Archduchess Marie Caroline of Austria

What people wore

Clothing as Annual Servant Wages

Servants often received clothes as part of their annual wages, but these garments were made of less durable fabrics and inferior thread, causing them to wear out quickly within a year.

Getting around

Travel times by carriage in the 1700s

In the 18th century, a 30-kilometer trip between St. Pölten and Melk took 5 to 7 hours, while a 115-kilometer journey to St. Florian took 20 to 28 hours.

At the table

Potatoes become a staple food

During the second half of the eighteenth century, the potato became a vital staple food for lower social classes in the Habsburg monarchy because it was cheap, easy to grow, and yielded more than cereals.

Music

The rise of the Viennese waltz

By the end of the 18th century, the waltz emerged in Vienna as a popular dance that involved couples gliding smoothly in circles in three-four time. Dancers were so passionate about this style that the authorities even considered banning faster variations, and it eventually replaced the minuet as the most fashionable dance.

Daily life

Lighting costs were a major household expense

Families relied on candles or oil lamps for light, with expensive beeswax candles providing a cleaner flame than cheaper, smoky tallow versions made from animal fat. Small lighting costs were so significant that they led to the common idiom that a task might not be worth the candle.

Work

Wage Disparities Between Genders

Female servants earned significantly less than men, with wages often between 5 and 10 gulden, while the highest-paid male stable hands received up to 24 gulden.