Die Zeit um 1900 brachte eine neue, globalisierte Welt hervor. Telegrafie und Telefon ermöglichten die schnellere Verbreitung von Neuigkeiten, was zu einer „Gleichzeitigkeit“ zwischen Geschehenem und Berichterstattung in den Medien führte. Genau andersrum funktionierte die Unterhaltungsbranche. Kino und Grammophon ermöglichten es erstmals einem größeren Publikum Geschehenes zu speichern und „ungleichzeitig“ zu konsumieren. Wirtschaft und Handel waren auf einem nie vorher gesehenen Niveau angelangt und weltweit verstrickt. Freud und Nietzsche brachten in Medizin und Philosophie neue Perspektiven ein, die zwar nicht von der breiten Masse, dank der neuen Möglichkeiten aber immer größer werdenden Publikum rezipiert wurden. Robert Musil, Stefan Zweig, Klimt, Kokoschka, Schiele, Mahler, Wagner, Schönberg und Freud prägen ein nostalgisches Bild Wiens und Österreichs dieser Zeit im Ausland bis heute. Innsbruck war nicht Wien und das

Innsbruck was not Vienna and that Fin de Siecle was not as celebrated in Tyrol as it was in Paris, but the bourgeoisie of the Alpine region was influenced by the European one. While nations were increasingly moving away from each other politically, architecture in many European cities was converging. The new bourgeois elites in Buenos Aires, Madrid, London, New York and Vienna had discovered historicism for themselves. Innsbruck was no exception. You can experience a little of the flair of this period around Claudiaplatz.

This city centre roundabout, which was named after Claudia de Medici, is one of many examples of the architecture of the Belle Epoque und bildet bis heute so etwas wie das Zentrum des Stadtteils Saggen. Er grenzt den „Villensaggen" in the north-west of the "Blocksaggen“ mit den Mietshäusern im Osten des Stadtteils ab. Nicht nur architektonisch, auch sozial bildete der Claudiaplatz schon immer eine Art Grenze. Während sich in den Wohnblöcken des Blocksaggen While small employees settled in the neighbourhood, the upper middle classes resided in the villas.

The colonisation of Saggen using the example of Claudiaplatz is an example of Innsbruck's property industry and speculation, which began early on. Claudiaplatz 1 and 2 and Elisabethstraße number 11 were built from 1898 by the German "Property developer" Reinhold Boos financed the project. He had the stately residences with up to seven flats built for a wealthy clientele. The magnificent houses have a trapezoidal floor plan and are charmingly decorated with bay windows and exuberant ornamentation. Even the staircases, which were built in the Wilhelminian era, were small works of art and were intended to set the mood for the flats and the ambience.

Five streets lead into the Claudiaplatz roundabout. To the west of the square, Elisabethstraße leads into the residential neighbourhood, while Kaiser-Franz-Josef-Straße, with its charming green central strip, is lined with larger residential buildings that are also worth seeing. The house at Conradstraße 6, just a few metres from Claudiaplatz, is particularly noteworthy. The quarry owner Josef Leutsch had the architect Josef Mayr design this Art Nouveau-style house for him. Claudiastrasse leads into the square opposite. The colourful houses in this row are a popular photo motif from the square's roundabout. The milieu in this part of Innsbruck, consisting of academics and freelancers who were attracted to it, has to a certain extent remained dynastic to this day.

The year 1848 occupies a mythical place in European history. Although the hotspots were not to be found in secluded Tyrol, but in the major metropolises such as Paris, Vienna, Budapest, Milan and Berlin, even in the Holy Land however, the revolutionary year left its mark. In contrast to the rural surroundings, an enlightened educated middle class had developed in Innsbruck. Enlightened people no longer wanted to be subjects of a monarch or sovereign, but citizens with rights and duties towards the state. Students and freelancers demanded political participation, freedom of the press and civil rights. Workers demanded better wages and working conditions. Radical liberals and nationalists in particular even questioned the omnipotence of the church.

In March 1848, this socially and politically highly explosive mixture erupted in riots in many European cities. In Innsbruck, students and professors celebrated the newly enacted freedom of the press with a torchlight procession. On the whole, however, the revolution proceeded calmly in the leisurely Tyrol. It would be foolhardy to speak of a spontaneous outburst of emotion; the date of the procession was postponed from 20 to 21 March due to bad weather. There were hardly any anti-Habsburg riots or attacks; a stray stone thrown into a Jesuit window was one of the highlights of the Alpine version of the 1848 revolution. The students even helped the city magistrate to monitor public order in order to show their gratitude to the monarch for the newly granted freedoms and their loyalty.

The initial enthusiasm for bourgeois achievements was quickly replaced by German nationalist, patriotic fervour in Innsbruck. On 6 April 1848, the German flag was waved by the governor of Tyrol during a ceremonial procession. A German flag was also raised on the city tower. Tricolour was hoisted. While students, workers, liberal-nationalist-minded citizens, republicans, supporters of a constitutional monarchy and Catholic conservatives disagreed on social issues such as freedom of the press, they shared a dislike of the Italian independence movement that had spread from Piedmont and Milan to northern Italy. Innsbruck students and marksmen marched to Trentino with the support of the k.k. The Innsbruck students and riflemen moved into Trentino to nip the unrest and uprisings in the bud. Well-known members of this corps were Father Haspinger, who had already fought with Andreas Hofer in 1809, and Adolf Pichler.

The city of Innsbruck, as the political and economic centre of the multinational crown land of Tyrol and home to many Italian speakers, also became the arena of this nationality conflict. Combined with copious amounts of alcohol, anti-Italian sentiment in Innsbruck posed more of a threat to public order than civil liberties. A quarrel between a German-speaking craftsman and an Italian-speaking Ladin got so heated that it almost led to a pogrom against the numerous businesses and restaurants owned by Italian-speaking Tyroleans.

The relative tranquillity of Innsbruck suited the imperial house, which was under pressure. When things did not stop boiling in Vienna even after March, Emperor Ferdinand fled to Tyrol in May. According to press reports from this time, he was received enthusiastically by the population.

"Wie heißt das Land, dem solche Ehre zu Theil wird, wer ist das Volk, das ein solches Vertrauen genießt in dieser verhängnißvollen Zeit? Stützt sich die Ruhe und Sicherheit hier bloß auf die Sage aus alter Zeit, oder liegt auch in der Gegenwart ein Grund, auf dem man bauen kann, den der Wind nicht weg bläst, und der Sturm nicht erschüttert? Dieses Alipenland heißt Tirol, gefällts dir wohl? Ja, das tirolische Volk allein bewährt in der Mitte des aufgewühlten Europa die Ehrfurcht und Treue, den Muth und die Kraft für sein angestammtes Regentenhaus, während ringsum Auflehnung, Widerspruch. Trotz und Forderung, häufig sogar Aufruhr und Umsturz toben; Tirol allein hält fest ohne Wanken an Sitte und Gehorsam, auf Religion, Wahrheit und Recht, während anderwärts die Frechheit und Lüge, der Wahnsinn und die Leidenschaften herrschen anstatt folgen wollen. Und während im großen Kaiserreiche sich die Bande überall lockern, oder gar zu lösen drohen; wo die Willkühr, von den Begierden getrieben, Gesetze umstürzt, offenen Aufruhr predigt, täglich mit neuen Forderungen losgeht; eigenmächtig ephemere- wie das Wetter wechselnde Einrichtungen schafft; während Wien, die alte sonst so friedliche Kaiserstadt, sich von der erhitzten Phantasie der Jugend lenken und gängeln läßt, und die Räthe des Reichs auf eine schmähliche Weise behandelt, nach Laune beliebig, und mit jakobinischer Anmaßung, über alle Provinzen verfügend, absetzt und anstellt, ja sogar ohne Ehrfurcht, den Kaiaer mit Sturm-Petitionen verfolgt; während jetzt von allen Seiten her Deputationen mit Ergebenheits-Addressen mit Bittgesuchen und Loyalitätsversicherungen dem Kaiser nach Innsbruck folgen, steht Tirol ganz ruhig, gleich einer stillen Insel, mitten im brausenden Meeressturme, und des kleinen Völkchens treue Brust bildet, wie seine Berge und Felsen, eine feste Mauer in Gesetz und Ordnung, für den Kaiser und das Vaterland."

Im Juni stieg auch ein junger Franz Josef, damals noch nicht Kaiser, am Rückweg von den Schlachtfeldern Norditaliens in der Hofburg ab, anstatt direkt nach Wien zu reisen. Innsbruck war wieder Residenzstadt, wenn auch nur für einen Sommer. Während in Wien, Mailand und Budapest die Fetzen flogen, genoss die kaiserliche Familie das Tiroler Landleben. Ferdinand, Franz Karl, seine Frau Sophie und Franz Josef empfingen Gäste von ausländischen Fürstenhöfen und ließen sich im Vierspänner zu den Ausflugszielen der Region wie der Weiherburg, zur Stefansbrücke, nach Kranebitten und hoch hinauf bis Heiligwasser chauffieren.

Wenig später war es allerdings vorbei mit der Gemütlichkeit. Der als nicht mehr amtstauglich geltende Ferdinand übergab unter sanftem Druck die Fackel der Regentenwürde an Franz Josef I. Im Juli 1848 kam es in Wien in der Hofreitschule zur Abhaltung einer ersten parlamentarischen Sitzung. Eine erste Verfassung wurde in Kraft gesetzt. Der Reformwille der Monarchie flachte aber schnell wieder ab. Das neue Parlament war ein Reichsrat, es konnte keine bindenden Gesetze erlassen, der Kaiser besuchte es Zeit seines Lebens nie und verstand auch nicht, warum die Donaumonarchie als von Gott eingesetzt diesen Rat benötigt.

Nevertheless, the liberalisation that had been gently set in motion took its course in the cities. Innsbruck was given the status of a town with its own statute. Innsbruck's municipal law provided for a right of citizenship that was linked to ownership or the payment of taxes, but legally guaranteed certain rights to members of the community. Birthright citizenship could be acquired by birth, marriage or extraordinary conferment and at least gave male adults the right to vote at municipal level. If you got into financial difficulties, you had the right to basic support from the town.

On 2 June 1848, the first issue of the liberal and Greater German-minded Innsbrucker Zeitungfrom which the above article on the emperor's arrival in Innsbruck is taken. Conservatives, on the other hand, read the Volksblatt for Tyrol and Vorarlberg. Moderate readers who favoured a constitutional monarchy preferred to consume the Bothen for Tyrol and Vorarlberg. However, the freedom of the press soon came to an end. The previously abolished censorship was reintroduced in parts. Newspaper publishers had to undergo some harassment by the authorities. Newspapers were not allowed to write against the state government, monarchy or church.

"Anyone who, by means of printed matter, incites, instigates or attempts to incite others to take action which would bring about the violent separation of a part from the unified state... of the Austrian Empire... or the general Austrian Imperial Diet or the provincial assemblies of the individual crown lands.... Imperial Diet or the Diet of the individual Crown Lands... violently disrupts... shall be punished with severe imprisonment of two to ten years."

After Innsbruck officially replaced Meran as the provincial capital in 1849 and thus finally became the political centre of Tyrol, political parties were formed. From 1868, the liberal and Greater German orientated party provided the mayor of the city of Innsbruck. The influence of the church declined in Innsbruck in contrast to the surrounding communities. Individualism, capitalism, nationalism and consumerism stepped into the breach. New worlds of work, department stores, theatres, cafés and dance halls did not supplant religion in the city either, but the emphasis changed as a result of the civil liberties won in 1848.

Perhaps the most important change to the law was the Basic relief patent. In Innsbruck, the clergy, above all Wilten Abbey, held a large proportion of the peasant land. The church and nobility were not subject to taxation. In 1848/49, manorial rule and servitude were abolished in Austria. Land rents, tithes and roboters were thus abolished. The landlords received one third of the value of their land from the state as part of the land relief, one third was regarded as tax relief and one third of the relief had to be paid by the farmers themselves. The farmers could pay off this amount in instalments over a period of twenty years.

The after-effects can still be felt today. The descendants of the then successful farmers enjoy the fruits of prosperity through inherited land ownership, which can be traced back to the land relief of 1848, as well as political influence through land sales for housing construction, leases and public sector redemptions for infrastructure projects. The land-owning nobles of the past had to resign themselves to the ignominy of pursuing middle-class labour. The transition from birthright to privileged status within society was often successful thanks to financial means, networks and education. Many of Innsbruck's academic dynasties began in the decades after 1848.

The hitherto unknown phenomenon of leisure time emerged, albeit sparsely for the most part, and, together with disposable income, favoured hobbies for a larger number of people. Civil organisations and clubs, from reading circles to singing societies, fire brigades and sports clubs, were founded. The revolutionary year also manifested itself in the cityscape. Parks such as the English Garden at Ambras Castle were no longer the exclusive preserve of the aristocracy, but served as recreational areas for the citizens to escape their cramped existence. In St. Nikolaus, on the site of the raft landing stage on the Inn, the Waltherpark.

The most important princely couple for the Baroque face of Innsbruck ruled Tyrol during the period in which the Thirty Years' War devastated Europe. The Habsburg Leopold (1586 - 1632) to lead the princely affairs of state in the Upper Austrian regiment in Tyrol and the foothills. He had enjoyed a classical education under the wing of the Jesuits. He studied philosophy and theology in Graz and Judenburg in order to prepare himself for the clerical realm of power politics, a common career path for later-born sons who had little chance of ascending to secular thrones. Leopold's early career in the church's power structure epitomised everything that Protestants and church reformers rejected about the Catholic Church. At the age of 12, he was elected Bishop of Passau, and at thirteen he was appointed coadjutor of the diocese of Strasbourg in Lorraine. However, he never received ecclesiastical ordination. His prince-bishop was responsible for his spiritual duties. He was a passionate politician, travelled extensively between his dioceses and took part on the imperial side in the conflict between Rudolf II and Matthias, the model for Franz Grillparzer's "Fraternal strife in the House of Habsburg". These agendas, which were not necessarily an honour for a churchman, were intended to keep Leopold's chances of becoming a secular prince alive.

This opportunity came when the unmarried Maximilian III died childless in 1618. At the behest of his brother, Leopold acted as the Habsburg Governor and regent of these Upper and Vorderösterreichische, also Mitincorpierter Leuth and Lannde. In his first years as regent, he continued to commute between his bishoprics in southern and western Germany, which were threatened by the turmoil of the Thirty Years' War. The ambitious power politician was probably satisfied with his exciting life in the midst of high politics, but not with his status as gubernator. He wanted the title of Prince Regnant along with homage and dynastic hereditary rights. He lacked a suitable bride, time and money for the title of prince and to set up a court. The costly disputes in which he was involved had emptied Leopold's coffers.

The money came with the bride and with it came time. Claudia de Medici (1604 - 1648) from the rich Tuscan family of merchants and princes was chosen to bring dynastic delights to the future sovereign, who was already approaching 40. Claudia had already been promised to the Duke of Urbino as a child, whom she married at the age of 17 despite a request from Emperor Ferdinand II. After two years of marriage, her husband died. The ties with the Habsburgs were still there. The two dynasties had been closely intertwined since the marriage of Francesco de Medici to Joan of Habsburg, a daughter of Ferdinand I. at the latest. Leopold and Claudia were also a Perfect Match of title, power, baroque piety and money. Leopold's sister Maria Magdalena had landed in Florence as Grand Duchess of Tuscany by marriage and sent her brother a painted portrait of the young widow Claudia with the accompanying words that she "beautiful in face, body and virtue" be. After a chicken-and-egg dance - the bride's family wanted an assurance of the son-in-law's titles while his brother the emperor demanded proof of a bride for the award of the ducal dignity - the time had come. In 1625, Leopold, now elevated to duke, well-fed and forty years old, renounced his ecclesiastical possessions and dignities in order to marry and found a new Tyrolean line of the House of Habsburg with his bride, who was almost 20 years his junior.

The relationship between the prince and the Italian woman was to characterise Innsbruck. The Medici had made a fortune from the cotton and textile trade, but above all from financial transactions, and had risen to political power. Under the Medici, Florence had become the cultural and financial centre of Europe, comparable to the New York of the 20th century or the Arab Emirates of the 21st century. The Florentine cathedral, which was commissioned by the powerful wool merchants' guild, was the most spectacular building in the world in terms of its design and size. Galileo Galilei was the first mathematician of Duke Cosimo II. In 1570, Cosimo de Medici was appointed the first Grand Duke of Tuscany by the Pope. Thanks to generous loans and donations, the Tuscan moneyed aristocracy became European aristocracy. In the 17th century, the city on the Arno had lost some of its political clout, but in cultural terms Florence was still the benchmark. Leopold did everything in his power to catapult his royal seat into this league.

In February 1622, the wedding celebrations between Emperor Ferdinand II and Eleanor of Mantua took place in Innsbruck. Innsbruck was easier to reach than Vienna for the bridal party from northern Italy. Tyrol was also denominationally united and had been spared the first years of the Thirty Years' War. While the imperial wedding was completed in five days, Leopold and Claudia's party lasted over two weeks. The official wedding took place in Florence Cathedral without the presence of the groom. The subsequent celebration in honour of the union of Habsburg and Medici went down as one of the most magnificent in Innsbruck's history and kept the city in suspense for a fortnight. After a frosty entry from the snow-covered Brenner Pass, Innsbruck welcomed its new princess and her family. The husband and his subjects had prayed in advance for divine blessing to purify themselves. Like the Emperor before them, the bridal couple entered the city in a long procession through two specially erected gates. 1500 marksmen fired volleys from all guns. Drummers, pipers and the bells of the Hofkirche accompanied the procession of 750 people as they marvelled at the crowd. A broad entertainment programme with hunts, theatre, dances, music and all kinds of exotic events such as "Bears, Türggen and Moors" left guests and townspeople in raptures and amazement. From today's perspective, a less glamorous highlight was the Cat racein which several riders attempted to chop off the head of a cat hanging by its legs as it rode past.

Leopold's early years in power were less glorious for his subjects. His politics were characterised by many disputes with the estates. As a hardliner of the Counter-Reformation, he was a supporter of the imperial troops. The Lower Engadine, over which Leopold had jurisdiction, was a constant centre of unrest. Under the pretext of protecting the Catholic subjects living there from Protestant attacks, Leopold had the area occupied. Although he was always able to successfully suppress uprisings, the resources required to do so infuriated the population and the estates. The situation on the northern border with Bavaria was also unsettled and required Leopold as warlord. Duke Bernhard of Weimar had taken Füssen and was at the Ehrenberger Klause on the border. Although Innsbruck was spared direct hostilities, it was still part of the Thirty Years' War thanks to the nearby front lines.

He provided the financial means for this through a comprehensive tax reform to the detriment of the middle class. The inflation that was common during wars due to the stagnation of trade, which was important for Innsbruck, worsened the lives of the subjects. In 1622, a bad harvest due to bad weather exacerbated the situation, which was already strained by the interest burden on the state budget caused by old debts. His insistence on enforcing modern Roman law across the board as opposed to traditional customary law did not win him any favour with many of his subjects.

All this did not stop Leopold and Claudia from holding court in a splendid absolutist manner. Innsbruck was extensively remodelled in Baroque style during Leopold's reign. Parties were held at court in the presence of the European aristocracy. Shows such as lion fights with the exotic animals from the prince's own stock, which Ferdinand II had established in the Court Garden, theatre and concerts served to entertain court society.

The morals and customs of the rugged Alpine people were to improve. It was a balancing act between festivities at court and the ban on carnival celebrations for normal citizens. The wrath of God, which after all had brought plague and war, was to be kept away as far as possible through virtuous behaviour. Swearing, shouting and the use of firearms in the streets were banned. The pious court took strict action against pimping, prostitution, adultery and moral decay. Jews also had hard times under Leopold and Claudia. The hatred of the always unloved Hebrew gave rise to one of the most unsavoury traditions of Tyrolean piety. In 1642, Dr Hippolyt Guarinoni, a monastery doctor of Italian origin from Hall and founder of the Karlskirche church in Volders, wrote the legend of the Martyr's child Anderle von Rinn. Inspired by Simon of Trento, who was allegedly murdered by Jews in his home town in 1475, Guarinoni wrote the Anderl song in verse. In Rinn near Innsbruck, an anti-Semitic Anderl cult developed around the remains of Andreas Oxner, who was allegedly murdered by Jews in 1462 - the year had appeared to the doctor in a dream - and was only banned by the Bishop of Innsbruck in 1989.

Innsbruck was not only cleaned morally, but also actually. Waste, which was a particular problem when there was no rain and no water flowing through the sewer system, was regularly cleaned up by princely decree. Farm animals were no longer allowed to roam freely within the city walls. The wave of plague a few years earlier was still fresh in the memory. Bad odours and miasmas were to be kept away at all costs.

After the early death of Leopold, Claudia ruled the country in place of her underage son with the help of her court chancellor Wilhelm Biener (1590 - 1651) with modern, confessionally motivated, early absolutist policies and a strict hand. She was able to rely on a well-functioning administration. The young widow surrounded herself with Italians and Italian-speaking Tyroleans, who brought fresh ideas into the country, but at the same time also toughness in the fight against the Lutheranism showed. In order to avoid fires, in 1636, the Lion house and the Ansitz Ruhelust Ferdinand II, stables and other wooden buildings within the city walls had to be demolished. Silkworm breeding in Trentino and the first tentative plans for a Tyrolean university flourished under Claudia's reign. Chancellor Biener centralised parts of the administration. Above all, the fragmented legal system within the Tyrolean territories was to be replaced by a universal code. To achieve this, the often arbitrary actions of the local petty nobility had to be further disempowered in favour of the sovereign.

This system was not only intended to finance the expensive court, but also the defence of the country. It was not only Protestant troops from southern Germany that threatened the Habsburg possessions. France, actually a Catholic power, also wanted to hold the lands of the Casa de Austria in Spain, Italy and the Vorlanden, today's Benelux countries, harmless. Innsbruck became one of the centres of the Habsburg war council. On the edge of the front in the German lands and centred between Vienna and Tuscany, the city was perfect for Austrians, Spaniards and Italians to meet. The Swedes, notorious for their brutality, threatened Tyrol directly, but were prevented from invading. The castle and ramparts that protected Tyrol were built by unwanted inhabitants of the country, beggars, gypsies and deserted soldiers using forced labour. Defences were built near Scharnitz on today's German border and named after the provincial princess Porta Claudia called.

When Claudia de Medici died in 1648, there was an uprising of the estates against the central government, as there was in England under Cromwell at almost the same time. Claudia, who had never learnt the local German language and was still unfamiliar with local customs even after more than 20 years, had never been particularly popular with the population. However, there was no question of deposing her. The cup of hemlock was passed on to her chancellor. The uncomfortable Biener was recognised by Claudia's successor, Archduke Ferdinand Karl, and the estates as a Persona non grata was imprisoned and, like Charles I, beheaded two years after a show trial in 1651.

A touch of Florence and Medici still characterises Innsbruck today: both the Jesuit church, where Claudia and Leopold found their final resting place, and the Mariahilf parish church still bear the coat of arms of their family with the red balls and lilies. The Old Town Hall in the old town centre is also known as Claudiana known. Remains of the Porta Claudia near Scharnitz still stand today. The theatre in Innsbruck is particularly associated with Leopold's name. The Leopold Fountain in front of the House of Music commemorates him. Those who dare to climb the striking Serles mountain start the hike at the Maria Waldrast monastery, which Leopold devotedly founded in 1621 as a theatre. marvellous picture of our dear lady at the Waldrast to the Servite Order and had Claudia extended. A street name in Saggen was dedicated to Chancellor Wilhelm Biener.