Mapping the 1848 Vienna Revolution

The 1848 Revolution in France, often known as the February Revolution, was followed by a number of other revolutionary uprisings across Europe. In Austria the authoritarian government was determined to quell the spread of the liberal ideas associated with republicanism and stop the rise of nationalist movements within its large Empire. The Austrian Empire had already restricted freedom of the press, curtailed student activities and banned fraternities. After the February Revolution it was even more keen to repress any revolutionary ideas.

Despite this repression - or because of it - in March of 1848 people took to the streets of Vienna calling for more freedom and the liberalization of authoritarian rule. The government deployed troops to forcibly end the rebellion. From March until the end of the October Revolution Vienna witnessed a number of revolutionary and counter-revolutionary battles between the rebels and the army.

The Association for the History of the Workers' Movement (VGA) in Vienna is currently hosting an exhibition about the 1848 Forgotten Revolution. For this exhibition it has created an interactive map of some of the barricades erected by the revolutionaries in Vienna during the 1848 Vienna Revolution. The locations of these barricades are shown in red on the interactive map.

You can get a better idea about how these barricades looked by clicking on the numbered markers on the map. If you click on these markers you can view contemporary paintings of the barricades. These paintings have a slide control which allow you to compare the historical view shown in the picture with the same view as it looks today in modern day Vienna.