by Emperor Leopold I in 1698
Immediately behind the lavish buildings of the Ringstrasse
lies the honorable cloister wall, the arch of the restaurant "Piaristenkeller",
which was first (mentioned in a document) documented in 1280.
The founder of the order, José de Calasanz (1556-1648) was a Spanish nobleman.
He founded the first free school for underprivileged boys. Under the patronage
of Prince Bishop Richard Graf Trautson, the Piarists (as the priests of the order
are called), received permission from Kaiser Leopold I to establish themselves
in Vienna and to build a cloister, a church, and a school.
The plans for the church were put together by Lukas von Hildebrandt, probably
the most significant architect of his times. His majesty Leopold I, ruler of the
Habsburg dynasty, who was married to the Spanish princess Margarete Theresia,
laid the cornerstone to this massive piece of construction on September 2nd 1698.
