Baron Theophil Edvard von Hansen (; original

Danish Danish may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the country of Denmark People * A national or citizen of Denmark, also called a "Dane," see Demographics of Denmark * Culture of Denmark * Danish people or Danes, people with a Danish a ...

name: Theophilus Hansen ; 13 July 1813 – 17 February 1891) was a

architect who later became an

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 ...

n citizen. He became particularly well known for his buildings and structures in

Athens Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...

and

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

, and is considered an outstanding representative of Neoclassicism and

Historicism Historicism is an approach to explaining the existence of phenomena, especially social and cultural practices (including ideas and beliefs), by studying their history, that is, by studying the process by which they came about. The term is widely ...

Biography

Hansen was born in

Copenhagen Copenhagen ( or .; da, København ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a proper population of around 815.000 in the last quarter of 2022; and some 1.370,000 in the urban area; and the wider Copenhagen metropolitan ar ...

. After training with Prussian architect

Karl Friedrich Schinkel Karl Friedrich Schinkel (13 March 1781 – 9 October 1841) was a Prussian architect, city planner and painter who also designed furniture and stage sets. Schinkel was one of the most prominent architects of Germany and designed both neoclassic ...

and some years studying in Vienna, he moved to

in 1837, where he studied architecture and design, with a concentration and interest in Byzantine architecture. During his stay in Athens, Hansen designed his first building, the

National Observatory of Athens The National Observatory of Athens (NOA; el, Εθνικό Αστεροσκοπείο Αθηνών) is a research institute in Athens, Greece. Founded in 1842, it is the oldest research foundation in Greece, as it was the first scientific rese ...

and two of the three contiguous buildings forming the so-called "Athenian Trilogy": the Academy of Athens and the National Library of Greece, the third building of the trilogy being the

National and Capodistrian University of Athens National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, ce ...

, which was designed by his brother Hans Christian Hansen (1803–1883). The Greek-Austrian entrepreneur

Georgios Sinas Georgios Sinas ( el, Γεώργιος Σίνας, german: Georg Sina; 20 November 1783 – 18 May 1856) was a Greek- Austrian entrepreneur and banker. He became a national benefactor of Greece and was the father of another Greek national benefacto ...

(1783-1856, who donated the observatory, called Hansen to Vienna in 1846, where Hansen took up an apprenticeship with noted Austrian architect

Ludwig Förster Ludwig Christian Friedrich (von) Förster (8 October 1797 in Ansbach – 16 June 1863 in Bad Gleichenberg, Styria) was a German-born Austrian architect. While he was not Jewish, he is known for building Jewish synagogues and churches. Ludwig F ...

(1797–1863). In his early works, such as the museum at The Arsenal in Vienna, Hansen was still rather aligned to a more romantic style. In later years, he became the most outstanding representative of Renaissance-inspired historicism (

Neo-Renaissance Renaissance Revival architecture (sometimes referred to as "Neo-Renaissance") is a group of 19th century architectural revival styles which were neither Greek Revival nor Gothic Revival but which instead drew inspiration from a wide range ...

), which also came to be known as Viennese-style. This style extended into the smallest details of the interior design and partially accepted the courses of a synthesis of the arts. Along with Förster and many others, Hansen was one of the most important and influential architects of the Viennese

Ringstraße The Vienna Ring Road (german: Ringstraße, lit. ''ring road'') is a 5.3 km (3.3 mi) circular grand boulevard that serves as a ring road around the historic Innere Stadt (Inner Town) district of Vienna, Austria. The road is located on sites where ...

. His most famous work is the Austrian Parliament building, which was created in the style of an ancient, neo-classic temple, and serves to refer to the Greek beginnings of

democracy Democracy (From grc, δημοκρατία, dēmokratía, ''dēmos'' 'people' and ''kratos'' 'rule') is a form of government in which people, the people have the authority to deliberate and decide legislation ("direct democracy"), or to choo ...

. Hansen was originally a staunch critic of the Classical style that was taught to him at the Copenhagen Academy. Over the years, however, he came to incorporate Classical elements into his forms. ''Bauleiter'' on this project was Swiss-Austrian architect

Hans Auer __NOTOC__ Hans Wilhelm Auer (26 April 1847 – 30 August 1906) was a Swiss- Austrian architect best known for his design of the Swiss '' Bundeshaus'' (1894–1902) in Bern. Auer was born in Wädenswil. A pupil first of Gottfried Semper at the ...

(1847–1906) who would go on to win the competition for the Swiss Bundeshaus. Hansen's famed Musikverein in Vienna is one of the most notable concert halls in the world; a concert hall whose design and acoustics are often admired and copied in present-day music houses. Athens academy

Hansen worked together with Austrian sculptor Vincenz Pilz (1816-1896) and artist

Carl Rahl Carl Rahl, sometimes spelled Karl Rahl (13 August 1812 – 9 July 1865), was an Austrian painter. Life Rahl was born in Vienna to Carl Heinrich Rahl (1779–1843), an engraver. He attended the Academy of Fine Arts Vienna and won a prize at ...

(1812–1865), as well as with architect

Otto Wagner Otto Koloman Wagner (; 13 July 1841 – 11 April 1918) was an Austrian architect, furniture designer and urban planner. He was a leading member of the Vienna Secession movement of architecture, founded in 1897, and the broader Art Nouveau move ...

(1841-1918). In 1884 Emperor

Franz Joseph 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 other states of the Habsburg monarchy from 2 December 1848 until his ...

honoured Hansen with a barony in the Austrian nobility and he was since styled "

Freiherr (; male, abbreviated as ), (; his wife, abbreviated as , literally "free lord" or "free lady") and (, his unmarried daughters and maiden aunts) are designations used as titles of nobility in the German-speaking areas of the Holy Roman Empire ...

von Hansen". He died in 1891 in Vienna.

Work

, 1842 * House of military invalids,

Lviv Lviv ( uk, Львів) is the largest city in western Ukraine, and the seventh-largest in Ukraine, with a population of . It serves as the administrative centre of Lviv Oblast and Lviv Raion, and is one of the main cultural centres of Ukrain ...

, 1851-1863 * Academy of Athens, Athens, starting from 1856 * Museum of Military History in the Arsenal, Vienna, 1856 * Old Municipal Hospital in Patras, Greece, 1857 * Cemetery chapel Christuskirche at the

Matzleinsdorf Protestant Cemetery (german: Evangelischer Friedhof Matzleinsdorf), Matzleinsdorf Evangelical Cemetery is a historic Protestant cemetery located in the Favoriten district of Vienna, the capital city of Austria. History and details Throughout the centuries, the V ...

, Vienna, 1858 * Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church, Vienna, 1858–1861 * Palais Todesco, Ringstrasse, Vienna, 1861-1864 * Palace of Archduke Wilhelm, Vienna, 1864–1868 * Musikverein, Vienna, 1867–1870 *

Academy of Fine Arts Vienna The Academy of Fine Arts Vienna (german: link=no, Akademie der bildenden Künste Wien) is a public art school in Vienna, Austria. History The Academy of Fine Arts Vienna was founded in 1692 as a private academy modelled on the Accademia di Sa ...

, 1871–1876 * Philharmonic Concert Hall, Brno, 1871–1873 *

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

, 1874–1877 * Austrian Parliament Building, Vienna, 1874–1883 *

Zappeion The Zappeion ( el, Ζάππειον Μέγαρο, Záppeion Mégaro, ) is a large, palatial building next to the National Gardens of Athens in the heart of Athens, Greece. It is generally used for meetings and ceremonies, both official and priva ...

, Athens, 1874-1888 * New Lutheran church,

Kežmarok Kežmarok (german: Kesmark or ; hu, Késmárk, yi, קעזמאַרק, Kezmark, pl, Kieżmark) is a town in the Spiš region of eastern Slovakia (population 16,000), on the Poprad River. Prior to World War I, it was in Szepes county in the ...

, 1879-1892 * Castle Nadelburg,

Lichtenwörth , settlement_type = , image_skyline = Lichtenw Panorma.JPG , imagesize = , image_caption = Panorama of Lichtenwörth , image_shield = AUT Lichtenwörth COA.svg , shield_size = 80x110px , shield_link = , pushpin_ma ...

, Lower Austria 1880-1882 *

National Library of Greece The National Library of Greece ( el, Εθνική Βιβλιοθήκη της Ελλάδος, Ethnikí Vivliothíki tis Elládos) is the main public library of Greece, located in Athens. Founded by Ioannis Kapodistrias in 1832, its mission is to ...

, Athens, starting from 1888

Gallery

07Athen Observatorium1.jpg, ''Athens Observatorium'' Attica 06-13 Athens 28 Academy of Athens.jpg, ''Academy of Athens'' part of the 'Athenian Trilogy' in Athens Wien - Haus des Wiener Musikvereins (1).JPG, ''Musikverein'' building in Vienna Musikverein Goldener Saal.jpg, ''Goldener Saal'' in the ''Musikvereinsgebäude'' in Vienna Athens_Zappeion.jpg, The ''Zappeion Megaron'' in Athens Castle-nadelburg.jpg, ''Castle Nadelburg'' in Lichtenwörth, Lower Austria Wien parlament.JPG, ''Reichsrat'' in Vienna, today the Austrian Parliament Building Palais_Hansen_Wien_2010_2.jpg, ''Palais Hansen'' in Vienna Attica 06-13 Athens 32 National Library.jpg, ''National Library of Greece'' Kezmarok11.jpg, ''New Lutheran church'' in

References

Other sources

* George Niemann (Hrsg.), Ferdinand von Feldegg: ''Theophilus Hansen und seine Werke''. A. Schroll & Co., Wien 1893. * Renate Wagner-Rieger and Mara Reissberger (1980( ''Theophil von Hansen''. (Series: Die Wiener Ringstraße VIII; Band 4) Wiesbaden: Steiner * Manfred Leithe-Jasper:
Hansen, Theophilos Edvard Freiherr von
'. In: Neue Deutsche Biographie (NDB). Band 7, Duncker & Humblot, Berlin 1966, , S. 634 f. * Julius Leisching: '' Hansen, Theophilos Edvard Freiherr von''. In: Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie (ADB). Band 49, Duncker & Humblot, Leipzig 1904, S. 762–766. *
Hansen Theophil Edvard Frh. von
'. In: Österreichisches Biographisches Lexikon 1815–1950 (ÖBL). Band 2, Verlag der Österreichischen Akademie der Wissenschaften, Wien 1959, S. 181 f. * Alice Strobl: ''Das k. k. Waffenmuseum im Arsenal. Der Bau und seine künstlerische Ausschmückung'', in: ''Schriften des Heeresgeschichtlichen Museums in Wien'', herausgegeben von der Direktion. Graz / Köln, 1961 * Robert Bachtrögl: ''Die Nadelburg - Geschichte ab 1747''. 2010 (Theophil Hansen ab S.77) * Adolf Stiller (Hrsg).: ''Theophil Hansen - Klassische Eleganz im Alltag''. Müry Salzmann, Salzburg / Wien 2013, . * Andreas Pittler, Hermann Schnell: Der Baumeister des Parliaments - Theophil Hansen (1813-1891). Edition Winkler-Hermaden, Wien 2013,

Notes

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Hansen, Theophil Von 1813 births 1891 deaths Barons of Austria Austrian people of Danish descent Danish expatriates in Austria Danish neoclassical architects Burials at the Vienna Central Cemetery Architects from Copenhagen Recipients of the Royal Gold Medal People associated with the Academy of Fine Arts Vienna Architecture of Athens 19th-century Danish architects