Ringstrasse

History
The end of the Biedermeier age marks the beginning of a new era, with the crowing of Franz Josef, the era of the Ringstrasse. Emperor Franz Josef decided to tear down the medieval city walls and expand the limits of Vienna. This allowed for the building of many structures that now define Vienna. The Ringstrasse period is not only defined by the creation of new Viennese monuments, such as: the Opera House, Parliament, or the University of Vienna; however it is the rise of the upper-middle class in Vienna. These are the newly rich and have made their new fortune through the rise in industry in Vienna. They are often minorities, support liberal political parties, and believe in capitalism through laissez-faire economics. The Ringstrasse barons are known for being insecure because of their newly rich status and try and go above and beyond to prove their newly attained status, thus they try and imitate the aristocratic style and place this same influence on to the new architecture of the Ringstrasse and also into society.

Jugendstil
Jugenstil or Art Noveau is the style that defines the age of the Ringstrasse. This styles most famous advocator in Vienna was Otto Wagner. He was born right into the Ringstrasse period in 1842 and believed that architectural style should mirror its own period. He grew tired of neo-renditions of old styles such as: Renaissance, Baroque, and Classical. He believed that something not practical cannot be beautiful and became well liked not just for his aesthetically pleasing architecture but his innovations and practicality. He was involved in building the Danube Canal that has saved Vienna from many floods that other cities along the Danube have not been so fortunate to get away from. Jugenstil is characterized by its steel, marble, and Mallorca tile. The most notable example in Vienna would be in Karlsplatz where there is a Otto Wagner museum in one of his old Jugendstil Stadtbahn stations. Most of the buildings are white with some green and gilded ornamentations and a specific style of font.

Sites
The Votiv Church was done in the neo-Gothic style to model that of the Stephansdom. Franz Josef built the church as a thanks to the higher power for a surviving an assassination attempt. Parliament was built in neo-Classical style, mirroring Greek society, the world’s first democracy. The Rathaus is done in the neo-Gothic style to symbolize “the free burgher cities of the Flanders in the Middle Ages” (Parsons, 208). The Kunsthistorisches and Naturhistorisches Museums are done in the Renaissance style to represent the revival of arts and sciences. The neue-Hofburg is done in the neo-Baroque style to signify the pomp and absolutist ethos of the empire and rulers of the Habsburgs during the time. The University of Wien was built in the Renaissance style to mirror the rebirth of learning and thought. The Staatoper was built in the Venetian Renaissance style to represent the birthplace of opera and dedication to the arts. Some famous Ringstrasse architect include: “Gottfried Semper, Karl Hasenauer, Theophil von Hansen, Heinrich Ferstel, Friedrich Schmidt, Von Siccardsburg, Van der Null” (Parsons, 208). This movement is associated with the Secesseion and the Secessionist artists are responsible for the construction of the buildings around the Ringstrasse between 1858-1900. However, Adolf Loos and his friends were anti-Secessionist and criticized the Secession artists, architects, and buildings to be decorative and busy. He believed in simplicity and stated that ornamentation should be considered a crime. He also thinks that if one uses beautiful material to build then there would be no use for decoration.

R-Tram
The R-Tram is a yellow tram that takes you around the Ringstrasse to get a view of the most significant and recognizable buildings in Vienna. We got on near our school and started the tour with the bilateral buildings of the Kunsthistorisches and Naturhistorisches Museums and that is where we also ended. I noticed that the person working the tram was very friendly and helpful, something refreshing because since I have been here I have found the Viennese to be pretty unfriendly. He gave us each our own headsets that we could plug into the audio guide, which came in many languages. The technology was done really well. The audio guide was in sync with what we were seeing and also there was a screen where they would display the building the audio guide was talking about so we knew exactly if we were looking at the correct thing. Some noted sites included: Parliament, People’s Park, Burg Theater (Renaissance), Rathaus (neo-Gothic), University of Vienna, Votiv Church (neo-Gothic), Danube Canal, Ring Tower, OPEC headquarters, Schwarzenberg Platz, Hotel Imperial, Charles Church (Baroque), and the Staatoper. I thought the tram tour would be a good way for tourists to get a feel for the city and its architectural style; however, it is quite expensive and I do not know that someone would want to ride it more than once. Furthermore, there are a lot more aesthetically pleasing and “Viennese” styled buildings inside the Ringstrasse that the tour does not cover.