Page 48 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide 2016 - Austria

46  INTRODUCING A USTRIA

The Struggle for Spanish and countries of the Empire, to unify the
Austrian Succession multi-ethnic state and to centralize power.
The expiration of the Spanish line of
Habsburgs led to the Spanish War Revolution and Restoration
of Succession (1701–14), which brought During the revolutionary changes that took
further territorial gains for Austria, place in Europe at the turn of the 18th
including Belgium, Milan, Naples century, the Habsburgs joined the
and Sardinia. Soon the problem of anti-French coalition forces. Initially
succession also arose in Austria, they suffered major territorial losses
where Emperor Charles VI (1711– (Belgium, Lombardy, southern
40) had died without a male Poland). Franz II, Maria Theresa’s
heir. The so-called Pragmatic grandson, relinquished his title
Sanction, established by Charles in of Holy Roman Emperor and in
1713, stipulated that the Habsburg 1806 declared himself Emperor
Austrian territories remain an Franz I of Austria. Following the
integral, indivisible whole, with defeat of Napoleon and the
female members of the house Congress of Vienna where
also eligible for succession. The Apotheosis of Eugene proceedings were dominated
Emperor’s only daughter, Maria of Saxony by the Austrian Foreign Minister,
Theresa (1740– 80), however, was Klemens Metternich, the
forced to defend her rights by fighting Habsburg Empire became once again a
Prussia, France, Spain and a number of European superpower. Metternich, who
German states in the War of Austrian from 1821 held the office of Chancellor,
Succession (1740–48), during which she
lost Silesia to Prussia. In 1772 and 1775,
Austria participated in the first and third
Partitions of Poland, annexing that
country’s southern territories.
Enlightened Absolutism
Maria Theresa and her son Joseph II
(1780–90) embarked on an extensive course
of reforms, in the spirit of enlightened
absolutism. They curtailed the rights of the
Church, abolished serfdom, created a new
administrative structure of the state and
declared German the official language for
all institutions. Their aim was to obliterate Emperor Franz I of Austria and Maria Theresa surrounded
the differences between the individual by their children

1701–14 War of Spanish
Succession. Austria acquires 1740–48 War of Austrian Succession. Prussian-French-Spanish Coalition
Belgium, Milan, Naples, opposes Maria Theresa’s right to the imperial throne
Parma and Sardinia

1700 1720 1740 1760 1780 1800
1756 Birth of 1795 Austria participates in
Wolfgang Third Partition of Poland
Amadeus Mozart
Wolfgang 1772 Austria participates in
Maria Theresa Amadeus Mozart First Partition of Poland

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