Viennese vineyards, the Danube river,
and the city from the summit of Kahlenberg
in the Vienna Woods, 19th District
St. Joseph Church
Kahlenberg
Originally, the mountain was called Sauberg (sow mountain)
or Schweinsberg (pig mountain), after the numerous wild pigs
that lived in the pristine oak forests.
In 1628, Ferdinand II acquired the mountain
from the Klosterneuburg monastery and called it
Josephsberg (Joseph's Mountain).
Only after Emperor Leopold I renamed the original Kahlenberg
(the neighbouring mountain) to Leopoldsberg was the name
"Kahlenberg" given to the "Josephsberg". *
allowed a hermitage for the Kamaldulenser,
an order of Catholic hermits, to be built.
A few houses were built
around the Chapel of Saint Joseph,
which earned the name Josefsdorf.
Jan III Sobieski, King of Poland,
launched his attack on the Turkish forces
during the second siege of Vienna from here. *
* Quoted from Kahlenberg @ Wikipedia
Images © by Merisi
-> Encyclopedia Britannica, Jan III Sobieski, King of Poland
What a spectacular place, really beautiful. The snow looks so peaceful and quiet. Love the touch of red in the flag, just pops the scene~
ReplyDeleteMary,
Deleteit was quiet, but for the howling of the wind up there (ask my frozen fingers). ;-)
Looks different in winter than on a cloudy day in early spring when I was there, but the mist is still hovering over the valley.
ReplyDeleteZosia,
Deletethe wind was blowing hard, whirling snow around as if it were snowing from the ground up. It was so cold, I gave up after an hour's hike (I also went to Leopoldsberg) and had coffee in the place near the church.
Zosia, I added a link, about Jan III Sobieski, the legendary king of Poland, who beat back the Ottoman invaders from Vienna in 1683:
Delete"... when a great Turkish army approached Vienna late in the summer of 1683, Sobieski himself rushed there with about 25,000 men. Because he had the highest rank of all military leaders gathered to relieve Vienna, he took command of the entire relief force (about 75,000 men) and achieved a brilliant victory over the Turks at the Kahlenberg (September 12, 1683), in one of the decisive battles of European history." (Britannica)
The high ground always has the best views.
ReplyDeleteTotally beautiful! I would rather be looking at that instead of the bare trees along with some still having brown leaves on them. Here for tomorrow we are expecting rain mixed with "snow" which will make everyone go bonkers! Thanks for stopping by!
ReplyDeleteUlrike
Beautiful snowy captures for the day, Merisi, and interesting history as well. Great views!!
ReplyDeletelovely scenery and a beautiful church
ReplyDeleteAn Arkies Musings
Beautiful Winter Wonderland! I´ve never been on Kahlenberg when it was covered with snow. Can you believe this?
ReplyDeleteWonderful photography, Merisi. We're expecting our first 'real' snowfall within the next 24 hrs.
ReplyDeleteI have been there at 2009 and the view was wonderful !
ReplyDeleteLovely photos, a great sky-post!
ReplyDeleteWhat a view! And it looks so serene and lovely~
ReplyDeletebeautiful...but it looks too cold for me.:p
ReplyDeletelove the 4th photo--wonderful composition.
Such light shining on the buildings. Just dull grey skies here.
ReplyDelete