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The Graben is one of the most important central streets in Vienna and is located in the immediate vicinity of St. Stephen's Cathedral. It was the site of the southern moat of the Vindobona castrum, which was built against the walls of the legionary fortress along today's Naglergasse. The moat remained in place during the Middle Ages until the 12th century, when the Babenbergs enlarged the town thanks to the bounty collected for the liberation of Richard the Lionhearted. During these changes, the moat was filled in and turned into a city street; however, there were still many vacant lots in the newly urbanized area, which helped to keep the name Graben. Already in the time of the Habsburg monarchy, the capital's most prestigious stores were located here, which still determine the character of this street today. The conversion of the street into a pedestrian zone in 1974 gave it the appearance of a long, wide square. In the center is the nearly 19-meter-high "Plague Column," erected in 1687 during a severe plague epidemic. On the sides of this large square are numerous beautiful buildings, mostly built between the mid-1800s and the late 1800s.
