History

From prehistoric times to the Middle Ages

Neolithic pit-dwellings and vestiges of Bronze Age settlements prove that the land around Aspern and Essling may look back on an ancient history. The name “Asparan” was first mentioned in a chronicle in 1258. The local economy was mainly based on agriculture, the timber trade and ship-mills. With the Middle Ages, a network of villages began to emerge; the layout of these villages and their adjacent fields and meadows remains a typical feature of the area to this day.

Worldwide fame due to a Napoleonic battle

In the Battle of Aspern-Essling of 1809, Napoleon was defeated for the first time by the Austrian troops commanded by Archduke Charles. The “Lion of Aspern”, a monument from 1858, commemorates the fallen soldiers.

Vienna’s first airport

The first attempts at motorised flight were undertaken here in 1880. In 1912, Vienna’s first airport was built in this location. It was one of the biggest and most modern in Europe and also boasted a flying school and an aviation museum. To this day, a concrete foundation indicates the landing point for zeppelins; during the two World Wars, Aspern was an air force base.

The airport after 1945

After the departure of the Red Army, which had used the airport for ten years as its local base, the facilities were once more refurbished and used for various civil aviation purposes – for example, ambulance and reconnaissance flights were carried out during the Hungarian revolt of 1956. Due to the gradual enlargement of Schwechat International Airport, the airfield was finally closed down in 1977. After that, the runways were used by amateur pilots, for pilot training and car races.

First urban development project of 1992

Due to the marked population growth after the dismantling of the Iron Curtain in 1989, the former airfield was the subject of an urbanistic development competition aimed at a project for 10,000 residents and 6,000 workplaces, which was won by architect Rüdiger Lainer. The Eastern enlargement of the EU, a second growth spurt of the Austrian capital and the decision to continue the Underground and motorway networks to the former airfield created new frame conditions for a much more condensed and urbanised centre.

Setting-up of General Motors factory

The airport buildings and control tower were demolished in 1980. In 1982, General Motors took up operation in a newly set-up factory. At present 2,000 workers manufacture engines and gearboxes in three-shift operation.