Page 9 - Microsoft Word - Broschüre englisch.doc

from eastern Austria via St. Veit an der Glan and Villach to Tarvisio, St.
Veit an der Glan gained in significance as an economic location.
History of the horse-drawn railway

Catalyst: Simplification of the transport of salt
from the Salzkammergut to the estates in
Bohemia
1825 – Anton Ritter von Gerstner received the
right to plan a wooden and iron railway
1832 – Opening of the partial stretch Budweis-Linz-Gmunden
The railway was ultimately in operation until 15 December 1872,
although the steam age had already begun in Austria in 1837.

The steam age

1769 – Invention of the steam engine by
James Watt.
Objectives: To make it easier to transport
goods, and connect important areas with
one another.
The first journey with a steam locomotive was from Floridsdorf to
Deutsch-Wagram. On 23 November 1837 trial journeys took place
before invited guests; this is regarded as the opening date of the first
steam railway in Austria. The 14 km stretch was covered in 26 minutes,
using the locomotives “AUSTRIA” and “MORAVIA”, which had been
imported from England.

The Austrian railway network under the monarchy

A start was made on extending the railway with
cross-connections and local routes. After the
connection between Vienna and Gloggnitz was
completed in 1842, and in 1844 the link from
Mürzzuschlag to Graz and on to Ljubljana and
Trieste, the mountain, the Semmering, had to be
conquered.

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