This study examines the possibilities and limitations of centralizing reforms within the western part of the Habsburg monarchy, as illustrated by the problematic issue of ennoblement in the Czech lands. The administrative reforms of 1749 resulted in the administrative union of both state entities in a single whole of (all) so-called Hereditary Lands. They also led to the closure of separate offices at court representing the Czech and Austrian lands, replacing them with a single Directorium in publicis et cameralibus, which took over the ennoblement programme hitherto operated by those two offices. Despite the apparently centralizing tendency of the reforms, this did not extend to any unification of entitlements to ennoblement, which continued to be based on particular ranks and titles specific to either the Kingdom of Bohemia or the Archduchy of Austria. It was not until 1752 that, on the urging of Maria Theresa herself, a unified, legally binding system for dispensing preferment and privilege, including a unified scale of aristocratic titles for all the Hereditary Lands, was introduced. In practice, ennoblement rights in the two state entities remained differentiated as to specific titles up until the early 19th century, when the two systems were superseded by a new Austrian Imperial ranking. Thus one of the last relics of the conception of the Czech Crown Lands as an autonomous historical entity finally ceased to exist., Jiří Brňovják., and Obsahuje bibliografické odkazy
This paper examines the personal interventions of the empress in the reform process. Maria Theresa intervened in this process in various ways. First of all, she was able to supervise it directly through her signing of official documents, to which she would add instructions for their enactment to the court authorities or to particular countries of her realm. She also tried to make sure that competent individuals were appointed to the administrative apparatus responsible for implementing and supervising the reforms, irrespective of their social estate - though in this she was only partly successful. In addition, she kept her civil servants in check by requiring them to file regular reports. Finally, by calling for fiscal economies she had a hand in controlling public expenditure., Zbyněk Sviták., and Obsahuje bibliografické odkazy
This study examines the taxation policy of Maria Theresa as evidenced by the situation in Bohemia. A fundamental measure that opened the way for subsequent developments was the passing of the ten-year compact (or "Rezess", as it was known), by the Bohemian parliament in 1748. This law guaranteed a fixed total tax contribution (5,488,155 gulders, 58 crowns) in return for a guarantee that the empress would not demand extra levies, even in the event of war. With the outbreak of the Seven Years’ War, however, the situation changed and in 1756 demands were made for exceptional taxes, military recruits, loans to the state budget, etc. Meanwhile the guarantee of a fixed total tax under the ten-year compact continued to apply. The Treaty of Hubertusburg (1763) brought no relief, as Maria Theresa asked parliament to approve not only an extension of the compact for the following military year, but new exceptional taxes and the reimposition of certain existing indirect taxes. These obligations, together with an increased tax burden in rural communities, remained in place until 1775, when a new ten-year compact was negotiated that lasted until 1789., Jan Lhoták., and Obsahuje bibliografické odkazy
The 58th article of the penal code issued by Maria Theresa (Theresiana - 1768), let as say the Article on Sorcery (1766) did not represent (as suggested traditionally in the literature) only a not very successful compromise between the traditional penal law doctrine on the one hand and new impulses of the philosophy and legal thinking of the Age of Enlightenment, though it may appear so at the first sight or by superficial reading. The Empress achieved in Theresiana the decriminalisation of the offense of magic art not only in practice but de iure as well. De facto, in practice, this stage had been reached already earlier, in the second half of the fifties of the 18th century. This manner of decriminalisation is typical for the (central)european penal law in the earlier phase of the Enlightenment through which was also just passing the Habsburg monarchy under the reign of Maria Theresa. In the same way is for this phase of development typical the strenghtening of the protection and the rights of the accused or investigated person within the penal procedure by creating different formal and real guarantees and obstacles during the proceedings. This approach was partly a continuation of the early modern and in the early stage of Enlightenment voiced criticism of magic art and sorcery trials., Petr Kreuz., and Obsahuje bibliografické odkazy
his study traces the changing portrayals of Maria Theresa in the writings of the most important Czech historians (F. M. Pelcl, W. W. Tomek, J. Kalousek, B. Rieger, J. Svátek, J. Pekař and J. Prokeš) up until the end of the First Republic. It also considers the works of popular chroniclers, the French historian E. Denis, and school textbooks. The author shows that from the end of the 18th century to the 1930s Czech historiography presented an image of Maria Theresa as an exceptionally capable ruler whose wide-ranging reforms brought considerable progress in many different spheres of life both in Bohemia and the monarchy as a whole. From the outset, however, there was also criticism of various aspects of her policies that were perceived as inimical to the Czech nation. First there was Germanization, especially in the education system; then, from the 1860s, the centralizing tendency of administrative reforms that threatened the (albeit limited) autonomy of the Czech state and opened the door to dualism. This criticism was especially abrasive in the works of J. Kalousek, B. Rieger and J. Svátek. Some even pointed to an actively hostile attitude on the part of the empress towards the Czech Lands. As the proliferation of factual evidence consolidated the positive image of the great monarch, critical assessments became more objective, though they never disappeared altogether. It is worth noting that, with few exceptions, the positive importance of absolutist enlightenment reforms for the emergence of the modern Czech nation-state was often overlooked., Eduard Maur., and Obsahuje bibliografické odkazy
The paper examines origin and professional background of the scribes of the 18th century Bohemian manuscripts and follows the changes in the social structure of their readers, using the information from several hundred handwritten books and documents. Received data show that the number of scribes is rising immensely in the last decades of the 18th century. The most distinct growth might be observed within the number of scribes working in the rural areas. In the first half of the 18th century the most productive group of scribes are monks. In the last quarter of the century this role goes to teachers and parish priests. Their production, however, often has commercial or official character. Besides in the late period of the century strongly increases representation of craftsmen and farmers among the scribes. Also growth of the number of readers living in the countryside, especially women, might be observed. These changes seem to be the results of educational, administrative and Church reforms performed by Maria Theresa and Joseph II in the late 18th century., Dmitrij Timofejev., and Obsahuje bibliografické odkazy
The authors aimed to elucidate the circumstances surrounding the compilation of registers of souls in the diocese of Hradec Kralové, in the northeast of Bohemia, in the years 1776 and 1777. They also analysed the three extant registers as demographic sources for the study of the population of the day. The resulting data indicate that in the second half of the 18th century, the state had a considerable influence on how the registers of souls were kept and compiled in the Hradec Kralové diocese, and used them to obtain important information on the population, particularly in matters of religion. The volumes containing the registers of souls in 1776-77 represent an extremely valuable source from a demographic point of view that can be used not only to ascertain the numerical state of the population of a particular locality at the time of their compilation, but to study its age profile, social stratification and the typology of families and households., Jiří Pavlík a Radek Pokorný., and Obsahuje bibliografické odkazy
In the War of the Austrian Succession one of the major turning points was when Maria Theresa was crowned Queen of Bohemia, because this step strengthened the power of the Houseof Habsburg in Central Europe. For people who belonged to the Reformed Church in the Kingdom of Hungary, this meant that they had to live their lives under the rule of a Catholic monarch. Debrecen was the centre of the Reformed Church and the city prepared for this political situation: pastor Mihály Komáromi H. delivered a special sermon to celebrate the coronation. In this sermon he acknowledged the fact that the Habsburgs had right to the Hungarian throne and tried to use this political advantage to improve the situation of the Reformed Church. This sermon became so popular that a manuscript was made from it and it was a popular reading in the Reformed congregations of the countryside., Ádám Hegyi., and Obsahuje bibliografické odkazy
Adventus of Francis I and Maria Theresa to Florence the capital of the grand duchy of Tuscany represents an event that should not be forgotten. A reference to this ceremonial entrance of the emperor that took place on January 20, 1739 is nowadays commemorated by the Arco di Trionfo in Florence, by the relief on sarcophagus of Maria Theresa and Francois I in Imperial Crypt in Vienna as well as in the preserved written records. Based on one of the period sources (Relazione Dell’ Ingresso fatto in Firenze Dalle Altezze Reali del Serenissimo Francesco III Duca di Lorena, e di Bar, ec. ec. Granduca di Toscana, E della Serenissima Maria Teresa, Arciduchessa d’ Austria, e Granduchessa di Toscana. Il dì 20. Gennaio 1738. ab Inc.), the course of the ceremonial entrance was reconstructed. Bearing in mind its author’s intention to provide an idealized record of the event aiming to glorify the new grand duke the text was subjected to collation with hard facts of the period to obtain a more realistic view of the event., Terezie Pilarová a Magdaléna Marjaková., and Obsahuje bibliografické odkazy