484:, and Scholz, the commissioner for restitution, calculated the costs of providing safe access to the cemetery at €400 - 800,000. Apart from the trimming of the older trees, hardly any preservation measures have been taken in recent years. Parts of the cemetery have become inaccessible due to the strong growth of bushes and small trees. In addition, the growth of the roots from the trees has dislocated gravestones, some of which have fallen over. Gravestones continue to be damaged by falling trees or falling rotten branches. Additional severe damage appears on the graves from environmental factors such as acid rain, frost and vegetation. Extreme-rightwing smearings have also damaged gravestones, which was particularly destructive to sandstone surfaces. Due to this, the enclosure walls of the cemetery were secured by the
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242:, a substantial portion of the cemetery was however destroyed. Approximately 1,500–2,000 graves were destroyed through excavation work for a fire protection pond that was never constructed. The congregation exhumed the affected graves so far as possible beforehand, and transported the remains to the Zentralfriedhof after the large-scale organising of trucks and fuel, where they were buried in a mass grave. The excavation material for the pond was used for building work at the Urban-Loritz-Platz. The remains of a further 200 dead were brought to the
181:
320:. The side facing the street has been bricked up, but for the most part the building is still well-preserved. The older part of the cemetery is to the left of the entrance; the avenue of lime trees separates this older part from the newer part that was acquired later. The older part contains the graves of historically relevant people such as Fanny von Arnstein and the Epstein family. The Sephardic section is located on both sides of the main avenue in the northern area. Along the main avenue itself are the priests' graves (
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273:), suggested as a solution a foundation, in which the federation, the city and private donors would have a stake. However, in June 2006 the mayor, Michael Häupl, called on the federal government to pay for the repairs, describing any possible contribution on the part of the states as a "voluntary contribution" at most. Concrete steps were therefore not taken. As no further maintenance of the tree population was undertaken, further gravestones were destroyed through wind damage (see
217:. This cemetery was closed. For this reason, in 1784 the Jewish community acquired a 2-hectare plot of land next to the newly constructed General Cemetery of Währing; there, in the same year, they opened the new Jewish cemetery, demarcated by a wall. Originally, the cemetery consisted only of the part to the west of the entrance; however, it was twice expanded towards the east through the purchase of more land. Until the completion of the Jewish part of the
324:). In the newer portion of the cemetery, predominantly people from poorer backgrounds were buried; due to the cheaper materials these gravestones are made of, they have been much more severely affected by erosion. There is also a section here in which infants were buried, as well as mothers who died in childbirth. The family vaults of ennobled Jews, on the other hand, are located along the cemetery wall in the northern part.
341:
the oriental trade between the
Ottoman Empire and the Sephardic communities of Amsterdam, Hamburg or Copenhagen. The relation of the Sephardic Jews with the Ottoman Empire is reflected in the tombs in the Jewish Cemetery in Währing. Alongside the oriental architecture and ornaments of the graves, the mausolea in particular have a significance that is unique for Central Europe.
290:(ÖVP) finally agreed to a proposal by the Greens in the city council, that the "worst dangers and damages" on the cemetery should be cleared by the city of Vienna through the city's horticultural agency. To be able to restore and preserve the property long-term, however, the city of Vienna is relying heavily on the federation participating. The President of the
546:
364:. She married into a rich Viennese family of Court Jews. Fanny von Arnstein's husband, Nathan Adam Freiherr von Arnstein (1748–1838), also lies buried in the Jewish Cemetery. Her husband was a banker, wholesaler and diplomat who succeeded in obtaining the suspension of the residence restrictions on Jews.
340:
In the 18th century Jews were in principle not allowed to reside in Vienna. However, the
Sephardic Jews from the Ottoman Empire were an exception, who were allowed to reside there as Ottoman subjects under the Treaty of Passarowitz. Through the Sephardics, Vienna developed into an important centre of
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could not afford to preserve it. Even after the
Republic of Austria obliged itself in 2001, in the Washington Agreement, to render assistance for the preservation and restoration of Jewish cemeteries, no steps were taken towards the preservation of this cemetery. The Republic of Austria's payments to
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started an initiative that envisaged the publishing of a book and a photo calendar, as well as an exhibition, that would contribute to restoring the property. In addition, the until then irregular guided tours of the cemetery are now offered on a monthly basis. On 2 March 2007, the Social
Democratic
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of Vienna by the Nazis for analysis and research in the field of "racial studies". The remains were later likewise interred at the
Zentralfriedhof. In 1942 there followed the expropriation of the whole plot of land; the Jewish community was forced to sell the cemetery to the city. After the premises
221:
in 1879 approximately 8000 to 9000 graves were constructed here. Unlike at the Jewish cemetery in Roßau, where only Hebrew inscriptions may be found, in the Währing cemetery gravestones with Hebrew as well as German writing exist. A last few, occasional burials took place in the family vaults in the
268:
for the upkeep of Jewish cemeteries are used for the preservation of the two Jewish sections of the
Zentralfriedhof, and as such, there are hardly any funds available for the maintenance of the Jewish Cemetery in Währing. Even after the declaration by the Vienna Restitution Commissioner Kurt Scholz
471:
is also unable to contribute significantly to the preservation. Since no or hardly any resources have been made available for its upkeep by the city of Vienna and the
Austrian government, the cemetery is in a state of extreme disrepair. Due to the overaged tree population and burial vaults partly
226:
trees was planted in the middle of the unused cemetery. This is a sign of how liberal the Jewish community in Vienna at the time was, as lime trees planted next to priests' graves are supposed to dissolve the separation between these graves and the surrounding graves in the traditional Jewish
393:
The tomb of the well-known "tolerated" Jew
Siegfried Philipp Wertheimber (1777–1836) is an important grave with pillars in the Egyptian style. Tolerated Jews were those Jews who were allowed to reside in Vienna through special permits. These special permits were made possible by the
269:
that usage of the site as a park would be enabled, only a few rotten trees were felled. Following calls by the Vienna Greens for a clean-up of the cemetery, at the end of
February 2006 the city councillor responsible for city finances at the time, Sepp Rieder (
385:. In 1870 he constructed the Palais Epstein on the Ringstraße, but lost it in the stock market crash of 1873. He himself was not buried in this family tomb, but instead in the Jewish section of the Zentralfriedhof that was constructed 1877–1879.
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of Vienna for "scientific purposes", a fate that also befell several other graves. After that, the trail runs cold. To the present day, the
Naturhistorisches Museum refuses to determine the location of the remains to return them to the cemetery.
254:
after tough negotiations, but the destroyed part had to be given to the city in exchange. Thereupon, the city decided to develop the plot of land that had been cheaply acquired as grassland; it then constructed the "Arthur Schnitzler-Hof", a
144:, and is now only partly accessible due to its deteriorating condition. A long-running debate over the restoration of the cemetery has been taking place since 2006 between politicians of the federal and local levels as well as experts.
380:
In the tomb of the Epstein family lie the relatives of the businessman Gustav Ritter von Epstein (1827–1879). Gustav Ritter von Epstein was an important banker, who was connected amongst other things to the construction of the
307:
If one enters the cemetery via the gate in the Schrottenbachgasse, to the left of the entrance just by the road one will find the building formerly used for the preparation of the deceased's body according to Jewish rites (see
402:. If a Jew had received such a special residence permit, many others in their household, if declared family members, could receive permission to live in Vienna. Households of tolerated Jews thus consisted of up to 200 people.
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estimated the cost of repairing the cemetery at 14 million euros and planned to turn the caretaker's house into a meeting house. In January 2007, along with the Educult institute, the Jewish
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privileged" wholesale trader. Königswarter was a banker and president of the Vienna Kultusgemeinde. His wife Josefine (1811–1861) presided over the Jewish women's association.
614:
418:
The Königswarter family tomb contains the remains of the family of Jonas Freiherr von Königswarter (1807–1871). As a tolerated Jew, Königswarter bore the official title of "
294:, Barbara Prammer, with a working group of representatives of the federation, federal states and local authorities, is planning the formulation of an all-Austrian solution.
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Originally the cemetery was part of the Viennese suburb of Währing. Today, however, due to boundary changes, the cemetery, despite its name, is no longer part of the 18th
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213:, new graveyards were constructed outside the city walls. The Jewish community was also affected by this measure, as they maintained a
209:, every graveyard in Vienna within the city walls had to be closed. In place of the old local graveyards that had developed around the
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234:) was broken up in the 1920s and turned into the Währingerpark. The Jewish Cemetery, on the other hand, was left standing due to the
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of the cemetery were declared a bird sanctuary by a courageous city civil servant, at least the remaining land could be preserved.
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standing open, visiting the cemetery is currently only possible after signing a liability waiver with the
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or had to emigrate, there is no-one left who can tend to the graves. Due to its limited funds, the Jewish
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late 1880s. After that, no more burials took place at the cemetery. Around 1900 an avenue of
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Since almost all the relatives of those who lie buried in the cemetery were killed in the
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style. After its closure in the 1880s, it was partially destroyed during the time of the
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from the 1960s. Meanwhile, the rapid deterioration of the cemetery began, as the Jewish
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The remains of Fanny von Arnstein were excavated by the Nazis and transferred to the
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Information material about the cemetery provided by the Green Party of Vienna
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503:"Vienna Journal; A Cemetery Mirroring the History of a City's Jews"
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128:, opened in 1784, was the main burial site for members of the
524:"One of Europe's oldest Jewish cemeteries awaits salvation"
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After World War II the cemetery was returned to the Jewish
563:"Währinger Jüdischer Friedhof - Vom Vergessen überwachsen"
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Damaged tombs of the Arnstein and Eskeles families (2006)
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Der Währinger jüdischer Friedhof. Eine Fotodokumentation
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Der Währinger jüdische Friedhof und seine Erhaltung
136:it is the last remaining cemetery of Vienna in the
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357:(1758–1818), the daughter of the Berlin rabbi and
176:The cemetery in Währing as seen from Währing Park
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488:with barbed wire and embedded broken glass.
230:The neighbouring General Währing Cemetery (
160:, the 19th district. The entry is at No 3
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438:Isaak Löw Hofmann, Edler von Hofmannsthal
606:Interview with the historian Tina Walzer
202:Due to the sanitation ordinance of the
238:regarding consecrated ground. In the
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116:Funerary hall at the entrance (2006)
659:Buildings and structures in Währing
654:Buildings and structures in Döbling
608:and four videos about the cemetery
558:Initiative Jewish Cemetery Währing
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130:Israelitische Kultusgemeinde Wien
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376:Epstein-Teixeira de Matto family
215:cemetery in the Seegasse (Roßau)
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600:Der Währinger jüdische Friedhof
551:Israelitischer Friedhof Währing
414:Tomb of the Königswarter family
298:Cemetery composition and graves
476:. The president of the Jewish
232:Allgemeiner Währinger Friedhof
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1:
389:Siegfried Philipp Wertheimber
336:Tomb in the Sephardic section
277:). In early 2007, the Jewish
664:Jewish cemeteries in Austria
184:Tombstone in the shape of a
355:Baroness Fanny von Arnstein
156:of Währing, but belongs to
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669:Jews and Judaism in Vienna
432:Baron Bernhard von Eskeles
345:Tombs of important figures
30:Jewish cemetery in Währing
19:Jewish cemetery in Währing
444:Salomon Hermann Mosenthal
314:neoclassical architecture
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369:Naturhistorisches Museum
244:Naturhistorisches Museum
312:). It is an example of
288:Austrian People's Party
271:Social Democratic Party
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446:(1821–1877), dramatist
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630:48.23250°N 16.35111°E
553:at Wikimedia Commons
528:European Jewish Press
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451:State of preservation
440:(1759–1849), merchant
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674:Cemeteries in Vienna
286:Party (SPÖ) and the
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434:(1753–1839), banker
406:Königswarter family
350:von Arnstein family
635:48.23250; 16.35111
589:2016-03-05 at the
573:2016-03-05 at the
499:Bernstein, Richard
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420:imperially-royally
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396:Edict of Tolerance
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204:Holy Roman Emperor
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162:Schrottenbachgasse
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584:Zeitschrift David
568:Zeitschrift David
549:Media related to
328:Sephardic section
318:Joseph Kornhäusel
310:Tumah and taharah
134:St. Marx Cemetery
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508:New York Times
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482:Ariel Muzicant
478:Kultusgemeinde
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316:, built by
264:the Jewish
240:Nazi period
236:Jewish laws
142:Third Reich
138:Biedermeier
94:Biedermeier
45:Established
648:Categories
621:16°21′04″E
618:48°13′57″N
492:References
257:Plattenbau
465:Holocaust
400:Joseph II
359:Court Jew
227:mindset.
207:Joseph II
186:rootstock
103:of graves
587:Archived
571:Archived
148:Location
85:(closed)
53:Location
322:Kohanim
168:History
158:Döbling
126:Währing
73:Austria
69:Country
58:Döbling
40:Details
426:Others
303:Layout
83:Jewish
62:Vienna
514:6 May
197:stele
90:Style
516:2010
224:lime
120:The
79:Type
48:1784
398:of
124:in
101:No.
650::
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505:.
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195:A
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60:,
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