Cisleithania#Crown lands

Crown lands were called from the late 18th century, the lands of the Habsburg monarchy in 1804, the parts of the territory of the Empire of Austria as a unitary state and as of 1867 western half of the Austro-Hungarian monarchy.

It was the historic lands, who had acquired the Habsburgs over the centuries in Central Europe, ruled in personal union. Starting with the 16th century, the Habsburg lands were subjected to a progressive integration and state-building process, in which the designation initially a kind of honorary position within the monarchy, then was a real administrative divisions and at the end of the monarchy a first embodiment of - yet little federally - sovereign - member states.

Overview

Structure until 1861

Had the Crown Lands of the Habsburg monarchy until 1861, in contrast to the members of today's states (Republic of Austria, USA, Federal Republic of Germany ) no constitutionally enshrined rights of participation in the politics of the Empire State as a whole; this participation was the Emperor in each case granted or not. Your own state legislatures and state offices with historically grown political and legal features dated back to the era dominated by a feudal aristocracy. The inhabitants were subjects of the sovereign, not citizens in the modern sense. Due to their centuries-long independent history of the crown lands, however, were more than mere administrative districts. The Austrian political science has coined the concept of historicopolitical in the 19th century.

A step backwards experienced the from Maria Theresa and Joseph II maintained - even absolutist, but pointing in the direction of more modern state formation - national organization after the revolution of 1848/ 49: Although the municipal self -governing structure was solved by the creation of the local communities strengthened, the diets, the to 1848 were traditional assemblies of estates, were lifted and for more than ten years the nation stately governor's office submits the countries throughout ( the country's chiefs ) that the Emperor and the Imperial Government were directly bound by instructions.

Structure of February 1861 Patent

1861 enacted the Emperor called in the historiography February Patent Constitution, in its Annex for each Kronland own provincial system was determined (some state constitutions were proclaimed already with the October Diploma of 1860). Following the departure of Hungary from the Empire of Austria by the Compromise of 1867 the constitutional structure in the December Constitution was adjusted, the state regulations adopted in 1861 but remained essentially valid until 1918.

The parliaments were convened on the basis of the patent in February 1861 in a new form. Since then, some members had their seat ex officio (eg, Bishops ), others were elected. However, it was given no universal and equal suffrage, but a mixture of privilege and census suffrage for men. One example is the Dalmatian Diet.

Structure 1867-1918

After the Austro- Hungarian Compromise of 1867, which introduced the Constitution of the Habsburg Monarchy on a new foundation, the Kingdom of Hungary ( together with the 1866 Hungary fully unified Grand Principality of Transylvania) and belonging to the Hungarian Crown Kingdom of Croatia and Slavonia were no longer considered as crown lands. The term was used only in Cisleithania on.

The countries of the Holy Hungarian Crown, named Transleithania, now formed their own state, which with the rest of the Empire of Austria (short Cisleithania, officially called the represented in the Imperial Council kingdoms and countries, from 1915 Austrian countries) in terms of a real union to 31 October 1918 the monarch, the army, the navy, foreign policy and the currency had together.

Cisleithania received in December 1867, the so-called December Constitution, until 1918 legal basis of the state. Had the Cisleithanian Crown lands pursuant to the Act of 19 May 1868 setting up the political administration authorities, which adapted the previous usage of the new constitution and the functions legally well-defined, state chiefs, who were appointed as the representative of his person and the imperial government by the monarch (§ 2 of the Act).

In Salzburg, Carinthia, Carniola, Austro- Silesia and Bukowina the country's chiefs wore under § 5 of the Act the title of Regional President and were faced with a state government, in the other crown lands they bore the title (kk) governor and faced a Lieutenancy. The function was the same: to lead the administrative system and to implement the policies of the government in Vienna, on whose instructions the country chiefs were bound.

Under the supervision of the country heads of state adopted ( the Executive Committee of the Parliament ), in agreement with the Diet autonomous agendas of the country's true.

Uncompleted restructuring plan in 1918

As part of the February 9, 1918 concluded with Ukraine " bread peace" of Brest- Litovsk, Austria - Hungary agreed, the majority of Ukrainians (then called Ruthenians ) until July 31, 1918 inhabited the eastern part of Galicia Bukovina to a separate autonomous crown land together. The plan was not implemented, Austria - Hungary announced the agreement on 4 July 1918.

The Austrian Crown Lands 1867-1918

Subplan number 7 here are three Crown Lands in 1861 formed together who had previously formed the Austrian Littoral since 1852; together remained here from 1868 only the governor, who resided in Trieste, and edited by him the Official Gazette containing the (also different ) laws of the three crown lands. Since it was relatively small crown lands, the collective term coastal land was used until 1918.

The Kingdom of Hungary (Plan No. 16) and the Kingdom of Croatia and Slavonia (17 ) were from 1867 no Austrian crown lands more. The 1878-1918 managed on the common Reich Ministry of Finance of Austria and Hungary, in 1908 annexed the territory of Bosnia and Herzegovina ( 18) also did not belong to the Austrian crown lands.