St. George's Cathedral, Wiener Neustadt

St George’s Cathedral stands inside the old castle at Wiener Neustadt in Lower Austria. The castle itself was a Habsburg stronghold, and the church was begun in 1440 by Frederick III to plans drawn up by the architect Peter von Pusica. When first finished in 1460 it was dedicated to the Virgin Mary, but in 1479 the Knights of St George made it their headquarters and the patron saint changed. After the order was dissolved in 1600 the church passed first to Cistercian monks and then to Piarist fathers. The building suffered serious fires in 1608 and 1616, and in 1945 Allied bombing destroyed the castle and church once more. Reconstruction started the following year and lasted until 1958. In 1963 the church became the seat of the Military Ordinariate of Austria and was raised to cathedral rank, and four years later it was declared a minor basilica. Inside, the cathedral combines Gothic vaulting with later furnishings. The high altar and side chapels date from the 17th and 18th centuries, while the great organ was installed after the war. The surrounding castle courtyards and the arcaded passages of the academy next door give a sense of the fortress’s long military history.