In 1893, the Austrian Emperor Ferdinand Northern Railway (KFNB) ordered the Wiener Neustadt factory to build twelve 2-6-0 freight locomotives. Six each were build as compounds and six as simples, which were designated series VIII. Since the compounds won the comparisons, all further orders were also for the compound variant. Even after the nationalisation of the KFNB, the kkStB ordered more of these which were now called class 260.
In total, by 1908 221 had been built by Wiener Neustadt, Floridsdorf and the StEG. After 45 locomotives, the remaining got a slightly smaller tube heating surface. After World War I, the most came to Czechoslovakia and Poland. The ČSD now had 122 designated class 333.1, while the PKP had 62 and designated them Ti11. The BBÖ only had 26 left, but during World War II more came back from occupied areas. So the Reichsbahn soon operated 46 and designated them class 541. After the war, the ÖBB only had two which were retired by 1954. The last ones of the ČSD survived until 1964.