Baden bei Wien

Austria

Known in Roman times as Aquae, the spa cure in Baden was developed as a combination of medicine and pleasure. From 1792, Baden began to enter a golden age with the reign of Emperor Franz II / I and its designation as an official imperial summer residence, from which the internationally famous 19th century spa resort emerged. Renowned architects such as Louis Montoyer, Charles Moreau and Joseph Kornhäusel shaped the cityscape. The Kurpark, the city centre with its imperial residence and town hall, the Biedermeier baths and the Grand Hotel Sauerhof bear witness to this period.

The idyllic landscape of the Helenental valley still attracts countless visitors today. Ludwig van Beethoven spent many summers in Baden and composed numerous works, including his Symphony No. 9, while Clemens Lothar Wenzel Prince Metternich, together with Emperor Franz, planned the Congress of Vienna for the reorganization of Europe after the Napoleonic Wars in the Palais Attems (today's Café Central).

The Emperor and his brothers constructed summer residences in the spa town. Until the end of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the Habsburg dynasty was a formative element in Baden. The linking-up of the town to the railway network in 1840 reduced the journey time from Vienna to less than one hour. The high nobility, financial aristocracy, high-ranking officials and the military gave Baden the urban flair of a metropolis every summer. From 1885 the villas of these guests, together with characteristic spa buildings such as meeting rooms, hotels and the theatre, formed an extraordinary urban ensemble. The boom of the pre-war period continued until the world economic crisis of 1929. The thermal bath, the pump rooms and the Krupka recreation facility of the Kurpark with the Beethoven temple are an important contribution to Baden's significant contribution as one of the Great Spas of Europe.