Turnus clubhouse
Innstraße 2
Turnus clubhouse for those in a hurry
- Today's residential and commercial building on the Innrain was once a penitentiary, the core of which dates back to the 18th century.
- The prison was built in 1725 for the detention of "work-shy and dissolute people" and to accommodate travellers passing through.
- The construction was financed by forced labour of the inmates in a linen and later a loden factory.
- Not only criminals but also beggars were housed in the prison, reflecting a change in social attitudes towards those unable to work during the Enlightenment.
- In 1859, the city of Innsbruck acquired the building and handed it over to the Turnusverein for the accommodation of soldiers travelling through.
- The opening of the railway line over the Brenner Pass eliminated the need for the Turnusvereinshaus.
- The building later served as a provincial gendarmerie headquarters and, during the First World War, as a temporary camp for Italian prisoners of war.
Worth knowing
Wo sich heute Wohnungen und Geschäfte befinden, war einst das Zuchthaus angesiedelt. Der Kern des Hauses geht in seinem Aussehen auf das 18. Jahrhundert zurück. Langgezogen zieht sich das dreistöckige Gebäude entlang des Innrains. Ein kleines Türmchen krönt den kasernenartigen Bau mit Arkadengang, in dem sich heute Geschäfte und Lokale befinden. Der Innenhof mit dem sehenswerten Brunnen und den vergitterten Fenstern erinnert heute im Look and feel noch an die vergangenen Verwendungszwecke des Turnusvereinshaus.
In the 18th century, not only did the number of citizens grow, but the rate of beggars and alms recipients also skyrocketed. Coupled with the emergence of a new, more enlightened understanding of the law, the need for "to detain labour-shy and dissolute people and to take in the individuals arriving with thrust“. Der Kräuterturm an der Ostseite der Stadtmauer war kein Gefängnis, sondern eine Verwahrungsanstalt. Langjähriger Freiheitsentzug war nicht gängige Praxis. Der Aufenthalt im Gefängnis war nur ein Übergang bis zum Gerichtstermin, wo die eigentliche Strafe verhängt wurde. Lange Zeit scheiterte der Plan eine Strafanstalt zu eröffnen an der Finanzierung. Erst durch den Plan, den Bau durch Zwangsarbeit gegenzufinanzieren, konnte die Verwahrungsanstalt fertiggestellt werden. 1725 öffnete das Zuchthaus nach fast fünfzehn Jahre dauernden Bauarbeiten seine Pforten. Die neue Strafanstalt war kein Gefängnis, sondern ein Arbeitshaus. Die Insassen sollten selbst durch ihrer Hände Arbeit für ihren Aufenthalt aufkommen. An die 300 Personen arbeiteten unter schwierigsten Bedingungen in der Leinenfabrik, später in der Lodenfabrik. Die häufigsten Delikte waren Diebstahl, Körperverletzung, Mord und Kindsmord, was nichts anderes als Abtreibung nach Geburt darstellt. Es waren nicht nur Sträflinge, auch Bettler sollten hier für ihr Dasein aufkommen. Waren diese liederlichen Leute during the Middle Ages and the early modern period under the patronage of ecclesiastical institutions such as the special sieve house The attitude towards people unable to work had changed during the all-rationalising Enlightenment. In line with the ideas of the Enlightenment, this was intended to serve the good of society as well as provide the offender with individual improvement and integration.
1859 kaufte die Stadt Innsbruck das Gebäude und gab es an den Turnusverein der Stadt Innsbruck weiter. Es war zu dieser Zeit Sitte und Pflicht, dass Bürger der Stadt Soldaten auf Durchmarsch bei sich zu Hause aufnahmen. Mit den Kriegshandlungen in Italien mehrte sich auch die Zahl der durchmarschierenden Soldaten, die über den Brenner zu den Schlachtfeldern transportiert wurden. Wer es sich leisten konnte, wurde Mitglied des Einquartierungs-Turnusvereins und konnte so die Soldaten, die eigentlich in der eigenen Wohnung unterkommen sollten, an das Turnusvereinshaus abgeben. 1869 entfiel diese Bürgerpflicht wieder. Mit der Eröffnung der Eisenbahnlinie über den Brenner verschwand der Zwischenstopp in Innsbruck. Die drastisch verkürzte Zeit, um Soldaten von A nach B zu schaffen, revolutionierten nicht nur die Kriegsführung, sondern machten Einrichtungen wie das Turnusvereinshaus überflüssig. In Folge wurde das Turnus clubhouse zum Landesgendarmeriekommando umfunktioniert. Während des Ersten Weltkrieges diente das Gebäude als Zwischenlager für Italienische Kriegsgefangene. Das Turnusvereinshaus war wieder zu einem Gefängnis geworden. Die meisten inhaftierten Soldaten blieben nur kurz in Innsbruck zur Verwahrung. Sie wurden in größere Lager in Ostösterreich umgesiedelt, unter anderem nach Mauthausen.
Am Innufer vor dem Turnusvereinshaus bietet der sogenannte „Dürerblick“ einen schönen Panoramablick auf die Altstadt. Hier saß Albrecht Dürer 1495 wohl, als er die Skizzen für sein berühmtes Aquarell der Stadt Innsbruck anlegte. Das Werk selbst entstand später in seiner Werkstatt in Nürnberg. Das Original des Bildes „Innsprugg from the north" now hangs in the Albertina in Vienna. Innsbruck's penal institution is now located on the western outskirts of the city and bears the name "Zieglstadl", as there was a brickworks on this site before the move in 1964. Despite all the innovations that Austria's penal system has undergone over the centuries and the various forms of government, it may come as a surprise to realise how recently the approach of reintegrating offenders into society has been in place. As recently as the 1970s, it was common practice to put people in prison with light deprivation or solitary confinement and regularly punish them with food deprivation.
Romance, sunless summers and apology cards
Thanks to the university and the intellectuals it attracted and produced, Innsbruck also sniffed the morning air of the Enlightenment in the 18th century in the era of Maria Theresa, even if the Jesuit faculty leadership put the brakes on it. 1741 saw the founding of the Societas Academica Litteraria a circle of scholars in the Taxispalais. The masonic lodge was founded in 1777 To the three mountains, vier Jahre später die Tirolische Gesellschaft für Künste und Wissenschaft. Der Geist der Vernunft in der Zeit Maria Theresias und Kaiser Josefs hielt auch in Innsbrucks Elite Einzug. Angestachelt von der Französischen Revolution bekannten sich einige Studenten gar zu den Jakobinern. Unter Kaiser Franz wurden all diese Vereinigungen nach der Kriegserklärung an Frankreich 1794 verboten und streng überwacht. Aufklärerische Ideen waren bereits vor der Französischen Revolution in großen Teilen der Bevölkerung verpönt. Spätestens nach der Enthauptung von Marie Antoinette, der Schwester des Kaisers, und dem Kriegsausbruch zwischen der Republik Frankreich und den Monarchien Europas, galten sie als gefährlich. Wer wollte schon als Jakobiner gelten, wenn es darum ging, die Heimat zu verteidigen?
After the Napoleonic Wars, Innsbruck began to recover, both economically and mentally. The small town on the edge of the empire had just over 12,000 inhabitants, „ohne die Soldaten, Studenten und Fremden zu rechnen“. University, grammar school, Reading casinomusic club, theatre and museum testified to a certain urban culture. There was a Deutsches Kaffeehaus, eine Restauration im Hofgarten und mehrere Gasthöfe wie den Österreichischen Hofwhich Grape, das Mouthingeach of which Goldenen Adler, Stern und Hirsch. The biggest innovation for the population came in 1830, when oil lamps lit the city at night. It was probably just a dim twilight created by the more than 150 lamps mounted on pillars and chandeliers, but for contemporaries it was a true revolution.
The Bavarian occupation had disappeared after 1815, but the ideas of the thinkers of the Enlightenment and the French Revolution had become entrenched in some of the minds of the urban milieu. Of course, it was not atheistic, socialist or even subversive ideas that were spreading. It was primarily about the economic, political and social participation of the middle classes. Associations, which had previously been banned, enjoyed a renaissance. Anyone who could afford it and was self-respecting joined an association. "Innsbruck has a music society, an agricultural society and a mining and geological society." stand etwa im Reiseführer Beda Webers zu lesen. Es galt das tugendhafte Miteinander zum Wohl der weniger Begüterten und die Erziehung der Massen mit dem Treiben in den Vereinen zu forcieren. Wissenschaft, Literatur, Theater und Musik, aber auch Initiativen wie der Innsbruck Beautification Association, aber auch praktische Institutionen wie die Freiwillige Feuerwehr etablierten sich als Säulen einer bis dato nicht gekannten Zivilgesellschaft. Einer der ersten Vereine, die sich bildeten, war der Musikverein Innsbruck, aus dem das Tiroler Landeskonservatorium hervorging. Männer und Frauen waren ganz im Zeitgeist nicht Mitglieder in den gleichen Vereinen. Frauen engagierten sich vor allem in der Wohlfahrt wie dem Women's association for the promotion of infant care centres and female industrial schools. Teilnahme am politischen Diskurs von weiblicher Seite war nicht erwünscht.
Neben der christlichen Nächstenliebe waren wohl auch Geltungsdrang und Prestige große Anreize für die Mitglieder, sich in den Vereinen zu engagieren. Man traf sich, um zu sehen und gesehen zu werden. Gute Taten, das Zeigen von Bildung und tugendhafte Lebensführung waren damals wie heute die beste PR für die eigene Person.
Das Vereinsleben diente auch als Unterhaltung an langen Abenden ohne elektrisches Licht, Fernsehen und Internet. In den Gaststätten und Kaffeehäusern trafen sich Studenten, Beamte, Mitglieder des niederen Adels und Akademiker, um ihr Gedankengut auszutauschen. Dabei handelte es sich nicht nur um hochgeistig Abstraktes, sondern auch um profane Realpolitik wie die Aussetzung der Binnenzölle, die das Leben der Menschen unnötig teuer machten. Kulturell entdeckte die bürgerliche Bildungselite in Romantik und Biedermeier die kulturelle Flucht in eine heile Vergangenheit für sich. Nach den Jahrzehnten politischer Verwirrung, Krieg und Not wollte man, ähnlich wie nach 1945, Ablenkung von der jüngsten Vergangenheit. Die Antike und ihre Denker feierten in Innsbruck wie in ganz Europa eine zweite Renaissance. Stilbildend waren Denker der Romantik des 18. und frühen 19. Jahrhunderts wie Winckelmann, Lessing oder Hegel. Den Griechen wurde „Noble simplicity and quiet greatness" attested. Goethe wanted the "Search the land of the Greeks with your soul" and travelled to Italy in search of his longing for the good, pre-Christian times in which the people of the Golden Age cultivated an informal relationship with their gods. Roman Stoic virtues were transported into the modern age as role models and formed the basis for bourgeois frugality and patriotism, which became very fashionable. Philologists combed through the texts of ancient writers and philosophers and conveyed a pleasing "Best of" into the 19th century. Columns, sphinxes, busts and statues with classical proportions adorned palaces, administrative buildings and museums such as the Ferdinandeum. Students and intellectuals such as the Briton Lord Byron were so inspired by the Panhellenism and the idea of nationalism that they risked their lives in the Greek struggle for independence against the Ottoman Empire. After the end of the Holy Roman Empire, Pan-Germanism became the political fashion of the liberal bourgeoisie in Innsbruck.
Chancellor Clemens von Metternich's (1773 - 1859) police state kept these social movements under control for a long time. Newspapers, pamphlets, books and clubs were under general suspicion. Writings had to conform to the strict censorship or be distributed underground. Authors such as Hermann von Gilm (1812 - 1864) and Johann Senn (1792 - 1857), both of whom are commemorated by streets in Innsbruck today, anonymously disseminated politically motivated literature in Tyrol. The Innsbruck Music Society also taught declamation, the performance of texts, music and speeches as part of its training programme, the content of which was strictly monitored by the authorities. All kinds of societies such as die Innsbrucker Liedertafel and student fraternities, even the members of the Ferdinandeum were spied on. The social movements forming in the working-class neighbourhoods were particularly targeted by Metternich's secret police. Despite their demonstrative loyalty to the emperor, the marksmen were also on the list of institutions to be observed. They were considered too rebellious, not only towards foreign powers, but also towards the Viennese central government. The mix of Greater German nationalist ideas and Tyrolean patriotism presented with the pathos of Romanticism seems strangely harmless today, but was neither comfortable nor acceptable to the Metternich state apparatus.
Politischer Aktivismus war aber ein Randphänomen, das nur eine kleine Elite beschäftigte. Nachdem die Bergwerke und Salinen im 17. Jahrhundert ihre Rentabilität verloren hatten und auch der Transit ob der neuen Handelsrouten über den Atlantik an wirtschaftlicher Bedeutung einbüßte, war Tirol zu einem armen Landstrich geworden. Die Napoleonischen Kriege hatten über 20 Jahre lang gewütet. Das Jahr 1809 ging als Tiroler Heldenzeitalter in die Geschichtsschreibung des 19. und frühen 20. Jahrhunderts ein, die Folgen des Heldenhaften wurden kaum beleuchtet. Das Kaisertum Österreich zählte zwar zu den Siegermächten nach dem Wiener Kongress, die wirtschaftliche Lage war aber erbärmlich. Wie nach den Weltkriegen des 20. Jahrhunderts waren auch in den Koalitionskriegen viele Männer nicht mehr nach Hause zurückgekehrt. Die Universität, die junge Aristokraten in den Wirtschaftskreislauf der Stadt zog, wurde erst 1826 wieder eröffnet. Anders als Industriestandorte in Böhmen, Mähren, Preußen oder England war die schwer erreichbare Stadt in den Alpen erst am Anfang der Entwicklung hin zu einem modernen Arbeitsmarkt. Auch der Tourismus steckte noch in den Kinderschuhen und war keine Cash Cow. Es ist kein Wunder, dass kaum Gebäude im Biedermeier-Stil in Innsbruck erhalten sind. Und dann war da noch ein Vulkan am anderen Ende der Welt, der die Geschicke der Stadt Innsbruck über Gebühr beeinflusste. 1815 war in Indonesien der Tambora ausgebrochen und hatte eine riesige Staub-, Schwefel- und Aschewolke um die Welt geschickt. 1816 ging als Year without summer in die Geschichte ein. In ganz Europa kam es zu Wetterkapriolen, Überschwemmungen und Missernten. Die Alpen, ein ohnehin schwieriger Teil der Erde, um Landwirtschaft zu betreiben, waren davon nicht ausgenommen.
The economic upheavals and price increases led to hardship and misery, especially among the poorer sections of the population. In the 19th century, caring for the poor was a task for the communities, usually with the support of wealthy citizens as patrons with the idea of Christian charity. The state, the community, the church and the newly emerging civil society in the form of associations began to look after the welfare of the poorest sections of the population. Charity concerts, collections and appeals for donations were organised. The measures often contained an enlightened component, even if the means to an end seem strange and alien today. In Innsbruck, for example, a begging ordinance came into force that banned dispossessed people from marrying. Almost 1000 citizens were categorised as alms recipients and beggars.
As the need grew and the city coffers became emptier, Innsbruck came up with an innovation that was to last for over 100 years: The New Year's apology card. Even back then, it was customary to visit relatives on the first day of the year to give each other a Happy New Year to make a wish. It was also customary for needy families and beggars to knock on the doors of wealthy citizens to ask for alms at New Year. The introduction of the New Year's relief card killed several birds with one stone. The buyers of the card were able to institutionalise and support their poorer members in a regulated way, similar to the way street newspapers are bought today. Twenty is possible. At the same time, the New Year's apology card served as a way of avoiding the unpopular obligatory visits to relatives. Those who hung the card on their front door also signalled to those in need that no further requests for alms were necessary, as they had already paid their contribution. Last but not least, the noble donors were also favourably mentioned in the media so that everyone could see how much they cared for their less fortunate fellow human beings in the name of charity.
The New Year's apology cards were a complete success. At their premiere at the turn of the year from 1819 to 1820, 600 were sold. Many communities adopted the Innsbruck recipe. In the magazine "The Imperial and Royal Privileged Bothe of and for Tyrol and Vorarlberg", the proceeds for Bruneck, Bozen, Trient, Rovereto, Schwaz, Imst, Bregenz and Innsbruck were published on 12 February. Other institutions such as fire brigades and associations also adopted the well-functioning custom to raise funds for their cause. The construction of the new Höttinger parish church was financed to a large extent from the proceeds of specially issued apology cards in addition to donations. The varied designs ranged from Christian motifs to portraits of well-known personalities, official buildings, new buildings, sights and curiosities. Many of the designs can still be seen in the Innsbruck City Archives.
Maria Theresia, Reformatorin und Landesmutter
Maria Theresa is one of the most important figures in Austrian history. Although she is often referred to as Empress, she was officially "only" Archduchess of Austria, Queen of Hungary and Queen of Bohemia. Her domestic reforms were significant. Together with her advisors Friedrich Wilhelm von Haugwitz, Joseph von Sonnenfels and Wenzel Anton Kaunitz, she managed to emerge from the so-called Österreichischen Erblanden to create a modern state. Instead of the administration of its territories by the local nobility, it favoured a modern administration. The welfare of her subjects became more important. In the style of the Enlightenment, her advisors had recognised that the welfare of the state depended on the health and education of its individual parts. Subjects were to be Catholic, but their loyalty was to be to the state. School education was placed under centralised state administration. No critical, humanistic intellectuals were to be educated, but rather material for the state administrative apparatus. Non-nobles could now also rise to higher state positions via the military and administration.
A rethink took place in law enforcement and the judiciary. In 1747, a kleine Polizei which was responsible for matters relating to market supervision, trade regulations, tourist control and public decency. The penal code Constitutio Criminalis Theresiana did not abolish torture, but it did regulate its use.
Economic reforms were intended not only to create more opportunities for the subjects, but also to increase state revenue. Weights and measures were nominated to make the tax system more impermeable. For citizens and peasants, the standardisation of laws had the advantage that life was less dependent on landlords and their whims. The RobotThis was abolished under Maria Theresa.
As much as Maria Theresa staged herself as a pious mother of the country and is known today as an Enlightenment figure, the strict Catholic ruler was not squeamish when it came to questions of power and religion. In keeping with the trend of the Enlightenment, she had superstitions such as vampirism, which was widespread in the eastern parts of her empire, critically analysed and initiated the final end to witch trials. At the same time, however, she mercilessly expelled Protestants from the country. Many Tyroleans were forced to leave their homeland and settle in parts of the Habsburg Empire further away from the centre.
In crown lands such as Tyrol, Maria Theresa's reforms met with little favour. With the exception of a few liberals, they saw themselves more as an independent and autonomous province and less as part of a modern territorial state. The clergy also did not like the new, subordinate role, which became even more pronounced under Joseph II. For the local nobility, the reforms not only meant a loss of importance and autonomy, but also higher taxes and duties. Taxes, levies and customs duties, which had always provided the city of Innsbruck with reliable income, were now collected centrally and only partially refunded via financial equalisation. In order to minimise the fall of sons from impoverished aristocratic families and train them for civil service, Maria Theresa founded the Theresianumwhich also had a branch in Innsbruck from 1775.
As is so often the case, time has ironed out many a wrinkle and the people of Innsbruck are now proud to have been home to one of the most important rulers in Austrian history. Today, the Triumphpfote and the Hofburg in Innsbruck are the main reminders of the Theresian era.
1796 - 1866: Vom Herzen Jesu bis Königgrätz
The period between the French Revolution and the Battle of Königgrätz in 1866 was a period of war. Many of the basic political attitudes, animosities towards other groups and European nationalism of the 19th and 20th centuries, which were also to influence the history of Innsbruck, had their roots in the conflicts of this period. The monarchies of Europe, led by the Habsburgs, had declared war on the French Republic. Fears were rife that the slogan of the revolution "Liberté, Égalité, Fraternité" could spread across Europe. A young general named Napoleon Bonaparte was with his italienischen Armee advanced across the Alps as part of the coalition wars and met the Austrian troops there. It was not just a war for territory and power, it was a battle of systems. The Grande Armee of the revolutionary French Republic met the troops of the conservative and Catholic Habsburgs.
Tyrolean marksmen were actively involved in the fighting to defend the country's borders against the invading French. The men were used to handling weapons and were considered skilled marksmen. The historian Ludwig Denk put it this way in an essay in 1860:
"...The Tyrolean's main passion is shooting. Early on, the father takes his son hunting. It is not uncommon to see boys running around with loaded rifles, climbing high mountains and shooting birds or squirrels..."
The strength of units such as the Höttinger Schützen, founded in 1796, lay not in open field battles but in guerrilla warfare. They also had a secret weapon on their side against the most advanced and modern army of the time: the Sacred Heart. Since 1719, Jesuit missionaries had been travelling to the furthest side valleys and had successfully established the cult of the Sacred Heart as a unifying element in the fight against pagan customs and Protestantism. Now that they were facing the godless revolutionary French, who had declared war not only on the monarchy but also on the clergy, it was only logical that the Sacred Heart of Jesus would watch over the Tyrolean holy warriors in a protective capacity. In a hopeless situation, the Tyrolean troops renewed their covenant with the Heart of Jesus to ask for protection. Against all odds, the Tyrolean archers were successful in their defence. It was the abbot of Stams Abbey who petitioned the provincial estates to henceforth organise an annual "das Fest des göttlichen Herzens Jesu mit feierlichem Gottesdienst zu begehen, wenn Tirol von der drohenden Feindesgefahr befreit werde." Every year, the Sacred Heart celebrations were discussed and announced with great pomp in the press. In the 19th and early 20th centuries in particular, they were an explosive mixture of popular superstition, Catholicism and national resentment against everything French and Italian. Countless soldiers entrusted their well-being to the heart of Jesus even in the technologised battlefield of the First World War and carried images of this symbol with them in the hail of grenades. Alongside Cranach's Mother of Mercy, the depiction of the Heart of Jesus is probably the most popular Christian motif in Tyrol to this day and is emblazoned on the façades of countless houses.
The Habsburg Tyrol had expanded during the turmoil of war without his involvement, and probably also without that of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. Trentino had become part of the crown land in the last breaths of the Holy Roman Empire before its dissolution in 1803. After the Napoleonic Wars, the Tyrolean borders remained quiet for around 30 years. This changed with the Italian Risorgimento, the national movement led by Sardinia-Piedmont and France. 1848, 1859 and 1866 saw the so-called Italian wars of unification. In the course of the 19th century, at the latest since 1848, there was a veritable national frenzy among young men of the upper classes. Volunteer armies sprang up in all regions of Europe. Students and academics who came together in their fraternities, gymnasts, marksmen, all wanted to prove their new love of the nation on the battlefield and supported the official armies.
As a garrison town, Innsbruck was an important supply centre. After the Congress of Vienna, the Tyrolean Jägerkorps the k.k. Tiroler Kaiserjägerregiment an elite unit that was deployed in these conflicts. Volunteer units such as the Innsbruck academics or the Stubai Riflemen fought in Italy. Thousands fell in the fight against the coalition of the arch-enemy France, the godless Garibaldians and the threat posed by the Kingdom of Italy under the leadership of the Francophile Savoys from Piedmont, which was being formed at Austria's expense. The media fuelled the mood away from the front line. The "Innsbrucker Zeitung" predigte in ihren Artikeln Kaisertreue und großdeutsch-tirolischen Nationalismus, wetterte gegen das Italienertum und Franzosen und pries den Mut Tiroler Soldaten.
"Die starke Besetzung der Höhen am Ausgange des Valsugana bei Primolano und le Tezze gab schon oft den Innsbrucker-Akademikern I. und den Stubaiern Anlaß, freiwillige Ercur:sionen gegen le Tezze, Fonzago und Fastro, als auch auf das rechte Brenta-Ufer und den Höhen gegen die kleinen Lager von den Sette comuni zu machen...Am 19. schon haben die Stubaier einige Feinde niedergestreckt, als sie sich das erste mal hinunterwagten, indem sie sich ihnen entgegenschlichen..."
Probably the most famous battle of the Wars of unification took place in Solferino near Lake Garda in 1859. Horrified by the bloody events, Henry Durant decided to found the Red Cross. The writer Joseph Roth described the events in the first pages of his classic book, which is well worth reading Radetzkymarsch.
"In the battle of Solferino, he (note: Lieutenant Trotta) commanded a platoon as an infantry lieutenant. The battle had been going on for half an hour. Three paces in front of him he saw the white backs of his soldiers. The first row of his platoon was kneeling, the second was standing. Everyone was cheerful and certain of victory. They had eaten copiously and drunk brandy at the expense and in honour of the emperor, who had been in the field since yesterday. Here and there one fell out of line."
The year 1866 was particularly costly for the Austrian Empire, with the loss of Veneto and Lombardy in Italy. At the same time, Prussia took the lead in the German Confederation, the successor organisation to the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation. For Innsbruck, the withdrawal of the Habsburg Monarchy from the German Confederation meant that it had finally become a city on the western periphery of the empire. The tendency towards so-called Großdeutschen LösungThe German question, i.e. statehood together with the German Empire instead of the independent Austrian Empire, was very pronounced in Innsbruck. The extent to which this German question divided the city became apparent over 30 years later, when the Innsbruck municipal council voted in favour of the Iron Chancellor Bismarck, who was responsible for the fratricidal war between Austria and Germany, wanted to dedicate a street to him. While conservatives loyal to the emperor were horrified by this proposal, the Greater German liberals around Mayor Wilhelm Greil were enthusiastic.
With the Tummelplatz, the Pradl military cemetery and the Kaiserjägermuseum on Mount Isel, the city has several memorials to these bloody conflicts, in which many Innsbruck residents took to the field.
The First World War
It was almost not Gavrilo Princip, but a student from Innsbruck who changed the fate of the world. It was thanks to chance that the 20-year-old Serb was stopped in 1913 because he bragged to a waitress that he was planning to assassinate the heir to the throne. It was only when the world-changing shooting in Sarajevo actually took place that an article about it appeared in the media. After the actual assassination of Franz Ferdinand on 28 June, it was impossible to foresee what impact the First World War that broke out as a result would have on the world and people's everyday lives. However, two days after the assassination of the Habsburg in Sarajevo, the Innsbrucker Nachrichten already prophetic: "We have reached a turning point - perhaps the "turning point" - in the fortunes of this empire".
Enthusiasm for the war in 1914 was also high in Innsbruck. From the "Gott, Kaiser und VaterlandDriven by the "spirit of the times", most people unanimously welcomed the attack on Serbia. Politicians, the clergy and the press joined in the general rejoicing. In addition to the imperial appeal "To my peoples", which appeared in all the media of the empire, the Innsbrucker Nachrichten On 29 July, the day after Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia, the media published an article about the capture of Belgrade by Prince Eugene in 1717. The tone in the media was celebratory, although not entirely without foreboding of what was to come.
"The Emperor's appeal to his people will be deeply felt. The internal strife has been silenced and the speculations of our enemies about unrest and similar things have been miserably put to shame. Above all, the Germans stand by the Emperor and the Empire in their old and well-tried loyalty: this time, too, they are ready to stand up for dynasty and fatherland with their blood. We are facing difficult days; no one can even guess what fate will bring us, what it will bring to Europe, what it will bring to the world. We can only trust with our old Emperor in our strength and in God and cherish the confidence that, if we find unity and stick together, we must be granted victory, for we did not want war and our cause is that of justice!"
Theologians such as Joseph Seeber (1856 - 1919) and Anton Müllner alias Bruder Willram (1870 - 1919) who, with her sermons and writings such as "Das blutige Jahr" elevated the war to a crusade against France and Italy.
Many Innsbruckers volunteered for the campaign against Serbia, which was thought to be a matter of a few weeks or months. Such a large number of volunteers came from outside the city to join the military commissions that Innsbruck was almost bursting at the seams. Nobody could have guessed how different things would turn out. Even after the first battles in distant Galicia, it was clear that it would not be a matter of months. Kaiserjäger and other Tyrolean troops were literally burnt out. Poor equipment, a lack of supplies and the catastrophic leadership of the high command under Konrad von Hötzendorf led to the deaths of thousands or to captivity, where hunger, abuse and forced labour awaited them.
In 1915, the Kingdom of Italy entered the war on the side of France and England. This meant that the front went right through what was then Tyrol. From the Ortler in the west across northern Lake Garda to the Sextener Dolomiten the battles of the mountain war took place. Innsbruck was not directly affected by the fighting. However, the war could at least be heard as far as the provincial capital, as was reported in the newspaper of 7 July 1915:
„Bald nach Beginn der Feindseligkeiten der Italiener konnte man in der Gegend der Serlesspitze deutlich Kanonendonner wahrnehmen, der von einem der Kampfplätze im Süden Tirols kam, wahrscheinlich von der Vielgereuter Hochebene. In den letzten Tagen ist nun in Innsbruck selbst und im Nordosten der Stadt unzweifelhaft der Schall von Geschützdonner festgestellt worden, einzelne starke Schläge, die dumpf, nicht rollend und tönend über den Brenner herüberklangen. Eine Täuschung ist ausgeschlossen. In Innsbruck selbst ist der Donner der Kanonen schwerer festzustellen, weil hier der Lärm zu groß ist, es wurde aber doch einmal abends ungefähr um 9 Uhr, als einigermaßen Ruhe herrschte, dieser unzweifelhafte von unseren Mörsern herrührender Donner gehört.“
Until the transfer of regular troops from the Eastern Front to the Tyrolean borders, the national defence depended on the Standschützen, a troop made up of men under 21, over 42 or unfit for regular military service. The casualty figures were correspondingly high.
Although the front was relatively far away from Innsbruck, the war also penetrated civilian life. This experience of the total involvement of society as a whole was new to the people. Barracks were erected in the Höttinger Au to house prisoners of war. Transports of wounded brought such a large number of horribly injured soldiers that many civilian buildings such as the university library, which was currently under construction, or Ambras Castle were converted into military hospitals. The Pradl military cemetery was established to cope with the large number of fallen soldiers. A predecessor to tram line 3 was set up to transport the wounded from the railway station to the new garrison hospital, today's Conrad barracks in Pradl.
As the war drew to a close, so did the front. In February 1918, the Italian air force managed to drop three bombs on Innsbruck. In this winter, which was known as Hunger winter When the war went down in European history, the shortages also made themselves felt. In the final years of the war, food was supplied via ration coupons. 500 g of meat, 60 g of butter and 2 kg of potatoes were the basic diet per person - per week, mind you. Archive photos show the long queues of desperate and hungry people outside the food shops. There were repeated protests and strikes. Politicians, trade unionists, workers and war returnees saw their chance for change. Under the motto Peace, bread and the right to vote a wide variety of parties united in resistance to the war. At this time, most people were already aware that the war was lost and what fate awaited Tyrol, as this article from 6 October 1918 shows:
„Aeußere und innere Feinde würfeln heute um das Land Andreas Hofers. Der letzte Wurf ist noch grausamer; schändlicher ist noch nie ein freies Land geschachert worden. Das Blut unserer Väter, Söhne und Brüder ist umsonst geflossen, wenn dieser schändliche Plan Wirklichkeit werden soll. Der letzte Wurf ist noch nicht getan. Darum auf Tiroler, zum Tiroler Volkstag in Brixen am 13. Oktober 1918 (nächsten Sonntag). Deutscher Boden muß deutsch bleiben, Tiroler Boden muß tirolisch bleiben. Tiroler entscheidet selbst über Eure Zukunft!“
On 4 November, Austria-Hungary and the Kingdom of Italy finally agreed an armistice. This gave the Allies the right to occupy areas of the monarchy. The very next day, Bavarian troops entered Innsbruck. Austria's ally Germany was still at war with Italy and was afraid that the front could be moved closer to the German Reich in North Tyrol. Fortunately for Innsbruck and the surrounding area, however, Germany also surrendered a week later on 11 November. This meant that the major battles between regular armies did not take place.
Nevertheless, Innsbruck was in danger. Huge columns of military vehicles, trains full of soldiers and thousands of emaciated soldiers making their way home from the front on foot passed through the city. The city not only had to keep its own citizens in check and guarantee rations, but also protect itself from looting. In order to maintain public order, on 5 November the Tyrolean National Council formed a People's Army made up of schoolchildren, students, workers and citizens. On 23 November 1918, Italian troops occupied the city and the surrounding area. Mayor Greil's appeals to the people of Innsbruck to surrender the city without rioting were successful. Although there were isolated riots, hunger riots and looting, there were no armed clashes with the occupying troops or even a Bolshevik revolution as in Munich.
Over 1200 Innsbruck residents lost their lives on the battlefields and in military hospitals, over 600 were wounded. Memorials to the First World War and its victims can be found in Innsbruck, particularly at churches and cemeteries. The Kaiserjägermuseum on Mount Isel displays uniforms, weapons and pictures of the battle. Streets in Innsbruck are dedicated to the two theologians Anton Müllner and Josef Seeber. A street was also named after the commander-in-chief of the Imperial and Royal Army on the Southern Front, Archduke Eugene. There is a memorial to the unsuccessful commander in front of the Hofgarten. The eastern part of the Amras military cemetery commemorates the Italian occupation.
Big City Life in early Innsbruck
Innsbruck had developed from a Roman castle into a town during the Middle Ages. This formal recognition of Innsbruck as a town by the sovereign brought with it a completely new system for the citizens. Market law, building law, customs law and its own jurisdiction were gradually transferred to the city. Customs law in particular was a control tool of the sovereigns. While central banks changed key interest rates, rulers had customs duties and levies at their disposal after natural disasters, epidemics, fires or wars in order to stimulate trade, consumption and the economy.
Townspeople were no longer subject to their landlord, but to municipal jurisdiction, at least within the town walls. The popular saying "Stadtluft macht freiThe term "burgher" came from the fact that after one year in the city, one was free of all obligations to one's former landlord. Unlike unfree peasants and servants, burghers were free to dispose of their property and lifestyle as they wished. Citizens did not pay tithes, but paid taxes to the city. The city government itself could determine which group within the city had to pay which tax. The city in turn did not have to pay these taxes directly, but was free to dispose of its budget after deducting a fixed levy to the sovereign. In addition to defence, expenses included care for the sick and poor. Citizens in need could go to the "Boiling kitchen" food, if they had the right of citizenship. The city government paid particular attention to infectious diseases such as the plague.
In addition to taxes, customs duties were an important source of income for Innsbruck. Customs duties were levied at the city gate at the Inn bridge. There were two types of customs duty. The small duty was based on the number of draught animals in the wagon, the large duty on the type and quantity of goods. The customs revenue was shared between Innsbruck and Hall. Hall had the task of maintaining the Inn bridge.
In return for their rights, every citizen had to take the oath of citizenship. This civic oath included the obligation to pay taxes and perform military service. In addition to defending the town, the citizens were also deployed outside the town. In 1406, a delegation together with mercenaries opposed an Appenzell army in defence of the Upper Inn Valley. From 1511, according to Emperor Maximilian's Landlibell, the town council was also obliged to provide a contingent of conscripts for the defence of the country. In addition to this, there were volunteers who Freifähnlein For example, during the Turkish siege of Vienna in 1529, Innsbruckers were among the city's defenders.
In the 15th century, space became tight in the rapidly growing city of Innsbruck. Citizenship became an exclusive right. Only free subjects born in wedlock were able to obtain city rights. To become a citizen, you had to either own a house or have skills in a trade in which the city's guilds were interested. The dispute over who is a "real" Innsbrucker and who is not continues to this day. The fact that migration and exchange with others have always guaranteed prosperity and made Innsbruck the liveable city it is today is often forgotten.
Due to these restrictions, Innsbruck had a completely different social composition to the neighbouring villages. Craftsmen, merchants, civil servants and servants of the court dominated the cityscape. Merchants were often travelling people, officials and court servants also came to Innsbruck for a short time as part of a prince's entourage and did not have citizenship. It was the craftsmen who exercised a large part of the political power within the citizenry. Unlike peasants, they belonged to the mobile classes in the Middle Ages and early modern period. After their apprenticeship, they went to the Walzbefore they took the master craftsman's examination and either returned home or settled in another city. Craftsmen not only transferred knowledge, they also spread cultural, social and political ideas. The craft guilds sometimes exercised their own jurisdiction alongside the municipal jurisdiction among their members. They were social structures within the city structure that had a great influence on politics. Wages, prices and social life were regulated by the guilds under the supervision of the sovereign. One could speak of an early social partnership, as the guilds also provided social security for their members in the event of illness or occupational disability. Individual trades such as locksmiths, tanners, platers, carpenters, bakers, butchers and blacksmiths each had their own guild, headed by a master craftsman.
From the 14th century, Innsbruck demonstrably had a city council, the so-called Gemainand a mayor who was elected annually by the citizens. These were not secret but public elections, which were held every year around Christmas time. In the Innsbrucker Geschichtsalmanach von 1948 findet man Aufzeichnungen über die Wahl des Jahres 1598.
The Feast of St. Erhard, i.e., January 8th, played a significant role in the lives of the citizens of Innsbruck each year. On this day, they gathered to elect the city officials, namely the mayor, city judge, public orator, and the twelve-member council. A detailed account of the election process between 1598 and 1607 is provided by a protocol preserved in the city archive: "... The ringing of the great bell summoned the council and the citizenry to the town hall, and once the honorable council and the entire community were assembled at the town hall, the honorable council first convened in the council chamber and heard the farewell of the outgoing mayor of the previous year, Augustin Tauscher."
The mayor represented the city vis-à-vis the other estates and the prince, who exercised sovereignty over the city to a greater or lesser extent depending on the era. Each city councillor had their own clearly assigned tasks to fulfil, such as the supervision of market law, the care of the hospital and poor relief or the customs regulations, which were particularly important for Innsbruck. The consumption of alcohol and lingering in public houses was regulated differently at different times. Not only was it too expensive for poorer sections of the population, they were also only allowed to enter the inns at certain times. This was to prevent excessive drunkenness and the begging of the upper classes. The city council controlled the quality and flavour of the food, similar to an early market office, as cities were interested in the quality of their businesses in order to be attractive as a business location and for guests.
In all these political processes, one should always remember that Innsbruck had around 5,000 inhabitants in the 16th century, only a small proportion of whom were citizens. The dispossessed, travellers, unemployed, servants, diplomats, employees, women and students were not eligible to vote. Voting was a privilege of the male upper class.
Contrary to popular belief, the Middle Ages were not a lawless time of arbitrariness. At both local and national level, there were codes that regulated very precisely what was permitted and what was forbidden. This could vary greatly depending on the ruler and the prevailing morals and customs. Carrying weapons, swearing, prostitution, making noise, playing music, blasphemy, children playing - anything and anyone could be targeted by the guardians of the law. If you include the rules for trade, customs duties, the exercise of professions by guilds and price fixing for all kinds of goods by the magistrate, pre-modern and early modern coexistence was no less regulated than it is today. The difference was control and enforcement power, which the authorities often lacked.
If someone was caught committing an unlawful or immoral act, there were courts that passed judgement. The medieval court days were held at the "Dingstätte" is held outdoors. The tradition of the Thing goes back to the old Germanic Thingwhere all free men gathered to dispense justice. The city council appointed a judge who was responsible for all offences that were not subject to the blood court. He was assisted by a panel of several jurors. Punishments ranged from fines to pillorying and imprisonment. The city also monitored compliance with religious order. "Heretics" and dissenters were not reprimanded by the church, but by the city government.
The penal system also included less humane methods than are common today, but torture was not used indiscriminately and arbitrarily. However, torture was also regulated as part of the procedure in particularly serious cases. Until the 17th century, suspects and criminals in Innsbruck were Kräuterturm at the south-east corner of the city wall, on what is now Herzog-Otto-Ufer. Both the trial and the serving of the sentence were public trials. The city tower was Fool's cottagea cage in which people were locked up and put on display. On the wooden Schandesel you were dragged through the town for minor offences. The pillory was located in the suburb, today's Maria-Theresien-Straße. There was no police force, but the town magistrate employed servants and town watchmen were posted at the town gates to keep the peace. It was a civic duty to help catch criminals. Vigilante justice was forbidden.
The responsibilities between municipal and manorial justice had been regulated in the Urbarbuch since 1288. The provincial court still had jurisdiction over serious offences. Crimes such as theft, murder and arson were subject to this blood law. The provincial court for all municipalities south of the Inn between Ampass and Götzens was located on the Sonnenburgwhich was located to the south above Innsbruck. In the 14th century, the Sonnenburg district court moved to the upper town square in front of the Innsbruck city tower, later to the town hall and in the early modern period to Götzens. With the centralisation of the law in the 18th century, the court moved to Götzens. Sonnenburg back to Innsbruck and was housed under different names and in different buildings such as the Leuthaus in Wilten, on the Innrain or at the Ettnau residence, known as the Malfatti Castlein the Höttinger Gasse.
From the late 15th century, Innsbruck's executioner was centralised and responsible for several courts and was based in Hall. The execution centres were located in several places over the years. For a long time, there was a gallows on a hill in today's Dreiheiligen district, right next to the main road. The Köpflplatz was located until 1731 at today's corner of Fallbachgasse / Weiherburggasse in Anpruggen. In Hötting stand der Galgen hinter der Kapelle zum Großen Gott. Der Verurteilte konnte hier ein letztes Gebet zum Himmel schicken, bevor ihm der Strick um den Hals gelegt oder der Kopf abgeschlagen wurde, je nachdem welchen Status in der Gesellschaft er hatte und welches Verbrechen begangen worden war. Es war nicht unüblich, dass der Verurteilte seinem Henker eine Art Trinkgeld zusteckte, damit sich dieser bemühte, möglichst genau zu zielen, um so die Hinrichtung so schmerzlos wie möglich zu gestalten. Viel konnte schiefgehen. Traf das Schwert nicht genau, wurde die Schlinge nicht sorgfältig umgelegt oder riss gar das Seil, erhöhte sich das Leiden des Verurteilten. Für die Obrigkeit und öffentliche Ordnung besonders schädliche Delinquenten wie der „Ketzer“ Jakob Hutter oder die gefassten Anführer der Bauernaufstände von 1525 und 1526 wurden vor dem Goldenen Dachl executed in a manner suitable for the public. "Embarrassing" punishments such as quartering or wheeling, from the Latin word poena abgeleitet, waren nicht an der Tagesordnung, konnten in speziellen Fällen aber angeordnet werden. Hinrichtungen waren eine Machtdemonstration der Obrigkeit und öffentlich. Sie galt als eine Art der Reinigung der Gesellschaft von Verbrechern und sollte als Abschreckung dienen. Große Menschenmengen versammelten sich, um den Galgenvogel auf seinem letzten Weg zu begleiten. An der Universität wurde an den Hinrichtungstagen der Unterricht ausgesetzt, um den Studenten die Anwesenheit zu ermöglichen und sie zu läutern. Die Leichen der Hingerichteten wurden oft hängengelassen und außerhalb des geweihten Bereichs der Friedhöfe begraben oder der Universität für Studienzwecke überlassen. Die letzte öffentliche Hinrichtung der österreichischen Geschichte fand 1868 statt. Zimperlich war man zwar auch dann nicht, ein Spektakel vor Publikum waren die Tötungen am Würgegalten, der bis in die 1950er das Mittel der Wahl bei Hinrichtungen war, aber zumindest nicht mehr.
With the centralisation of law under Maria Theresa and Joseph II in the 18th century and the General Civil Code in the 19th century under Franz I, the law passed from cities and sovereigns to the monarch and their administrative bodies at various levels. Torture was abolished. The Enlightenment had fundamentally changed the concept of law, punishment and rehabilitation. The collection of taxes was also centralised, which resulted in a great loss of importance for the local nobility and an increase in the status of the civil service. With the increasing centralisation under Maria Theresa and Joseph II, taxes and customs duties were also gradually centralised and collected by the Imperial Court Chamber. As a result, Innsbruck, like many municipalities at the time, lost a large amount of revenue, which was only partially offset by equalisation.
Die Eisenbahn als Entwicklungshelfer Innsbrucks
In 1830, the world's first railway line was opened between Liverpool and Manchester. Just a few decades later, the Tyrol, which had been somewhat remote from the main trade routes and economically underdeveloped for some time, was also connected to the world with spectacular railway constructions across the Alps. While travelling had previously been expensive, long and arduous journeys in carriages, on horseback or on foot, the ever-expanding railway network meant unprecedented comfort and speed.
It was Innsbruck's mayor Joseph Valentin Maurer (1797 - 1843) who recognised the importance of the railway as an opportunity for the Alpine region. In 1836, he advocated the construction of a railway line in order to make the beautiful but hard-to-reach region accessible to the widest possible, wealthy public. The first practical pioneer of railway transport in Tyrol was Alois von Negrelli (1799 - 1858), who also played a key role in the Suez Canal project of the century. At the end of the 1830s, when the first railway lines of the Danube Monarchy went into operation in the east of the empire, he drew up a "Expert opinion on the railway from Innsbruck via Kufstein to the royal Bavarian border at the Otto Chapel near Kiefersfelden“ vorgelegt. Negrelli hatte in jungen Jahren in der k.k. Baudirektion Innsbruck service, so he knew the city very well. His report already contained sketches and a list of costs. He had suggested the Triumphpforte and the Hofgarten as a site for the main railway station. In a letter, he commented on the railway line through his former home town with these words:
"...I also hear with the deepest sympathy that the railway from Innsbruck to Kufstein is being taken seriously, as the Laage is very suitable for this and the area along the Inn is so rich in natural products and so populated that I cannot doubt its success, nor will I fail to take an active part in it myself and through my business friends when it comes to the purchase of shares. You have no idea of the new life that such an endeavour will awaken in the other side..."
Friedrich List, known as the father of the German railway, put forward the plan for a rail link from the Hanseatic cities of northern Germany via Tyrol to the Italian Adriatic. On the Austrian side, Carl Ritter von Ghega (1802 - 1860) inherited overall responsibility for the railway project within the giant Habsburg empire from Negrelli, who died young. In 1851, Austria and Bavaria signed an agreement to build a railway line to the Tyrolean capital. Construction began in May 1855. It was the largest construction site Innsbruck had ever seen. Not only was the railway station built, but the railway viaducts out of the city to the north-east also had to be constructed.
On 24 November 1858, the railway line between Innsbruck and Kufstein and on to Munich via Rosenheim went into operation. The line was ahead of its time. Unlike the rest of the railway, which was not privatised until 1860, the line opened as a private railway, operated by the previously founded Imperial and Royal Privileged Southern State, Lombard, Venetian and Central Italian Railway Company. This move meant that the costly railway construction could be excluded from Austria's already tight state budget. The first step was taken with this opening towards the eastern parts of the monarchy, especially to Munich. Goods and travellers could now be transported quickly and conveniently from Bavaria to the Alps and back. In South Tyrol, the first trains rolled over the tracks between Verona and Trento in the spring of 1859.
However, the north-south corridor was still unfinished. The first serious considerations regarding the Brenner railway were made in 1847. In 1854, the disputes south of the Brenner Pass and the commercial necessity of connecting the two parts of the country prompted the Permanent Central Fortification Commission on the plan. The loss of Lombardy after the war with France and Sardinia-Piedmont in 1859 delayed the project in northern Italy, which had become politically unstable. From the Imperial and Royal Privileged Southern State, Lombard, Venetian and Central Italian Railway Company 1860 had to Imperial and Royal Privileged Southern Railway Company to start with the detailed planning. In the following year, the mastermind behind this outstanding infrastructural achievement of the time, engineer Carl von Etzel (1812 - 1865), began to survey the site and draw up concrete plans for the layout of the railway. The planner was instructed by the private company's investors to be as economical as possible and to manage without large viaducts and bridges. Contrary to earlier considerations by Carl Ritter von Ghega to cushion the gradient up to the pass at 1370 metres above sea level by starting the line in Hall, Etzel drew up the plan, which included Innsbruck, together with his construction manager Achilles Thommen and chose the Sill Gorge as the best route. This not only saved seven kilometres of track and a lot of money, but also secured Innsbruck's important status as a transport hub. The alpine terrain, mudslides, snowstorms and floods were major challenges during construction. River courses had to be relocated, rocks blasted, earthworks dug and walls built to cope with the alpine route. The worst problems, however, were caused by the war that broke out in Italy in 1866. Patriotic German-speaking workers in particular refused to work with the "enemy". 14,000 Italian-speaking workers had to be dismissed before work could continue. Despite this, the W's highest regular railway line with its 22 tunnels blasted out of the rock was completed in a remarkably short construction time. It is not known how many men lost their lives working on the Brenner railway.
The opening was remarkably unspectacular. Many people were not sure whether they liked the technical innovation or not. Economic sectors such as lorry transport and the post stations along the Brenner line were doomed, as the death of the rafting industry after the opening of the railway line to the lowlands had shown. Even during the construction work, there were protests from farmers who feared for their profits due to the threat of importing agricultural goods. Just as the construction of the railway line had previously been influenced by world politics, a celebration was held. Austria was in national mourning due to the execution of the former Emperor Maximilian of Mexico, the brother of Franz Josef I, before a revolutionary court martial. A grand state ceremony worthy of the project was dispensed with. Instead of a priestly consecration and festive christening, the Southern Railway Company donated 6,000 guilders to the poor relief fund. Also in the Innsbrucker Nachrichten there is not a word about the revolution in transport, apart from the announcement of the last express train over the Brenner Pass and the publication of the timetable for the Southern Railway.
(The last express coach). Yesterday evening at half past seven the last express coach to South Tyrol departed from here. The oldest postilion in Innsbruck was driving the horses, his hat was fluttered with mourning, and the carriage was decorated with branches of weeping willows for the last journey. Two marksmen travelling to Matrei were the only passengers to pay their last respects to the express coach. In the last days of 1797, the beautiful, otherwise so lively and now deserted road was conspicuously dead.
Until the opening of the railway line over the Brenner Pass on 24 August 1867, Innsbruck was a terminus station of regional importance. The new, spectacular Brenner railway across the Alps connected the northern and southern parts of the country as well as Germany and Italy. The Alps had lost their divisive character and their terror for transit, at least a little. The second obstacle that had to be overcome to unify the country was the Arlberg. The first plans for a railway line that would connect the region around Lake Constance with the rest of the Danube Monarchy were made as early as 1847, but the project was repeatedly postponed. In 1871, food export bans due to the Franco-Prussian War led to a famine in Vorarlberg because food could not be delivered quickly enough from the east of the vast empire to the far west. Nevertheless, the economic crisis of 1873 delayed construction once again. It was not until seven years later that the decision was made in parliament to realise the railway line. In the same year, the complicated construction work began to the east and west of the Arlberg massif. 38 torrents and 54 avalanche danger points had to be built with 3100 structures in precarious weather conditions in the alpine terrain. The most remarkable achievement was the ten kilometre long tunnel, which carries two tracks.
On 30 June 1883, the last postal transport travelled from Innsbruck to Landeck by horse-drawn carriage in ceremonial mourning. The following day, the railway took over this service. With the opening of the railway from Innsbruck to Landeck and the final completion of the Arlberg railway to Bludenz in 1884, including the tunnel through the Arlberg, Innsbruck had once again become a transport hub between Germany and Italy, France, Switzerland and Vienna. In 1904, the Stubai Valley railway was opened, followed by the Mittenwald railway in 1912. Both projects were planned by Josef Riehl (1842 - 1917).
The railway was the most directly noticeable feature of progress for a large part of the population. The railway viaducts, built from Höttinger Breccie from the nearby quarry, put a physical and visible end to the town in the east towards Pradl. But the railway did not just change the country from a purely technical perspective. It also brought immense social change. The railway stations along the line revitalised the towns immensely. The station forecourt in Innsbruck became one of the new centres of the city. Workers, students, soldiers and tourists flocked to the city in large numbers, bringing with them new lifestyles and ideas. However, not everyone was happy with this development. Shipping on the Inn, until then an important transport route, came to an almost immediate standstill. The small aristocracy, which had already been severely plucked after 1848, and particularly strict clerics feared the collapse of local agriculture and the final decline in morals caused by the foreigners in the city.
By 1870, Innsbruck's population had risen from 12,000 to 17,000, mainly due to the economic stimulus provided by the railway. Local producers benefited from the opportunity to import and export goods cheaply and quickly. The labour market changed. Before the railway lines opened, 9 out of 10 Tyroleans worked in agriculture. With the opening of the Brenner railway, this figure fell to less than 70%.
The railway was worth its weight in gold for tourism. It was now possible to reach the remote and exotic mountain world of the Tyrolean Alps. Health resorts such as Igls and entire valleys such as the Stubaital, as well as Innsbruck city transport, benefited from the development of the railway. 1904 years later, the Stubai Valley Railway was the first Austrian railway with alternating current to connect the side valley with the capital. On 24 December 1904, 780,000 crowns, the equivalent of around 6 million euros, were subscribed as capital stock for tram line 1. In the summer of the following year, the line connected the new districts of Pradl and Wilten with Saggen and the city centre. Three years later, Line 3 opened the next inner-city public transport connection, which only ran to the remote village in 1942 after Amras was connected to Innsbruck.
The new means of transport contributed to the democratisation and bourgeoisification of society. Not only for wealthy tourists, but also for subjects who did not belong to the upper class, the railway made excursions into the surrounding area possible. New foods changed people's diet. The first department stores emerged with the appearance of consumer goods that were previously unavailable. The appearance of the people of Innsbruck changed with new, fashionable clothing, which became affordable for many for the first time. The transport of goods on the Inn received its final death blow. In the 1870s, the city's last raft unloading site, where Waltherpark in St. Nikolaus is located today, was closed.
The Die Bundesbahndirektion der K.u.K. General-Direction der österreichischen Staatsbahnen in Innsbruck was one of only three directorates in Cisleithania. New social classes were created by the railway as an employer. People from all walks of life were needed to keep the railway running. Workers and craftsmen were able to climb the social ladder at the railway, similar to the state administration or the military. New professions such as railway attendant, conductor, stoker or engine driver emerged. Working for the railway brought with it a certain prestige. Not only were you part of the most modern industry of the time, the titles and uniforms turned employees and workers into respected figures.
The railway was also of great importance to the military. As early as 1866, at the Battle of Königgrätz between Austria and Prussia, it was clear how important troop transport would be in the future. Until 1918, Austria was a huge empire that stretched from Vorarlberg and Tyrol in the south-west to Galicia, an area in what is now Poland, and Ukraine in the east. The Brenner Railway was needed to reinforce the turbulent southern border with its new neighbour, the Kingdom of Italy. Tyrolean soldiers were also deployed in Galicia during the first years of the First World War until Italy declared war on Austria. When the front line was opened up in South Tyrol, the railway was important for moving troops quickly from the east of the empire to the southern front.
Carl von Etzel, who did not live to see the opening of the Brenner railway, is commemorated today by Ing.-Etzel-Straße in Saggen along the railway viaducts. Josef Riehl is commemorated by Dr.-Ing.-Riehl-Straße in Wilten near the Westbahnhof railway station. There is also a street dedicated to Achilles Thommen. As a walker or cyclist, you can cross the Karwendel Bridge in the Höttinger Au one floor below the Karwendel railway and admire the steel framework. You can get a good impression of the golden age of the railway by visiting the ÖBB administration building in Saggen or the listed Westbahnhof railway station in Wilten. In the viaduct arches in Saggen, you can enjoy Innsbruck's nightlife in one of the many pubs covered by history.