Vienna - Empire, Dynasty and Dream

Episode
Vienna - Empire, Dynasty and Dream - Episode 2
Broadcast Info
2016 (59 mins)
Description
After the Ottomans were defeated and the threat of their mighty army receded, war broke out between the Austria and the French over the Habsburgs Spanish territories. Called the War of Spanish Succession, it ended at the famous battle of Blenheim which broke French superiority on the continent. The Austrian Habsburgs and the Spanish Bourbons, divided the spoils between them. With peace agreed and a wealth of new lands, the second episode tells the story of Vienna triumphant. The city was rebuilt. No longer would it be an outpost defending the West from Islamic invaders. Instead the Habsburgs vowed their empire and their imperial capital would become the greatest and most glittering in the world. As the Habsburg Emperors consolidated their power they transformed their city from a fortress into a great cultural capital. Vienna became a city that would define the arts; a magnet for musicians including Mozart, Haydn and Beethoven. The spoils of war saw the construction of great palaces like Schonbrunn, home to the Habsburg’s first woman ruler Maria Theresa, the mother of Marie Antoinette. It was the French Queen’s execution that spawned revolution in France, Napoleon’s near destruction of Europe, the occupation of Vienna and the humiliation of the city’s imperial dynasty. But the Habsburgs were survivors. After Napoleon’s defeat, they would reinvent both themselves and their right to rule in an attempt to keep their troubled and fragile empire together.
Genre
History; Architecture; Culture; Religion

How to cite this record

The Open University, "Vienna - Empire, Dynasty and Dream". https://learningonscreen.ac.uk/ou/search/index.php/prog/227028 (Accessed 10 Jan 2025)