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Vienna is unique amongst world capitals in its consistent international importance over the centuries. From the ascent of the Habsburgs as Europe''s leading dynasty to the Congress of Vienna, which reordered Europe after Napoleon, to bridge- building summits during the Cold War, it is the Austrian capital that has been the scene of key moments in European and world affairs. History has been shaped by scores of figures influenced by their time in Vienna, including: Empress Maria Theresa, Count Metternich, Bertha von Suttner, Theodore Herzl, Gustav Mahler, Adolf Hitler, Josef Stalin, John F. Kennedy and many others. In a city of great composers and thinkers it is here that both the most positive and destructive ideas of recent history have developed. From its time as the capital of an imperial superpower, through war, dissolution, dictatorship to democracy Vienna has reinvented itself and its relevance to the rest of the world.
About the author
Angus Robertson is a Public Diplomacy consultant, with nearly 30 years' experience of the international media, front-line political and campaign experience. He is the former BBC Vienna correspondent and News Editor for the Austrian Broadcasting Corporation (ORF). He entered the UK parliament as MP for Moray in 2001 and from 2007 to 2017 he was leader of the SNP in the House of Commons. After his election as an MSP in 2021 he is now the Cabinet Secretary for the Constitution, External Affairs and Culture.
Summary
Vienna is unique amongst world capitals in its consistent international importance over the centuries. Former BBC Vienna correspondent Angus Robertson charts how the Austrian capital developed from a garrison town at the edge of the Roman Empire to a glittering international city.
