and trophies, with a major focus on suits of armour and weapons of the Imperial Leibrüstkammer (Chamber of Personal Armour). After the collection was systematically arranged, it was opened to the public as the k.k. Hofwaffenmuseum in 1869. When construction of the Museum of Fine Arts began in Vienna in 1871 (it was opened in 1891), many believed in the beginning of the 1880s that significant parts of the collections previously exhibited in the Hofwaffenmuseum could be moved there. These considerations brought great uncertainty over the future and orientation of the k.k. Hofwaffenmuseum. Therefore, a committee chaired by Crown Prince Rudolf was formed in 1885, assigned with the task of defining the new orientation of the museum, henceforth called the k.k. Heeresmuseum. From there on, the focus of the collections and exhibitions would be placed on the deeds of the Imperial Army. On the foundation meeting of the committee on 22 February 1885, the Crown Prince underscored the purpose of the museum: He stressed the importance of the museum, which "would contribute to glorifying the nimbus and the honour of the Army, in which the genuine old Imperial spirit lives on, which has held the Imperial position in high esteem at all times and thus constitutes the symbol of cohesiveness of all people". For this reason, he hoped "that the museum would come to life in the greatest possible magnificence″. The committee consisted of the following members: Crown Prince Rudolf of Austria, Protector and Chairman Archduke Wilhelm of Austria, Deputy Protector and Chairman Quirin Ritter von Leitner, then Director of the Hofwaffenmuseum. Alfred Ritter von Arneth, President of the Imperial Academy of Sciences Johann Nepomuk Count Wilczek, patron and collector, and main sponsor of the Payer-Weyprecht polar expedition. Apart from the requests addressed to various military institutions, the committee also approached private civilians to obtain historic objects for the new museum. The principle applied was: The collections were to be divided into war trophies and ″otherwise historically interesting objects of exclusively Austrian origin which are of significance for the proper acknowledgement of the past of the Imperial and Royal Army in all its factors″. Only originals were allowed to be exhibited, and projects and models were admissible only under special circumstances. As a result of the work of the committee and the generous support of the Emperor, his family, the nobility, and the bourgeoisie, as well as the Imperial War