(german: Evangelischer Friedhof Matzleinsdorf), Matzleinsdorf Evangelical Cemetery is a historic

Protestant Protestantism is a Christian denomination, branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Reformation, Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century agai ...

cemetery located in the

Favoriten Favoriten (; Central Bavarian: ''Favoritn''), the 10th district of Vienna, Austria (german: 10. Bezirk, Favoriten), is located south of the central districts. It is south of Innere Stadt, Wieden and Margareten. Favoriten is a heavily populat ...

district of

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

, the capital city of

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

History and details

Throughout the centuries, the Vienna Protestants did not have their own

graveyard A cemetery, burial ground, gravesite or graveyard is a place where the remains of dead people are buried or otherwise interred. The word ''cemetery'' (from Greek , "sleeping place") implies that the land is specifically designated as a buri ...

but were buried among Catholics in Catholic cemeteries. In May 1856 Emperor

Franz Joseph I of Austria Franz Joseph I or Francis Joseph I (german: Franz Joseph Karl, hu, Ferenc József Károly, 18 August 1830 – 21 November 1916) was Emperor of Austria, King of Hungary, and the Grand title of the Emperor of Austria, other states of the Habsburg m ...

agreed to reformations which allowed for the creation of cemeteries of other denominations. The Protestant church acquired a plot of land at the outlying village of Matzleinsdorf that same year and began the construction of their first cemetery in Vienna. The original plans included a chapel, a home for undertakers, a mortuary and various storage facilities. The famous Austrian architect

Theophil Hansen Baron Theophil Edvard von Hansen (; original Danish name: Theophilus Hansen ; 13 July 1813 – 17 February 1891) was a Danish architect who later became an Austrian citizen. He became particularly well known for his buildings and structures in A ...

was contracted for the project. However the construction of the cemetery would take two years as the Protestant church ran out of money and needed to finance construction through donations. On May 7, 1858 the Matzleinsdorf Protestant Cemetery finally opened and on September 27, 1860 the chapel Christuskirche (Chapel of the Holy Christ) was completed and consecrated. The Chapel has a distinct architectural style which is reminiscent of an Eastern Orthodox Church. The architect,

, was influenced heavily by historical features prominent during the 19th century and constructed the church in a

Byzantium Byzantium () or Byzantion ( grc, Βυζάντιον) was an ancient Greek city in classical antiquity that became known as Constantinople in late antiquity and Istanbul today. The Greek name ''Byzantion'' and its Latinization ''Byzantium'' cont ...

style with a large dome and crowned corner pillars. The entrance has a golden mosaic that shows Christ holding a holy scroll. The interior of the chapel is characterized by 35 statues of angels made in a style similar to figureheads of Spanish

galleon Galleons were large, multi-decked sailing ships first used as armed cargo carriers by European states from the 16th to 18th centuries during the age of sail and were the principal vessels drafted for use as warships until the Anglo-Dutch War ...

s. They symbolize worship, dogma and annunciation. The ornate stained glass windows are ornamented with

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...

symbols and pictures of birth, crucifixion and resurrection of the Christ. During its long history, the Matzleinsdorf cemetery became so popular among the Viennese Protestants that it needed to be enlarged twice due to a lack of space. However, when the

Zentralfriedhof The Vienna Central Cemetery (german: Wiener Zentralfriedhof) is one of the largest cemeteries in the world by number of interred, and is the most well-known cemetery among Vienna's nearly 50 cemeteries. The cemetery's name is descriptive of its ...

got its own Protestant section, the Matzleinsdorf fell into disuse and discussion about its retention embarked and lasts ever since. Finally, in 1943 the cemetery suffered heavy destruction during Allied bombings due to its proximity to the Vienna Railway Station South, a primary target of the Allied forces. Today, it has been largely restored but still suffers from competition of the more popular Protestant Section at

Selected notable burials

A few of the notables buried here are: * Heinrich Anschütz (1785–1865), German actor * Karl Isidor Beck (1817–1879), Austrian poet *

Count Friedrich Ferdinand von Beust Count Friedrich Ferdinand von Beust (german: link=no, Friedrich Ferdinand Graf von Beust; 13 January 1809 – 24 October 1886) was a German and Austrian statesman. As an opponent of Otto von Bismarck, he attempted to conclude a common policy of ...

(1809–1886), Austrian statesman *

Karl Ludwig von Bruck Karl Ludwig von Bruck (Elberfeld, 8 October 1798 – Vienna, 23 April 1860) was an Austrian statesman. Biography In 1821 Bruck went to Trieste in order to take part in the War for Greek Independence, and, remaining there several years, founded th ...

(1798–1860), Austrian statesman *

Ada Christen Ada Christen, also known as Ada Carla, Christiane von Breden, Christine von Neupauer, and Satanella (6 March 1839 – 19 May 1901), was an Austrian writer. Life Christen was born in 1839 in Vienna with little formal education growing up. Her fat ...

(1839–1901), Austrian writer *

Christine Enghaus Christine Enghaus, pseudonym of Johanne Louise Christine Engehausen, (9 February 1815 in Braunschweig – 29 June 1910 in Vienna) was a German actress and wife of the German playwright Friedrich Hebbel. Early years Christine Engehausen w ...

(1815–1910), German actress *

Christian Friedrich Hebbel Christian Friedrich Hebbel (18 March 1813 – 13 December 1863) was a German poet and dramatist. Biography Hebbel was born at Wesselburen in Dithmarschen, Holstein, the son of a bricklayer. He was educated at the ''Gelehrtenschule des Johanneu ...

(1813–1863), German poet and dramatist *

Oskar Karlweis Oskar Leopold Karlweis (often credited Oscar Karlweis; 10 July 1894 – 24 January 1956) was an Austrian-American stage and film actor, active internationally. Career Born in Hinterbrühl, Austria-Hungary, he was the son of playwright Carl Ka ...

(1894–1956), Austrian actor *

Rudolf Koppitz Rudolf Koppitz (4 January 1884 in Skrbovice – 8 July 1936 in Perchtoldsdorf) was an Austrian photographer. He moved to Vienna and was a Photo-Secessionist whose work includes straight photography and modernist images. He was one of the lead ...

(1884–1936), Austrian photographer *

Heinrich Laube Heinrich Laube (18 September 1806 – 1 August 1884), German dramatist, novelist and theatre-director, was born at Sprottau in Prussian Silesia. Life He studied theology at Halle and Breslau (1826–1829), and settled in Leipzig in 1832. Here h ...

(1806–1884), German dramatist, novelist and theatre-director *

Hermann Nothnagel Carl Wilhelm Hermann Nothnagel (28 September 1841 – 7 July 1905) was a German internist born in Alt-Lietzegöricke ( pl, Stare Łysogórki), near Bärwalde in der Neumark ( pl, Mieszkowice), Neumark, Brandenburg. Career The son of a ph ...

(1841–1905), German internist *

František Martin Pecháček František Martin Pecháček, also ''Francis Martin Pechatschek, Pechaczek, Behatschek'' (10 November 1763 in Ústí nad Orlicí - 26 September 1816 in Vienna) was a Bohemian violinist, pedagog, arranger and diligent composer. His son Franz Pechá ...

(1763–1816), Czech violinist and composer *

Adele Sandrock Adele Sandrock (; born Adele Feldern-Förster; 19 August 1863 – 30 August 1937) was a German-Dutch actress. After a successful theatrical career, she became one of the first German movie stars. Early life Sandrock was born in Rotterdam, Net ...

(1863–1937), German actress *

Lorenz von Stein Lorenz von Stein (18 November 1815 – 23 September 1890) was a German economist, sociologist, and public administration scholar from Eckernförde. As an advisor to Meiji period Japan, his liberal political views influenced the wording of the C ...

(1815–1890), German economist, sociologist, and public administration scholar *

Hans Thirring Hans Thirring (March 23, 1888 – March 22, 1976) was an Austrian theoretical physicist, professor, and father of the physicist Walter Thirring. He won the Haitinger Prize of the Austrian Academy of Sciences in 1920. Together with the mathemati ...

(1888–1976), Austrian theoretical physicist, professor, and father of the physicist

Walter Thirring Walter Thirring (29 April 1927 – 19 August 2014) was an Austrian physicist after whom the Thirring model in quantum field theory is named. He was the son of the physicist Hans Thirring.Thirring, H. Über die Wirkung rotierender ferner Massen ...

Otto Weininger Otto Weininger (; 3 April 1880 – 4 October 1903) was an Austrian philosopher who lived in the Austro-Hungarian Empire. In 1903, he published the book ''Geschlecht und Charakter'' (''Sex and Character''), which gained popularity after his suici ...

(1880–1903), Austrian philosopher

Gallery

File:GuentherZ 2010-01-02 4026 Evangelischer Friedhof Wilhelm Hellwag.jpg, Matzleinsdorf Protestant Cemetery File:Grab von Otto Weininger.JPG, Grave of Otto Weininger File:Grab von Ada Christen.JPG, Grave of Ada Christen

External links

Website of the Matzleinsdorf Evangelical Cemetery

Evangelischer Friedhof Matzleinsdorf auf den Seiten der Friedhöfe Wien GmbH

Evangelische Pfarrgemeinde Wien Christuskirche A.B.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Evangelischer Friedhof Matzleinsdorf Cemeteries in Vienna Lutheran cemeteries Protestant Reformed cemeteries Buildings and structures in Favoriten