Completed in 1160, St Stephen's Cathedral "was saved from intentional destruction at the hands of retreating German forces when Captain Gerhard Klinkicht disregarded orders from the city commandant, Sepp Dietrich, to 'fire a hundred shells and leave it in just debris and ashes.'" (source)

Look for the glass-protected O5 near the entrance, a symbol of the Austrian resistance during WWII.

the mother church of vienna

Completed in 1160, St Stephen's Cathedral "was saved from intentional destruction at the hands of retreating German forces when Captain Gerhard Klinkicht disregarded orders from the city commandant, Sepp Dietrich, to 'fire a hundred shells and leave it in just debris and ashes.'" (source)

Look for the glass-protected O5 near the entrance, a symbol of the Austrian resistance during WWII.