The Protocols of the Austrian Cabinet: Schwarzenberg 1851/52

The result of this project is the basis of volume II/3 of the edition "Die Protokolle des öster-reichischen Ministerrates 1848-1867 (The Protocols of the Austrian Cabinet 1848-1867)". This third and last volume of the Schwarzenberg government covers the minutes of the cabinet meetings from January 1851 until the death of Schwarzenberg in April 1852. The publication consists of the complete text of the minutes with footnotes concerning textual criticism, a thorough scientific commentary, a scientific introduction, a bibliography and a detailed index. When the Hungarian revolution as well as the revolutionary movement in Lombardy-Venetia had been suppressed, the Austrian government was able to face the reorganisation of the monarchy in late 1849. The ministers were conscious of the necessity of political and administrative reforms. These reforms were continued in 1851 (municipal regulation, forestry law, fire-arms-law, administration of justice, a new system of land register and the reorganisation of the Hungarian cities etc.). With a new restrictive press law and the definitive abolition of the national guards on the other hand, the Austrian government also consequently advanced forward in the reduction of civil rights given by the constitution of March 1849. In 1851 a conflict arose between the government and the recently founded Reichsrat, an advisory council of the emperor. The latter immediately acted as a second government - because of perssure from the emperor and his reactionary court. The authority of the Reichsrat dramatically encroached on the government`s rights. The result was the partial hamstringing of the government in favour of the strengthening of the direct influence of the monarch. This was an important step on the way towards neoabsolutism, which was reestablished with the so called Sylvesterpatent on December 31st of 1851 - the abolition of the constitution of March 1849 and of the civil rights. The strengthening of the reactionary forces also sharped foreign policy, especially concerning the main problem, the German question. The organisation of the German states was dominated by the struggle for mastery in Germany between Austria and Prussia. Step by step, along with the interior consolidation, Schwarzenberg tried to revive the old conservative Deutschen Bund and eventually succeeded. This volume will close the gap between the already published protocols of the revolutionary period of 1848 and the ones of the Buol-Schauenstein cabinet from 1852 onward and will be published with the öbv&hpt publishing house. It makes available an important source for the history of Austria and her neighbours.

With this project the minutes of the Schwarzenberg cabinet meetings from January 1851 until the death of prime minister Schwarzenberg in April 1852 was prepared to be published in the series "Die Protokolle des österreichischen Ministerrates 1848-1867 (The Protocols of the Austrian Cabinet 1848-1867)". The publication consists of the complete text of the minutes with footnotes concerning textual criticism, a thorough scientific commentary, a scientific introduction, a bibliography and a detailed index. The publication will close the gap of the already published protocols of the revolutionary period of 1848/49 and of the government of Buol-Schauenstein from 1852 onward. It will be published by the öbv&hpt publishing house. The protocols make available an important source for the history of Austria and her neighbors. After suppressing the Hungarian revolution as well as the revolutionary movement in Lombardy-Venetia, the Austrian government was able to face the reorganization of the monarchy in late 1849. The ministers were conscious of the necessity of political and administrative reforms. These reforms were continued in 1851 (municipal regulation, forestry law, fire-arms-law, administration of justice, a new system of land register and the reorganization of the Hungarian cities etc.). With a new restrictive press law and the definitive abolition of the national guards on the other hand, the Austrian government also consequently advanced forward in the reduction of civil rights given by the constitution of March 1849. In 1851 a conflict arose between the government and the recently founded Reichsrat, an advisory council of the emperor. The latter immediately acted as a second government and strengthened the position of the emperor. The authority of the Reichsrat dramatically encroached on the government`s rights. This was an important step on the way towards neoabsolutism, which was reestablished with the so called Sylvesterpatent on December 31st of 1851 - the abolition of the constitution of March 1849 and of the civil rights. The strengthening of the reactionary forces also shaped foreign policy, especially concerning the main problem, the German question. The organization of the German states was dominated by the struggle for mastery in Germany between Austria and Prussia. Step by step, along with the interior consolidation, Schwarzenberg tried to revive the old conservative Deutschen Bund and eventually succeeded.