Daniel Goff

Economics in Vienna Prior to 1848

Vienna first became an important site economically during the Roman Empire. It was originally settled by the Romans as a military outpost along the frontier, but quickly it became an important trading post due to its easily accessible position on the Danube and its close proximity to non-Romans, who willing to trade their furs, hides, and other goods for Roman products.

The Hapsburg Empire relied upon Vienna heavily, both as an administrative center and seat of government and as a powerful commercial and financial center. Because Austria proper is a mountainous country, not suitable for farming, it was therefore dependent upon other areas of the empire, particularly Hungary, for grain. In exchange, Austria sent the materials extracted from its mines around the empire. Free trade within the empire was facilitated by the Danube and a railway system that allowed much grain to be exported around Europe. The Viennese economy began to industrialize at the beginning of the 18^th century. Plenty of laborers were readily available, as immigrants from the provinces began to move to Vienna at around the same time. By 1790, at the end of the reign of Joseph II, there were about 300 factories in Vienna, and a population of 235,000 people, but this paled in comparison to the industrial capacity in Northern Europe. There were several factories in the outskirts of town, but none in center city.