Look at that elegant building on the hill. Behind its neo-Empire façade lies a history that twists from glamour to horror and back again.
Russian ambassador Prince Gallitzin built a hunting lodge here in the 1780s, famous for lavish parties. In 1866, Prince Moritz Montléart gave it to his wife Wilhelmine, and the hill got a new name. The old palace was demolished between 1903 and 1908, replaced by what you see now.
Then things changed. The City of Vienna bought it in 1927 and turned it into an orphanage. The Vienna Boys' Choir lived here from 1934 to 1938. After World War II, it became a home for girls with behavioral problems.
That's where the story gets dark. In 2011, two sisters came forward. They said they and other girls in their dormitory were systematically raped in the 1970s. More victims followed. An investigation confirmed widespread physical, sexual, and psychological abuse from the late 1940s through 1977. Some received financial compensation up to 35,000 euros, though no criminal charges were ever filed due to statutes of limitations.
The orphanage closed in 1977. The building stands on Savoyenstraße 2 in Vienna's 16th district, overlooking the city from the Gallitzinberg.
Sources. Story: https://www.wien.gv.at/menschen/missbrauch/wilhelminenberg.html, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schloss_Wilhelminenberg Photos: C.Stadler/Bwag, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons
