Located in Vienna, Austria, the Heeresgeschichtliches War Museum has many exhibitions on the country’s experiences of WW1. The museum has a number of galleries dedicated to the First World War, including one that houses the car in which Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria and his wife were shot dead in Sarajevo by Gavrilo Princip on 28th June 1914.
Other exhibitions at the museum include the WW1 Galleries. These house many objects that show the Austro-Hungarian experience of the war. They include two halls. The museum says this on its website:
“In the second hall, the road leading to the final collapse becomes obvious. Wounded people, prisoners and dead bodies pave the way up to the present. An example of the unique paintings of this time is a work called Die Namenlosen (the Nameless) 1914 by Albin Egger-Lienz. From Austria-Hungarys point of view, the focus of armed conflict was on the Balkans and in Galicia. Austria-Hungary failed in this region as the German Reich did in the west. At the end of 1914, already, German and Austrian troops had to make every effort not to be overrun by the Russian troops. In May of 1915 Italy, too, declared war on Austria-Hungary. Thereby, another frontline was opened in the southwest, reaching from South Tyrol and the high mountain regions to the aera Grz and Triest.
In the autumn of 1918, the dissolution of the Habsburg monarchy began, inevitably entailing the disbandment of the army. On 3 November 1918, Austria concluded an armistice. At this time, national states of succession had formed already. Europe had changed its face.”
To visit the Heeresgeschichtliches War Museum’s website, click here.
Images courtesy of the Heeresgeschichtliches War Museum website.