8/12/2019 Revolutions in the Austrian Empire in 1848

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Revolutions in the Austrian Empire in 1848

In 1848 the Austrian Empire was very large and there were several ethnicities each having their own

language. The 3 most numerous groups were the Germans; Austrians, Magyars; Hungarians and the

Slavs; Czechs which dominated Bohemia.

As a Chancellor, the Austrians had Metternich which had worked for several years to hold the Austrian

Empire together but due to the several races in Austria, there were more nationalist and they wanted to

gain independence. The first outbreak occurred in March 1848 in Hungary where the people were

instructed by Layos Kossuth and they begun an independence movement.

Kossuth had been an editor of a newspaper where he shown his extreme democratic views. Later he

was imprisoned for this reason and was released three years later in 1840. He gave speeches which

always attracted the crowd. He had a deep voice and had passion which les to your attention spam last

longer. He wanted to bring equilality between Hungary with Austria within the Hapsburg Empire. He was

wise and used to lead using his intelligence. He struck only when he knew that it was the right time and

that was on 3rd of March 1848. He delivered a great speech which evoked enthusiasm.

As a result for all of this, the Emperor granted Hungary a constitution and on the 15th

 March the

Hungarians together with Kossuth led the Hungarian Diet at Budapest which passed a series of sweeping

reforms which are also known as the March Laws. Some where: abolition of serfdom and Hungary still

remaining subject to the Hapsburg Empire was to be politically equal with Austria.

Events were moving rapidly as in Vienna a riot broke out on the 13th

 of March and the rioters wanted

Metternich to resign and surged into the Diet to carry their demands by force. Metternich had to

recognize that they were irresistible and assuming a disguise, he fled to England. Due to his

disappearance, the system he created came to naught. The Emperor Ferdinand I saved himself bypromising to grant Austria a constitution but afterwards there was a huge dissatisfaction with its limited

franchise and as a result there was a revolutionary outbreak in May.

There were similar revolutions in Bohemia too. On the same day as the March Laws were passed, the

Capital of Bohemia; Prague, rose and forced the Government to grant similar concessions as the

Hungarians were granted. In March 1848 the Italians of Lombardy and Venetia also revolted against

Austria.

While a Pan-Slav Congress in June of 1848 was being held in Prague there were fighting between Czechs

and Germans so the Austrians took great advantage of this great disorder. General Windischgratz

established his control of Prague and its government abolishing Bohemia’s new privileges. Hungary

experienced the same thing. Some Hungarian minority including the Croats demanded political rights

from the Hungarian Government but they refused. Due to this refusal, there was rising of armed Croats

led by Jellachich against the Hungarians but they lost and had to retire.

Due to the dissatisfaction with the constitution, there was a rising in Vienna in October and this led the

Emperor Ferdinand I to his second fight. In Vienna there were rebels and the Hungarians helped them

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win but unfortunately, were defeated. Thus the Hapsburgs recovered Vienna’s control and at the same

time prepared for the Hungarians’ suppression.

Emperor Ferdinand I quitclaimed in December 1848 and his son Francis Joseph only eighteen years old

with no commitment reigned until his death in 1916. He cancelled the Hungarian Constitution and

announced his Empire to be a one united whole. The Magyars rose in revolt in January 1848 howeverWindischgratz stood up and seized Budapest and tracked the Magyars. The Austrians were cleared from

Hungary and later set up with Kossuth as the President a Hungarian Republic. There was disruption in

the Austrian Empire bun not Austria was the only country who feared this as Czar Nicholas I feared the

overflow of the revolution into his own possessions, Poland in particular and willingly answered Francis

Joseph’s call for support. Enormous numbers of Russian troops were led into Hungary in August 1849

while an Austrian army entered in from the west. The Magyars were devastated by this number and

Kossuth including other leaders enforced to escape to Turkey. There were huge punishments including

hanging both soldiers and civilians and as a result, Hungary lost her Constitution.

The establishment of the Austrian Empire and its political part was carried out after 1848 for it had

shown that it could survive the revolutionary storm. Many of the liberals were imprisoned, exiled or

executed and the liberal constitutions were abolished.