Michael A. Stecker
mastecker@gmail.com


 

The Hofburg in Vienna Austria
For centuries the Vienna Hofburg was the home to monarchs of the Habsburg empire. Today the palace houses three museums which afford
historically authentic insights into the traditions and everyday life of the imperial court: The Imperial Apartments with their original furnishings
and decoration, the Sisi Museum with its sensitive staging of the empress' life, and the Imperial Silver Collection which contains a range of
tableware and other utensils used at the imperial court.

History of the Habsburg dynasty
The House of Habsburg, also called the House of Austria, was one of the most influential royal houses of Europe. The throne of the Holy Roman Empire was continuously occupied by the Habsburgs from 1438 until 1740. The house also produced emperors and kings of Bohemia, England, Germany, Hungary, Croatia, Illyria, Mexico, Ireland, Portugal, Spain and Holland.   From the 16th century, following the reign of Charles V the dynasty was split between its Austrian and Spanish branches.

The House takes its name from Habsburg Castle, a fortress built in the 1020s in present-day Switzerland, in the canton of Aargau, by Count Radbot of Klettgau, who chose to name his fortress Habsburg. His grandson Otto II was the first to take the fortress name as his own, adding "Count of Habsburg" to his title.  By 1276, Count Radbot's seventh generation descendant Rudolph of Habsburg moved the family's power base from Habsburg Castle to the Duchy of Austria. Rudolph became King of Germany in 1273, and the dynasty of the House of Habsburg was truly entrenched in 1276 when Rudolph became ruler of Austria, which the Habsburgs and their descendants ruled until 1918.
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Hofburg --Vienna's Imperial Palace
Vienna's Imperial Palace, the Hofburg, was for centuries the seat of the Habsburgs, rulers of Austria until the end of WWI (1918-1919). A great deal of European history was written here, in particular by Empress Maria and, for a while, the German Emperor.  Today, it's the official seat of the Austrian Head of State, the Federal President.

The palace complex is particularly interesting as its buildings reflect more than 700 years of Hapsburg history since 1275.  As a result, the Hofburg shows many different architectural styles, from Classical to Gothic to Renaissance, Baroque to Rococo. The oldest part of the complex, the Royal Chapel (Burgkapelle) dates from the 13th century.  It's notable as the home of the famed Vienna Boys' Choir, who can be seen in action during Sunday
mass services.

Together with its many squares and gardens, the Hofburg occupies an area of some 59 acres comprising 18 groups of buildings, 19 courtyards, and
2,600 rooms.  Visitors are given three choices when visiting this spectacular site — the Imperial Apartments, the Sisi Museum, and Silver Collection — each of which can be toured individually or as part of an extended visit. The area around the Hofburg, along with some of its outlying buildings, houses
a number of other attractions, including the Imperial Chapel (Burgkapelle), the Natural History Museum (Naturhistorisches Museum), the
Austrian National Library, and the Spanish Riding School.