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The man who saved the West

Lviv-born, multi-lingual, spy-turned-merchant Yuri-Franz Kulchytsky helped save Vienna from Turkish capture during the second siege of the city in 1683. He achieved this by carrying crucial messages between the city and the reserves behind the Ottoman army. Thanks to his knowledge of the Turkish language and customs, he could walk through the Ottoman camp without drawing suspicion.

After the battle, he was awarded the coffee beans looted from the fleeing Ottoman army and with these beans he opened Vienna's first coffeehouse, The Blue Bottle.


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