WAR is, according to one old saying, good for the economy.
It certainly was for a particular Austrian general who funded one of his country's most ambitious building projects with the extra money he made leading his forces in battle.
The senior soldier was Prince Eugen of Savoy, one of the Hapsburg dynasty's most celebrated generals, and after he defeating the Turks in 1683 he was given a generous booty that let him build Vienna's two Belvedere Palaces.
The magnificent Baroque structures, which were built in the early 18th century on a hill that provided the estate sweeping views across central Vienna to the hills on the other side of town, were a summer residence for the prince.
He lived in Lower Belvedere, and entertained in the larger building at the top of the hill, and would enjoy the fresh air in the French-style gardens that filled the gap between the two palaces.
Today Eugen's people are long gone and now the Belvedere buildings accommodate two galleries which are home to some of this country's art treasures including a swag of works by the amazingly talented Gustav Klimt.
The Lower Belvedere is home to the Museum of Austrian Baroque Art while the Austrian Gallery occupies the grand rooms up the hill.
Usually a Monet would be the highlight of a gallery visit for me -- and there were two at the Belvedere with The Chef one of just a few portraits painted by the Impressionist master -- but it was the Kilmt creations that were most memorable.
There were two rooms where his works hung, one on the south side of the building which has springtime sun bursting through the windows, and another facing north which was dark and cool.
Adam and Eve was in the light-filled room, while Klimt's most famous painting The Kiss -- featuring the liberal use of gold, and reflecting the impression that Italian mosaics made on the man during a stay in Venice -- was in the darker room.
While his golden works were stunning, I loved the landscapes which were filled with lots of green and dots of red and yellow to show where flowers were blooming in the gardens.
There are three floors of Upper Belvedere open to visitors and I walked around each level twice, once to look at the art and a second time to take in every feature of the stately rooms.
The Upper Belvedere was also the setting for an important event in modern Austrian history with the State Treaty signed in the grand Marble Hall in 1955.
The four nations that occupied Austria after World War Two -- the US, UK, USSR and France -- signed the document that finally gave this country sovereignty in the room and then the document was displayed from the balcony to the cheering crowd below.
Finally, on my fourth visit to Vienna, I got to see the inside of the twin Belvederes, and it was worth the wait.
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