(Vienna, 17 February 2025) The Josephinum, the collections of the Medical University of Vienna, begins a year of commemoration dedicated to the great reformer with an event on 20 February, the 235th anniversary of Joseph II's death. No other ruler has shaped medical Vienna as much as the ruler of the Austrian hereditary lands and Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire.
With the creation of the General Hospital in 1784, the Fools' Tower and the founding of the Joseph Academy of Medicine and Surgery in 1785, Joseph revolutionised medicine even then. He also set further milestones in politics, culture and society, the great significance of which we no longer realise today. For example, he gave Protestants, Greek Orthodox and Jews equal rights through the Tolerance Patents and thus also made the second Viennese Medical School with its great achievements possible. He also abolished serfdom, torture and the death penalty and opened the Imperial Gardens, the Court and Castle Theatres and the Belvedere with its art collections as an educational institution in Vienna.
The event on 20 February is dedicated to the life and reign of Joseph II with lectures by Lorenz Mikoletzky (retired Director General of the Austrian State Archives) and Herwig Czech (Professor of the History of Medicine, Medical University of Vienna). Another highlight is the reading from the speech on the emperor's death by Giovanni Alessandro Brambilla, Joseph II's personal physician. Sophie and Ania Druml will provide the musical backdrop with works from the time of Joseph II.
"For us, Joseph II is not only the founder of the house that bears his name, but also a key reformer to whom we all owe a great deal," says Christiane Druml, Director of the Josephinum, "we want to commemorate Joseph II with a wealth of events and special tours throughout the year until November, which marks the 240th anniversary of the opening of the house."
Event Virtute et Exemplo - With virtue and example
The 235th anniversary of the death of Joseph II.
Date: 20 February 2025, 18.00 hrs
Josephinum - Museum of Medical History Vienna
Währinger Straße 25, 1090 Vienna; www.josephinum.ac.at
Opening hours Wed-Sat, 10:00-18:00, Thu, 10:00 to 20:00
Guided tours: Thursdays 18:30, Saturdays 11:00