The Couch Conspiracy — Freud's Final Secret

Your investigation begins at the Sigmund Freud Museum, at Berggasse 19, 1090 Wien. It was here that the founder of psychoanalysis lived and worked from 1891 to 1938, until his departure for London following the Anschluss. The museum, opened in 1971, exhibits his office and the famous couch, acquired by his family in 1910. This Alsergrund district, the 9th district, was the nerve center of Viennese medicine at the end of the 19th century, a place of intense reflection where Freud wrote 'The Interpretation of Dreams' in 1899, a landmark of UNESCO World Heritage in psychoanalysis.

Continue towards the University of Vienna, founded in 1365 by Emperor Rudolf IV, the oldest German-speaking university. Freud studied medicine there from 1873 to 1882 and taught as a Privatdozent from 1885 to 1902. The main building, on the Ringstraße, was constructed between 1877 and 1884 in a Neo-Renaissance style, with a 200-meter facade. Listed as Austrian cultural heritage, this institution welcomed over 94,000 students in 2023, testifying to its central role in Vienna's history and European education.

Take an intellectual break at Café Landtmann, opened in 1873 in the Palais Ephrussi. This historic Viennese café, classified as a historical monument and covering 1,200 m², was a favorite spot for Freud from 1890. He mingled there with a clientele of intellectuals, politicians, and Nobel laureates, in a preserved Gründerzeit style. You can enjoy an Einspänner or a Sachertorte, imagining Freud pondering his theories in the heart of these Viennese cafés, recognized as UNESCO intangible heritage in 2011.

Your journey then takes you to Palais Ephrussi, built between 1861 and 1871 by the Jewish bankers Ephrussi, in an Italian Renaissance style, located at Ringstraße 1A. This building now houses Café Landtmann and administrative offices, restored in 2010. The Ephrussi family is linked to Proust's work, 'In Search of Lost Time' (1913-1927). This 4-story palace, with its intact 19th-century wall frescoes, allows you to appreciate the opulence of Imperial Vienna, a few steps from the Rat Haus, the 9th district's City Hall, built 1883-1890.

Finally, your quest concludes near the Votivkirche, a Neo-Gothic cathedral built from 1856 to 1879 in gratitude from Emperor Franz Joseph I after a failed assassination attempt. Located 500 meters from Berggasse 19, its twin facades rising 47 meters high and its 98-meter Neo-Gothic tower, inspired by Lincoln Cathedral, dominate the Alsergrund district. This historic monument, with its 46 statues of saints and 19th-century Austrian stained-glass windows, is Vienna's second largest church after St. Stephen's. It embodies the power of the city of Vienna, a city that, according to its motto, is one that 'you want or you deserve' ('Vienne vi velis').