The First World War led to the collapse of four empires, in which internal contradictions were already brewing. A difficult situation arose in Austria-Hungary: a huge territory with a motley national, religious and linguistic composition, which was composed of partly conquered, partly inherited pieces of land separated by mountain ranges, could not be a stable state.
Reasons for the collapse of the Austro-Hungarian Empire
By the beginning of the 20th century, the Habsburg Empire, which occupied vast territories in Europe, was significantly weakened due to ethnic conflicts in almost all regions. In Silesia, relations between Czechs and Germans were tense, in Galicia the confrontation between Ukrainians and Poles intensified, in Transcarpathia - Rusyns and Hungarians, in Transylvania - Hungarians and Romanians, in the Balkans - Croats, Bosnians and Serbs.
The working class, formed in connection with the development of capitalism, defended the interests of the people toto which he belonged. Thus, on the outskirts of the vast empire, the danger of separatism was significantly felt. Attempts at self-determination were made by some peoples, so that hostilities unfolded in many parts of the country. After the failure of the revolution, the situation worsened, although the confrontation moved into the political arena. Armed clashes that were successfully suppressed by government forces occurred only occasionally.
The empire was greatly weakened in 1867, when it was divided into Austria and Hungary under a new constitution. Both parts were given the opportunity to have their own governments and armies, and a separate budget existed before. For a long time, the collapse of the Austro-Hungarian Empire (in short, the process was irreversible) could be delayed, because Franz Joseph I ruled, who surrounded himself with internationalist supporters. But even then, disagreements were brewing between them. In short, the collapse of the Austro-Hungarian Empire was caused by significant national contradictions.
Under such conditions, a powerful bureaucratic machine (the number of officials was three times the size of the army) began to usurp local power. The ideas of separatism have permeated almost all sectors of society. Given that more than ten significant national minorities lived in the country, the situation was critical. The emperor was supported only by the big bourgeoisie. Franz Joseph himself already understood that the situation was hopeless.
General crisis in the rear and at the front
The collapse of Austria-Hungary in 1918 became apparent. startedmass strikes. The people demanded a truce with Russia on any terms, better food supplies and democratic reforms. Unrest, lack of food and the spread of revolutionary sentiment had a negative impact on the army, completely demoralizing it.
The first armed uprising in the history of the collapse of the Austro-Hungarian Empire (a brief list of events below) was Korotskoe. Sailors belonging to national minorities demanded immediate peace with Russia on the terms of self-determination of the peoples of Austria-Hungary. The uprising was crushed immediately, all the leaders were shot, and about 800 people were imprisoned. The situation is even more deplorable in the east. Austro-Hungarian politicians repeatedly stated that the offensive against Ukraine was futile, but the army continued to move. Against the backdrop of the signing of agreements with the UNR in Galicia, Ukrainians became more active, who held a national congress in Lviv.
Massive demonstrations broke out all over Austria. The uprising also flared up in the rear of the Austro-Hungarian Empire (the year of the collapse of 1918): in the city of Rumburg, the local garrison opposed the power of the emperor, in Mogilev-Podolsky the soldiers refused to go to the Italian front, where the fighting had just escalated, a food riot took place in Vienna, and then there was a general strike for lack of food. In the last months of the empire, about 150 thousand soldiers fled from the army.
German Austria in the Habsburg Empire
The titular state in the empire, around whichunited other parts of the country, did not declare independence, although there were local conflicts between the Austrians and Slovenes, as well as the Austrians and Italians. All problematic issues were successfully resolved peacefully. In 1918, Austria-Hungary (the collapse was already obvious then) signed a peace treaty with the Entente. Shortly thereafter, Charles I removed the powers of the emperor, although he did not formally abdicate. Austria was proclaimed a republic within Germany.
In the first months of the existence of the republic, food riots, workers' strikes and peasant uprisings did not stop, because these events were caused by a general crisis in all parts of the former Austro-Hungarian Empire. The causes of the collapse did not eliminate themselves. The situation worsened when, with the proclamation of the Republic of Hungary in 1919, communist demonstrations began in Austria. The situation was stabilized only in 1920, when a new constitution was adopted. The Republic of Austria existed until 1938, when it passed to the Third Reich.
Hungary, Transylvania and Bukovina
Hungary and Austria existed within the empire as two separate states, held together by a personal agreement. The union was broken in 1918 when the Hungarian parliament recognized the independence of the country. But in fact, the territories remained part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, so an uprising broke out in Budapest against the Habsburgs. On the same day, Slovakia seceded from Hungary and became part of Czechoslovakia, and soon there was a general strike in Transylvania. In Bukovinathe communists became more active, demanding a connection with the Ukrainian SSR.
The situation in Hungary worsened due to the annexation of Transylvania by Romanian troops. Social Democrats and Communists became more active in the country. Despite a series of arrests, sympathy for the communists grew. Immediately after the forced legalization of the Communist Party by the government, an anti-government demonstration took place, calls were made for the establishment of Soviet power. The communists began to take over government organizations, the communist government proclaimed the Hungarian Soviet Republic.
Revolutionary events in Czechoslovakia
For the formation of independent Czech Republic and Slovakia were mainly students and intellectuals. For a time after the collapse of Austria-Hungary, demonstrations were held back by imperial troops. At the same time in Washington, the leaders of the liberation movement published the Declaration of Independence of Czechoslovakia. Austria-Hungary, in response, announced the possibility of surrender, which was perceived as a victory for the revolution, but in fact the imperial government thus bloodlessly took over power in the city. Upon learning of the transfer of power, people took to the streets and began to demand independence.
Kingdom of Galicia and Lodomeria
In the kingdom of Galicia and Lodomeria, which was formed after the division of the Commonwe alth, several peoples mixed up, the predominant of which were Ukrainians and Poles. The confrontation between them did not stop from the very moment of formation. The Poles managed to maintain leadership positions inregion with the support of the imperial authorities, but with the beginning of the First World War, local Ukrainians became more active. In short, the collapse of Austria-Hungary was in this case only an excuse. Fighting began, and after the Polish-Ukrainian war, the Polish-Soviet war began.
Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes
The Slavic population of the Balkan Peninsula supported Serbia even before the start of the First World War, and when the hostilities unfolded, about 35 thousand people fled from Austria-Hungary. In Paris, in 1915, the Yugoslav Committee was created, the purpose of which was to conduct an anti-Austrian campaign among the Slavic population of the Balkan Peninsula. The head of the committee proclaimed the unity of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes. He also hoped to create a unified Slavic state in the future, but the idea failed.
Serious changes began after the October Revolution and the collapse of Austria-Hungary. Among the masses, dissatisfaction with the Austrians grew over other peoples. A large-scale crisis began, and soon the regions formed their own governments. They did not take up their duties for quite a long time, waiting for the moment to declare independence. The State of Slovenes, Serbs and Croats was proclaimed on October 29, 1918.
Economy after the collapse of the empire
The Autro-Hungarian krone circulated throughout the empire before the collapse, which in 1918 depreciated sharply. Back in 1914, the crown was backed by 30% gold, and by the last months of the existence of the state, the provisionwas only 1%. The constant fall of the national currency had an extremely negative impact on the economy. Manufacturers no longer trusted the crown, refusing to sell the product. Bartering became a private phenomenon, and the population began to withdraw their money from financial institutions.
The most important problem that the new states had to solve was the stabilization of the currency and the cessation of depreciation in the future. External debt was equally divided among the newly formed countries, bonds were replaced by others, national economies were formed and were already operating. At the conference after the First World War, they only had to be officially legalized. Each state has now gone its own way of development: some quickly restored the national economy, while others faced an economic crisis.
The process of formation of new states
Which states were formed after the collapse of Austria-Hungary? During the division of territories, thirteen new states appeared, but not all of them survived. The established boundaries changed during the Second World War, and after the end of hostilities were revised. To date, only Hungary and Austria have survived.
Consequences of the collapse of Austria-Hungary
The political map of the world has undergone significant changes. But there were other important consequences of the collapse of the Austro-Hungarian Empire:
- new system of international relations (Versailles);
- destruction of major rivals of France and Great Britain in Europe;
- demobilization of the entire Austrian and Hungarian army, the ban on having their own fleet and aviation, the nationalization of the only Austrian weapons factory;
- imposing reparations on Austria;
- dissolution of the union of Austria and Germany;
- strengthening of nationalism in educated countries, the emergence of new ideological and cultural differences between the people of the former empire.
In addition, many peoples have not managed to achieve independence. For example, the state of Ukrainians was liquidated, the territories became part of Poland. Czechs, Rusyns and Slovaks lived in one state. The situation of some peoples actually only worsened. As part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, they had at least some self-government and the right to occupy seats in parliament, and in the newly formed states, their last authorities were liquidated.
Some alternative suggestions
Before the final collapse of Austria-Hungary, some Slavic peoples living in the south repeatedly spoke out about the need to preserve a common federal state, consisting of three parts. This idea was never implemented. Different opinions about the preservation of Austria-Hungary were expressed during the First World War by the warring states. It was planned to form a country in which all peoples would be equal in rights. The idea failed due to separatism and military action.
