Esterházypark

The Esterházypark is a historically designed park in Vienna’s sixth district, Mariahilf.It was named after the Esterházy family of Hungarian aristocracy, who held the historic Palais Kaunitz here in what was then the neighborhood from 1814 until 1868.In 1850, the area was merged into Vienna.

The park was named after the Esterházys, a noble Hungarian family, and was built out in the 18th century with an amazing avenue of chestnut trees.The fire control tower erected in 1944 for the pair of anti-aircraft towers Stiftskaserne / Esterhazypark in the park has had a lasting influence on the park’s image.The tower presently houses the Haus des Meeres and an outdoor climbing wall administered by the Alpenverein Austria. There is also a 300-person World War II civil defense bunker (now the Torture Museum) beneath the park, which, along with the Apollo cinema and the park’s excellent position, lends the park a unique meaning.

At the entry, four classified baroque stone figures are placed up on the enclosure wall along Gumpendorfer Straße, which were brought here in 1886 from the former Lazansky mansion on Stock im Eisen.

Schadekgasse, Kaunitzgasse, Gumpendorfer Straße, Blümelgasse, Amerlingstraße, and Chwallagasse ring the park clockwise.The huge area containing the bunker and flak tower is known as Fritz-Grünbaum-Platz 1, after the Viennese artist Fritz Grünbaum.The square’s traffic area links immediately to the east of the park through Schadekgasse, Windmühlgasse, and Gumpendorfer Straße.