixing it - it has now been empty for over ten years.
This castle was empty for over ten years
Nature is taking over
The empty Italian villa had several bedrooms, including this medium-sized orange one.
The plants are starting to claim this empty castle
How many people lived here?
Here is another castello that was left to gather dust in Italy.
This hallway appears to have coats of arms painted on the ceiling
Not strong enough to overcome nature
A German-Italian royal family used to own this castello in Italy and fled after an earthquake ruined the basic structure of the building.
As the building is in danger of falling down at any time, even the owner is not allowed to enter the home.
Terrifying children's home
The huge empty villa, located in Italy, is the former home of the owner of vineyards in the region and it was last used as a home for children.
Vineyard owners used to live here
Is this really uninhabitable?
The image depicts an old throne in an abandoned chateau in France.
Sadly, this appears to be one of the only images were the house still looks reasonably habitable.
This shot makes the chateau almost look in good enough nick to live in
Another failed business
A former industrial boss, based in Italy, previously owned this spacious villa.
After a huge fire the inhabitants were forced to move out of the property.
A catastrophic fire destroyed this lavish home
A shopping trick could be needed to fill the cupboards
Another old chateau in France boasts a room-sized closet, the colours suggest it was a woman's storage space.
Would you have enough belongings to cram into this incredible room-sized closet?
Magical building that is too costly to repair
Many of the chateaus have been left to fall apart due to the owners having a lack of funds to repair the beautiful buildings.
All of the windows seem to have been smashed on the derelict building
To see more pictures, visit Stefan Baumann's website: