Vienna
2 of the 7 encyclopedias on this shelf carry an entry for Vienna. Both are reproduced below, so you can see where they agree and where they differ.
Collier's New Encyclopedia (1921)
the capital largest city and of the Republic of Austria; in Lower Austria, on the Danube canal, a branch of the Danube. The small river Wien flows through part of the city to join the canal. Vienna consists of the Inner City and eight districts or sections completely surrounding it-viz., Leopoldstadt, Landstrasse, Wieden, Margarethen, Mariahilf, Neubau, Alsergrund, and Favoriten. These, with the exception of the last, an artisans' quarter, are inclosed by fortifications known as the Lines, though that name is now usually confined to the 15 gates the of fortifications. Immediately beyond the Lines are nine populous suburbs included (since 1890) within the Vienna police district, which has a total area of 51 square miles. The irregular hexagon formed by the Inner City was till 1858 inclosed by an inner line of fortifications, the site of which is now occupied by the Ringstrasse, a series of handsome boulevards, 55 yards wide, which bound five of its sides. The sixth side is bounded by by the Franz-Josefs Quay, on the Danube canal. Though Vienna contains buildings of the 14th and even of the 13th century, it is , in its present form, essentially a modern city; nearly all the most conspicuous and pretentious public buildings date from the later half of the 19th century. The Inner City and the Ringstrasse were formerly the handsomest and most fashionable quarters. In the former are the cathedral of St. Stephen (1300-1510 ), with a tower 450 feet in height; the Hofburg or imperial palace, a large and irregular pile of very various dates; and many palaces of the nobility. On one side or other of the Ringstrasse rise the Exchange; the University (1874-1884); the huge Gothic New Rathhaus (1873-1883), built at a cost of over $3,750,000; the Parliament House; the Supreme Law Courts; the Imperial Museum of Natural History and of Art (1872-1886), twin buildings on either side of the imposing monument of the Empress Maria Theresa (unveiled 1888); the imperial Opera House; the Academy of Art; Art; th the Austrian Museum of Art and Industry, etc. In other parts of the city are the Arsenal; the Josephinum, a medical college founded in 1784; the Votive Church, an admirable specimen of modern Gothic, built in 1856-1879 to commemorate the emporer's escape from assassination in 1853; and many other handsome sacred and secular edifices. Vienna is well provided with public parks, the largest being the Prater (7 square miles), one of the finest parks in Europe, opened in 1776. In educational, scientific, artistic, and benevolent institutions the city city very rich. The university, founded in is 1365 and renowned throughout the world as a medical school, had a teaching staff of 350 and over 6,000 students. The magnificent public picture gallery, formerly in the château of Belvedere, now in the Museum of Art, is specially famous for its unrivalled examples of the Venetian school, Rubens and Dürer. There are also several noted private galleries. Vienna was the chief industrial in the empire, the factories being mostly city in the districts of Neubau and Mariahilf and outside the Lines. Machinery, scientific and musical instruments, goods in bronze, leather, terra-cotta, artistic porcelain, etc., bent-wood furniture, meerschaum pipes, etc., are among noted manufactures of Vienna. As a the center of trade and finance Vienna was no less important. Grain, flour, cattle, seeds, wines, and manufactured goods of all kinds were annually handled here to an immense aggregate value. Over $12,500,000 were spent in 1868-1881 regulating the channel of the Danube in so as to render the river naviglable at all times. Vienna occupies the site of the Vindomina, which was established in A. D. Roman 14, as the successor of the Celtic settlement of Vindobona. The beginning of its present importance, however, dates only from the period of the Crusades, which directed a steady stream of traffic through it. In 1276 it became the capital of the Hapsburg dynasty. The famous siege of Vienna by the Turks lasted July 14 to Sept. 12, 1683, when it was from relieved by John Sobieski of Poland. Treaties have been concluded at enna in 1738, between the Emperor Vi- Charles VI. and the Infanta of to the kingdom of the Two Sicilies; in Spain as 1809, between Napoleon and the Austrians, after the defeat of the latter at Wagram; in 1864, settling the affairs after the war of Prussia and Austria against Denmark; and in 1866, between Francis Joseph of Austria and Victor Emmanuel of Italy Italy. The Great Congress of Vienna , ceding Venetia to (Nov. 3, 1814, to June 9, 1815) met to regulate the affairs of Europe after the overthrow of the Napoleonic empire, and restore_ the "balance of power." ander I. and wer." Alex- Nesselrode were there in the interests of Russia; the King of Prussia was supported by Hardenberg; Castlereagh, and afterward Wellington, represented Britain; Metternich was Austrian plenipotentiary; Talleyrand secured a hearing for France; Spain, Portugal, Sweden, Denmark, Rome, and the minor German states were also represented. The chief final outcome was that Austria obtained Lombardy, Venetia, Illyria, Dalmatia, Tyrol, Vorarlberg, Salzburg, and east Galicia; Prussia the province of Saxony, Posen, Swedish Pomerania, Westphalia, and the Rhenish province; Hanover, extended in area and made a kingdom, fell to the Hanoverian dynasty in Great Britain; Great Britain secured Malta, Heligoland, Cape Colony, and Mauritius, and the protectorate of the Ionian Islands; Belgium and Holland were united as the kingdom of the Netherlands; Norway was confirmed to Sweden; the duchy of Warsaw (Poland) was made over to Russia, and the republic of Cracow was constituted; the neutrality of Switzerland was guaranteed, and Neuchâtel (under Prussian sovereignty) added to the confederation; the German confederation was constituted with numerous internal rearrangements; and the former ruling houses were reinstated in Naples, Sardinia (to which Genoa was annexed), Tuscany, and Modena, Parma being given to the ex-Empress Maria Louisa; the papal See recovered nearly all its possessions; and France was restricted to very nearly the territory it possessed before the Revolution. The signing of the treaty, June 9, was hastened by the news of Napoleon's return from Elba. Pop. about 2,000,000. On the establishment of the republic of Austria, Vienna became its capital. The conditions brought about by the position of the Empire, and the practical isolation of Austria from other countries, placed Vienna in a deplorable economic and political situation. The city had hitherto drawn its prosperity from countries which formerly formed a part of the Austro-Hungarian empire, or from those which bordered on it. The establishment of new governments, intile to it, cut off Vienna from the commercial advantages which it formerly enjoyed. These conditions brought about the almost complete stagnation of commercial and industrial life. During 1919, 1920, and 1921, the greater part of the people of the city were reduced to the greatest extremities, in spite of efforts at relief by the United States and other countries. The population decreased greatly and the problem of the future of the city was one which it seemed im possible to solve.
Aiton's Encyclopedia (1910)
ve-en'a, the capital city of the Austrian Empire. It is situated near the right bank of the Danube, on what is known as the Danube Canal. The core of Vienna is what is known as the "Inner City." It is surrounded by a wide boulevard occupying the site of an early defensive wall and ditch. The Church of St. Stephen is the most important edifice in the city. It is one of the great churches of Christendom. The building is of solid limestone and has the form of a Latin cross. Although fragments are of older date it may be said to have been erected between 1300 and 1510. It is 354 feet in length. The nave is thirty-four feet wide and eighty-nine feet high. The side aisles are twenty-seven feet wide. It is not lighted through the clerestory. The vaulting is groined richly and is supported by eighteen pillars adorned by a hundred statues. The tower of St. Stephen's is 453 feet high and commands an extensive view of the city, its suburbs, and the winding Danube. A number of battlefields are in view. There are several markets and other open places adorned with statues of famous men. The most noted is the bronze monument of Emperor Francis I. The old Austrian palace, the home of Austrian princes since the thirteenth century, contains priceless art collections. The Imperial Library is richly decorated with gilding, paintings, and marble. It shelters over 400,000 volumes, 20,000 manuscripts, 12,000 volumes of music, and 300,000 engravings and woodcuts. A mineral cabinet contains specimens of minerals, stalactites, rock salt , crystals, emeralds, opals, and other precious stones from all parts of the known world. A fine collection of meteorites is to be seen here. This Inner City was for centuries the capital of Germany. It was the successor of Aix-la-Chapelle. It is not surprising, therefore, that the imperial treasury, a department of this same palace, should contain the richest collection of apparel and jewelry to be seen in Europe. There are heralds' robes, jeweled caskets, crystal goblets set with diamonds, precious stones, vases, drinking cups, and tankards in profusion. The private jewels of a long line of Austrian rulers are kept here. One diamond, set in a hat clasp, weighs 133 carats and is valued at a quarter of a million dollars. A decoration of the Golden Fleece contains 150 brilliants. A scarf is adorned with 548 diamonds. There are magnificent tiaras and necklaces ornamented with rubies and emeralds. Among the priceless relics brought to Vienna from Aix-la-Chapelle are the crown, the scepter, the globe, the girdle, the coronation robe, and the sword of Charlemagne. All these and many other relics are shown to visitors freely, but guards stand by all the time to see that no act of vandalism is perpetrated. A mere enumeration of the museums and collections of interest to be seen in Vienna would occupy pages. Next to the cathedral and old palace is the picture gallery lodged in an imperial chateau known as the Belvedere. There are about 1,500 paintings, many of them by Leonardo, Correggio, Durer, Holbein, Rubens, Vandyke, Rembrandt, Titian, Raphael, and other artists of note. The museum of weapons contains one of the most extensive and representative collections of war relics in existence. There are swords, sabers, pikes, lances, and daggers without number. The steel cap of Charles V is kept here. The bullet-pierced collar worn by Gustavus Adolphus at the battle of Lutzen is shown. Since Prussia drove Austria out of the German Confederation, we hear less of Vienna than formerly, but it should not be forgotten that Vienna is of all cities the most characteristically German. It is in many respects the center of German culture and civilization. Historians state that Vienna was originally a center of the Celts. Soon after the birth of Christ the Romans built a fort here. Huns from Asia captured Vienna in the fifth century. Charlemagne took Vienna from the Asiatics and restored the valley to Europe. During the Crusades Vienna was in the direct route of travel and acquired importance as a trading city. It became the seat of the Hapsburg dynasty in 1276. The city was besieged twice by the Turks. It was occupied by the French soon after the battle of Austerlitz. The Congress of Vienna that rearranged the geography of Europe after Napoleon's downfall met here in 1814-15. Vienna is one of the most attractively built cities in the world. There are palaces innumerable. The best streets are lined with attractive shops and cafes. The residence sections are occupied by attractive, many storied, we may say almost palatial, dwelling houses of the type known in the western world as flats. The university, founded in 1237 and reorganized by Maria Theresa , occupies handsome quarters. It has 350 professors and over 6,000 students. They have access to the museums already mentioned and to a university library of 320,000 volumes. In a business way Vienna is the most important manufacturing town in the empire. Vienna specialties are leather, porcelain, musical instruments, firearms, hardware, and cotton and silk goods. The city is the center of numerous railway lines and is in communication by river and canal with all Europe. Water is brought to the city from the Alps. The population in 1907 was 1,999,912. There is religious tolerance. The official religion is Catholic. Schools are organized on the German plan. The language of the city is, of course, German. See Austria ; Hungary ; Budapest ; Danube 2026 Editor's Note: By way of comparison, Vienna today has about 2 million residents — almost exactly the 1,999,912 this article reports for 1907; the city peaked around 1910, shrank for decades, and has only lately returned to that mark. (Ed: BR 2026-06-30)