Feuerhalle Simmering, Crematorium in Simmering district, Vienna, Austria.
Feuerhalle Simmering is a crematorium with an urn burial ground in the Simmering district, located at the end of an alley directly across from the main entrance of Vienna Central Cemetery. The building features oriental fortress architectural elements and uses the gardens of the former Schloss Neugebäude palace as a memorial space.
The crematorium opened on December 17, 1922, under Mayor Jakob Reumann and was Austria's first facility of its kind after years of fierce resistance. Its opening was part of the social reform movement of Red Vienna and revolutionized burial practices in the city.
The name Feuerhalle, meaning fire hall, reflects the revolutionary idea at the time of accepting cremation as a burial method. Visitors see today a place embodying this choice for simplicity and secularization, where families express their grief in a modern way.
The facility is situated at the end of an alley and therefore somewhat removed, but easily found when coming from the Central Cemetery. Visitors should keep in mind that it is a quiet, respectful memorial place and appropriate behavior is expected.
Austria's Constitutional Court had to intervene in 1924 and rule to allow the crematorium's operation after the Christian Social Party filed legal challenges. This historic decision made the crematorium a symbol of secularization's victory over traditional church objections.
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