Linienwall

The Linienwall was an easy fastening system between the suburbs and suburbs of Vienna.

Establishment of Linienwall

To protect against the attacks of the Turks and kuruc was started under Leopold I in 1704 with the construction of Linienwall. The line was part of the so-called Wall Kuruzzenschanzen. This should protect the border against Hungary with a continuous defensio line along the Leitha, the March to the Danube and on to Lake Neusiedl.

When Linienwall it was a reinforced earth wall with a palisade ditch upstream, between the Danube branch at St. Marx ( today 's 3rd district ) and the Lichtental (now 9th district) was, - for strategic reasons zigzag. He separated while the 1850 eingemeindeten suburbs (now 3rd to 9th district) of the largely until 1892 eingemeindeten suburbs (today 10th to 19th district ).

Among the works on Linienwall all residents of Vienna and the suburbs between 18 and 60 years were divided or had one representative. The enormous use to people made ​​the completion of the four -meter-high and four meters wide Walls in just four months is possible. Previously, a three-meter deep ditch was created. Overall, the Star Wall had a length of about 13.5 km. At the most important arterial roads gates were created with drawbridges and line offices ( customs house ); these locations were soon called simply line (eg, Belvedere line as an extension of that Heugasse, today's Prinz-Eugen -Straße next to Belvedere Palace ). 1738 the mound was also lined with bricks.

Line chapels

Between 1740 and 1760 was built 18 chapels at the gates, which were dedicated to all the holy Nepomuk. This also meant that today there are numerous statues of saints in Vienna. The popularly called chapels simply " Hansel along the way ." Purpose of the chapels was the opportunity to offer all the from and to Vienna travelers and toll officials at the control limit (1850-1891 city limits ), their devotion to perform and to hear mass. The only line chapel Hundsturmer Chapel (also Schönbrunn Chapel ) in Margaret at their original location is (now Schönbrunnerstraße 124) and in its original condition remained.

Another still -existing chapel is the St. John Nepomuk Chapel at Tabor; but this was offset a few meters from the original site.

Near the Volksoper was built a still existing John Nepomuk Chapel as a substitute of a few meters aborted because of the light rail construction in the course of construction of the chapel there opened in 1898 Vienna Stadtbahn by Otto Wagner. This chapel is located between the former city railway and today's U6 Viaduct and the inner roadway of the Währinger Gürtel in the 9th district.

Linienwall as the control limit line offices

However, a serious test had never made ​​the Linienwall. The March 13 and June 11, 1704 appeared in front of St. Mark's Kuruzzen moved on, as the Wall was occupied by the Vienna militia in no time. Only in 1848 he served the insurgent Viennese short term protection against the imperial troops. The Wall served from 1829 primarily as a control limit. At the "lines" was lifted the so-called consumption tax ( excise ) at toll gates, the so-called line offices, for the import of food in the direction of Vienna, a kind of additional tax. Thus, the only much later, in 1850, eingemeindeten suburbs were the same taxation within the Walls line with the city of Vienna, ie taxed more heavily, - the so-called suburbs outside the walls remained turnover tax concessions. As a result, flourished about in Neulerchenfeld (now the 16th district ), the hospitality industry enormously ( " the Holy Roman Empire 's biggest pub " ) because food and drinks could be sold significantly cheaper than inside the Linienwall.

Razing of Linienwall

1846 opened at the Belvedere line outside the Linienwall, 1858 Westbahnhof Mariahilfer line South Station and Ostbahnhof. In 1856 the k.k. Arsenal also opened outside the Walls. The Linienwall had become militarily long become obsolete.

As of 1862, a road was designed and built directly on the outside of the wall, which opened in 1873 Gürtelstraße. 1874 saw the 1850 eingemeindeten parts of the 4th district, Wieden, and the 5th District, Margaret, outside the Walls as the new 10th district, Favoriten, constituted. On 18 December 1890, the decision was made einzugemeinden the suburbs. After its incorporation on January 1, 1892 so that was the previous control limit obsolete and ceased the last obstacle to the demolition of the fortifications. The line Wall was demolished in March 1894 greatly expanded the belt and 1895 started the construction of the belt line of the light rail. Your viaducts or incisions were placed in the exact center of the now very wide belt.

Today's relics

Besides the Hundsturmer chapel today testify only scant remains of walls on the exact course of the Linienwall:

• In the 3rd district center side along the route of the rapid transit trunk route between Rennweg and South Station;
• In the area of the former cattle market in St. Marx ( 3rd district ) when Anton cow - path;
• In the 4th District in the yard Weyringergasse 13