The Ringstrasse in Vienna
The European City Transformed in
the Late 19th century
The transformation of the city of Vienna from mid- to late-19th
century exemplifies ideas and attitudes brought about by a
changing political climate, growing industrial economy, and the
need to make the city a larger urban organism rather than an old
walled center divided from its newer surrounding suburbs.
Emperor Franz Josef sponsored a competition in 1858 to lay out a
new band of public and private buildings on the territory formerly
occupied by the fortifying walls of the Austrian capital. This very
wide boulevard, with its provision for monumental cultural and
government buildings interspersed with parks, ringed the old town
and therefore gained the name “Ringstrasse” (lit. ring street).
The project was underwritten by the sale of a substantial amount
of the land comprising the ring district to private developers in
order to create the funding for the public buildings.
Volksgarten
(Public Park) by
Ludwig Remy,
1819-23 with the
Theseus-Tempel
by Peter Nobile
The Volksgarten (or
Public Park)
antedates the Ring
project but was
incorporated into it.
The Theseus-Tempel (182023) by Peter Nobile in the
Volksgarten is a Greek
revival monument intended
to display a statue of
Theseus carved by the
Italian neo-classical sculptor
Antonio Canova.
Äusseres Burgtor
(Outer Castle
Gate), by Peter
Nobile, 1821-24
The Outer Castle Gate,
by Peter Nobile, 182124, is another Greek
Revival addition to the
imperial castle in
Vienna prior to the
Ring project.
Votivkirche
(Votive Church),
by Heinrich von
Ferstel, 1856-79
The neo-Gothic Votivkirche
(Votive Church) by Heinrich
von Ferstel, 1856-79,
commemorates the Emperor
Franz Josef’s escape from
death by a Hungarian wouldbe assassin’s attempt on his
life. It was built by public
contributions as a sign of the
solidarity between the people
of Austria and the imperial
house.
Main portal (left) and Chevet
Former Hofoper
(Court Opera
House),
now Staatsoper
(State Opera
House) by
August von
Siccardsburg and
Eduard van der
Nüll,
1861-69
The State Opera (formerly Court Opera) on the Ring, by August von
Siccardsburg and Eduard van der Nüll, 1861-69. The design was
scaled to the public space of the Ringstrasse with porticoes at two
levels from which opera-goers could see the pedestrian and carriage
traffic of the boulevard
French renaissance
detailing provided another
kind of revivalism at the
outset of the Ring project.
Burgtheater (Castle
Theatre) by Gottfried
Semper, 1874-88
Principal (west) façade of the Burgtheater.
Burgtheater viewed from the Volksgarten
Rathaus (City
Hall) by Friedrich
von Schmidt,
1872-3
Friedrich von Schmidt, the
architect of the Vienna City Hall,
worked on the project to finish
the Cathedral of Cologne before
coming to Austria.
View of the Rathaus (City
Hall) from the Volksgarten.
The series of parks along the
Ringstrasse serve as a context
that connects the various
monuments together.
View of the Theseus-Tempel with the City Hall in the distance
Parlamentshaus
(Parliament
Building) by
Theophil Hansen,
1874-83
The Parliament
with the City Hall,
University, and
Votive Church in
the background.
Theophil Hansen, the architect of
the Parlamentshaus (Parliament
Building), was a Danish neoclassicist who based his design of
this structure on both Roman and
Greek models.
Political rally for the Austrian Socialist Party on May Day
Neue Hofburg
(New Castle) and
Museum district
by Gottfried
Semper and Karl
von Hasenauer,
1873ff
Heldenplatz
Maria-Theresia-Platz
The Neue Hofburg (New Imperial Castle) by Karl Hasenauer,
1881ff, viewed from Heldenplatz (Heroes’ Square).
The garden façade of the Neue Hofburg
(New Castle) as seen from the
Hofgarten.
Heldenplatz is on axis with
Maria-Theresia-Platz, seen
through the colonnade of the
Outer Castle Gate.
Maria-Theresia-Platz focuses on a monument by the sculptor Zumbusch
to the beloved 18th-century Hapsburg Empress Maria Theresia, mother
of Marie Antoinette and grandmother of Franz Josef.
Competition 1866;
Construction
1872-81
The Art Historical and Natural
History Museums are a matched
pair by Gottfried Semper and Karl
van Hasenauer. They face each
other across Maria-Theresia-Platz.