Time travel through 650 years of Austrian National Library
From the Middle Ages through the baroque period to the present day: come with us on a short visit through the most important periods in the history of the Austrian National Library!
Foundation Codex and Medieval Treasure
Written in gold letters and superbly illuminated: the Troppau Gospel Book.
Emperor Frederick III and the Bohemian Heritage
The book collection of Emperor Frederick III can be considered as forming the core holdings of the imperial court library.
Emperor Maximilian I and the Origins of the “Bibliotheca Regia”“
The “Last Knight” sees to the expansion of the library, which for the first time is referred to as “Bibliotheca Regia”, royal library.
Scholars and Their Libraries
A gradual change of the library’s function: from preserving a treasure to a place of knowledge.
Hugo Blotius: First Imperial Librarian
Emperor Maximilian II appoints the much-travelled Dutch scholar first official librarian.
Acquisition of the Library of Philipp Fugger
The imperial library acquires a book collection comprising 15,000 volumes for 12,000 guilders.
Library Prefect Peter Lambeck
The term of office of the scholar from Hamburg sees the transfer of the Ambras library to Vienna.
The Baroque World in the State Hall
The crucial turning point in the court library’s history: Emperor Charles VI initiates the construction of a library building in today’s Josefsplatz.
Gerard van Swieten Appointed Prefect of the Court Library
In 1745, the “Little Republican”, better known as Maria Theresa’s personal physician, is called to Vienna as prefect of the court library.
The Oldest Card Catalogue
A milestone in the organisation of the library: Gottfried van Swieten (Gerard van Swieten’s son) compiles the first card catalogue in the history of librarianship.
Scholarship at the Library – Michael Denis and Adam von Bartsch
Important scholars are called to the library under Gottfried van Swieten.
National Library of the Austrian Empire
The establishment of individual collections facilitates the administration and analysis of the now separately grouped holdings.
The Age of Reading
In a year of revolutions, the Hofburg is set on fire. Once the uprisings were crushed, the court library again becomes the centre of academic life.
The Karabacek Period
Joseph von Karabacek’s term of office sees the acquisition of Archduke Rainer’s important papyrus collection and the opening of the Augustinian Reading Room.
The Court Library Becomes the National Library
After the fall of the monarchy the collections and the fideicommissum library pass into the possession of the republic. The library is now referred to as National Library.
The National Library in the Corporate State
Public libraries are “purged” of Social Democratic literature. The National Library serves as a collecting point for confiscated books.
Political Abuse of the Library under the NS-Regime
The National Library’s director pursues an aggressive acquisition policy. The loot is allocated to the library’s own holdings and to libraries of the Third Reich.
A New Beginning in the Second Republic
The “National Library” is renamed “Austrian National Library” and becomes an important identity-creating symbol of the Second Republic
Moving into the Neue Burg
In 1966 a new and generously spaced user area was created at the Neue Burg for an ever-growing number of readers.
Taking off for the Digital Age
The Austrian National Library faces up to the challenges of the media revolution and seeks to make the best possible use of the possibilities arising from it.
The Library of the Future: Vision 2025
The transformation of a traditional twentieth-century academic library into an open knowledge centre of the twenty-first century is at the basis of the five crucial goals of Vision 2025.