Transcript File - Mr. C at Hamilton

The Dual Monarchy
of Austria-Hungary
Austria-Hungary
• That, is a ‘stache!
• The Emperor of Austria was
a hereditary imperial title
and position proclaimed in
1804 by Holy Roman
Emperor Francis II, a
member of the House of
Habsburg-Lorraine, and
continually held by him and
his heirs until Emperor
Charles relinquished power
in 1918.
•
Right: Franz Joseph I of Austria, the Last Emperor
Historically, it was just Austria!
• Members of the House of Austria, the
Habsburg dynasty, had for centuries been
elected as "Holy Roman Emperor" and
mostly resided in Vienna.
• Thus the term "Austrian emperor" may
occur in texts dealing with the time before
1804, when no Austrian Empire existed.
Historically, it was just Austria!
• In the face of aggressions by Napoleon I,
who had been proclaimed "Emperor of the
French" (French: Empereur des Francais),
by the French constitution on May 14,
1804, Francis II feared for the future of the
Holy Roman Empire and wished to
maintain his and his family's Imperial
status in the event that the Holy Roman
Empire should be dissolved.
Historically, it was just Austria!
• Therefore, in August of 1804 he created
the new title of "Emperor of Austria" for
himself and his successors as heads of the
House of Habsburg-Lorraine.
• For two years, Francis carried two imperial
titles: being Holy Roman Emperor Francis
II and "by the Grace of God" (Von Gottes
Gnaden) Emperor Francis I of Austria.
• Until Napoleon dissolved the Holy Roman
Empire.
And we know Prussia…
• Will gobble all of those little ones up over
the course of 50 years and 3 wars.
• Leaving only…
Austria-Hungary
But in reality, it looked like this:
The problem? Too much!
I. Introduction
• Austria-Hungary, also known as the dual
monarchy, was a nation in central Europe ruled
by the Habsburg monarchy from 1867 to 1918. It
was established in 1867 under Francis Joseph I,
the emperor of Austria and king of Hungary.
• Located in central Europe, it included what are
now Austria, Hungary, Slovakia, and the Czech
Republic, as well as parts of present-day Poland,
Romania, Italy, Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and
Herzegovina, and the Federal Republic of
Yugoslavia.
Think about this!
• RELIGION:
• Predominantly Roman Catholicism.
• Also Eastern Orthodoxy, Calvinism, Judaism,
Lutheranism, and (after 1908) Sunni Islam.
• ETHNICITIES:
Germans 24%
Magyars (Hungarians) 20%
*Czechs 13%
*Poles 10%
*Ruthenians (Ukranians) 8%
Rumanians 6%
* Croats 5%
*Serbs 4%
*Slovaks 4%
*Slovenes 3%
Italians 3%.
* These peoples are Slavic.
Think about this!
• LANGUAGES:
• Official:
German, Hungarian
• Unofficial:
• Czech, Croatian, Italian, Polish, Romani,
Romanian, Rusyn, Serbian, Slovak,
Slovene, Ukrainian, and Yiddish
When two become one…
• Austria and Hungary were united as a result of
the compromise (known in German as the
Ausgleich) of March 1867.
• The compromise was an agreement between the
Habsburg Emperor Francis Joseph and the Magyar
rulers of the kingdom of Hungary.
• The people of Austria and the non-Magyar
peoples of Hungary were not consulted.
• Besides a common monarch, the compromise
established common ministries of foreign affairs,
finance, and defense.
When two become one…
• Each kingdom had a separate parliament and
was able to govern its own internal affairs.
• The compromise of 1867 established a large
nation of about 50 million people.
• Located in the heart of Europe, Austria-Hungary
was composed of many different language
groups and nationalities.
• Austria-Hungary was regarded as a great
European power along with France, Germany,
Russia, and Britain.
II. Background
• The Habsburgs had ruled many parts of Europe,
including Austria, as part of the Holy Roman
Empire since the 1200s.
• Austria was formed during the Napoleonic Wars,
a series of wars fought from 1799 to 1815
between France, led by Napoleon I, and a
number of European nations.
• Napoleon dissolved the Holy Roman Empire in
1806; (REMEMBER!) in anticipation of this, the
Austrian Empire had been created in 1804.
II. Background
• At the conclusion of the Napoleonic Wars,
Austria emerged as one of the most powerful
states in what was called the German
Confederation, and, as such, was one of the
stronger nations in Europe.
• The Austrian Empire included the kingdom of
Hungary, although the ruling class of Hungary,
the Magyars, persistently pressed for more
control in the years leading up to the
compromise.
II. Background
II. Background
• Because Austria did not support Russia
during the Crimean War (1853-1856),
Russia refused in 1859 to support Austria
against the French-supported Italian state
of Piedmont (Piemonte), which drove
Austria out of Lombardy (Lombardia),
another state in northern Italy.
II. Background
• Under the direction of Prince Otto von
Bismarck, the minister-president of the
north German state of Prussia, the
Prussians began to challenge Austria for
supremacy in the German Confederation.
In 1866 Bismarck provoked Austria into
the Seven Weeks' War.
• Austria lost and was expelled from the
Confederation.
III. The Compromise
• Shocked and humiliated by Austria's
defeat, Francis Joseph compromised with
the Magyars in Hungary to shore up his
empire and save the Habsburg monarchy.
• First, Francis Joseph consolidated the
monarchy's power in the German states
that were part of the empire.
III. The Compromise
• Second, in exchange for Hungarian support
of the monarchy, he agreed to surrender
his control of Hungarian internal affairs,
including his protection of the non-Magyar
peoples.
• This was a key point in obtaining Magyar
cooperation.
• This agreement was the basis of the
compromise of 1867, which divided the
old Austrian Empire into two parts.
III. The Compromise
• The Habsburg monarch would be both the
king of Hungary and the emperor of
Austria.
• The new entity/empire would be called
the Austro-Hungarian Empire and would
have a single foreign policy, one army, and
a unified monetary system.
IV. The Height of the Dual
Monarchy: 1867-1895
• For the first 20 years after 1867, AustriaHungary enjoyed a measure of security
both at home and abroad. Hungary was
calm for the first time in decades.
• The Magyars encountered strong
resistance, however, when they tried to
impose the Magyar language and Magyar
culture on the non-Magyar peoples of
Hungary.
IV. The Height of the Dual
Monarchy: 1867-1895
• Between 1895 and 1906, Austria-Hungary
was preoccupied with internal problems.
During the early years of the compromise,
nationalistic and ethnic conflicts were
pushed aside, but these conflicts exploded
in the mid-1890s.
• Conflicts between the Germans and the
Czechs in Bohemia paralyzed the Austrian
Reichsrat. (Parliament/Congress)
VI. The External Threat, 19061914
• Although domestic discord troubled the
Austro-Hungarian Empire until the end,
the main threats to the empire after 1906
came more from outside than from within.
Specifically, relations between AustriaHungary and Russia deteriorated.
VI. The External Threat, 19061914
• The Russians were denied what they
wanted–safe passage for their warships
through the Straits of Bosporus, the
narrow channel of water that runs
between the Black Sea, home of the
Russian fleet, and the Mediterranean Sea.
• Austria-Hungary's unilateral actions
angered the Slavs in the region and
infuriated the Russians, who were still
excluded from the straits.
VI. The External Threat, 19061914
• At this time, Germany supported AustriaHungary, but was unwilling to risk war with
Russia.
• Thus, Austria-Hungary was isolated in its
Balkans policy.
VI. The External Threat, 19061914
• At this time, Germany supported AustriaHungary, but was unwilling to risk war with
Russia.
• Thus, Austria-Hungary was isolated in its
Balkans policy.
VI. The External Threat, 19061914
• Greek and Balkan nationalists carved up
the Ottoman Empire during a conflict
known as the Balkan Wars (1912-1913).
• The Balkan state of Serbia was a major
victor, emerging as a much enlarged
nation that posed a direct threat to
Austro-Hungarian holdings in Bosnia and
Herzegovina.
VI. The External Threat, 19061914
• Austro-Hungarian statesmen were
convinced that Russia was working to
increase nationalism in the Balkans.
• It appeared to Austria-Hungary that
Russia, a Slavic nation, was encouraging
the growth of new, predominantly Slavic
states, thus tipping the regional balance of
power in favor of Russia and against
Austria-Hungary.
VI. The External Threat, 19061914
• Austro-Hungarian statesmen were
convinced that Russia was working to
increase nationalism in the Balkans.
• It appeared to Austria-Hungary that
Russia, a Slavic nation, was encouraging
the growth of new, predominantly Slavic
states, thus tipping the regional balance of
power in favor of Russia and against
Austria-Hungary.
The major factors that kept the
Empire together were:
1. loyalty to the Emperor: Francis Joseph was personally very
popular throughout the empire. He was multi-lingual and
spoke nearly all the languages of the Empire.
2. the Catholic religion: - 90% of the population of the Austrian
half of the Empire were Catholic and 60% of the Hungarian
half were.
3. the civil service and the army, both of which were
dominated by Germans.
4. mutual suspicion among the subject peoples.
Portrait of Franz Joseph I of
Austria, 1885
The Man, the Myth, the Legend
• In 1848 a political schism spreads
throughout Europe.
• The monarchy falls in France, the PopeKing has to leave Rome and in Germany a
certain K. Marx publishes the Communist
Manifesto.
• In Vienna, students take over the Imperial
Palace and street fights erupt.
The Man, the Myth, the Legend
• It is the moment for Princess Sophie of
Bavaria, schemes, conives, and plots to
have her 19-year old son Franz Joseph
become emperor.
• Sophie has been plotting the move for
some time, and in fact has brought Franz
Joseph up to be an Emperor.
• But it’s not all roses…
The Man, the Myth, the Legend
• Franz Joseph marries the beautiful Sisi out
of love, an extraordinary privilege for a
monarch.
• Nevertheless, his mother, who has given
him the throne, will take away his
happiness very soon: she is a terrible
mother-in-law, who oppresses Sisi and
separates her from her babies to educate
them herself.
The Man, the Myth, the Legend
• In fairness, though, Sisi has a difficult
nature, and she abandons her husband
once she decides she cannot stand her
mother-in-law.
The Man, the Myth, the Legend
• From his marriage breakdown onwards,
Franz Joseph’s family life will be an agony.
• Of his three brothers, Maximilian, Emperor
of Mexico, is shot by Mexicans; the next in
line dies of typhus; and the youngest one
gets into trouble and has to go on exile.
• The fate of the only son and heir of Franz
Joseph is even worse: Rudolph commits
suicide.
• Sisi is killed by an anarchist.
The Man, the Myth, the Legend
• Due to his long reign he becomes the
embodiment of Majesty, the living symbol
of the Monarchic Idea.
• The old Emperor –he did look old very
early on; misfortunes age you- bears on his
shoulder the tremendous complexity of an
Empire which is a labyrinth of races,
religions and languages.
• Despite this, his efforts are useless when
facing the rise of nationalism.
The Man, the Myth, the Legend
• Despite being surrounded by the riches of
an empire almost a thousand years old, he
lives in perfect austerity. (simplicity)
• He eats the same every day, taffelspil, a
popular ox and vegetable stew.
• Nevertheless, he is convinced he has been
appointed by God; he considers himself
Charlemagne’s heir and, through him, the
heir of Roman emperors.
The Man, the Myth, the Legend
• Moreover, despite his profound
Catholicism he believes himself to be
above the Pope.
• In 1903, for the last time in history, the
emperor exercises his right to veto in the
conclave, thus preventing cardinal
Rampolla, elected by the rest of cardinals,
to become Pope.