Volksgarten

1010 Vienna, Volksgarten (690.009)

General and Historical Facts

After parts of the old bastions had been blown up during the Napoleonic Wars, they were, eventually, demolished and removed.

After the Viennese Congress (1814/1815) the debris was removed and the area levelled. Pietro Nobile built the Theseus Temple and a coffeehouse featuring Late Classicist style there (1819–1823): the first contained a modest rectangular room and the coffeehouse was characterised by an Iconic colonnade of stone columns connected by glass windows (Café Corti). The Theseus Temple is a smaller copy of the Theseion in Athens, built in the Doric style, while the coffeehouse welcomed great composers such as Josef Lanner and Johann Strauss I (father). At the same time, Pietro Nobile completed the outer castle gate (Äußeres Burgtor), which had been started by Luigi Cagnola in 1821. By 1898, the coffeehouse was expanded, however, it was severely damaged by bombing during the Second World War. When being reconstructed by Oswald Haerdtl between 1947 and 1953, a restaurant, a milk bar and an open-air dining area were added. In 1958, the restaurant was remodelled by Oskar Haerdtl to resemble the style of the 1950s. A winter garden was added, which had a retractable roof system. Grand artists such as Ella Fitzgerald and Joe Zawinul performed there. Today, the Volksgarten café has become a discotheque.

The park is operated by Österreichische Bundesgärten.

Occupants:
Kunsthistorisches Museum
Österreichische Bundesgärten
Volksgarten Clubdiscothek und Tanzcafe & Garten
Cafe-Meierei Volksgarten
 

Burghauptmannschaft Österreich – Departments in charge:
Building Management Dep. 303 – Neue Burg
HVAC  Dep. 306 – HVAC
Property Management  Dep. 201 (Administration)