Although MedUni Vienna is officially only 20 years young, it can look back on a centuries-long tradition: From the medieval university to the ultra-modern research centre. In April and May 2024, MedUni Vienna is organising historical city tours that look at the history of medicine in Vienna from different perspectives.
As the medical faculty of the University of Vienna, MedUni Vienna was a founding member of the Alma Mater Rudolphina in 1365, and was already a widely recognised authority on health issues in the Middle Ages. The faculty first gained international significance in the 18th century, when the Dutchman Gerard van Swieten was brought to Vienna by the Habsburg Maria Theresa and laid the foundations for the first Viennese medical school. In the course of the 19th century, the second Viennese Medical School emerged. Doctors and students fought for the principle of freedom of teaching and learning. The basic science of medicine was expanded and specialisation was promoted. The world's first skin, eye and ear, nose and throat clinics were founded in Vienna. At the beginning of the 20th century, medicine in Vienna was among the best in the world.
The so-called "Anschluss" of Austria to National Socialist Germany in 1938 marked the beginning of the darkest period for medicine in Vienna. More than 50 per cent of university lecturers, mostly of Jewish descent, were dismissed. Many renowned researchers, doctors and students were driven into emigration or lost their lives. After 1945, the difficult reconstruction of medicine began. Around 75 per cent of the medical professors at the University of Vienna had to be dismissed due to more or less severe National Socialist charges and gradually replaced by a newly trained generation.
However, the new AKH - Vienna General Hospital, officially opened in 1994, provided a boost to development. By 1996, all university hospitals had been brought together and expanded here. As a result, Vienna's cutting-edge medicine was concentrated at a modern university hospital, which meant optimal conditions for clinical research. In 2004, MedUni Vienna was established as a separate university, independent of the University of Vienna.
Today, MedUni Vienna is recognised as one of the best medical universities in the world, with researchers publishing in top journals and producing outstanding research results. The equal combination of research, teaching and patient care as well as the operation of Europe's largest hospital make MedUni Vienna unique.
Guides city tours
In April and May 2024, MedUni Vienna is offering city tours on the topic of the history of medicine in Vienna with renowned cultural mediators Felix Clam-Martinic and Marcel Chahrour.
- Time: 5 pm
- Duration 1.5 hours
- Max. 25 people per appointment
The city tours are free of charge. Places are allocated on a first-come-first-served basis. Registrations are only accepted via the form below.
Tours and topics (German only)
- 04.04.: 12. März 1365: der ehrgeizige Herzog Rudolf stellt die Weichen
Meeting point: Dr.-Ignaz-Seipel-Platz, 1010 Vienna - 11.04.: Von Van Swieten bis in die Zukunft (Registration closed)
Meeting point: Fountain in front of the Josephinum, Währinger Straße 25, 1090 Vienna - 18.04.: Was krank sein früher hieß / Gesundheit im Wandel der Zeit
Meeting point: Fountain in front of the Josephinum, Währinger Straße 25, 1090 Vienna - 25.04.: Frauen in der Medizin
Meeting point: Fountain in front of the Josephinum, Währinger Straße 25, 1090 Vienna - 02.05.: Medizinmeile Währingerstrasse
Meeting point: Corner of Spitalgasse/Währinger Straße, 1090 Vienna - next to the sausage stand - 08.05.: Von Van Swieten bis in die Zukunft
Meeting point: Fountain in front of the Josephinum, Währinger Straße 25, 1090 Vienna - 16.05.: Was krank sein früher hieß / Gesundheit im Wandel der Zeit
Meeting point: Fountain in front of the Josephinum, Währinger Straße 25, 1090 Vienna - 23.05.: Frauen in der Medizin
Meeting point: Fountain in front of the Josephinum, Währinger Straße 25, 1090 Vienna
Felix Clam-Martinic
Felix Clam-Martinic studied economics in Vienna and Edinburgh. After a career in the paper industry, he turned his hobby into a profession in 2017 and was responsible for preparing, organising and leading exclusive music and cultural tours for discerning guests throughout Europe at So Me Travel. He completed his training and examination as a state-certified tourist guide/Austria Guide and is a cultural mediator at the Josephinum - Medical History Museum Vienna.
Marcel Chahrour
Marcel Chahrour studied history at the University of Vienna. His research interests lie in the history of medicine, Austrian history and the history of relations between the Habsburg Monarchy and the Ottoman Empire. Chahrour works as a cultural mediator, in exhibition design and in adult education. He has been head of cultural mediation at the Austrian exhibition centre Schallaburg since 2018.