Menu Close
Center for Urban History
6 Bohomoltsia Str. Lviv 79005, Ukraine

City in the Empire

From the imperial point of view, Lviv was (or was to become under the Habsburg rule) an organic part of the monarchy, the capital of a crown province and a city with a certain portion of identity. To convey this idea to local elites and the population, special rituals were used, among other things.

In the times of neo-absolutism, after the suppression of the Spring of Nations, imperial and religious rituals were actually the only permitted option of street manifestation.

Over time, when liberal reforms and autonomy allowed local political activists to openly manifest their views, still new and new meanings were imposed on these rituals. This is very well illustrated, for example, by the five visits of Emperor Franz Joseph to Lviv.

Local elites used these opportunities to popularize their ideas or rather to "show themselves" and "show the city" according to their views and beliefs. However, the main thing is that these rituals became an example and a basis for further "street" mass politics.

>>> Read more

facebook icon twitter icon email icon telegram icon link icon whatsapp icon
post picture

City in the empire

 When the imperial policy moved away from neo-absolutism and the period of liberalization began, the urban elites got many other ways to "show themselves" besides religious rituals and imperial visits. These were, in particular, welcoming distinguished guests, marking public space and mass events related to local history.
post picture

The Emperor Is Coming!

 During his nearly 70-year reign (from 1848 to 1916), Emperor Franz Joseph of Austria visited Lviv five times, and each of these visits was different from the last.
post picture

Religious rituals in the public space of Lviv

 The Roman Catholic Poles and the Greek Catholic Ukrainians were the main actors in purposeful political representation with the use of religious instruments in Lviv. For them, this presence in the city was part of the struggle for Lviv as a center of their "national revival."
post picture

Funerals as national manifestations

 Funerals with the participation of a large number of people took place in Lviv even at the time of strict centralization after the suppression of the Spring of Nations in 1848. These were opportunities to hold legal demonstrations at a time when all mass events, except imperial and religious ones, were prohibited.
post picture

Space marking

 Mass politics influenced not only using the city’s space but also building it. Lviv was considered the capital of a crown land and, in addition, the capital of two national projects, so it should have appropriate buildings and monuments, while streets should have the correct names.
post picture

Welcoming guests and showing oneself

 The best way to see how Lviv and Lvivites wanted to "show themselves" to the guests of the city is through the stories of imperial visits. In addition to the fact that these visits were very important and revealing, their example can be used to trace the evolution of welcoming guests and self-presentation over the course of half a century. And there were other visits and other guests, less significant, but no less revealing.
post picture

The Emperor Is Coming 1855

 The emperor's visit to Lviv on June 22-24 (on his way through Galicia to Bukovyna) was particularly military in nature.
1 2 3 … 5