> Books

Founded in 1857, the Austrian Hospice of the Holy Family was officially opened on 19 March 1863. Up until 1918 the Hospice also served as the residence of the Austrian Consul in Jerusalem, who acted in a protective function for Catholics and Askenasi Jews.

The lively pilgrim operation which characterised the House up until 1914, came to a sudden end with the outbreak of war. Following the First World War, pilgrimage activity once again increased steadily and reach a peak when the head of the house, Rector Dr. Franz Fellinger, was appointed Rector General and Suffragan Bishop of the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem.

In 1932-33 an additional floor was added under the supervision of the Vienna-born Jerusalem building contractor Gottlob Bäuerle. In 1939 the Hospice was confiscated by the British as “German property”. The Rector at the time, Dr. Franz Haider, and the nurses of religious orders were interned. The house itself served as an internment camp for Austrian, German and Italian priests and members of religious orders. When the British withdrew from Palestine in 1948, they advised the Jordanian army to set up a military hospital there. It was later converted to a civilian hospital by the Jordanian government.

But it was still decades before the Hospice building was handed back to its rightful owners. Only in July 1985 the hospital was closed on sanitary grounds and handed back to its Austrian owners in December of that year. In 1987 the building was completely renovated. Pilgrimage activities resumed in January 1988, and the official opening ceremony took place on 19 March 1988. Since then, guests from all over the world have been able to enjoy the wonderful view of the Old City of Jerusalem from the roof terrace.

---

The Austrian Hospice in Jerusalem

With a foreword
by Cardinal Franz König
Publisher: BöhlauWien
Author: Helmut Wohnout
Pages: 227
Year of issue: 2000
ISBN: 3-205-99095-1,
available in the Hospice

The Austrian Hospice in Jerusalem is among the most traditional institutions in the Near Orient. Built in the mid-19th Century on the Via Dolorosa, it was the oldest national pilgrim house in the Holy Land. In 1869 it served as the residence for Emperor Franz Joseph during his visit and became a symbol of the Austrian presence in Jerusalem, demonstrating the importance of the Austro-Hungarian monarchy as a major Catholic power.

Up to the present time, the Hospice has remained one of the most impressive buildings in the Old City of Jerusalem. In addition, its 140-year history reflects the eventful development of the City of Jerusalem. Falling into strange hands as a result of the upheavals of two World Wars, it has served variously as an orphanage, internment camp and an officers’ school. Following the War of Independence, it became the Arab Hospital for East Jerusalem.

In 1988 the Hospice was reopened as a pilgrims’ house and since then it has been the starting point for many pilgrims on their journeys through the Holy Land.

---

History of the Austrian Hospice in Jerusalem

Publisher: Norka Verlag
Author: Helmut Wohnout
Pages: 32
Year of issue: 1993
Available in the Hospice

This small booklet offers a brief insight into the impressive history of the Austrian Hospice.

Issued by the Austrian Society of the Holy Land, it is intended to tell the pilgrim some more about the historical location which is once again fulfilling its original function as a pilgrims’ house.