Die Familie Wittgenstein: Rekonstruktion eines Phänomens (w. English subtitles)

Описание: The Wittgenstein Family: Reconstruction of a Phenomenon
26. April 2023, Leopold Museum Wien

Georg Gaugusch (Historian and specialist in Jewish genealogy)
Dr. Wolf-Erich Eckstein (Genealogist, archivist of the Viennese Jewish Community)
Host: Dr. Reinhold Hohengartner (Historian, Wittgenstein Initiative)
Introduction: Radmila Schweitzer, Secretary General of the Wittgenstein Initiative

No other family of the Jewish upper middle class in the 19th and early 20th century, often called the "2nd Viennese Society", has been nearly as important as the Wittgensteins - for business and industry, but also for the artistic and intellectual life of the end of the Habsburg Monarchy. Today, the name of Ludwig Wittgenstein, who belonged to the third generation of the Viennese branch of the family, may be best known, but several of his relatives had a profound and lasting influence on all areas of Austrian cultural history.

Georg Gaugusch was the first historian to trace the genealogy of this dynasty on the basis of matriculation data. He was led by the question: what was it that made the Wittgensteins special and what was the basis of their social rise? Where did it all begin? What did the Wittgensteins do differently? Can one justifiably speak of a social phenomenon?

On the 134th birthday of Ludwig Wittgenstein, Georg Gaugusch discusses these topics with the genealogist Wolf-Erich Eckstein, the long-time register keeper of the Viennese Jewish community. The conversation is hosted by the historian Reinhold Hohengartner.

Series:
Die Wittgensteins: eine Österreichisch-Jüdische Familie. Ludwig Wittgenstein, Antisemitismus und der Exodus der österreichischen geistigen Elite