Alte Schanze XIII

Overgrown with shrubs and trees, Alte Schanze XIII whispers tales of a battle that never was. Alte Schanze XIII is one of the “Old Sconces” of Stammersdorf. These earthworks stand as silent witnesses to Vienna’s frantic preparations during the Austro-Prussian War of 1866. Imagine Vienna, gripped by fear of the advancing Prussian army. The city fathers, desperate to protect the imperial capital, ordered the construction of a network of 31 defensive sconces. Alte Schanze XIII, along with its numbered brethren, formed a defensive line stretching from Langenzersdorf to the Lobau. This defensive belt aimed to halt the Prussian troops marching from the Marchfeld plains. The construction of Alte Schanze XIII involved back-breaking labor. Workers carved into the Laaerberg-Terrasse, the highest and oldest glacial river terrace in the Vienna area. They dug trenches and piled the excavated earth and topsoil into defensive walls. Even women, children, and the elderly were conscripted for this urgent task. The entire network of sconces bristled with 260 cannons and 5,000 soldiers, a formidable force on paper. However, the anticipated clash at Alte Schanze XIII never happened. A ceasefire was signed, the Prussian advance halted at Rußbach. Alte Schanze XIII’s guns remained silent. Years later, during World War I, Alte Schanze XIII was briefly resurrected. It was part of the Vienna bridgehead defenses against a potential Russian attack. Sconce X even housed an ammunition depot, the ruins of which still remain. But once again, the conflict spared Alte Schanze XIII. The Russians were stopped in the Carpathians. World War II finally brought conflict to the area. Anti-aircraft guns were placed on some sconces. The nearby Herrenholz forest served as a repair shop for aircraft engines. In the final weeks of the war, Alte Schanze XIII saw actual fighting between German troops and the advancing Red Army. Today, Alte Schanze XIII, designated as a natural monument in 1981, has returned to a state of peaceful overgrowth. The dense vegetation and trees obscure the sconce’s military past, leaving only whispers of what might have been.