St. Stephen's Cathedral

St. Stephen's Cathedral — the 'Steffl' to Viennese — anchors the Inner City as Austria's most significant Gothic structure. Its south tower, completed in 1433 at 136 metres, remains the tallest finished church spire in the country; the north tower was abandoned unfinished in the 16th century and capped with a Baroque cupola, the reasons still debated by historians. In April 1945 the cathedral was gutted by fire amid the final fighting for Vienna, and its swift reconstruction became a potent national symbol of Austrian renewal. Beneath the nave, catacombs hold the remains of over 11,000 plague victims alongside copper urns containing the Habsburg viscera — the imperial body parts were famously divided: hearts to the Augustinerkirche, intestines here, and bodies to the Kaisergruft. Visitors who climb the 343 steps of the south tower emerge above the rooftops for an unobstructed view across the old city.

137 m south tower, colorful tiled roof, the Pummerin bell — Vienna's landmark since the 12th century.