to his Coburg residence and commissioned some of his work "to be used at festivities of the time." The Duke was so enthusiastic about Österreich that he invited him to stay to replace his recently deceased court Kapellmeister. Whether by a temporary appointment or an invitation from the Duke of Saxe-Coburg, Österreich desired to remain in Coburg on account of the relatively stable political situation. Frederick IV, however, did not want to lose Österreich permanently and promised that if he would return to his old position in Schleswig, he would reverse the cutbacks to the court's music budget. It is not clear whether the Duke kept his promise. Some documents from the period 1698 to 1702 reference the court ensemble and works from the time would require a considerable number of performers. However, court accounts reflect salaries only for the Kapellmeister and one organist, though it may be the case that non-resident musicians were used for larger performances and were paid by the project. Decline of the Gottorfer Court Ensemble In 1701, when Frederick IV set off to the east to serve at the side of his brother-in-law Karl XII of Sweden in the Northern War, the court at Schleswig was dissolved once again. Only Österreich retained his position, though the duke permitted him to leave and make his living by music elsewhere as long as he returned and resumed his duties as soon as the court was reconstituted. In the meantime, Österreich had inherited a brewery in Brunswick from his father-in-law where he moved with his family in 1702. But in December of that year, he had to resume his duties in Gottorf for Frederick IV's burial after he was killed in the Battle of Klissow. Brunswick Wolfenbüttel (1702–1735) It is difficult to reconstruct Österreich's employment after he moved to Brunswick. Initially, he and his family probably lived off of the inheritance from his father-in-law and the income from the brewery. However, as a 1704 letter shows, these savings began to run short and Österreich would have needed to find a new position even if he had not been dismissed from service in Gottorf. One biographer writes that he participated in the church music and took over as cantor of the castle church but his position as castle cantor can only be confirmed from 1724, though it cannot be ruled out that he held the position earlier. It is