This post is based primarily on Don's notes, occasionally supplemented with MT's notes from our cruise in 2018. When information from other sources is added—for further explanation to readers or to satisfy our own curiosity—that is set off in a text box (as this one).
Most of the photos that accompany this post are from Don’s camera (with a caption indicating the time it was taken); those from MT’s iPhone are indicated by “MT” placed at the beginning of the photo caption. Photos from any other source (such as the public domain Wikimedia Commons), occasionally used for clarification, indicate that source in the caption.
We
woke at 6:30 am, and the Viking Bragi arrived in Vienna around 6:30.
Vienna or in German Wien (pronounced veen) is the federal
capital and largest city of Austria (pop. 1.8 million in the city and 2.6
million in the metropolitan area). The city’s roots lie in early Celtic and
Roman settlements that transformed into a medieval and Baroque city and then
into the capital of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Before the splitting of that
empire in WWI, the city had 2 million inhabitants.
The English name Vienna is borrowed from the Italian
version of the city’s name or the French Vienne.
Some experts claim that the name comes from Vedunia,
meaning “forest stream,” which later produced the Old High German Uuenia (Wenia in modern writing), and the New High German Wien. Others believe the name comes from
the Roman settlement name of Celtic extraction Vindobona, probably meaning “fair village, white settlement).
There is evidence of continuous
habitation in the Vienna area since 500 BC, when Celts settled the site on the
Danube. In 15 BC, the Romans fortified the frontier city they called Vindobona
to guard the roman Empire against Germanic tribes from the north. In 976,
Leopold I of Babenberg became count of the Eastern March, a district on the
eastern frontier of Bavaria centering on the Danube. This district grew into
the duchy of Austria; the oldest mention of that name dates back to 996, when
it was written “ostarrîchi” (this eventually became the modern German name of
Austria, Österreich, meaning eastern realm or empire). Each succeeding Babenberg
ruler expanded the march east along the Danube, eventually encompassing Vienna
and the lands immediately east. In 1145, the Babenberg family residence was
moved to Vienna, which in 1440 became the resident city of the Habsburg
dynasty. It eventually grew to become the de
facto capital of the Holy Roman Empire (800-1806), although Hungary
occupied the city in 1485-90. In 1804, during the Napoleonic Wars, Vienna
became the capital of the Austrian Empire. After the Austro-Hungarian
Compromise of 1867, Vienna remained the capital of what was then the
Austro-Hungarian Empire. In the latter half of the 19th century, the city
developed what had previously been bastions and other fortifications into the
Ringstraße (meaning ring street), a new boulevard surrounding the historical
town. Austria-Hungary was one of the Central Powers in WWI, and after that war
it was once again split into the Republic of German-Austria and the Kingdom of
Hungary in 1918. In 1919, German Austria became the First Austrian Republic,
still with Vienna as capital. In Hitler’s Anschluß (annexation) of 1938,
Austria ceased to exist, and Vienna lost its status as a capital (Austria did
not regain full sovereignty until 1955). In 1945, the Soviets besieged Vienna
and British and American air raids destroyed or damaged thousands of public and
private buildings. After 11 days, Vienna fell, Austria was separated from
Germany, and Vienna was restored as the republic’s capital, although the Soviet
hold on the city remained until 1955. As with Berlin, Vienna was divided into
four sectors (US, UK, French, and Soviet) in 1945, although it was located
within the Soviet-occupied Eastern Austria. The four-power control lasted until
the Austrian State Treaty of 1955, which guaranteed Austria’s neutrality (it
would align with neither NATO nor the Soviet bloc).
Vienna: map of city center, provided by Viking.
At 8:30, we departed for the included “Vienna Up Close City Tour,” which was not listed as an option on the original schedule. After not caring for the “Panorama” whirlwind bus tour of an earlier city, we had opted for this instead of the normally included “Panoramic Vienna” shore excursion. Although the Viking Daily said this tour could have a maximum of 30 guests, only 4 had signed up. We walked with the 13E guide to the nearby Metro station Vorgartenstraße.
On the way to the Metro station, we passed the Kaiserjubiläumskirche near our dock (No. 8).
Wednesday, 22 Aug 2018, 8:26 AM – Vienna: Kaiserjubiläumskirche – towers, from
dock No., 8 (telephoto 156 mm).
The Kirche zum heiligen Franz von Assisi (Church of St. Francis of
Assisi), also known as the Kaiserjubiläumskirche
(Emperor’s Jubilee Church) or colloquially as the Mexicokirche (Mexico Church),
is a basilica-style Catholic church on Mexicoplatz (Mexico Square) in Vienna,
near the shore of the Danube. The names of Mexicokirche and Mexicoplatz
commemorate the fact that Mexico was the only country outside of the Soviet
Union to protest against the Anschluss (annexation) of Austria by Nazi Germany
in 1938. Its foundation stone was laid in 1900 in celebration of the 50th
anniversary of the reign (1848-1916) of Emperor Franz Joseph I of Austria, although
construction was delayed until 1903 due to the death of the original architect
and financial problems. The capstone was laid in 1910, and in 1913, when the
raw construction was essentially completed, the ceremonial benediction of the
still uncompleted church took place. Work on the church was again interrupted
during WWI. The church was finally consecrated in 1965. The four-bay,
basilica-like brick building was designed in the Rhenish-Romanesque style,
based on the Groß St. Martin church in Cologne. Its three red-tiled towers are
visible several kilometers away. The wooden canopies over the three main
entrances were intended only as a provisional measure for the inauguration
ceremony, but still remain today.
8:44 AM – Vienna: Kaiserjubiläumskirche – apse and
towers.
8:47 AM – Vienna: Kaiserjubiläumskirche – apse, north side,
and towers.
MT 8:44 AM – Vienna: Kaiserjubiläumskirche – apse,
north side, and towers.
8:49 AM – Vienna: Kaiserjubiläumskirche – north side.
8:50 AM – Vienna: Kaiserjubiläumskirche – north side
and tower.
8:51 AM – Vienna: Kaiserjubiläumskirche – door on north
side below north tower.
At the Metro station, our guide gave each of us two Metro tickets (for which she paid €2.40 each) for one-hour use to and from the Metro station Oper near the Cathedral in the city center.
Vienna: map of city center, cropped to the area included in our “Vienna Up
Close City Tour.”
We would begin at the Staatsoper (bottom center), go to the northwest around the east side of the Hofburg complex, then generally in the direction of the Judenplatz (top center), and then back to the Cathedral on Stephansplatz.
We arrived at the Metro station Oper and emerged near the Staatsoper.
9:12 AM – Vienna: Staastoper; the small sign on this
side indicates it is on “Herbert von Karajan-Platz.”
The Wiener Staatsoper (Vienna State Opera) was originally called the
Wiener Hofoper (Vienna Court Opera). It was renamed in 1920, when the Habsburg
Monarchy was replaced by the first Austrian Republic. Construction, in the
Neo-Romanesque style, began in 1861 and was completed in 1869. It was the first
major building on Vienna’s Ringstraße (Ring Street). After it was partially
destroyed by American bombing in 1945, lengthy discussion took place about
whether to restore it to its original state on the same site or to demolish it
and rebuild at a different site. Eventually, the decision was made to rebuild
the opera house in a design similar to the original but with some
modernizations in keeping with the design of the 1950s. The façade, entrance
hall, and the foyer, which had not been destroyed by the bombs, were restored
and remain in their original style. Many private donations were made, as well
as donations of building material from the Soviets, who were very interested in
rebuilding the opera. The Staatsoper was reopened in 1955 and is one of the
world’s most illustrious opera houses.
Vienna: Wiener Staatsoper –
view from Ringstraße of façade and side on Karajanplatz (By Bwag - Own work, CC
BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=49712672).
Herbert
von Karajan
(1908-89) was a famous Austrian conductor of the Berlin Philharmonic for 35
years. Generally regarded as one of gthe greatest conductors pof the 20th
century, he was a dominant figure in European classical music from the
mid-1950s until his death.
9:13 AM – Vienna: Staastoper - side on “Herbert von
Karajan Platz” with Opernbrunnen (Opera Fountain), with view down street (Kärtnerstraße)
to Stephansdom cathedral (MT at bottom right listening to the guide on QuietVox
audio receiver).
This is one of two matching Opernbrunnen (Opera Fountains) built in
1868 and unveiled at the same time as the Opera in 1869.
From the Staatsoper, we headed northeast on Kärtnerstraße.
The Kärtnerstraße (English: Carinthian Street) is the most famous
shopping street in central Vienna. It runs from the Stephansplatz out to the
Wiener Staatsoper on the Ringstraße. The first record of the street is from
1257, as Strata Carintianorum,
referring to its importance as a trade route to the southern province of
Carinthia. Carinthia (German: Kärnten) is now the southernmost Austrian state
or Land.
9:13 AM – Vienna: view down street from Karajanplatz to
Stephansdom cathedral with more of Staatsoper on left.
9:17 AM – Vienna: Staastoper - side on Karajanplatz
with red banner for Mozart concert and street sign for “I. Stadt Herbert von
Karajan-Platz” and small sign below it strangely pointing upward to “WC”
toilets.
Vienna is divided into 23
districts. District 1, the Innere Stadt (Inner City) is the city center, with numerous
historical sites.
9:13 AM – Vienna: Palais Esterházy with sign high on corner
for Casino Wien; lower on corner is a street sign for Philharmonikerstraße, and
at left is entrance of Hotel Sacher.
Casino
Wien
is located in Palais Esterházy
(Esterházy Palace), the oldest building on the famous Kärtnerstraße. The
Baroque palace owned by the noble Esterházy family was originally built in
1685-95 but got its current appearance in 1806-20. In the 20th century, the
family hardly used it. After renovations following WWII, most parts were leased
out. It now houses a famous and popular restaurant in the former wine cellars,
called Esterházykeller.
Hotel
Sacher,
at Philharmonikerstraße 4 near the former residence of Antonio Vivaldi, was
opened in 1876 by Eduard Sacher (1843-92). It was a luxury hotel, and its
hallmark was the famous Original Sachertorte (Sacher cake) invented by his
father Franz Sacher (1816-1907) in 1832. Eduard had opened his first
restaurant, Café Sacher, in 1873, also
at Philharmonikerstraße 4. The hotel is now one of the most renowned in the
world.
At
this corner, we turned left (northwest) off Kärtnerstraße onto Philharmonikerstraße (Philhamonic
Street).
9:13 AM (Cropped) – Vienna: Palais Esterházy with
street sign for Philharmonikerstraße on corner, and plaque (see red circle) by
entrance of Café Sacher on ground floor.
9:19 AM – Vienna: Philharmonikerstraße – plaque on
building.
9:19 AM (Cropped) – Vienna: Philharmonikerstraße – plaque
on building, in German, which translates:
“Here
lived in the year 1741 the great composer
Antonio
Vivaldi,
[born]
4 March 1678 in Venice † [died] 28 July
1741 in Vienna
Dedicated
by
Orchestra
and Professors Band of the Technical University of Vienna.”
Then
Philharmonikerstraße led us toward the Albertinaplatz
(Albertina Square).
9:21 AM – Vienna: Albertinaplatz – Hotel Sacher and Café
Mozart on left, and at end of square is the Riunione Adriatica di Sicurtà
building, now owned by Generali-Versicherung.
The Italian insurance company Riunione Adriatica di Sicurtà (Adriatic Insurance Association)—RAS for short—was founded in Trieste, Italy in 1838 and in that same year established branches called General Agencies in Vienna and other foreign capitals. In 1890, RAC established its first subsidiary in Vienna, under the name Internationale-Unfall-und-Schadens-Versicherungs-Aktiengesellschaft (International Accident and Indemnity Insurance Limited). “Internationale Unfall” and the head office of RAS in Vienna were located in the same building. The building, constructed in 1911-13, is No. 26754 in a list of protected monuments in Vienna, as the building of Riunione Adriatica di Sicurtà.
The Assicurazioni Generali Austro-Italiche
(General Assurance Company Austro-Italian) was founded in Trieste in 1830 and opened
a branch in Vienna in 1832. That branch, known as Generali Versicherung AG, is now a leading insurance company in
Austria, as part of the Generali Gruppe Österreich (Generali Group Austria).
9:21 AM – Vienna: Albertinaplatz – equestrian statue of
Archduke Albrecht above and behind the Albrechtsbrunnen in front of the
entrance to the Albertina (building at right).
The Albertinaplatz (Albertina Square) is on the former site of part of
the medieval city wall of Vienna built in the 16th century. After the decision
of Emperor Franz Joseph I in 1857 to tear down the city wall and replace it
with the Ringstraße, the area was greatly altered, and the Albrechtsbrunnen (Albert
Fountain) aka Danubiusbrunnen (Danube Fountain) was erected in 1864-69. In
1877, the small square at the intersection of six streets and alleys was named Albertinaplatz,
after the Palais Erzherzog Albrecht (Palace of the Archduke Albert), which
faced the square. In 1899, the large equestrian statue of the Erzherzog-Albrecht-Denkmal
(Archduke Albert Monument) was erected in the square in front of the entrance
to the palace, now known as the Palais Albertina. In 1934, the name of the
square was changed to Albertinaplatz.
The Albrechtsbrunnen (Albert Fountain) aka Danubiusbrunnen (Danube
Fountain), located in front of the Albrechtsrampe (ramp leading to the entrance
of the Albertina), was built in 1864-69. The wall around the fountain has
sculptures in the niches depicting allegories of Danubious (the Danube) and
Vindobona (Vienna) in the middle and allegories of large tributaries of the
Danube to both sides.
Behind the Albrechtsbrunnen, in the
forecourt of Palais Albertina, about 10 m above street level, with a view of
the Staatsoper, stands the Erzherzog-Albrecht-Denkmal
(Archduke Albert Monument), a large equestrian statue of the Field Marshall
Archduke Albert erected in 1899.
The Albertina is a museum in the Innere Stadt (First District) of
Vienna. It is housed in the Palais Albertina (Albertina Palace), also known as
Palais Erzherzog Albrecht (Palace of the Archduke Albert) at the southern end
of the Hofburg. This palace is considered a part of the Hofburg because of its
structural connections to the Augustinian monastery of the Hofburg complex. It
was originally built in the second half of the 17th century as the Hofbauamt (Court
Construction Office). In 1744, it was refurbished by the director of the
Hofbauamt, Count Silva-Tarouca, to become his palace and was therefore called
Palais Taroucca. The building was later taken over by Archduke Albert of
Saxony-Teschen (1738-1822), a German prince from the House of Wettin who
married into the Habsburg imperial family. Albert used it as his residence, now
called the Palais Albertina after him. He later brought his extensive
collection of graphics (begun with nearly 1,000 pieces of art) there from
Brussels. He had the building extended so that it immediately bordered the Hofburg.
The collection was expanded by Albert’s successors. In 1919, ownership of both
the building and the collection passed from the Habsburgs to the newly founded
Republic of Austria. In 1945, the Albertina was heavily damaged by Allied bomb
attacks. After the war, the building was rebuilt and was completely refurbished
and modernized in 1998-2003. The collection now includes a million etchings,
engravings, and lithographs; over 65,000 watercolors and drawings; and around
70,000 photographs. It also includes one of the largest and finest collections
of old masters paintings and drawings in the world.
“Warning
Monument against War and Fascism
By
Alfred Hrdlicka
Erected
by the City of Vienna
In
the Year of Remembrance 1988
In
this place stood the Philipphof,
which
was destroyed on 12 March 1945 during a bombing
attack.
Hundreds of people,
who
had sought refuge in the basement of the building,
lost
their lives there.
To
all victims of war and fascism
this
warning monument is dedicated.”
The Philipphof was a well-known, very stately, large residential
building in the Albertinaplatz. The Ziererhof, erected in 1884, was soon renamed
Philipphof. During WWII, an air-raid shelter was built in the basement of the
building to provide shelter for residents of the building and surrounding
houses. On March 12, 1945, shortly before the end of the war, the heaviest air
raid on Vienna took place, during which US aircraft almost exclusively bombed
the historic center of the city. During this attack, the area around the
Albertinaplatz was almost completely destroyed. The Philipphof and its air-raid
shelter collapsed and buried more than 300 people under the rubble. The exact
number of victims is unknown, since only 180 bodies could be recovered. Out of
respect for the victims still buried under the Albertinaplatz, no new buildings
were erected there.
9:22 AM – Vienna: Albertinaplatz – small sculpture near
that plaque (telephoto 93 mm).
9:22 3AM – Vienna: Albertinaplatz – small sculpture
near that plaque, top view.
9:23 AM – Vienna: Albertinaplatz – larger sculptures as
part of monument.
From the Albertinaplatz, we headed northwest on Augustinerstraße, which would take us along the east side of the Hofburg complex.
General plan of Hofburg Palace:
1 Swiss Wing, 2a Augustinian Church, 2b Augustinian Monastery, 3 Stallburg, 4 Amalienburg, 5
Leopoldine Wing, 6 Redouten Wing, 7 Winter Riding School, 8 Imperial Library, 9
Augustinian Wing, 10 Archduke Albrecht Palace (formerly Tarouca-de Sylva
Palace), 11 Imperial Chancellory Wing, 12 Festsaal - Festival Hall Wing, 13 St.
Michael's Wing, 14 Neue Burg Wing, 15 Corps de Logis, 16 Palm House, A Inner Castle Square, B Ballhausplatz - Ball House Square, C St. Michael's Square, D
Schweizerhof - Swiss Court, E Joseph Square, F Albertina Square, G Burggarten -
Castle Garden, H Heldenplatz (former Outer Castle Square).
Historical construction stages in colors:
13th to 17th century
18th century
19th to 20th century
The Hofburg (meaning Court Palace or Castle of the Court) was initially
planned in the 13th century as the seat of the Dukes of Austria and expanded
over the centuries as they became increasingly powerful. In 1438-1583 and again
in 1612-1806, it was the seat of the Habsburg kings and emperors of the Holy Roman
Empire, and thereafter until 1918 the seat of the Emperors of Austria. Since
then, the palace has continued as the seat of the head of state and today
serves as the official residence and workplace of the President of Austria.
Since 1279 the Hofburg area has
been the documented seat of government. Expansions over the centuries include
various residences (with the Amalienburg and the Albertina), the imperial
chapel (Hofkapelle or Burgkapelle), the imperial library (Hofbibliothek), the
treasury (Schatzkammer), the Burgtheater, the Spanish Riding School
(Hofreitschule), and the imperial stables (Stallburg and Hofstallungen). The
palace faces the Heldenplatz (Heroes Square), ordered under the reign of
Emperor Franz Joseph I, as part of the Kaiserforum that was planned but never
completed.
In the 13th century, the castle
originally had a square outline, with four turrets, and was surrounded by a
moat with a drawbridge at the entrance. These oldest sections today form the Swiss
Court (Schweizerhof), which includes a Gothic chapel (Burgkapelle) dating from
the 15th century, and the Treasury (Schatzkammer). The Court Music Chapel
(Hofmusikkapelle) is located in the Court Chapel (Hofburgkapelle) and is where
the Vienna Bous’ Choir sings mass on Sundays. The current appearance of the
Swiss Court dates from the Renaissance, during the reign of Emperor Ferdinand I
(1558-1564).
Across from the Josefsplatz square
from the Hofburg are two palaces. The Palais Pallavicini, completed in 1784, is
a blend of Baroque and Neo-Classical styles. The Palffy Palace was built in the
16th century.
The Augustinerstraße toward the Augustinerkirche.
9:29 AM – Vienna: Augustinerkirche – sign pointing to
“Eingang” (entrance) of “Augustinerkirche St. Augustin ehem. k[aiserliche]
k[önigliche] Hofpfarrkirche (Augustinian Church St. Augustine, former imperial
royal Court Parish Church).
Built right before the adjacent
Court Library (now the Austrian National Library), on the southeast side of the
Josefsplatz square, is the Baroque Augustinian
Wing of the Hofburg with the Augustinerkirche (Augustinian Church) and
Augustinian monastery.
Vienna: Augustinian monastery (left) and tower of Augustinerkirche -view from Albertinaplatz
(By Bede735c - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=24353498).
The Augustinerkirche (Augustinian Church), as it in locally known,
although officially named St. Augustin (St. Augustine), is located on
Josefsplatz, on the west side of the Hofburg, the winter palace of the Habsburg
dynasty in Vienna. The church was founded in 1327 by Herzog Friedrich der
Schöne (Duke Frederick the Handsome or the Fair), with a cloister for the
Augustinian friars, and therefore called the Augustinerkirche. It was actually
erected between 1330 and 1339. From 1634 until 1918, it became the Hofpfarrkirche
(Court Parish Church). Thus it witnessed numerous imperial weddings over the
centuries, including the marriage of Archduchess (and future Empress) Maria
Theresa to Duke Francis of Lorraine in 1736, that of Marie Antionette to Louis
XVI of France in 1770, that of Archduchess Marie Louise to Napoleon in 1810 (by
proxy—he didn’t show up), and that of Emperor Franz Joseph I to Duchess
Elisabeth of Bavaria in 1854. Besides the stunning Gothic interior, which
replaced the previously Baroque decoration in the 18th century, it is renowned
for the pyramidal tomb of Maria Christina, the favorite daughter of Maria
Theresa. Its crypt houses 54 silver casks containing the hearts of the
Habsburgs. The Augustinian cloister was dissolved in 1837 due to the lack of
monks, the diocesan priests took over the parish. In 1951, however, The Augustinians
returned, and it is still a functioning Augustinian monastery, serving the
needs of the parish.
Friedrich
der Schöne
(Frederick the Handsome or the Fair), from the House of Habsburg, was Duke of
Austria from 1308 as Friedrich I as well as King of Germany from 1314 to his
death in 1330 as Friedrich III. After the death of Emperor Heinrich VII in
1313, since the votes of the electors were split, two kings were crowned in the
Holy Roman Empire: Friedrich of the House of Habsburg and Ludwig the Bavarian
of the House of Wittelsbach. However, by 1325, Ludwig had won the imperial
throne and Friedrich played only a minor role in the Reich.
9:31 AM – Vienna: equestrian statue of Emperor Joseph
II on Josefsplatz (mild telephoto 72 mm).
The Josefsplatz (Joseph’s Square) is centered on a full-size equestrian
statue and monument of Emperor Joseph II, erected between 1795 and 1807. The
statue was modeled on the statue of Marcus Aurelius on the Capitoline Hill in
Rome. The depiction of Joseph II as a Roman conqueror, dressed in a toga and a
laurel wreath, reflects the Habsburg belief that they were descendants of the
ancient Roman emperors. The square is enclosed on three sides by sections of
the Hofburg palace.
9:32 AM – Vienna: Lipizzaner horses passing that
equestrian statue on their way back to the Stallburg stables, probably after
the morning exercise in the Winter Riding School; banners on building in left
background for events at Österreichische Nationalbibliothek (Austrian National
Library). To the left is the Redoubt Wing of the Hofburg.
MT 9:28 AM – Vienna: Lipizzaner horses passing that
equestrian statue on their way back to the Stallburg stables, probably after
the morning exercise in the Winter Riding School; banners on building in left
background for events at Österreichische Nationalbibliothek (Austrian National
Library). To the left is the Redoubt Wing of the Hofburg.
9:32 AM – Vienna: Lipizzaner horses continuing across Josefsplatz
square and past the Redoubt Wing of the Hofburg (left) and Palais Pallavicini
(on right) toward the Stallburg stables of the Spanish Riding School.
9:32 AM – Vienna: Austrian National Library – entrance
and left side on side facing Josefsplatz.
The Österreichische Nationalbibliothek (Austrian National Library) is
located in the Neue Burg (New Palace) wing of the Hofburg palace, with
entrances on Josefsplatz (Joseph’s Square) and Heldenplatz (Heroes Square). Both
squares have an equestrian statue.
In 1368, the Austrian Duke Albrecht
III moved his collection of books into the imperial chapel of the Hofburg and
established it as the Kaiserliche Hofbibliothek (Imperial Court Library). Over
time, the library expanded due to acquisitions of later Habsburg rulers and
donations from personal libraries of various scholars. In 1722, Holy Roman
Emperor Karl VI (Charles VI) authorized construction of a permanent home for
the library, in Baroque style, in a new wing (Neue Burg) of the Hofburg. The
Court Library was built between 1723 and 1726. It is the largest Baroque
library in the world.
Vienna: Austrian National
Library in 1835 (By Balthasar Wigand (1771-1846) - dorotheum.com, Public
Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=17142531).
With the advent of the Republic of Austria following WWI, the change to the current name occurred in 1920. In 1966, large parts of the collection were moved from the building on Josefsplatz into the Neue Burg wing on Heldenplatz.
The Neue Burg (New Palace), completed in 1913, was part of a planned
Kaiserforum (Imperial Forum), which was never completed. This project was the
last great expansion of the Hofburg, following the enlargement of Vienna after
the demolition of the old city walls in the 1860s. The Neue Burg wing today houses
a number of museums, some reading rooms of the Austrian National Library, and
the Hofburg Conference Center.
In addition to its function as a
library, the central structure facing the Augustinerstraße, the Prunksaal (State Hall) was also
designed as a concert hall with superb acoustics. To the left of the Prunksaal
is the Augustinian wing of the Austrian National Library and the
Augustinerkirche, the oldest building on the Josefsplatz. To the right of the
Prunksaal and facing the Augustinerkirche is the Redoutensäle (Redoubt Hall), which was added to the Hofburg complex
in 1744-48. The Redoutensäle consists of two dancing and concert halls, which
together with a number of smaller antechambers, form the Redoutentrakt (Redoubt
Wing). The Redoutensäle was badly damaged by fire in 1992 but was restored
within five years.
MT 9:32 AM – Vienna: Austrian National Library –
entrance and right side of side facing Josefsplatz.
9:36 AM (Cropped) – Vienna: Austrian National Library
roof, including a golden globe carried by Atlas (at left) and a second golden
globe (on the right) carried not by Atlas but by a female figure.
9:33 AM – Vienna: sculptures, including Atlas supporting
a globe, on roof of Austrian National Library (telephoto 156 mm).
9:33 AM – Vienna: more sculptures on roof above entrance
of Austrian National Library on Josefsplatz, above inscription in Latin
including “Bibliothecam” (library) and ending with Roman numerals for 1726.
(telephoto 156 mm).
Vienna: sculptures, including female figure supporting a golden globe, on roof
of Austrian National Library (By Thomas Quine - Golden globe, CC BY 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=67001608).
9:33 AM – Vienna: Palais Pallavicini.
9:35 AM – Vienna: Palais Pallavicini – historical
marker sign, in German and English, for “Palais Pallavicini”; English text:
“[in] 1783-1784 built by Ferdinand v[on] Hohenberg, formerly Palais Fries.”
Posted by Vienna Tourist Board.
The Palais Pallavicini (Pallavicini Palace) is located on the
Josefsplatz. It forms an architectural ensemble with the Hofburg imperial
palace and the Spanish Riding School. It was built in 1784 by Count Johann von
Fries in the High Baroque style with some features of Neo-Classicism. What is
now recognized as an exciting transition between two architectural styles
causes considerable scandal in its day. Since it directly faced the Hofburg,
the stark simplicity of its façade was highly controversial, and the
“baroqueification” of the façade was a necessary architectural concession to
the Baroque magnificence of the surrounding buildings. It was owned for many
years by the Fries banking family and was therefore known of Palais Fries. The
powerful lines of the building are animated by the entrance and the parapet.
The caryatids (statues on either side on the entrance) and the female figures
on the parapet are by the same sculptor as the famous statue of Emperor Joseph
in the Josefsplatz facing the palace. Since 1842, the palace has been owned by the
noble Pallavicini family. Fortunately, it did not suffer any serious damage in
the two World Wars and is still in its original state.
Next,
we came to the Stallburg.
Vienna: Stallburg – south
wing, seen from Josefsplatz (By MrPanyGoff - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=20577148).
In the northwest corner of the
Josefsplatz square is the Stallburg
(Stable Palace), the former Imperial Stables. Built in the 16th century, the
Stallburg was originally built as a residence for the then crown prince
Maximilian. Then it housed an art collection between 1614 and 1662. The
building was later converted during the Baroque era into stables for the
Hofburg, surrounding a large courtyard with arcades on three levels with
chimneys. It housed the imperial horses on the ground floor and was used by the
Spanish Riding School. It once housed around 900 Lipizzaner horses. Today the
Stallburg houses the Spanish Riding School and the Lipizzaner Museum.
The Spanische Reitschule (Spanish Riding School) is located inside the
Hofburg, between the Michaelerplatz and the Josefsplatz. The riding school was
first mentioned, as the Spanische Hofreitschule (Spanish Court Riding School),
during the Habsburg Monarchy in 1572, but it wasn’t until 1729 that Emperor Charles
VI commissioned the Baroque riding hall used today. The “Spanish” part of the
name came from the Spanish horses that formed one of the bases of the
Lipizzaner breed, which was developed in the 16th century with the support of
the Habsburg family. It is the traditional riding school of the Lipizzaner
horses that perform classical dressage in the Winterreitschule (Winter Riding
School), built in 1729-35, in the Hofburg. After performing or training, the
horses return to the stables, known as the Stallburg (Stable Palace), located
next to what is now called simply the Spanish Riding School. The Stallburg is
one of Vienna’s most prominent Renaissance buildings. Traditionally,
Lipizzaners at the school have been trained and ridden only by men, but women
have been allowed since 2008.
9:37 AM – Vienna: Stallburg – inner courtyard with
stables in ground floor arcades.
9:37 AM – Vienna: Stallburg – full view of inner
courtyard with stables in ground floor arcades.
9:37 AM – Vienna: Stallburg – poster for “Levade” with
Lipizzaner.
Levade is a show-ring
movement in which a horse raises its forequarters, brings the hindquarters
under him, and balances with haunches deeply bent and forelegs drawn up.
MT 9:33 AM – Vienna: Stallburg – Lipizzaner horse in
stable in ground floor arcades (mild telephoto 56 mm).
9:39 AM – Vienna: Stallburg – Lipizzaner horse in stable
(left) and more of ground floor arcades.
9:40 AM – Vienna: Hofburg – St. Michael’s Wing, facing
St. Michael’s Square.
The Michaelertrakt (St. Michael’s Wing) of the Hofburg, facing the
Michaelerplatz (St. Michael’s Square), serves as the connection between the
Winter Riding School (Winterreitschule) and the Imperial Chancellery Wing
(Reichskanzleitrakt). It was built in 1889-93 and named after the nearby St.
Michaelerkirche (St. Michael’s Church).
9:41 AM – Vienna: Hofburg – St. Michael’s Wing façade
with Michaelertor (St. Michael’s Gate).
9:41 AM (Cropped) – Vienna: Hofburg – St. Michael’s
Wing façade with Michaelertor (St. Michael’s Gate); statues flanking smaller,
rectangular door at left are Hercules defeating the Lernaean Hydra (on left)
and Hercules and the Amazon Queen Hippolyta (on right).
9:42 AM – Vienna: Hofburg – St. Michael’s Wing, with
sign just to left of Hercules defeating the Lernaean Hydra statue pointing to
right to “Spanische Hofreitschule” (telephoto 105 mm).
9:42 AM – Vienna: Hofburg – St. Michael’s Wing, the Die
Macht zur See (Power at Sea) fountain.
After the completion of St.
Michael’s Square, two sculpted fountains were installed on the corners of the
façade of the St. Michael’s Wing of the Hofburg. The fountains, from 1893, are
called Die Macht zur See (Power at
Sea) on the left corner and Die Macht zu
Lande (Power on Land) on the right corner.
Vienna: Hofburg – St.
Michael’s Wing, fountain with statue of Die Mache zur See (Power at Sea) (By
Jebulon - Own work, CC0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=18634669).
Vienna: Hofburg – St.
Michael’s Wing, fountain with statue of Die Macht zu Lande (Power on Land) (By
Jebulon - Own work, CC0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=18704306).
In
front of the Michaelertrakt was the Michaelerplatz.
9:42 AM – Vienna: Michaelerplatz – in foreground, in
red bricks, is what our guide said was a 19th-century canal; in background are
remains of a Roman house (vertical).
The Michaelerplatz (St. Michaels Square) was designed in 1725, and
construction of its left wing began in 1729, but work stagnated during the last
years of the reign of Emperor Charles VI (died in 1740). The realization of the
Baroque plans did not take place until 1889-93, after the demolition of the old
Burgtheater that had occupied the center of the square, resulting in its
present extremely irregular shape. Since about 1850, the square has been known
by this name, after the nearby Michaelerkirche (St. Michael’s Church).
Archeological excavations in the
Michaelerplatz between 1989 and 1991 uncovered, among other things, ruins of the
settlement of Canabae associated with the Roman camp of Vindobona, from the 1st
to 5th centuries. This would have consisted primarily of the residences of
soldiers’ wives and children. The excavations also unearthed layers from the
18th and 19th centuries. The excavation site was put on public display in 1991.
The centerpiece in the square is a rectangular opening that shows the remains
of walls that have been preserved from different epochs.
A Canaba (plural Canabae) was the Latin term for a hut or hovel, but
from the time of Emperor Hadrian (reign 117-138 AD) the plural was used
typically to mean a collection of “huts” (Canabae legionis) that emerged as a
civilian settlement in the vicinity of a fortress of the Roman legions.
9:42 AM – Vienna: Michaelerplatz – in foreground, in
red bricks, is what our guide said was a 19th-century canal; in background are
remains of a Roman house (horizontal).
9:43 AM – Vienna: Michaelerplatz – ruins of
19th-century canal; the metal marker atop the far wall says “KANAL (19.JH) –
DRAINAGE SYSTEM (19TH CENTURY).”
9:44 AM – Vienna: Michaelerplatz – in foreground, in
red bricks, is ruin of a 19th-century canal; in background are remains of a
Roman house; beyond the wall of the excavation site are statues around St. Michael’s
Gate on the façade of the St. Michael’s Wing of the Hofburg.
9:42 AM – Vienna: view down street across Michaelerplatz
to St. Michael’s Wing of Hofburg.
MT 9:42 AM – Vienna: view down street across Michaelerplatz
to St. Michael’s Wing of Hofburg (mild telephoto 55 mm).
9:43 AM – Vienna: Michaelerkirche – façade and tower.
9:41 AM – Vienna: Michaelerkirche – base of façade with
sculptures on portico over entrance.
Vienna: Michaelerkirche –
façade and tower (By GryffindorThis panoramic image was created with Autostitch
(stitched images may differ from reality). - Own work, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=2961108).
The Michaelerkirche (St. Michael’s Church) is one of the oldest churches in Vienna and also one of its few remaining Romanesque buildings. Dedicated to the Archangel Michael, it is located on the Michaelerplatz across from the St. Michael’s Gate of the Hofburg. This used to be the parish church of the Imperial Court, when it was called Zum heiligen Michael (To St. Michael). Over its long history, spanning more than eight centuries, the church has incorporated a medley of architectural styles. It is a late Romanesque-early Gothic building dating from about 1220-1240. Over time, there were many alterations, resulting in its present-day appearance, unchanged since 1792.
The portico at the entrance was
built in 1724 in front of the original early Gothic portal. It is Neo-Classical
in the style of a Greek temple and is crowned with a Baroque sculptural group consisting
of the Archangel St. Michael slaying Lucifer, flanked by two other winged
angels (Raphael and Gabriel); these were created in 1725 by the same sculptor who
created the Hercules figures of the Michaelstor entrance of the Hofburg, just
opposite the church. While the rest of the portico is in reserved Neo-Classical
style, the High Baroque statues are one of the largest and, in their maximum
use of the limits imposed by their stone material, most clever Baroque
sculptures of Vienna.
Vienna: Michaelerkirche –
statues of winged angels and St. Michael slaying Lucifer above entrance (By Diana
Ringo - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0 at, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=28407338).
The present façade was built in 1792 in the Neo-Classical style typical of the reign of Emperor Joseph II. The high polygonal Gothic bell tower from the 16th century has become one of the symbols of Vienna’s Inner City.
From there, we seem to have headed to the northwest, through newer parts of the city.
9:46 AM – Vienna: window display of Demel confectioner’s
shop with cake towers with a castle with towers made of ice cream cones.
The K[önigliche]. u[nd]. K[aiserliche], Hofzuckerbäckerei Demel (Royal
and Imperial Court Confectioner’s Shop), colloquially known as “der Demel” (the
Demel), is a famous pastry shop and chocolaterie. It was opened in 1786 on the
Michaelerplatz by the confectioner Ludwig Denhe, and his son sold it to his
journeyman Christoph Demel in 1857. When the old Burgtheater was demolished in
1888 and a general refurbishment of the Michaelerplatz began, Demel’s sons
moved the shop around the corner to Kohlmarkt, where it is still located today
in the “Palais am Kohlmarkt.”
The Demel became a pilgrimage site
for those with a sweet tooth and kept its status even after the fall of the
Monarchy in 1918. Ownership eventually fell to Anna Demel, the first woman to
ever receive the title of “Councilor of Commerce” in 1957/ After Anna’s death,
her son-in-law Baron Federico of Berzevicsy-Pallavicini took over and
introduced the fascinating window displays and designs that shaped Demel’s
visual appearance. Even though Berzevicsy-Pallavicini sold the store in 1972,
it continues his tradition of “fairytale” seasonal displays that he designed as
a “theater of the street” for the entertainment of passersby even if they could
not afford a visit in Demel.
9:49 AM – Vienna: Julius Meinl store (white) at No. 19
on Graben street, and Wüstenrot building (reddish brown); our guide referred to
the two buildings as a supermarket.
Julius
Meinl
is a manufacturer and retailer of coffee, gourmet foods, and other grocery
products. It was founded by Julius Meinl I in 1862. In 1998/99, Julius Meinl V
sold the retail division, except for the high-profile flagship store, known as
Julius Meinl am Graben, in downtown Vienna. With its headquarters in Vienna,
Julius Meinl International now operates three coffee shops in Chicago and in
2015 opened a subsidiary in Cincinnati, Ohio to begin distribution in North
America. It has also opened a store in Australia.
9:50 AM – Vienna: Wüstenrot building on Graben street.
The Wüstenrot-Gruppe (Wüstenrot Group) is a popular Austrian company
dedicated to providing financial and real estate services to the public since
1925. Its two main subsidiaries are the Wüstenrot building society and the
Wüstenrot insurance company. Since 1993 they have made a major expansion into
markets in Central and Eastern Europe.
Vienna: Wüstenrot building (By
Jebulon - Own work, CC0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=19270127).
9:50 AM – Vienna: ground floor of Wüstenrot building,
with statues on pillars; sign above door
and van parked in front indicate that at least the ground floor of this building
on Graben street is also occupied by the Julius Meinl store.
9:50 AM – Vienna: next building after Wüstenrot
building on Naglergasse, with cosmetics store and sculptures on ground floor.
MT 9:46 AM – Vienna: statue on corner of next building
after Wüstenrot building on Naglergasse.
9:51 AM – Vienna: Jugendstil building with statue of Saint
Mary over Valentino boutique for women’s clothing on Tuchlauben street.
German Art Nouveau is commonly
known by its German name, Jugendstil (meaning Youth Style). It
derives its name from the Munich magazine Die
Jugend (Youth), which featured Art Nouveau designs. Jugendstil is an
artistic style that arose in Germany in the mid-1890s and continued through the
first decade of the 20th century.
9:51 AM – Vienna: statue of Saint Mary over Valentino
boutique for women’s clothing on Tuchlauben street (telephoto 119 mm).
MT 9:49 AM – Vienna: dress in window of Valentino
boutique for women’s clothing on Tuchlauben street (mild telephoto 50 mm).
9:52 AM – Vienna: view back down Tuchlauben and
Naglergasse streets to Julius Meinl and Wüstenrot building and building with
statues on corners of ground floor.
9:52 AM – Vienna: more of the Jugendstil building on Tuchlauben
street.
9:53 AM – Vienna: view ahead on street to Gothic apse
of Kirche am Hof; on the right side of the narrow Steindlgasse street at the
far end is the Gösser Bierklinik.
MT 9:49 AM – Vienna: view ahead on street to Gothic apse
of Kirche am Hof; on the right side of the narrow Steindlgasse street at the
far end is the Gösser Bierklinik (mild telephoto 50 mm).
Our
guide did not take us around to see the façade of Kirche am Hof on the Am Hof
square.
Vienna: Kirche am Hof – Baroque
façade (By Thomas Ledl - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0 at, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=38409975).
Vienna: Kirche am Hof –
Gothic apse attached to larger church (By Chris06 - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=56685576).
9:54 AM – Vienna: view back down Steindlgasse street
horse-drawn carriage about to pass Gösser Bierklinik.
MT 9:50 AM – Vienna: view back down Steindlgasse street
horse-drawn carriage about to pass Gösser Bierklinik; taller sign at top left
has picture of dragon over banner “Wien - Gösser Bierklinik – seit 1566”
(Vienna - Gösser Bierklinik – since 1566), and below the banner “zum güldenen
Drachen” (mild telephoto 41 mm).
Vienna: Gösser Bierklinik –
front of building with “Haus zum güldenen Drachen 1566” still painted above
entrance at left (Von Bwag - Eigenes Werk, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=69425234).
9:55 AM – Vienna: Gothic apse of Kirche am Hof; at end
of Steindlgasse street, with street sign for Kurrentgasse leading off to right
before the church.
9:56 AM – Vienna: other side of same intersection with
street sign for Steindlgasse back to right and sign for Kurrentgasse behind
“Einbahn” (one-way street) sign pointing to left and below that a sign
indicating that Kurrentgasse is pedestrianized, except for bicycles as well as
access for deliveries and taxis Mon-Sat/workdays from 6-10:30 and access to the
authorized parking places.
MT 9:52 AM – Vienna: Restaurant Ofenloch on
Kurrentgasse.
The Restaurant Ofenloch (meaning oven hole), at Kurrentgasse 8, has
been located here since 1704.
9:57 AM – Vienna: Bäckerei Arthur Grimm on Kurrentgasse
with old fashioned shop sign with lions holding a pretzel.
The Bäckerei Arthur Grimm (Arthur Grimm Bakery) at Kurrentgasse 10a has
existed since 1536, founded as the bakery “Zum großen Ofenloch” (of the large
oven opening). In 1840 it was named k[önigliche]. u[nd]. k[aiserliche].
Hofbäckerei” (Royal and Imperial Court Bakery). In1922 the business was taken
over by Arthur Grimm, whose name it still bears, although others have owned it
since 1962. At the time of the takeover in 1962, 17 other bakers were still
active in the center of Vienna, but the Grimm bakery is the only one that still
produces bread, pastries, and other delicacies today.
9:57 AM (Cropped) – Vienna: Bäckerei Arthur Grimm - old fashioned shop sign with lions holding
a pretzel.
Next, our guide took us to the Judenplatz.
The Judenplatz (Jewish Square) in Vienna’s Inner City was the center of
Jewish life in the Viennese Jewish Community (ghetto) in the Middle Ages. Two
sculptural works, a carved relief, and several inscribed texts are located
around the square, all relating to Jewish history. One of these is a statue of
Gotthold Ephraim Lessing. The other is a memorial to Austrian Holocaust victims
unveiled in 2000. The memorial is a reinforced concrete cube resembling a
library with its volumes turned inside out.
Jews began setting in Vienna and in
the area that was to become the Judenplatz around 1150. By 1400, the ghetto had
800 inhabitants in 70 houses that were arranges so their back walls formed a
closed delimitation wall that could be entered only by four gates. From at
least 1294, the area was called “Schulhof” (School Courtyard) because it
included the Jewish school. Later, that name was transferred to a smaller square
in the immediate neighborhood, which is still called that today. The name
“Neuer Platz” (New Square) was given to the original schoolyard in 1423, and
since 1437 it has been called Judenplatz. Although Jews in the Duchy of Austria
had been subject to local persecutions in the 13th and 14th centuries, their
position remained relatively safe, and the Jewish community around the
Judenplatz prospered. However, Duke Albrecht V, who came to power in 1411
imposed new taxes on the Jewish community to finance his campaign against the
Hussites. After the Hussites devastated the Duchy, the Austrian Jews were
accused of collaboration, giving Duke Albrecht a pretext for the destruction of
the Jewish community. In 1420, the Duke ordered the imprisonment and forcible
conversion of the Jews. The poor Jews that had not converted or escaped were
sent off in boats down the Danube, while wealthy Jews remained under arrest,
several of them tortures and stripped of their property. Persecution of the
remaining Jews in Vienna grew to a bloody climax in 1421, when 200 survivors
were burned alive.
9:58 AM – Vienna: Judenplatz - MT (at left) entering square
with Baroque building of former Bohemian Court Chancellery on far side and
statue of Lessing at left.
Vienna: Judenplatz - former Palace
of the Bohemian Court Chancellery and statue of Lessing (Von Bwag - Eigenes
Werk, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=69281319).
The Böhmische Hofkanzlei (Bohemian Court Chancellery) was an office that existed from 1527 to 1749, when the territory known as the Bohemian Estates declared itself the Kingdom of Bohemia and desired to control its own internal affairs with a separate institution from the Austrian Court Chancellery and subordinate only to the Bohemian king. Bohemia was the most important and most economically developed of the Austrian lands. Its former headquarters was on the Judenplatz in the Inner City of Vienna. It was united organizationally with the Austrian Court Chancellery in 1749.
The Palais der Böhmische Hofkanzlei (Palace of the Bohemian Court
Chancellery) was built in 1709-14 in the high Baroque style, at Wipplingerstraße
7. The central part with the entrance shows signs of its original use: a lion
(the Bohemian heraldic animal) perched on the gable, a lion’s head guarding the
entrance gate, and the Bohemian coat of arms above the first (US second) floor.
After the state reform of 1749, new authorities, also responsible for the Austrian
provinces moved into the building. In 1751-54, the building was significantly
enlarged, still in Baroque style, and its splendid façade and main entrance
were aligned to the Judenplatz. The building now occupies the entire block on
one side of the Judenplatz and has the address Judenplatz 11. It now houses the
Österreichische Verwaltungsgerichtshof (Austrian Administrative Court).
9:58 AM – Vienna: ornate entrance gate of Bohemian
Court Chancellery with Bohemian coat of arms on the floor above it; the gate
now bears the house number “No. … 11” [Judenplatz] (mild telephoto 63 mm).
The large coat of arms of the
Kingdom of Bohemia, under the dominant Bohemian royal crown, is flanked on the
right by the Moravian coat of arms and on the left by the Silesian coat of
arms. All three coats of arms are gilded and bordered by rich Rococo
decorations. The four female figures over the gate represent the Cardinal virtues
(moderation, wisdom, justice, and bravery).
Vienna: Haus der Wiener Gastwirte – facade with street sign for Judenplatz on
corner at left and sign for Mozarthaus also near that corner (By Zyance - Own
work, CC BY-SA 2.5, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=1890572).
Haus
der Wiener Gastwirte
(House of the Vienna Restaurant Owners) is located at Judenplatz 3-4 (and Kurrentgasse
5 around the corner). The Genossenschaft der Gastwirte Wiens (Association of Restaurant
Owners of Vienna) purchased this building in 1875. Since 1891, it has housed culinary
schools.
The building at Judenplatz 4 was
acquired by the City of Vienna in 1422 but sold again in 1423. In 1875, it was
bought by the Genossenschaft der Gastwirte Wiens.
The building at Judenplatz
3/Kurrentgasse 5 was aquired by the City of Vienna after the abolishment of the
Judenstadt (Jewish Town) in 1421. In 1486, the City sold it to the town clerk,
who became mayor in 1500. It was owned by a succession of prominent citizens,
including mayors, until it was purchased by the Genossenschaft der Gastwirte
Wiens in 1895.
Once the Association of Restaurant Owners
was in possession of both buildings, it had them replaced by the present
building, which bears the double number Judenplatz 3-4. The statue of
Gambrinus, sitting on a barrel, was placed at the corner of the building. In
addition, a plaque commemorates Mozart’s apartment, which had been located in
the old building at Judenplatz 3.
9:58 AM – Vienna: sign on Haus der Wiener Gastwirte, in
German, which translates: “On this site stood the house No. 244 in which W. A.
Mozart lived in the year 1783 – Association of Restaurant Owners 1929” (mild
telephoto 81 mm).
MT 9:54 AM – Vienna: sign on Haus der Wiener Gastwirte, in
German, which translates: “On this site stood the house No. 244 in which W. A.
Mozart lived in the year 1783 – Association of Restaurant Owners 1929” (mild
telephoto 68 mm).
In April 1783, Mozart and his wife moved into an apartment in the house “Zur
Mutter Gottes” (to the Mother of God). The house number was at various times
(1770, 1795, and 1821) listed as Judenplatz 3-4, Kurrentgasse 5, or
Konskriptionsnummer Stadt 244/442/409. Their first son was born there on June
17, 1783 but died on August 19 of that year. Mozart lived in an apartment on
the third floor. Here, he organized home balls, for which each male visitor had
to pay admission. This was already his third apartment after his marriage. From
1784 to 1787, the family moved to another apartment in a house near St.
Stephen’s Cathedral, which is now known as the “Mozarthaus” (Mozart House).
The Konskriptionsnummer (conscription number) was a method of numbering
houses introduced in the Habsburg monarchy. Beginning in the 18th and 19th
centuries, they were used to number houses and land for administrative purposes,
primarily for tax collection, military support purposes, and statistical tasks
(population statistics, building statistics, etc.). Initially, houses were
numbered according to when they were constructed rather than where they were
located. In Vienna, the numbering scheme was renewed (renumbered) every 25
years. All this had led to great confusion. In 1862, Vienna finally began to
use the system of house numbers that is seen today, numbering them according to
their position on a street or square.
This is one of Mozart’s many residences in Vienna. Our guide said that Mozart moved a lot and was not a good tenant.
9:58 AM – Vienna: Judenplatz – street sign on Haus der Wiener Gastwirte identifying
this as “JudenPlatz” in “I. Stadt” (Inner City).
9:59 AM – Vienna: Judenplatz – statue of Lessing with
former Palace of the Bohemian Court Chancellery in background left.
The first Lessing-Denkmal (Lessing Monument) was erected in 1935 on the
Judenplatz. In 1939, after the Anschluß (annexation) of Austria by Germany, the
Nazis carried the statue away and melted down to be used the metal for
manufacturing armaments. In 1968, a new bronze statue by the same sculptor was
unveiled near the Ruprechtskirche; in 1981, it was moved back to its original
location on the Judenplatz.
The German poet and playwright Gotthold Ephraim Lessing (1729-81) wrote
essays and plays that advocated great toleration of German Jews. Lessing, the
most important representative of the German Enlightenment, spent 1775-76 in
Vienna and was received in an audience by Emperor Josef II. In his last and
most famous play, “Nathan der Weise” (Nathan the Wise, 1779), the title
character was largely modeled after his close friend Moses Mendelssohn, a
prominent German Jewish philosopher who was the founder of the Jewish
Enlightenment.
9:59 AM – Vienna: Judenplatz - side view of statue of Lessing, with Jordanhaus in background left and Haus der Wiener Gastwirte in background right.
10:01 AM – Vienna: Judenplatz – Holocaust Memorial with
MT and others in our group.
The Judenplatz Holocaust Memorial was unveiled in 2000 in the middle of
the northwest end of the square. In German, it is officially known as “Mahnmal
für die Österreichischen Jüdischen Opfer der Schoah” (Memorial for the Austrian
Jewish Victims of the Holocaust). It consists of a 10 by 7 meter steel and concrete
block that is 3.8 meters tall. It is designed as if one of the surrounding
buildings had a room turned inside out and placed in the middle of the square.
The walls of the memorial resemble library shelves with the spines of the books
turned inwards so that the names of the books are not legible. This “nameless” library
has a symbolic double-door entrance that is not accessible, since it has no
doorknobs or handles. However the memorial has a close relation to the exhibit
installed in the neighboring Misrach-Haus (Jewish Museum), where the names and
data of 65,000 murdered Austrian Jews are documented and accessible through
computer terminals. The memorial also includes a concrete plinth on which are
written the names of the 41 places at which Austrian Jews went to their deaths
during Nazi rule.
10:01 AM – Vienna: Judenplatz – inscription (English) on
pavement in front of doors of Holocaust Memorial, with part of Hebrew
inscription to left of Don’s shadow.
On the concrete floor in front of
the locked double doors is a text in German, Hebrew, and English:
“Zum Gedenken an die mehr als 65
000 österreichischen Juden, die in der Zeit von 1938 bis 1945 von den Nationalsozialisten
ermordet wurden.
“זכר למעלה מ-65.000 יהודים אוסטריים
שנרצחו בשנים 1945-1938
ע"י הפושעים הנציונלסוציאליסטיים
ימ"ש.
“In commemoration of more than
65,000 Austrian Jews who were killed by the Nazis between 1938 and 1945.”
“MEMORIAL
TO THE AUSTRIAN JEWISH VICTIMS OF THE SHOAH[, 2000]
“The
memorial commemorates the 65,000 [primarily] Viennese Jews [male and female] who
were murdered during the Nazi regime. It was created on the initiative of Simon
Wiesenthal (1908-2005). The reinforced concrete cube by the British artist
Rachel Whiteread (b. 1963) represents an introverted [(pages) turned outward],
non-accessible library. Countless editions of the apparently same book stand
for the large number of victims and their life stories. The Judenplatz is a
place of Jewish memory [remembrance] and present. It was the center of Vienna’s
Jewish community in the Middle Ages and was home to one of the largest
synagogues in Europe. Important rabbinical leaders taught here. [In] 1421, the
entire Jewish community was expelled or murdered. The foundations of the [then]
destroyed synagogue are located below the memorial. They were discovered in
1995 and can be visited [viewed] in Museum Judenplatz.”
Below
the English text in a note from the Jewish Museum Vienna in German and English;
English text: “Out of respect for the victims we ask you not to sit on the
monument.”
Schoah is the Hebrew
word for “catastrophe.” In the German language, there is no expression for the
ideological persecution of Jews, the atrocities and agonies perpetrated on
them, and the mass murder committed by the Nazi regime of 1933-45. So Germans
use the Hebrew term. In English, one uses the term “Holocaust,” which comes
from the Greek and was commonly used in the Greek Old Testament of the Bible
for “burnt offering.” Religious Jews have spoken out against the use of this
term because the burnt offerings in the Bible were a sacrifice to God, and use
of “Holocaust” might seem to legitimize the murder of 6 million Jews as a
sacrifice demanded by God. The Hebrew term “Schoah” is also a Biblical term and
is related, for example, to Isaiah’s warning and prophesy of the catastrophe
that would befall inhabitants of the northern Kingdom (Israel) is they did not
mend their sinful ways. In the modern State of Israel, “Schoah” the official
term for the Nazis’ persecution and murder of Jews.
10:03 AM – Vienna: Judenplatz – relief sculpture of
Baptism of Christ on façade of Jordanhaus building at Judenplatz 2.
Vienna: Jordanhaus (By
PictureObelix - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0 at, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=21479236).
The Jordanhaus (Jordan House), at Judenplatz 2, is named for its first owner Jörg Jordan.
In 1497, Jordan had this representation of the Baptism of Christ erected in
remembrance of the burning of Jews in 1421.
Vienna: Judenplatz – Latin
inscription below relief sculpture of Baptism of Christ on Jordanhaus (Von
PictureObelix - Eigenes Werk, CC BY-SA 3.0 at, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=21479239).
The Latin inscription below the
sculpture would translate: “The body is cleansed of sickness and evil by the
Jordan river; there even hidden sinfulness goes away. Thus, flames raged rising
above the whole city in 1421 and atoned for the gruesome crimes of the Jewish
dogs. The world was once cleansed by the Deucalionic Flood, but this time the
guilt was atoned in flames.
In Greek mythology, as recorded in
Ovid’s Metamorphoses, because of the depravity of humans, Zeus decided to end
the Iron Age with a great flood (the Deucalionic
Flood). Prometheus had ordered his son Deuclion to build a ship. When it
started to rain, Deucalion and his wife Pyrrha boarded the ship. All Greece was
flooded. After nine days and nine nights, when the flood was over, the pair,
who were the only survivors of the flood, landed on Mount Parnassos. Zeus told
them to throw stones over their shoulders, and the stones turned into people, a
new humanity. However, to the disappointment of Zeus, the new human race is
just as troublesome as the former one. According to an ancient Greek chronicle,
the flood occurred in 1529-28 BC. The Deucalion myth resembles the biblical
story on Noah.
Vienna: Judenplatz - memorial
tablet on a house at Judenplatz 6 (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Wien01_Judenplatz006_2018-01-13_GuentherZ_GD_Judenverfolgung_0177.jpg).
In 1998, the Archdiocese of Vienna
erected a memorial tablet on a house at Judenplatz 6. The German text on the
tablet translates:
“’Kiddusch HaSchem’ means ‘Heiligung
Gottes’ [Sanctification of God]
“With this in mind, the Jews of
Vienna in the synagogue here in the Judenplatz—the center of a significant Jewish
community—in the time of the great persecution of 1420-21, chose suicide in
order to avoid a feared forcible baptism. Others, about 200, were burned at the
stake on an earthen hill.
“Christian preachers of that time
spread superstitious antisemitic ideas and thus agitated against the Jews and
their beliefs. Influenced in this way, Christians in Vienna accepted this
without resistance, condoned it, and became the actors.
“With this, the destruction of
Vienna’s Jewish city in 1421 was already a threatening foreshadowing of that,
which happened Europe-wide in our century during the National Socialist [Nazi]
despotism.
“Medieval popes turned themselves
unsuccessfully against the antisemitic superstition, and individual Christians fought
unsuccessfully against the racial hatred of the National Socialists. However,
there were too few of them.
“Today Christianity regrets its
shared guilt for the persecution of Jews and recognizes its denial.
“For Christians today,
‘Sanctification of God’ can only mean: Ask for forgiveness and hope for God’s
sanctification.
“29 October 1998”
From the Judenplatz, the guide took us toward the Hoher Markt.
The Hoher Markt (High Market, high in the sense of important) is one of
the oldest and most historically important squares in Vienna. It is located
above the ruins of the so-called tribune houses (staff officers’ quarters) of
the former Roman legion camp Vindobona. In the Middle Ages, the Hoher Markt was
a center of bourgeoise Vienna and was surrounded by numerous guild houses. Mainly
food and textiles were traded there.
Vienna: Hoher Markt with
Schranne – historical engraving from 1880 showing how the square probably
looked in the 16th-17th centuries (Von This file is from the Mechanical Curator
collection, a set of over 1 million images scanned from out-of-copyright books
and released to Flickr Commons by the British Library.View image on FlickrView
all images from bookView catalogue entry for book., Gemeinfrei, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=38151435).
From 1325 to 1839, the Vienna
Criminal Court was located here and until 1850 the Magistrate Civil Court, and
then in the northwest corner of the square was the Schranne, the courthouse.
From the terrace of the Schranne, the court judgments were read; the execution
site was mostly elsewhere, usually outside the city walls. There was a pillory
in front of the Schranne.
In the middle of the square is the
18.5-meter-tall Vermählungsbrunnen (Marriage Fountain), also known as
Josefsbrunnen (Joseph’s Fountain), dedicated to Mary and Joseph. The original
fountain was made of wood and was rebuilt in marble and bronze in 1732.
The square was heavily damaged by
aerial bombs in WWII. Reconstruction took place in the 1950s in the simple
architectural style of the post-war period. Only four of the old buildings
remained. Due to the destruction of the old buildings and the reconstruction,
remains of Roman officers’ quarters were discovered around 1948 and can now be
seen in the Roman Museum at Hoher Markt 3.
10:09 AM – Vienna: Hoher Markt - mechanical clock
between two buildings; guide said one was an insurance building, which is
related to the “Memento Mori” skeleton at the upper right (telephoto 93 mm).
The Ankeruhr (Anker Clock) is a large mechanical clock on a bridge-like
connection between two parts of the building of the Helvetia-Versicherung
(previously Lebens- und Rentenversicherungs-Gesellschaft “Der Anker” [Life and
Pension Insurance Company “The Anchor”) at Hoher Markt 10-11 and Ankerhof 12.
The clock spans the alley-like Bauernmarkt (Farmers Market) off the Hoher Markt
(High Market) square. The clock is considered one of the most outstanding works
of the Jugendstil and is a popular tourist attraction. In 1911, the insurance
company “Der Anker” developed a plan to build a large public clock at its headquarters
in the Ankerhof (Anker Courtyard). The insurance company moved into the
building in 1914, but the completion of the clock was delayed due to the
beginning of WWI. Construction was completed in 1915 and had two trial runs.
However, since it had been decided to define it as a “clock of peace,” it was
not put into full operation until after the war (1918).
The “clock bridge” has a span of 10
m and a height of 7.5 m; the clock itself has a diameter of 4 m. The bridge is
supported by four sculptural consoles, representing Adam and Eve at the front
and angels and devils on the back. Above the clock is a solar disk, flanked by
a child with a butterfly, as an allegory of life, and a skeleton with an
hourglass, symbolizing death—a symbolism important to an insurance company. The
clock is designed as a linear clock on which a Roman numeral for the hour and a
historical figure (sometimes a royal couple) slide across a scale for the
minutes of one hour by means of a chain drive and is then replaced by the numeral
and figure for the next hour. The historical figures, which appear in
chronological order as they parade across the golden clock face, include the
Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius, Charlemagne, Empress Maria Theresia, and Joseph
Hayden. At noon, all 12 groups of figures emerge with musical accompaniment.
The background of the clock face is a mosaic of glass, metal, and marble, in
the middle of which is the old coat of arms of the city of Vienna with two
double eagles of Austria and two white crosses on a red field. These are
surrounded by 12 other escutcheons as symbols for science, art, love, music,
theater, industry, commerce, and Viennese cuisine, among others.
MT 10:06 AM – Vienna: Hoher Markt - mechanical clock
between two buildings; guide said one was an insurance building, which is
related to the “Memento Mori” skeleton at the upper right (telephoto 145 mm).
Don would come back to this clock again the next day for additional views.
Thursday, 23 Aug 2018, 11:46 AM – Vienna:
Judengasse approaching Hoher Markt – back of mechanical clock (mild telephoto
38 mm).
On the back of the “clock bridge”
is a conventional clock as well as the words “Der Anker.”
Then the guide took us to the cathedral, Stephansdom.
Wednesday, 22 Aug 2018, 10:14 AM – Vienna: Stephansdom – short north tower (at
left), north side, façade with two Roman Towers, and top of higher south tower
behind the roof.
The Stephansdom (St. Stephen’s Cathedral) is the mother church of the
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Vienna. Its multi-colored tile roof is one of Vienna’s most recognizable
symbols. This is one of the principal Gothic structures outside France and the
only Gothic cathedral in Austria.
By the middle of the 12th century,
Vienna had become an important center of German civilization, and the four
existing churches, including only one parish church, no longer met the town’s
religious needs. A treaty of 1137, which referred to Vienna for the first time
as a civitas (city), transferred St.
Peter’s Church to the Diocese of Passau and set aside land outside the city
walls for a new parish church, which would eventually become the Stephansdom.
The new church was likely built on an ancient cemetery dating back to Roman
times (excavations in 2000 revealed graves carbon-dated to the 4th century).
This discovery suggests that an even older religious building on this site had
predated the Ruprechtskirche, which was considered the oldest in Vienna.
The Romanesque church founded in
1137 following the treaty was dedicated in 1147, although construction was not
completed until 1160. In 1230-45, the initial Romanesque structure was expanded
westward; the present-day west wall and Romanesque towers date from this
period. However, a great fire in 1258 destroyed much of the original building.
A larger replacement structure, also Romanesque in style and reusing the two
towers, was constructed over the ruins of the old church and consecrated in 1263.
In 1304, King Albert I ordered the
construction of a Gothic three-nave choir (apse) east of the church, wide
enough to meet the tips of the old transepts. Under his son, Duke Albert II,
work continued on the Albertine choir, which was consecrated in 1340. The
middle nave is largely dedicated to St. Stephen and All Saints, which the north
nave is dedicated to St. Mary and the south nave to the Apostles. In 1359,
Rudolf IV laid the cornerstone for a westward Gothic extension of the Albertine
choir in the vicinity of the present south tower. This expansion would
eventually encapsulate the entirety of the old church, and in 1430 the edifice
of the old church was removed from within as work progressed on the new
cathedral, leaving the main body of church as it appears today. The south tower
was completed in 1433. The foundation for a north tower was laid in 1450, but
its construction was abandoned when major work on the cathedral ceased in 1511.
Despite long-standing resistance by the bishops of Passau, the Diocese of Vienna was established in 1469, with St. Stephen’s Cathedral as its mother church, and in 1722, it was elevated to an Archdiocese.
During WWII, the cathedral was
saved from intentional destruction at the hands of retreating German forces
when orders to destroy it with an artillery bombardment were not carried out.
In April 1945, however, civilian looters set fires in nearby shops as Soviet
Army troops entered the city. The winds spread the fire to the north tower of cathedral
and destroyed the wooden framework of the roof, causing it to collapse.
Fortunately, protective brick shells built around treasures in the interior
minimized further damage.
MT 10:10 AM – Vienna: Stephansdom – façade with its two
Roman Towers, with top part of the south tower showing over the tiled roof.
10:15 AM – Vienna: Stephansdom – façade with Giant’s
Door and Roman Towers, with part of the tiled roof showing between the towers.
The cathedral was built of
limestone and, over the centuries, soot and other air pollution have given it a
black color. However, recent restoration projects have returned some portions
to the original white.
The massive south tower, with a height of 136 m (446 ft), is the cathedral’s
highest point and a dominant feature of the Vienna skyline. Its construction
lasted 65 years, from 1368 to 1433. At the tip of the tower stands the
double-eagle imperial emblem with the Habsburg-Lorraine coat of arms on its
chest, surmounted by a double-armed apostolic cross, which refers to the
Apostolic Majesty, the imperial style of the kings of Hungary.
The north tower was originally intended to mirror the south tower, but
the design proved too ambitious, since the era of Gothic cathedrals was nearing
its end, and construction was halted in 1511. In 1578, the tower-stump was
augmented with a Renaissance cap. The tower now stands 68 m (223 ft) tall,
roughly half the height of the south tower.
The main entrance is named the Giant’s Door (or Riesentor), referring
to the thighbone of a mastodon that hung over it for decades after being
unearthed in 1443 while digging the foundations for the north tower. The
tympanum above the Giant’s Door depicts Christ Pantocrator flanked by two
winged angels. On the left and right of the door are the two Roman Towers (or Heidentürme, literally
meaning heathen towers) that each are 65 m (213 ft) tall. The name of these
towers derives from the fact that they were constructed from the rubble of old
structures built by the Roman (German Heiden
meaning heathens or pagans) during their occupation of the area, Square at the
base and octagonal above the roofline, the Roman Towers originally housed
bells, although those of the south tower were lost during WWII. The Roman
Towers, together with the Giant’s Door, are the oldest parts of the cathedral.
The ornate, richly colorful roof of glazed tiles in an interwoven
diamond pattern is the glory of the cathedral. Above the choir on the south
side of the building, the tiles form a mosaic of the double-headed eagle that
is symbolic of the empire ruled from Vienna by the Habsburg dynasty. The mosaic
on the north side depicts the coats of arms of the City of Vienna and of the
Republic of Austria. The roof is so steep that it is sufficiently cleaned by
the rain alone and is seldom covered by snow.
10:20 AM – Vienna: Stephansdom – façade with Roman
Towers, part of the tiled roof on south side, and south tower.
Our
tour ended in front of the cathedral. Our guide told us we could meet her again
there at 11:10 and she would show us how to go back to the sip on the Metro, or
around 11:30 we could get on a Viking tour bus with another group from the main
(included) tour. Not yet choosing which option, we then went into the interior of the cathedral for a quick
tour.
10:26 AM – Vienna: Stephansdom – interior, from rear of
central nave to main altar in apse, with pulpit on pillar at left.
MT 10:24 AM – Vienna: Stephansdom – interior, from rear
of central nave to main altar in apse, with pulpit on pillar at left.
10:27 AM – Vienna: Stephansdom – pulpit on left side of
central nave, near rear, showing figures of St. Augustine and St. Gregory the
Great.
Vienna: Stephansdom – pulpit,
showing figures of St. Jerome and St. Ambrose; the “Fenstergucker” is in the
shadows below the staircase (By Bwag - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=66368821).
The stone pulpit is a masterwork of late Gothic sculpture, completed around 1510. Consisting of three blocks of sandstone, it features images of four saints and fathers of the church: from left to right Augustine with miter, Gregory the Great with papal crown, Jerome with cardinal’s hat, and Ambrose with miter. So that the local-language sermon could be better heard by the worshipers in the days before microphones and loud speakers, the pulpit stands against a pillar out in the nave, instead of in the chancel at the front of the church. Sermons were delivered from a stone perch at the top of a staircase wrapped around the pillar. Under the stairs is the famous “Fenstergucker” (window peeper), a man with a hat looking out of a trompe l’oeil window; it is a self-portrait of the master stonemason of the pulpit. Due to the delicacy of the pulpit’s sculptures, damages were inevitable. Older restorations were made in 1507 and 1652, and, after the pillar began to sink, thorough renovation was needed in 1878-80. Thus, an inscription under the Fenstergucker reads: “REN[ovated]. A.D. 1880.”
Vienna: Stephansdom –
“Fenstergucker” under railing of spiral staircase of pulpit (By Markus
Leupold-Löwenthal - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=3868897).
MT 10:25 AM – Vienna: Stephansdom – MT with photo of
St. Theresa of Lisieux (aka St. Theresa of the Child Jesus), with plaque below
photo for German version of the latter name “Hl. Theresia vom Kind Jesu.”
10:30 AM – Vienna: Stephansdom – relief at left rear (mild
telephoto 56 mm).
10:30 AM – Vienna: Stephansdom – view from rear of
central nave to apse, with more of vaulted ceiling.
10:31 AM – Vienna: Stephansdom – view from rear of
central nave to right (south) nave.
10:31 AM – Vienna: Stephansdom – statues on column, from
left aisle (mild telephoto 56 mm).
10:32 AM – Vienna: Stephansdom – statues on next
column, from left aisle (mild telephoto 56 mm).
10:33 AM – Vienna: Stephansdom – gilded statue of
(king?) by left side altar.
10:34 AM – Vienna: Stephansdom – view toward front of
left aisle, with altar.
10:34 AM – Vienna: Stephansdom – triptych altarpiece at
front of left aisle (telephoto 156 mm).
Vienna: Stephansdom – Wiener
Naustädter Altar at head of north nave (By Bwag - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=56638264).
The Wiener Naustädter Altar is a Gothic triptych altarpiece ordered in 1447 by King Friedrich IV (after1452 Kaiser Friedrich III). Apparently, it was originally intended for the Cistercian cloister Viktring (near Kärnten), where it remained until that abbey was closed in 1786. Then it was installed as the main altar in the church of the Cistercian cloister of St. Bernard of Clairvaux, which had been founded in 1444 in Wiener Neustadt (literally Vienna New City, a city located south of Vienna). After a Baroque main altar was installed there in 1698/99, the triptych was installed in the choir area behind the main altar. In 1884, when that abbey was closed, the triptych was purchased by the Vienna Cathedral Building Association and installed in the north choir of the Stephansdom in 1885. The altarpiece is actually composed of two triptychs, the upper being four times taller than the lower one.
While in the Stephansdom, we again met people from Leavenworth who were on a different Viking cruise.
10:36 AM – Vienna: Stephansdom – MT and Marilyn from
Leavenworth by gilded statue of (king?) on left side altar.
At the rear of the church, on the way out, we also met John and Sue from Leavenworth.
MT 10:34 AM – Vienna: Stephansdom – John and Sue from
Leavenworth with Don near rear of central nave.
Since we still had nearly half an hour before the option to meet the guide and go back on the Metro, MT wanted to go to a coffee shop for a pastry snack. She chose Café-Konditorei Aida on a corner near the cathedral.
Vienna: Café-Konditorei Aida – exterior (Von Gryffindor - Eigenes Werk, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=10247382).
10:50 AM – Vienna: Café-Konditorei Aida – part of display case; labels (left to right) for cheesecakes (all €3.60): Heidelbeer-Vanilla [Torte] [blueberry-Vanilla Cake], Marillentorte [Apricot Cake], Topfen Obers Torte [Plug-Cream Cake], Truffeltorte [Truffle Cake], and Haselnuss Torte [Hazelnut Cake], and chocolates: Gastostückerl and blank.
MT 10:46 AM – Vienna: Café-Konditorei Aida – another
part of display case; prices on labels are legible, but names of pastries are
either missing or illegible, except for Obstschnitte (Fruit Slices) for €3.80
and Topfen Frucht Schnitte (Pot Fruit Slices) for €2.90 on top shelf (3rd from
left and at right, respectively) and Aida Torte (Aida Cake) for €4.50 near left
end of bottom shelf.
10:58 AM – Vienna: Café-Konditorei Aida – menu of cakes
with prices for slice or whole cake; at top left is Erdbeer Torte (Strawberry
Cake) for €3.60, which MT ordered.
10:58 AM – Vienna: Café-Konditorei Aida – menu of cakes
with prices for slice or whole cake; at top of this page is Sachertorte mit
Schlag [Sacher Cake] (with Cream) for €4.50, which Don ordered.
MT 11:04 AM – Vienna: Café-Konditorei Aida – Don‘s
Sachertorte mit Schlag and MT’s Erdbeer Torte.
11:02 AM – Vienna: Café-Konditorei Aida – Don’s
Sachertorte with whipped cream.
Sachertorte is a specific
type of chocolate cake, or torte, invented in 1832 for Prince Wenzel von
Metternich in Vienna by 16-year-old Franz Sacher, an apprentice to Metternich’s
personal chef. The dessert received no immediate further attention at that time.
Sacher’s eldest son Eduard carried on his father’s culinary legacy, completing
his own training in Vienna with the Royal and Imperial Pastry Chef at the Demel
bakery and chocolatier, during which time he perfected his father’s recipe. The
cake was first served at the Demel and later at the Hotel Sacher, established
by Eduard in 1876. Since then, it is now one of the most famous Viennese
culinary specialties. In the early 20th century, a legal battle developed
between the Hotel Sacher and the Demel over the use of the label “The Original
Sacher Torte.” This dispute was complicated by the fact that, after the bankruptcy
of Hotel Sacher in 1934, Eduard’s son (also named Eduard) found employment at
Demel and brought to the bakery the sole distribution right for a cake caller
“Eduard-Sacher-Torte.” Meanwhile, the new owners of Hotel Sacher began to sell
cakes under the trademarked name “The Original Sacher Torte.” It was not until
1963 that both parties agreed to an out-of-court settlement under which each
could sell the cakes with the differing names of the label.
11:02 AM – Vienna: Café-Konditorei Aida – MT’s Erdbeer
Torte (Strawberry Cake).
MT 11:07 AM – Vienna: Café-Konditorei Aida – Maria
Theresia Coffee for €8.90 on menu.
11:02 AM – Vienna: Café-Konditorei Aida – bill, without
prices; we owed €8.10, and MT added a €1 tip.
11:24 AM – Vienna: Stephansdom – north tower and part
of north side.
At this point, we had missed the option to meet the guide at 11:10. At the Stephansplatz in front of the cathedral, we met up with Viking “Panoramic Vienna” tour group 13A and headed northeast on Rotenturmstraße toward the busses.
Rotenturmstraße (red tower
street) begins at the Stephansplatz, leads northeast past Lugeck square and
farther to the Donaukanal (Danube Canal), where it ends at the Marienbrücke
bridge. The name goes back to the Rote
Turm (red tower), including a city gate, which was part of the medieval
fortifications of Vienna, built in 1511. Already in 1662, another gate was
built in front of that one, closer to the Donaukanal, and called the Rotenturmtor (red tower gate). Both
those gates were among the most important gates to the city and existed until
1858, when the city wall was completely removed to allow the city to expand.
11:27 AM – Vienna: Rotenturmstraße – Viking tour group
13A, with our Viking friend Jo next to the tour guide, on way to busses.
11:30 AM – Vienna: Rotenturmstraße – Viking tour group
13A, with our Viking friend Jo and MT following the tour guide across
Fleischmarkt (Fish Market) street, on way to busses.
11:32 AM – Vienna: view from Rotenturmstraße up narrow Griechengasse
(Greek Alley) street toward where 13A tour guide said were medieval buildings,
still on way to busses (mild telephoto 72 mm).
After we boarded the bus, the 13A tour guide pointed out some sights on the way back to the ship.
11:49 AM – Vienna: Johann-Nepomuk-Kirche with inscription
below clocktower: “In Honorem Sancti Ioannis Nepomucem” (In Honor of St. Johann
Nepomuk), from bus window.
Vienna: Johann-Nepomuk-Kirche
(By Tokfo - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0 at, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=35084273).
The Pfarrkirche Johannes (von) Nepomuk (Parish Church of John of Nepomuk),
commonly called Johann-Nepomuk-Kirche or just Nepomukkirche, in Catholic parish church in the 2nd district
(Leopoldstadt), northeast of the Inner City of Vienna. It is dedicated to St.
Johannes Nepomuk (Jan Nepomucký in Czech, ca. 1350-1293), a Czech priest and
martyr, and patron saint of Bohemia. The main façade of the church is on Praterstraße
(name to which Rotenturmstraße changes after crossing Danube Canal), between
Nepomukgasse and Rotensterngasse. In 1736, local inhabitants built a stone
chapel dedicated to St. Johannes Nepomuk after being spared from the plague.
Since the chapel was a traffic obstacle, it was demolished in 1780 and replaced
by a new building consecrated in 1782 and elevated to a parish church in 1786.
Due to population growth, that church was demolished in 1840 and replaced by a
larger church built in 1841-46. In 1945, the church was damaged by bombing.
The church represents an important
construction of early historicism, with a flat structure and sparing,
small-scale decor. It is a blocky, cubic, closed building with a façade crowned
by a three-story polygonal tower with a high, pointed steeple. Above the three
church portals is a high arched window flanked by two niches. The niches house
statues of St. Ferdinand (left) and St. Anna (right).
11:49 AM – Vienna: fountain, from bus window.
The bus took us back to the Viking Bragi for lunch. We saved our second pair of Metro tickets for later use.
After lunch, Don went back to see the Kaiserjubiläumskirche near the dock, while MT stayed onboard to talk with our friend Jo and others.
The Kirche zum heiligen Franz von Assisi (Church of St. Francis of
Assisi), also known as the Kaiserjubiläumskirche
(Emperor’s Jubilee Church) or colloquially as the Mexicokirche (Mexico Church),
is a basilica-style Catholic church on Mexicoplatz (Mexico Square) in Vienna,
near the shore of the Danube. The names of Mexicokirche and Mexicoplatz
commemorate the fact that Mexico was the only country outside of the Soviet
Union to protest against the Anschluss (annexation) of Austria by Nazi Germany
in 1938. Its foundation stone was laid in 1900 in celebration of the 50th
anniversary of the reign (1848-1916) of Emperor Franz Joseph I of Austria,
although construction was delayed until 1903 due to the death of the original
architect and financial problems. The capstone was laid in 1910, and in 1913,
when the raw construction was essentially completed, the ceremonial benediction
of the still uncompleted church took place. Work on the church was again
interrupted during WWI. The church was finally consecrated in 1965. The four-bay,
basilica-like brick building was designed in the Rhenish-Romanesque style,
based on the Groß St. Martin church in Cologne. Its three red-tiled towers are
visible several kilometers away. The wooden canopies over the three main
entrances were intended only as a provisional measure for the inauguration
ceremony, but still remain today.
1:23 PM – Vienna: Kaiserjubiläumskirche – relief on
north side of exterior (mild telephoto 81 mm).
On the Elisabethskapelle built on
at the left [north] is an exterior
relief representing the kneeling Empress Elisabeth as she receives a rose
from the hand of Saint Elisabeth of Hungary, for whom she was named,
accompanied by three angels.
1:23 PM – Vienna: Kaiserjubiläumskirche – relief on
north side of exterior (telephoto 119 mm).
1:23 PM – Vienna: Kaiserjubiläumskirche – west façade,
with another wooden canopy over door, and towers.
1:25 PM – Vienna: Kaiserjubiläumskirche – rose window
on west façade, with Christ Pantocrator (Christ in Majesty) in center and sculptures of symbols
representing the four Evangelists (Gospel writers): John at 12 o’clock
position, Luke at 3, Matthew at 6, and Mark at 9 (telephoto 93 mm).
1:25 PM (Cropped) – Vienna: Kaiserjubiläumskirche –
rose window on façade, with Christ Pantocrator (Christ in Majesty) in center and sculptures of
symbols representing the four Evangelists (Gospel writers): John at 12 o’clock
position, Luke at 3, Matthew at 6, and Mark at 9 (telephoto 93 mm).
1:26 PM – Vienna: Kaiserjubiläumskirche – west façade
with twin towers, south side door with another wooden canopy at base of south
tower, and central tower with clocks over crossing.
"Small Church Guide
“Kaiserjubiläumskirche
“Until
the regulation of the Danube (1870-1875), only meadows and gardens were located
in the area between Praterstern [park] and the arms of the Danube, due to the acute
danger of flooding. By the elimination of the danger of high water, new land
was secured for settlement, so that a place of worship had to be created that
was not so distant for the increasing number of people living there. The new
Donaustadt [Danube City] (not to be confused with today’s 22nd Parish District
of Vienna [Donaustadt, beyond the Danube]), the area between the Nordbahn
[North Railway], the Danube, and the new Albrechts- und Wilhelmskasernen
[Albrecht and Wilhelm Barracks], was built up by 1910 on the west [bank] and
belonged, as far as parishes were concerned, to the Praterstraße [parish]. In
addition to these reasons for building a new church came the 50th anniversary
of the reign of Emperor Franz Joseph I, on December 2, 1898, which in this
rapidly growing part of the city would leave behind to a memorial church worthy
of the occasion, the space available, and the number or souls. This was planned
by a committee, which, on the Feast of St. Joseph (March 19) 1898, was formed
under the protectorate of Archduchess Maria Theresia and Vienna’s Prince-bishop
Cardinal Anton Gruscha and called on all the people of the Monarchy to donate
for the new parish and garrison church, which would be dedicated to St. Francis
of Assisi, the patron for which the Emperor was named. The nobility and the
people contributed, but the money did not flow in so richly as was necessary
for the monumental building, and also the promised subsidies from the Religionsfond
[Religion Foundation] and the City of Vienna were increasingly limited, so that
substantial simplification of the plans and a delay in construction were
necessary. Indeed, strictly speaking, the church of today must still be seen as
uncompleted (e.g., the wooden covers of the portals, erected in 1913 as a
provisional measure!).
“In
1899, after a public call for submission [of plans], the first prize and supervision
of construction were awarded to Viktor Luntz, Professor of Medieval
Architecture at the Vienna Academy for Visual Arts, a student of Friedrich von
Schmidt.
“In
the meantime Empress Elisabeth had been assassinated in Geneva, so that the
erection of a memorial chapel was envisioned, which also came to realization,
while the side chapels envisioned for individual ethnic groups as well as the
18 frescoes later planned to replace them fell victim to the cost cutting.
“On
July 10, 1900, Trinity Sunday, in the presence of the Emperor, the ceremonial
laying of the foundation stone took place, during which 30,000 school children
formed a trellis on the Ringstraße [ring street] between the Hofburg [Court Palace]
and Aspernbrücke [Aspern Bridge]; afterwards, more than 70 organizations
(congregations, student unions, etc.) joined in with their banners: a total of
more than 100,000 persons are said to have taken part. Emperor Franz Joseph
himself carried out the three strikes of the hammer in front of all prominent
persons of the City and Church and foreign diplomatic representatives.
“The
slowly dragging on construction was again hindered by the death of the building
supervisor Luntz. At the end of 1903, the continued supervision was given over
to August Kirstein, who largely kept to the plan of his predecessor.
“In
1913, the raw construction was essentially able to be completed and thus, on
Sunday, November 2, 1913, the ceremonial benediction of the church took place, since
a consecration was not possible due to the unfinished status of its interior. Again,
the Emperor personally took part in the ceremony, accompanied by the [intended]
successor to his throne, Franz Ferdinand [the archduke whose assassination in
1914 triggered WWI], and the future successor to the throne, Karl. Due to the
outbreak of war shortly thereafter, there was a stoppage of work on the
Jubiläumskirche, and many necessary measures still had to wait for years and
decades.”
“The
Elisabethskapelle [Elisabeth
Chapel] was already finished in 1908 and was inaugurated on June 10. This was
possible due to the fact that the Austrian Red Cross financed the memorial
building for its first Protector, in that it instituted a separate collection
of contributions, which was very successful, explaining the splendorous decoration.
“At
any rate, the Red Cross first allowed emergency worship services to be held in
1910—the believers had to stand in the side aisle in front of the chapel. After
that, the Salvatorians [members of the Society of the Divine Savior] from
Kaisermühlen, which then belonged to the 2nd District, carried out the religious
ministries, until in 1917 the Trinitarians from Gersthof took over the works of
the church, which only after many efforts from the folk was elevated to [the
status of] an independent parish church.
“In
an artistically correct place, next to the Reichsbrücke [Imperial Bridge], rose
the basilica-like stone building in Rhenish-Romanesque forms as a three-nave
configuration with a heavy tower over the crossing, two bell towers on the west
façade, and a richly arranged choir part [apse]. Above the portal in the rose
window is a relief of Christ surrounded by the symbols of the four Evangelists
(F. Seifert). On the Elisabethskapelle built on at the left [north] is an
exterior relief representing the Empress [Elisabeth] as she receives a rose
from the hand of the saint [Elisabeth of Hungary] for whom she was named
(Theodor Charlemont).
“In
the interior [of the Elisabethskapelle] is the octagonal memorial chapel
modeled after the Pfalzkapelle [Palatine Chapel] of Aachen [Cathedral] and
shows on the ceiling angels in Jugendstil with palm branches in gold mosaic, a
large Jugendstil chandelier, its own organ, and a statue of the Sacred Heart of
Jesus by Seifert, who also created the relief on the organ choir of the main
church.
“The
neo-Romanesque high altar with baldachin [canopy] comes from the Collegiate
Church of Seckau (from the Benedictine resettlement in the 19th century) and
was installed here in 1964. Thus, on July 5, 1965, the long-awaited ceremonial
consecration of the church by Cardinal Dr. Franz König was finally able to take
place. Up to this point in time, the wooden ciborium altar [canopy (baldachin)
supported by columns that stands over the altar of a church, or a covered
container for Eucharistic hosts], which in 1912 had stood over Vienna’s Burgtor
[Palace Gate] during the Eucharistic World Congress, with its baldachin, had
served as the high altar (today, it stands in the left transept).
“Since
1915, the pieta created in 1904 in Rome by J. Weyrich at the State’s expense as
a gift to the Jubiläumskirche has stood in the right transept (by today’s
Kriegeraltar [Warriors’ Altar]); also in the same transept stands the statue
‘Regina Pacis’ (Queen of Peace) on the Marienaltar [St. Mary Altar], which was
given by Pope Benedict XV in 1920 to this church and all Vienna Catholics. Over
the altar is a fresco painting by Franz Zimmermann.
“In
front of the apse with ambulatory and cross-ribbed vaulting rest two statues on
very tall columns under baldachins: St. Francis and St. Joseph, the two saints
after whom the Emperor was named.
“Also
located in the church are modern pictures by living artists: in the altar area,
on the left, is the ‘Mutter von der Guten Hilfe [Mother of the Good Help],’ the
patron of the Trinitarian order, by Lotte Berger, as well as two pictures about
the Founding of the Trinitarian order and the Freeing of the Slaves by
Ferdinando Fedele. A third picture by him with the title ‘Der Trinitarierorden
heute [The Trinitarian Order Today]’ hangs in the left transept. The two
paintings ‘Die Verkündigung Mariens [The Annunciation of Mary]’ and ‘Die selige
Elisabetta Canori Mora [The Blessed Elisabetta Canori Mora (1774-1825, a member
of the Secular Trinitarians)]’ by Ettore Gualdini are located at the rear of
the side aisles over the entrances. Finally, in the right side aisle, can be
seen a picture of the founder of the Trinitarian Order, St. Johannes von Matha,
which was created by the Russian painter Vladimir Sobolev.
“A
detailed, richly illustrated guide to the church is available in the Parish
Office and in the Sacristy.”
1:29 PM – Vienna: Kaiserjubiläumskirche – view from rear
of nave to main altar in apse, rather plain and modern.
1:30 PM – Vienna: Kaiserjubiläumskirche – altar on
right side, with statue of Virgin and Child on a globe with “Regina Pacis” on a
gold band, and behind it a fresco picturing the crowning of Mary in heaven,
surrounded by other saints.
In the right transept stands the
statue ‘Regina Pacis’ (Queen of Peace) on the Marienaltar (St. Mary Altar),
which was given by Pope Benedict XV in 1920 to this church and all Vienna
Catholics. Over the altar is a fresco painting by Franz Zimmermann.
1:31 PM – Vienna: Kaiserjubiläumskirche – Kriegeraltar in
right transept with crucifix and tablets with names of “Helden” (heroes) fallen
in WWI (left) and WWII (right).
Vienna: Kaiserjubiläumskirche
– right transept with pieta (left), Kriegeraltar (center) with crucifix, and
baptismal font (right), with more tablets with names of fallen soldiers (By
DALIBRI - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=66299790).
Since 1915, the pieta created in 1904 in Rome by J.
Weyrich at the State’s expense as a gift to the Jubiläumskirche has stood in
the right transept by today’s Kriegeraltar
(Warriors’ Altar).
1:32 PM – Vienna: Kaiserjubiläumskirche – apse with
main altar.
1:33 PM – Vienna: Kaiserjubiläumskirche – main altar in
apse.
The neo-Romanesque main altar with baldachin (canopy
supported by columns) comes from the Collegiate Church of Seckau (from the
Benedictine resettlement in the 19th century) and was installed here in 1964.
Up to that time, a wooden altar, with its baldachin, had served as the main
altar (today, it stands in the left transept).
1:33 PM – Vienna: Kaiserjubiläumskirche – side altar in
left transept near entrance to Elisabethskapelle (at right).
1:33 PM – Vienna: Kaiserjubiläumskirche – just to right
of altar in left transept is a spiral staircase and the entrance to
Elisabethskapelle (at right).
The Elisabethskapelle (Elizabeth Chapel) is more formally called the
Kaiserin-Elisabeth-Gedächtniskapelle (Empress Elisabeth Memorial Chapel). Not
part of the original design, of the church, it was added to the left (north)
transept of the church next to the choir (apse). Its architecture is in the
Neo-Romanesque style, while its decoration (altar, mosaics, and entrance
grille) is one of the most important monuments in Jugendstil (Art-Nouveau)
style in Vienna. The octagonal chapel was modeled on the Pfalzkapelle (Palatine
Chapel) in the Aachen Cathedral, which in turn was modeled on the Cappella
Palatina in Palermo, Italy. It was built to commemorate Empress Elisabeth of
Austria, who was assassinated in 1898. Since Elisabeth, wife of Franz Joseph I,
was the first Protector of the Austrian Red Cross, the chapel was financed by
large donations collected by the Red Cross, which explains why it was decorated
with gold mosaics rather than frescoes, and the walls are covered in marble
rather than stucco. On the vault of the chancel (altar area), there is a large
mosaic of Saint Elizabeth of Hungary (1207-31), who was an early member of the
Third Order of St. Francis. The chapel was completed in 1907 and consecrated in
1908.
Although an iron gate prevented entry into the Elisabethskapelle, Don was able to take photos through the bars.
1:38 PM – Vienna: Kaiserjubiläumskirche –
Elisabethskapelle with crows suspended in center, in front of altar and mosaic
of St. Elisabeth of Hungary.
Vienna: Kaiserjubiläumskirche - mosaic
of St. Elisabeth of Hungary in Elisabethskapelle (Von Bwag - Eigenes Werk, CC
BY-SA 3.0 at, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=21032615).
1:38 PM – Vienna: Kaiserjubiläumskirche –
Elisabethskapelle, part of domed ceiling.
1:39 PM – Vienna: Kaiserjubiläumskirche – Elisabethskapelle,
view to left.
1:39 PM – Vienna: Kaiserjubiläumskirche –
Elisabethskapelle, view to right.
1:42 PM – Vienna: Kaiserjubiläumskirche – north side
with north (left) transept and clock tower over crossing.
Then Don went back to the Viking Bragi.
1:51 PM – Vienna: Viking Bragi – screen by reception
desk displaying position of our ship at dock on Danube.
At the 5:30 Port Talk (scheduled earlier than normal), Program Director Joey said we would spend Thursday in Vienna as planned. However, at 8 am on Friday we would put our suitcases outside our stateroom door and depart on busses for a 3.5-hour ride to Budapest, where we would have lunch in a restaurant, check into our hotels, and then have a “panoramic” tour of the city in the afternoon. All optional shore excursions would be cancelled (Don and MT had not paid for these), since it was too difficult to reschedule them. On Saturday morning, we would be transferred from our hotels to the airport.
This evening, dinner in the ship restaurant began at 6 pm (rather than the normal 7 pm). After dinner, we had signed up (and paid for) the optional tour “Mozart & Strauss Concert” by the Vienna Residence Orchestra in the Schubertsaal (Schubert Hall) of the Wiener Konzerthaus (Vienna Concert House).
Vienna: Wiener Konzerthaus –
exterior in daytime (By Photo: Andreas Praefcke - Self-photographed, CC BY 3.0,
https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=63324).
8:02 PM – Vienna: Schubertsaal of Wiener Konzerthaus -
stage before concert (no photos allowed during performance).
MT 8:04 PM – Vienna: Schubertsaal of Wiener Konzerthaus
– kettle drums on stage before concert (mild telephoto 60 mm).
8:02 PM – Vienna: Schubertsaal of Wiener Konzerthaus –
view from our seats to rear of hall, with ornate ceiling.
MT 7:58 PM – Vienna: Schubertsaal of Wiener Konzerthaus
– view of ornate ceiling from our seats near front of hall.
MT 9:37 PM – Vienna: Schubertsaal of Wiener Konzerthaus
– view of décor over rear entrance of hall (mild telephoto 50 mm).
9:45 PM – Vienna: Wiener Konzerthaus – exterior illuminated
at night.
MT 9:41 PM – Vienna: Wiener Konzerthaus – exterior
illuminated at night.
Back at the dock, we had a nice view of the Kaiserjubiläumskirche before reboarding the Viking Bragi.
MT 10:14 PM – Vienna: Kaiserjubiläumskirche – clock
tower illuminated at night (telephoto 135 mm).
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