Prince Konrad of Hohenlohe-Waldenburg-Schillingsfürst

Getting around

Trains replaced slower horse-drawn coaches

Taking the train from Vienna to Graz significantly improved mobility, taking nine hours by rail compared to twenty-nine hours by stagecoach.

At the table

Staple foods of the population

Potatoes were a staple food that helped save the population from famine, and wheat bread had become the dominant bread type in Vienna by mid-century.

What people wore

The versatile Gugl shawl and headgear

In winter, women wore a large, triangular wool shawl called a Gugl, which was crossed over the chest and tied at the back because they did not have coats. They also wore this shawl over their heads to protect their face, or inserted cardboard into a colored headscarf to create a sunshade during summer.

Music

Popular instruments of the mid-19th century

During the 1850s, the zither became highly popular as a folk-music counterpart to the bourgeois piano. By 1860, the introduction of hand-held squeeze-box instruments like the accordion and harmonica allowed a single person to provide full orchestral accompaniment for entertainment.

Daily life

Improved Cooking with the Sparherd Stove

From the mid-19th century, the introduction of the masonry "Sparherd" stove with a chimney, water container, and oven allowed for expanded cooking possibilities. Before this, cooking was simpler, and many households lacked these modern improvements.