As a supplement to yesterday’s article about Franz Ferdinand and Sophie, I’d like to briefly touch on the history of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. It’s impossible to write about the Austro-Hungarian Empire in just one page, but I’ll try.
It’s easy to confuse the Austro-Hungarian Empire with the vast Habsburg Empire that lasted centuries. The Austro-Hungarian Empire (also known as the Dual Monarchy) only came into existence in 1867 under the rule of Emperor Franz Josef I. This is because as the centuries went on, the vast Habsburg Empire dwindled geographically. Hungary, though, for better or for worse, remained part of the empire.
For reference, the dates of the various empires are:
The Habsburg Empire 1200s to 1804
The Austrian Empire 1804 to 1867
The Austro-Hungarian Empire 1867 to 1918
So, how did it become the Austro-Hungarian Empire?
To oversimplify for brevity’s sake, the Habsburg Empire was shrinking in size. It went from a sprawling empire spread throughout the whole of Europe to just Austria and the surrounding areas (Hungary, Bohemia, etc…). Napoleon’s wars played a role in this.
And then came the Austro-Prussian War.
The biggest and most decisive battle during the Austro-Prussian War was the Battle of Königgrätz in 1866 - a battle between the formidable, fierce Prussia and a weakening Austria. The Prussians won by a landslide; they left Austria humiliated.
Prussia became the new superpower of the German-speaking territories, which paved the way for the unification of “Germany” in 1871.
In the meantime, a shrinking Austrian Empire continued to rule over Hungary with an iron fist. But there had always been Hungarian grumblings against Austrian rule. These grumblings turned into massive uprisings. In a compromise, and to appease the Hungarians, Franz Josef created the Austro-Hungarian Empire in 1867. The Dual Monarchy consisted of the Kingdom of Hungary and the lands of the Austrian Empire (Bohemia, Austria, etc…)
But it wasn’t a compromise. — It was a plot to help regrow the empire.
It’s worth noting that the capital of this new Dual Monarchy remained in Vienna. There were never plans to move the empire’s capital to Hungary or even find a middle ground.
After the creation of the Dual Monarchy, the Austro-Hungarian Empire became the second-largest empire in Europe, right behind the Russian Empire. Franz Josef’s empire was slowly gaining territory and this pleased him very much.
Franz Josef was Emperor of Austria when in Austria and King of Hungary when in Hungary. However, there wasn’t a common citizenship between the two countries. During the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the Hungarians had Hungarian passports and the Austrians had Austrian passports. Hungarians weren’t given the option to become Austrian citizens and were treated as poor relations. Also, there wasn’t a common language. Everyone spoke their own language and ate their own cuisine (although the insanely delicious Hungarian Gulasch soup is quite popular in Austria to this day). And, of course, Vienna remained the capital of the empire.
Just for comparison’s sake, Scottish people and English people are British citizens and share a passport. They compete together under the same flag during the Olympics. Hungarians and Austrians did not compete as a unified country during the Olympics. This obvious divide would have been keenly felt by the Hungarians.
But Franz Josef gave Hungary some independence. They could do (within reason) what they liked with their own territories. Buda remained Hungary’s capital.
But how strong was this new alliance? Maybe not so strong. When Franz Josef’s wife, Empress Elizabeth (Sisi), became pregnant with their youngest child she insisted on giving birth in Hungary. Hungary was her favorite country and she was fluent in Hungarian. Sisi preferred spending time in her Hungarian home, Gödöllö Palace, over the overly stiff and formal Hofburg in Vienna.
The pregnancy was worrisome for the Emperor’s cabinet. If Sisi gave birth to a son in Hungary, this boy could very well grow up to become King of Hungary and claim the Kingdom of Hungary for himself, thus bringing an end to the Dual Monarchy and diminishing the geographic power of Franz Josef’s future heirs.
Everyone sighed with relief when Sisi gave birth to a princess.
Austria never considered Hungary their equal. This reason (among many others) brought about the downfall of the House of Habsburg in 1918.
If you’re as fascinated by this history as I am, then the suggested reading list might be of interest to you.
The Assassination of the Archduke by Greg King and Sue Woolmans
Balkan Ghosts by Robert D. Kaplan
Danubia: A Personal History of Habsburg Europe by Simon Winder
The Emperor and the Actress by Joan Haslip
The Habsburgs by Edward Crankshaw
A Nervous Splendor: Vienna 1888/1889 by Frederic Morton
The Reluctant Empress by Brigitte Hamann
Ring of Stone: Germany and Austria-Hungary at War, 1914-1918 by Alexander Watson
Secrets of the Gotha: Private Lives of Royal Families of Europe by G. De Diesbach (This book is not a focus on the Habsburgs; rather it’s a gossipy focus on all European royal families. The link is the French version, as the English version is difficult to track down.)
Twilight of Empire: The Tragedy at Mayerling and the End of the Habsburgs by Greg King and Penny Wilson
Thank you very much for reading. Your time and support are deeply appreciated.
https://novum.substack.com/p/there-once-was-an-empire?
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