The City

Vienna is the capital of Austria and is also one of the states of Austria. With 1,6 million population is  by far the largest city and cultural, economical and political center. Basic industries of Vienna make chemical products, glass products and furniture. Basic economical income for Vienna is tourism because Vienna has a lot of  museums that attracting many tourists every year.

Geographical Position

Vienna lies in Eastern Austria, at the easternmost extension of the Alps  in the Vienna Basin. The earliest settlement, at the location of today's inner city, were south of the meandering Danube while the city now spans both sides of the river. Elevation ranges from 151 to 542m. Vienna is connected to Rotterdam and German industrial areas via the Rhine-Main-Danube Canal, and to Eastern Europe countries along the Danube to the Black Sea.

History

Founded around 500 BC, Vienna was originally a  Celtic settlement. In 15 BC, Vienna became a  Roman frontier city (Vindobona) guarding the  Roman Empire against Germanic tribes to the north.
Vienna came under threat from the  Mongolian Empire that stretched over much of present day Russia and China in the 1200s. However, due to the death of its leader  Ogedei Khan, the Mongolian armies receded from the European frontier and were not to return.
During the  Middle Ages, Vienna was home to the  Babenberg Dynasty and in 1440 AD became residence city of the Habsburg dynasties from where Vienna eventually grew to become the capital of the  Holy Roman Empire and a cultural centre for arts and science, music and fine cuisine. In the 16th and 17th centuries, the  Ottoman armies were stopped twice outside Vienna (see  Siege of Vienna, 1529 and  Battle of Vienna, 1683).
In 1804, Vienna became capital of the  Austrian Empire and continued to play a major role in European and World politics, including hosting the 1814  Congress of Vienna. After the  Austro-Hungarian Promise of 1867 Vienna remained the capital of what was then the  Austro-Hungarian Empire. During the latter half of the 19th century the city developed what had previously been the  bastions and  glacis into the  Ringstrabe, a major prestige project. Former suburbs were incorporated, and the city of Vienna grew dramatically.
In 1918, after  World War I, Vienna became capital of the  First Austrian Republic. During the 1920s and 1930s it was a bastion of  Socialism in Austria, and became known as " Red Vienna." The city was stage to the  Austrian Civil War of 1934, when Chancellor Engelbert Dollfus sent the Army to shell civilian housing occupied by the socialist militia. In 1938, after a triumphant entry into Austria,  Adolf Hitler famously spoke to the Austrian people from the balcony of the Neue Burg, a part of the  Hofburg at the  Heldenplatz. Between 1938 and the end of the  Second World War, Vienna lost its status as a capital to  Berlin. In 1945, the  Vienna Offensive was successfully launched by the Soviets against the Germans holding Vienna. The city was besieged for about two weeks before it fell to the Soviets. After 1945, Vienna again became the capital of Austria. It was initially divided into zones by the 4 Powers, and was governed by the  Allied Commission for Austria. The four power occupation of Vienna differed in some respects from the four power occupation of Berlin. The central area of Vienna had an international zone in which the four powers alternated on a monthly basis. When the Berlin blockade happened in 1948, Vienna was even more vulnerable because there was no airport in the western sectors. However, despite fears, the Soviets did not blockade Vienna. Some have argued that this was because the Potsdam agreement gave written rights of land access to the western sectors, whereas no such written guarantees had been given regarding Berlin. The reason will however always remain a matter of speculation. In 1976 Vienna had a METRO for the first time.

Tourist Atractions

Major tourist attractions include the imperial palaces of the  Hofburg and  Schonbrum(also home to the world's oldest zoo,  Tiergarden Sconbrum) and the  Riesenrad  in the Prater. Cultural highlights include the  Burgtheater, the  Wiener Staatsoper, the  Lipizzaner horses at the  Spaniche Hofreitschule and the  Vienna Boys Choir , as well as excursions to Vienna's Heuriger districts.
There are also more than 100 art museums, which together attract over eight million visitors per year.  The most popular ones are  Albertina,  Belberde,  Leopold Museum in the  Museumsquartier,  KunstHausWien,  BA-CA Kunstforum, the twin  Kunsthistorisches Museum and Naturhistorisches Museum, and theTechnisches Museum Wien, each of which receives over a quarter of a million visitors per year. There are many popular sites associated with composers who lived in Vienna including Beethoven's various residences and grave at  ZentralFriedHof (Central Cemetery) which is the largest cemetery in Vienna and the burial site of many famous people. Mozart  has a memorial grave at the Habsburg gardens and at Saint Marx Cemetery(where his grave was lost). Vienna's many churches also draw large crowds, the most famous of which are Saint Stefan Cathedral, the  Deutschordenskirche, the Jesuitenkirche, the  Karlskirche, the  Peterskirche,  Maria am Gestade, the  Minoritenkirche, the  Rupertskirche, the  Scottenkirche and the  Votivkirche.
Modern attractions include the Hundertwasserhaus, the United Nations Headquarters and the view from the  Donauturm.