{"id":39713,"date":"2021-12-13T05:07:00","date_gmt":"2021-12-13T04:07:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/?p=39713"},"modified":"2025-02-04T10:35:58","modified_gmt":"2025-02-04T09:35:58","slug":"karl-marx-hof","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/culture\/karl-marx-hof\/","title":{"rendered":"Karl-Marx-Hof public housing"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"alignright size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" src=\"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/11\/karlmarxhofsmall.jpg\" alt=\"Front arch of Karl Marx Hof\" class=\"wp-image-39714\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/11\/karlmarxhofsmall.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/11\/karlmarxhofsmall-100x100.jpg 100w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p>When you think of buildings in Vienna, one named after the author of <em>The Communist Manifesto<\/em> probably doesn&#8217;t top your list. Yet the Karl-Marx-Hof claims as much historical significance as any city palace or museum.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Huge public housing project completed in 1930<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Notable for its distinctive architecture<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Powerful representative of post-WWI recovery and urban renewal<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Key site in the brief Austrian &#8220;civil war&#8221; of 1934<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Take a guided <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tiqets.com\/en\/vienna-walking-tours-l205287\/?partner=visitingvienna&amp;tq_campaign=LG_WalkingTours\" rel=\"sponsored\">walking tour<\/a>* of historical Vienna<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>See also:\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/culture\/social-housing\/\" data-type=\"post\" data-id=\"35479\">Social housing and Red Vienna<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Icon of Urban Planning<\/h2>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"500\" height=\"375\" src=\"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/karlmarxhof1.jpg\" alt=\"Karl-Marx-Hof facade\" class=\"wp-image-49312\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/karlmarxhof1.jpg 500w, https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/karlmarxhof1-300x225.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center has-small-font-size\">(Famously russet and beige)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Vienna seems full of paradoxes. A city, for example, that displays its imperial heritage with pride, but where left-wing parties have dominated its politics for decades.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>And this home to baroque palaces, medieval churches, and prestigious opera houses also serves as a role model for modern public housing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>If you dropped into Vienna around 1919, you&#8217;d find a city ravaged by the demands of WWI and still finding its feet after the loss of both the war and a centuries-old political system. Many people lived in desperate poverty.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>As a result, the new socialist authorities began a long-term <a href=\"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/culture\/social-housing\/\" data-type=\"post\" data-id=\"35479\">public housing programme<\/a> that experts still regard as a milestone in urban planning.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Up went huge buildings offering decent living conditions for a fair rent within a self-contained complex full of communal facilities and amenities.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"500\" height=\"375\" src=\"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/karlmarxhof1930.jpg\" alt=\"Photo of the Viennese social housing in 1930\" class=\"wp-image-79964\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/karlmarxhof1930.jpg 500w, https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/karlmarxhof1930-300x225.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center has-small-font-size\">(Photo of part of the Karl-Marx-Hof by Martin Gerlach jun. around the time of its completion; Wien Museum Inv.-Nr.  59241\/1126; excerpt reproduced with permission under the terms of the CC0 licence)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>One such complex was the Karl-Marx-Hof. Opened in 1930, it would go on to play an important role in Vienna&#8217;s history and achieve worldwide fame.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>So what makes it so iconic?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Architecture<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Designed by architect Karl Ehn (1884-1959), the complex has some resemblance to a medieval fortress, particularly at its centre with the open courtyard.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Huge archways pierce a fa\u00e7ade broken up by tower-like structures. Even the small windows on the upper level carry echoes of a castle&#8217;s arrowslits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This was not the explicit intention of the architect. However, it seems likely that the idea of offering a representational counterpoint to the imposing facades of expensive town houses seeped into the design process.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"500\" height=\"375\" src=\"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/karlmarxhof2.jpg\" alt=\"Open courtyard of the Karl-Marx-Hof\" class=\"wp-image-49313\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/karlmarxhof2.jpg 500w, https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/karlmarxhof2-300x225.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center has-small-font-size\">(Built with green spaces in mind)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The complex still houses more than 1,250 apartments, is over a kilometer long, and covers some 156,000 m\u00b2 (about 22 football pitches); the trees and grass in the inner courtyards account for most of that area. The construction work used over 24 million bricks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Even today, the Karl-Marx-Hof still counts as one of the world&#8217;s longest residential buildings. And it came in well under budget!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Role in History<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>According to a report of its opening in the <em>Wiener Zeitung<\/em> newspaper, the complex offered its residents:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p>\u2026two central laundries, two bath houses, two Kindergartens, a dental clinic, a maternity and infant welfare service, a library, a youth centre, a post office, an outpatient clinic, a pharmacy, and 25 stores.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p>As such, the Karl-Marx-Hof serves as a poster child for post-WWI recovery, public housing initiatives, and urban development.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"500\" height=\"375\" src=\"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/karlmarxhof3.jpg\" alt=\"Public housing inscription\" class=\"wp-image-49314\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/karlmarxhof3.jpg 500w, https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/karlmarxhof3-300x225.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center has-small-font-size\">(The wall inscription states it was built by the city authorities and gives the dates of construction)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>One of those two laundries now also houses a <a href=\"http:\/\/dasrotewien-waschsalon.at\/\">permanent exhibition<\/a> on the history of socialist (&#8220;Red&#8221;) Vienna in the context of the first Austrian republic (1919 &#8211; 1934), with a focus on those public housing projects. All displays were in German when I visited in early 2024, though.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The size, design, and red colour of Karl-Marx-Hof also combined to project the new self-confidence of the working class. Unfortunately, this perception did not sit well with those at the other end of the political spectrum.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>That ideological conflict reflected a wider disparity as Austria slipped into fascism from 1933. Resistance to totalitarian developments resulted in a brief and small civil war in February 1934.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>During this conflict, a group of armed social democrats took refuge in the Karl-Marx-Hof, leading to three days of fierce fighting and cementing the location&#8217;s status as a symbol of (left-wing) democracy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">How to get to Karl-Marx-Hof<\/h2>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"500\" height=\"375\" src=\"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/karlmarxhof.jpg\" alt=\"The Karl-Marx-Hof\" class=\"wp-image-47224\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/karlmarxhof.jpg 500w, https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/karlmarxhof-300x225.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center has-small-font-size\">(The complex is also popular with photographers)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Although located in an outer district, Vienna&#8217;s public transport system gets you to the area quickly and easily.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Subway: the complex actually looks out over the Heiligenstadt railway station on the U4 subway line. Simply exit east.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Tram: the other side of the complex runs along Heiligenst\u00e4dter Stra\u00dfe and covers four stops on the D tram line that leaves from the city centre:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Gunoldstra\u00dfe<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Heiligenstadt, 12.-Februar-Pl.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Halteraugasse<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Grinzinger Stra\u00dfe<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Carry on for another two stops on the D and you find yourself at the point where the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/entertainment\/donaukanal\/\" data-type=\"post\" data-id=\"34106\">Donaukanal channel<\/a> splits off from the Danube river, as you can see on the map below.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Address: Heiligenst\u00e4dter Stra\u00dfe 82-92, 1190 Vienna<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div align=\"center\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/maps\/d\/u\/0\/embed?mid=1PrVA5RFRC1zzKyQQofLbGVOa8cqKA49Y\" width=\"400\" height=\"300\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>When you think of buildings in Vienna, one named after the author of The Communist Manifesto probably doesn&#8217;t top your list. Yet the Karl-Marx-Hof claims as much historical significance as any city palace or museum. Icon of Urban Planning (Famously russet and beige) Vienna seems full of paradoxes. A city, for example, that displays its [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":39714,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[34],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-39713","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-culture","8":"entry"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/39713","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=39713"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/39713\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":79970,"href":"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/39713\/revisions\/79970"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/39714"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=39713"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=39713"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=39713"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}