The history of the country of Austria briefly: from the Celts to the Republic. History of Austria in modern times. History of Austria. new time

short information

Austria is a small country in Central Europe, but with a great past, and probably an equally interesting future. The former rulers of Austria, the Habsburgs, had a huge impact on European and world history. However, even Emperor Franz Joseph I, the famous founder of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, did not at all imagine that in a hundred years Austria would become an independent state, where more than 20 million tourists would come annually to ski in excellent ski resorts.

Geography of Austria

Austria is located in the center of Europe, in the north it borders with the Czech Republic, in the northeast with Slovakia, in the east with Hungary, in the south with Slovenia and Italy, in the west with Liechtenstein and Switzerland, and in the northwest with Germany. The total area of ​​this mountainous country is 83,858 sq. km.

The landscape of Austria can be divided into five regions: the Eastern Alps (occupy 62.8% of the country's territory), the Alpine and Carpathian foothills (11.4% of the territory), the Middle Danube Plain (11.3% of the territory), the Vienna Basin (4.4% of the territory ), and the Czech massif (10.1% of the territory). The highest Austrian mountain is the Grossglockner (3,797 meters).

Almost half of the territory of Austria is covered with forests, dominated by fir and larch.

Capital of Austria

The capital of Austria is Vienna, which now has a population of over 1.7 million. The history of Vienna begins in the 9th century AD, although the first Roman settlements appeared on this site as early as the 1st century AD.

Official language

The official language in Austria is German. However, the German language in Austria differs markedly from the German language in Germany. In addition, different regions of Austria have their own dialects of the German language.

In Southern Carinthia, where many Slovenes live, the majority of the inhabitants speak Slovene, which is recognized as the official language. There are many Croats and Hungarians living in Burgenland, and therefore Croatian and Hungarian are considered official languages ​​there.

Religion

More than 70% of Austrians belong to the Roman Catholic Church. All Austrian Catholics are obliged, by the way, to pay a church tax of 1%. In addition, many Protestants (about 5%) and Muslims (more than 4.2%) live in Austria.

State structure of Austria

According to the Constitution of 1920, Austria is a federal, parliamentary, democratic republic. Austria consists of 9 lands - Burgenland, Carinthia, Lower Austria, Upper Austria, Salzburg, Styria, Tyrol, Vorarlberg and Vienna.

The head of state is the Federal President (Bundespräsident), who is elected by direct universal suffrage.

The Federal President appoints the Federal Chancellor, who is the President of the Federal Government.

The Austrian Parliament consists of two chambers - the Federal Council (Bundesrat) and the National Council (Nationalrat).

The legislative initiative in Austria is held by the Nationalrat, although the Bundesrat has a limited veto power. The Austrian political system is significantly influenced by the Constitutional Court, which has the right to prohibit laws that do not comply with the Constitution.

Climate and weather

Considering that most of Austria is located in the Alps, it becomes clear that the alpine climate prevails here. In the east of Austria and in the valley of the Danube, the climate is temperate, continental. Winter in Austria is cold (-10 - 0 °C) with rain in the lowlands and snow in the mountains.

Rivers and lakes

The largest river in Austria is the Danube, which flows through the whole country (about 360 km) and eventually flows into the Black Sea.

There are a lot of lakes in Austria (more than 500), the largest and most beautiful of them are the Attersee in the Salzkammergut, the Wörther See, the Millstatter See, the Ossiacher See, and the Wolfgangsee (they are all found in Carinthia), as well as Lake Fuschlsee near the Salzbzurg.

History of Austria

On the territory of modern Austria, people were still in the Bronze Age. In the pre-Roman period, various tribes lived here, including the Celts. In the 1st century BC. Roman legions conquered the local Celtic tribes, and annexed this territory to their provinces of Noricum and Pannonia.

After the collapse of the Roman Empire, the territory of modern Austria was conquered by the Bavarian tribes and Avars (scientists refer to them as Slavic tribes). In 788, these territories became part of the empire of Charlemagne.

Since 1276, Austria has been in the possession of the Habsburg family, and is thus part of the Holy Roman Empire. In 1525, the Czech Republic and Croatia were annexed to the archduchy of Austria. During this period, a long and bloody confrontation between Austria and the Ottoman Empire begins. It came to the point that the Turkish army besieged Vienna twice (in 1529 and in 1683), however, without any success.

At the end of the XVII century, Hungary and Transylvania were annexed to Austria, and thus the beginning of the Austro-Hungarian Empire was laid, but this will formally happen only after a few centuries.

After the era of the Napoleonic Wars, during which the Austrians actively fought against the Emperor of France, Napoleon Bonaparte, Austria became one of the most influential states in Europe. After the defeat in the 1866 war against Prussia, in 1867 Austria and Hungary united to form the Austro-Hungarian Empire, led by the Habsburgs.

After the defeat in the First World War, the Austro-Hungarian Empire broke up into several independent states. In 1918, an independent Austrian state appeared (the monarchy was abolished in 1919).

On March 12, 1938, German troops occupied Austrian lands, and Adolf Hitler proclaimed the Anschluss (reunification) of Germany and Austria.

After the Second World War, Austrian statehood was restored only in 1955. Austria is now part of the European Union.

Culture of Austria

The culture of Austria was formed under the strong influence of its neighbors - Germans, Italians, Hungarians and Czechs. Ancient Roman monuments have been preserved on the territory of this country. In the Middle Ages, the culture of Austria was under a noticeable (and decisive) German influence. Talented national Austrian artists, writers and musicians begin to appear only in the New Age.

In the first half of the 19th century, Austrian literature was completely influenced by romanticism and national consciousness. However, these trends were also characteristic of other national literatures of that time. In the first half of the 19th century, there were many interesting Austrian writers and poets, among which Franz Grillparzer, Adalbert Stifter and Peter Rosegger should be mentioned. Apparently, thanks in large part to their work, Franz Kafka and Stefan Zweig then appeared in Austria in the first half of the 20th century.

Austrian social critic Elfriede Jelinek was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 2004.

Like literature, fine arts in Austria began to develop rapidly in the 19th century. This heyday is associated primarily with the names of Georg Waldmüller, Adalbert Stifter and Hans Makart. At the end of the 19th century, the most famous Austrian artists Gustav Klimt, Egon Schiele and Oskar Kokoschka began to work. By the way, in 2006, at the Christie's auction, Gustav Klimt's kart "Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer II" was sold for 87.9 million dollars (Gustav Klimt painted it in 1912).

However, it just so happens that Austria is most famous for its composers and musicians. Yes, Joseph Haydn, Michael Haydn, Franz Schubert, Johann Strauss Sr., Johann Strauss Jr., Gustav Mahler, Arnold Schoenberg, and Alban Berg were born on Austrian soil. In addition, Mozart worked in Vienna for a very long time. In general, many composers and musicians from other countries moved to Vienna in the 17th-18th centuries. European countries, receiving the patronage of the Habsburgs.

The Austrians are very respectful of their customs, and still organize various festivals and processions every year. The most famous creature from Austrian folklore is Krampus, who accompanies Nicholas the Wonderworker. However, Krampus is his opposite, capable of even kidnapping children.

Austrian cuisine

Austrian cuisine is considered one of the most diverse in Europe. Indeed, Germans, Hungarians, Czechs and Italians had a noticeable influence on the cuisine of Austria.

Austrians usually start their day with a light breakfast (bread with butter and jam, coffee or milk). Lunch is naturally the main meal of the day. It consists of a soup, a main dish of meat, sausage, schnitzel or fish, as well as obligatory salads. Potatoes or pasta are served as a side dish to the main course.

The Austrian dinner usually consists of light snacks, perhaps meat, cheese, or smoked fish with bread. All this is washed down with beer or wine.

The most famous Austrian dish is the "Viennese schnitzel" with potato salad with mustard, vinegar and lemon. Also, be sure to mention the “Viennese chicken”, boiled beef “Tafelspitz”, veal stew “Boischel”, “Viennese chicken”, as well as apple strudel.

In Burgenland, where many Hungarians live, goulash is a traditional dish. In Salzburg, they love freshwater fish and know how to cook excellent trout dishes.

Austria is known for its desserts and pastries. The most popular of them are the Vanillekipferl Christmas shortbread cookies made from ground almonds, flour and a few spoons of cognac, as well as the Sachertorte chocolate cake, named after its creator Franz Sacher.

The most popular drinks in Austria are wine and beer. By the way, Stiegl brand beer, which was created back in 1492, is still produced in Austria. When it comes to wines, the Austrians are great at making both white and red wine. The main Austrian wine regions are Vienna, Styria, Wachau and Burgenland.

Coffee in Austria drinks constantly. In general, coffee houses are a typical attribute of the Austrian way of life. We also recommend that tourists definitely try the local hot chocolate (“Heisse Schokolade”) in Austria.

Sights of Austria

Austria is visited by millions of tourists every year. Most of them are attracted by Austrian ski resorts, however, they should not forget about local attractions, which are very numerous in Austria. In our opinion, the Top 10 best tourist attractions in Austria are as follows.

Schönbrunn Palace in Vienna
The castle was built around the 16th century. It later became the summer palace of the emperors of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Near the palace there is now a zoo, one of the oldest in the world.

This fortress was built in 1077. Now it houses the Fortress Museum and the ancient Prince's Chambers. At one time, the Hohensalzburg fortress was considered the most fortified castle in Central Europe.

Grossglockner high road
Mount Grossglockner, whose height is 3,797 meters, is the highest peak in Austria. The Grossglockner High Alpine Road connects the Salzburg and Carinthia. Its length is 48 km. In winter (October to May) this road is closed for trips and excursions.

Basilica Mariazell
The Mariazell Basilica is located in Mariazell, Styria. It is sometimes also called the Basilica of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary. In 1983 Pope John Paul II visited the Mariazell Basilica. Pope Benedict XVI also visited here in 2007.

Giant Ferris wheel in Vienna
This Ferris wheel is located in Vienna's Prater leisure park. It was built in 1896-1897 and has recently been modernized. The maximum height of this Ferris wheel is 60 meters.

Urturm clock tower at Schlossberg Castle
This tower offers an amazing and unique view of the city of Graz (now its population is more than 350 thousand people).

Thematic exhibition Swarovski Crystal Worlds in Innsbruck
This thematic exhibition was built and opened in 1995 by the Austrian artist André Heller. Shown here are Swarovski products.

Monastery in Melk
Melk is located on a rocky hill about 100 km west of Vienna. This monastery was built by Benedictine monks in 1089. The local monastery library is famous all over the world.

Museum of Fine Arts in Vienna
This museum is located in Vienna on the Ringstrasse. The museum first received visitors back in 1891. Now it houses the works of famous artists (for example, Rembrandt and Dürer).

This baroque palace complex was built at the beginning of the 17th century as the summer residence of Prince Eugene of Savoy. Now the Belvedere also has a large collection of paintings.

Cities and resorts of Austria

There are five large cities in Austria - Vienna (population over 1.7 million people), Graz (more than 250 thousand people), Linz (about 200 thousand people), Salzburg (more than 160 thousand people) and Innsbruck (more than 120 thousand people).

Ski resorts in Austria are considered among the best in the world. Indeed, there are not only beautiful Alps, but also a well-developed skiing infrastructure. It is not for nothing that every winter the world championships in ski sports are held in Austria.

The most popular ski resorts in Austria are Bad Gastein, Sölden, Millstatt, Ischgl, Kaprun, St. Anton am Arlberg, Kitzbühel-Kirchberg, Mayrhofen and Zell am See.

Souvenirs/Shopping

In Austria, there are a large number of souvenir shops for tourists. This is not surprising, given that millions of tourists visit this country every year. We recommend that tourists bring various sweets (sweets, chocolate) and alcoholic beverages (schnapps, wine, beer) from Austria.

An interesting place to buy souvenirs is Graben Square in Vienna. Here you can buy coffee, Viennese porcelain, as well as other dishes. Perhaps someone will be interested in Swarovski products (there is a Swarovski factory in Austria).

Office Hours

In Austria, on weekdays, shops are open from 9.00 to 18.00, on Saturday - from 9.00 to 12.00 (some until 17:00), and on Sunday - a day off.

Bank opening hours:
Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday - 8.00–12.30, 13.30–15.00
Thursday - 8.00–12.30, 13.30–17.30

By the way, Austrians enter restaurants and shops with the words of greeting “Guten Tag” and “Grüss Gott”, and leave these establishments with the obligatory “Auf Wiedersehen”.

Visa

Austria is one of the countries that have signed the Schengen Agreement. Therefore, Ukrainians need to obtain a Schengen visa to visit Austria.

Currency of Austria

History of Austria

The history of Austria begins with the settlement of its Illyrian tribes. It happened about a thousand years before our era. As archaeological excavations show, the Illyrians had a developed culture. Until the 13th century, Austria developed and expanded.
From 1278 until the First World War, Austria was ruled by the Habsburg dynasty, which expanded the borders of Austria in peaceful ways: either by buying land or entering into political marriages. The result of one such political union was the birth of two sons, one of whom first became the king of Spain (Charles I), then he became Charles V and headed the Holy Roman Empire; the second son Ferdinand became the first Habsburg to lead Austria, Hungary and Bohemia.
In 1556 Charles abdicated. The territories went to his son Philip II, and Ferdinand I became emperor. Due to these changes, the Habsburg dynasty splits into Austrian and Spanish.
In 1576, Rudolph II came to the throne. In the same year, he carried out a counter-reform, which forced people to accept Catholicism. Protestant adherents in Europe expressed their disagreement with this, which led to a war in 1618, which lasted until 1648 and ended with the signing of a peace treaty.
The main problem of that century for Austria was the attacks of the Turks. Vienna was besieged and saved thanks to the united Polish german army.

Austria's heyday came during the reign of Archduchess Maria Theresa (1740-1780). During these years, centralized control was established, general education was introduced, and reforms were made in the field of the economy and the army.
After the war with Napoleon begins, where Austria is defeated (Austerlitz, 1805).
The Revolution of 1848 and defeat in the Austro-Prussian War led to the creation of the dual Austro-Hungarian Empire in 1867.
In 1914 Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia. Russia came out for Serbia, which was the beginning of the First World War.
As a result of the war, the Republic of Austria is formed, forced to recognize the independence of Czechoslovakia, Poland, Hungary and Yugoslavia, which, like Romania and Bulgaria, were under the control of the Habsburg Empire.
In 1945, during the Second World War, thanks to the help of the Allies, Austria is separated from Germany, according to the borders in 1937. American, British, French and Russian troops divided Austria into four parts and left the country only 10 years later, and then Austria declared its independence.
After the war, Austria began to restore its economy and establish ties with European states. In 1972, a free trade agreement was concluded with the European Union. In 1986, Kurt Waldheim came to power, who preferred to pursue a peaceful policy.
January 1, 1995 Austria becomes a member of the European Union.

The Alps occupy 62% of the territory of Austria. There are areas in the Central Alps that are covered with snow and ice all year round, such as the Otztal Alps in Tyrol, on the border with Italy, the Hohe Tauern in East Tyrol, and Carinthia. The most high mountain Austria - Grossglockner in Carinthia. Its height is 3797 m.

Austria is located in the Central European temperate zone, but thanks to the Alps, many climatic zones can be distinguished in the country. The weather in Austria is always very diverse. In summer, for example, you can go skiing here, and then go down to the valley and swim in the warm lake. It is impossible to predict what winter and summer will be like. Sometimes the snow at low-lying ski resorts (including Kitzbühel) melts very early, and hot summers make you think you are in Italy.

Population

Austria is one of the most sparsely populated countries in Western and Central Europe. In the Alps, the population density is only 93 people per 1 km². More than 90% of the population are ethnic Austrians, 4% are from the former Yugoslavia. Three out of four Austrians are Catholics, one out of twenty is Muslim. The population of Austria is rapidly aging - the average age in the country is 40 years.

Cities of Austria

A quarter of the total population of Austria lives in Vienna or its suburbs (2 million). In , and 220,000 inhabitants live, and in Linz - 185,000.

All cities in Austria

Economy

Austria's gross national product is one of the highest in Europe.

The main income comes from tourism, banking and the timber industry.

After the fall of the Iron Curtain, new opportunities for investment in Eastern Europe opened up.

Territory

The size of the Republic of Austria is slightly larger than the American state of Maine or Scotland. The area of ​​the country is 83,870 km³.

Sights of Austria

All sights of Austria

resort country

Austria has a huge number of resorts, located from Bad Hall in Upper Austria to the Salzkammergut, from the magnificent Gasteiner Ache valley to Solebad Hall in Tirol. People from all over the world come to Austrian resorts to improve their health and pamper themselves. Resort holidays can be combined with golf, hiking, skiing and sightseeing tours. Or with a wine tasting - Baden bei Wien, located in the Vienna Woods, is surrounded by hundreds of vineyards and dozens of wine taverns (Heurigen).

Various mineral waters - ferruginous, mineral-salt, waters from radioactive and sulfuric sources, which also contain iodine or bromine, enter Finnish saunas, steam baths (Dampfbaden) and hot pools. These waters are used for drinking and bathing, inhalations or medical wraps. The Tyrolean Treatment and Rehabilitation Center Bad Häring offers the first cold chamber in Austria, where the temperature drops to 120° below zero. The so-called cryotherapy relieves pain and improves appearance.

Austria also offers a wide range of esoteric treatments, from sea salt massages and lymphatic drainage to salt water baths accompanied by relaxing oriental music. In Bad Eisenkappel, located in the southwestern Austrian province of Carinthia, you can soak in the bubbling dark water or enjoy a chocolate wrap (cocoa butter protects the skin from wrinkles).

Baden bei Wien lies between wooded hills and extensive vineyards of the Vienna Woods. The Wienerwald and its sulfur springs were valued by the ancient Romans. Exquisite villas, well-groomed parks and promenades make this city a favorite vacation spot for politicians and artists. This town was especially popular in the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Bad Gastein, nestled among the mountains of the Salzberg Tauern, has become Austria's most famous medical resort, offering a variety of treatments. There are villas and modern hotels located above the natural amphitheater created by the foamy and turbulent river Gasteiner Ache. The mountain sun and the cleanest air enhance the effect of radioactive thermal waters.

Some Austrian spas offer special treatments for children and even babies. At the Sonnentherme Lutzmannsburg (www.sonnentherme.at) is the longest waterslide in Europe. There is also " children's World and a children's steam room. Thermae Oberlaa (www.oberlaa.at) children are also accepted in the center of Vienna. There are special especially clean children's pools, babysitting services are offered.

Burgenland

www.thermenwelt.at

Gastein Valley

www.badgastein.at
www.badhofgastein.at
www.hoteldorf.com

Lower Austria

www.baden-bei-wien.at/english.htm

Salzkammergut

www.thermenhotei-badischl.at

Styria

www.thermeniand.at

Story

44-49 million years ago The Alps rose from the bottom of the vast Tethys Sea.

30,000 years ago Stone Age people settled in the Tischoferhöhle cave near the Kaiser Mountains in Tyrol.

2000-700 BC e. The Celts give the Alps their name (in the Celtic language, the word "alp" means "mountain" or "elevated place").

15 BC-500 AD The Romans take over Austria. The Roman provinces of Noricum and Rezia appear.

550 AD After the fall of the Roman Empire, the Germanic tribes of the Bavarians (Bavarians) and the Alemanni invade Austria.

1273 An Austrian nobleman from the Habsburg family becomes Holy Roman Emperor.

493 Maximilian I - Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire. Innsbruck becomes the center of a European empire.

1519 Maximilian's grandson, Charles V (r. 1519-1556), rules Austria, Germany, the Netherlands, part of Italy, Spain and part of the New World.

1529 The Turks besiege Vienna. The beginning of a two-century conflict. Austria conquers Hungary.

1556 Charles V retires to a monastery and divides his kingdom between his son (King Philip II of Spain) and brother (Ferdinand I of Austria).

1683 The Turks besiege and almost capture Vienna. Their pressure can be repelled. In the same year, the first Viennese coffee house opened.

1805 Napoleon defeats the Austrian army at Austerlitz and forces Holy Roman Emperor Franz II to renounce the imperial crown. Napoleon marries the daughter of Francis II, Marie Louise.

1815 Congress of Vienna.

1816 Salzburg becomes part of Austria.

1866 Prussia defeats the Austrian army. Austria loses influence on the development of the German states.

1914 Austria fires the first shot of the First World War. The reason for the war was the assassination of the heir to the throne of the Habsburgs

1919 After the defeat in the First World War, the Austro-Hungarian Empire was divided into separate democratic states. Austria becomes a small landlocked country.

1921 Adolf Gitler (1889-1945) , an Austrian by origin, creates the German National Socialist Workers' Party (members of this party later became known as Nazis).

1938-1945 German troops invaded Austria on March 11, 1938 without meeting any resistance. Austria became part of the German Reich after the Anschluss (annexations) held on 13 March. From 1939 to 1945, the Austrians served in German army. Not only Hitler, but also other Austrians, including Ernst Kaltenbrunner, played a prominent role in the Holocaust. In Lower Austria, the Mauthausen and Gusen concentration camps were organized, which were considered the most sinister in the Third Reich.

1945-1955 After the liberation of Austria, its territory was temporarily occupied by the troops of the USSR, the USA, Great Britain and France. After their departure, Austria remains one of the poorest countries in Europe. But in just a generation, Austria has managed to become one of the ten richest countries in the world.

1964 and 1976 Twice in 12 years Innsbruck hosts winter Olympic Games.

1987 The United States is putting the name of Austrian President Kurt Waldheim on a wanted list of "subversives, terrorists and criminals." The explanation for this is the Nazi past of Waldheim.

1995 Austria is part of the European Union.

2000 The right-wing Freedom Party wins seats in the Austrian parliament. This party campaigned under the slogan "Uberfremdung" ("Too many foreigners"). One of the reasons for its success is disillusionment with the ruling political parties, corroded by corruption.

2004 Left politician Heinz Fischer becomes President of the Republic of Austria. Austrian-born Arnold Schwarzenegger is elected Governor of California.

2006 Austria celebrates 250 years since the birth of Mozart. The country is literally covered by “mozartomania”.

Politics

AT early XXI f. The Republic of Austria is a stable federal republic with a constitution based on the principles of representative democracy and the rule of law. Despite its small size, Austria's federal structure is similar to that of Germany or the United States. Austria is divided into 9 federal states, including the capital of the country equated to them. These are Vienna, Upper Austria, Burgenland, Lower Austria, Styria, Carinthia, Salzburg, Tyrol and Vorarlberg.

Today Austria is a small but prosperous state, the heir to the Austro-Hungarian Empire, which ceased to exist in 1918. Efforts to form a stable democracy between the two world wars completely failed. In 1938 the country adopted National Socialist totalitarianism. After the defeat of National Socialism in 1945, Austria gradually, step by step, began to move towards democracy.

In 1948, the Iron Curtain was erected, and Vienna became a refuge for those who fled after the suppression of the Hungarian revolution of 1956, the Prague Spring of 1968, for Jews who left the Soviet Union. In the summer of 1989, Austrian Foreign Minister Alois Mock and his communist Hungarian colleague Gyula Horn worked together to cut the barbed wire at the border post separating Western from Eastern Europe. This act was not only symbolic: 700 East Germans crossed over to the West and were not shot dead. After the fall of the Iron Curtain, tens of thousands of East Germans left the country, the Berlin Wall collapsed, ending the Cold War.

In 1995 Austria joined the European Union. The federal government has transferred part of its powers to supranational institutions of power. However, Austria's relations with the European Union deteriorated markedly after the right-wing Freedom Party formed a coalition government in 2000. The leader of the party, Jörg Haider, the son of a Nazi, repeatedly stressed " the good side» Nazi regime. He entered the elections with the slogan "Austria for the Austrians", which is very attractive to people who are disillusioned with the country's two main political parties, corroded by corruption. Other EU members responded to this choice with diplomatic sanctions. However, Austria's relations with other states have normalized after a report was compiled by an independent commission, which stated that cases of violence against refugees and other foreigners "are much less common in Austria than in many other EU countries." Two years later, the Freedom Party has failed to achieve such electoral success.

In 2006, the Greens performed well, winning 21 seats in parliament. Environmental issues during the elections were discussed very actively. The result of the elections confirmed the importance of solving the environmental problems of the Republic of Austria. Today, Austria receives 20% of its energy from renewable sources.

culture

Culture plays a huge role in the life of Austria. Emperors, kings, princes, prince-bishops and dukes in power have created and collected the greatest cultural heritage countries. Even small towns sometimes amaze tourists with exquisite art collections. Post-war prosperity and significant cultural subsidies keep this wonderful tradition going.

origins

Despite the fact that the Romans controlled Austria for five centuries, there are practically no significant Roman ruins left in the country. Of interest are only Karnunt (just below Vienna along the Danube), Theurnia (Carinthia) and Agunt (near Linz, in East Tyrol). The construction boom, which left a mark on the life of the country, began in the 10th century. from the construction of vaulted churches and monasteries, similar to Melk. The large gates of St. Stephen's Cathedral belong to the same period. (Stefansdom) in Vienna.

Gothic and Renaissance

The late Gothic style in Austria is characterized by hall churches (Hallenkirchen). The nave and side aisles are of the same height and are separated only by columns. Examples of such churches are the Augustinian Church and St. Stephen's Cathedral in Vienna. In general, late Gothic architecture remained rather gloomy. In Austria, you will not find examples of the flaming Gothic, which France is so rich in. But Gothic painting and sculpture underwent major changes. The suffering of Christ was portrayed very humanly - remember at least the magnificent altarpiece by Michael Pacher in the church of St. Wolfgang.

The influence of the Renaissance in Austria was felt weakly. Salzburg was a rare exception. The prince-archbishop was trying to build a "new Rome" at the foot of the Alps. The most significant examples of Renaissance sculpture are the statues surrounding the tomb of Maximilian I in Innsbruck.

Baroque and Rococo

The Baroque style originated in the middle of the 17th century. and immediately eclipsed everything that existed before him. A building boom began in Austria. Interior decorators received many orders. Any community that had money invested it in rebuilding Gothic and Romanesque churches in the Baroque style. The Baroque style is characterized by passion, sensuality and theatricality. Mirrors were widely used in Baroque palaces, creating the illusion of infinity. College Church in Salzburg, built by Johann Bernhard Fischer von Erlach (1656-1723) , has become the quintessence of a new style. In the Rococo style, the decorations inherent in the Baroque reached their highest flowering. Buildings and interiors were now decorated with garlands, medallions and floral motifs. In Austria, Rococo was called "Maria Theresa Baroque".

Neoclassicism and Art Nouveau

After the fading of the Rococo era, the pendulum swung in the opposite direction. The lush, decorative style was replaced by strict neoclassicism, which was based on columns and porticos. In 1887, a group of Viennese artists, led by Gustav Klimt, left the conservative Academy of Fine Arts to create a completely new art movement, called Jugendstil. The basis of the new movement was the smooth, fluid motifs of Art Nouveau and the more geometric English Arts and Crafts Movement. The Vienna Secession Association of Artists held its first exhibition in 1898. In the same year, the construction of the new Secession building was completed. This building is considered the first example of 20th century architecture in Europe.

Festivals and holidays

The Austrian calendar is full of local holidays and festivals. Patriotic and religious. Very often, the program of the holiday includes a procession, the participants of which put on folk costumes. And holidays are always accompanied by delicious food and plentiful libations. Some local festivals are Christian in nature, but it is clear that they are rooted in pagan traditions.

January February

(fasching) begins in January, but its main events fall on the week before Lent, that is, in February. Costumed parades, fireworks, fairs, performances by street performers are held throughout the country. The carnival in Vienna is especially stormy. "Ghost Processions" take place in Imst (Schemenlaufen - every four years), Telfse (Schleicherlaufen - every five years) and Nasseray (Schelleriaufen - every three years).

March, April

Processions on Palm Sunday.

May June

On May 1-2, the Gauderfest beer festival is held in the Tyrolean city of Zell am Ziller (Gauderfest). Men in traditional leather pants compete in finger wrestling (this is an indispensable attribute of beer festivals), as well as who drinks more beer or sniffs out tobacco.

July August

Police holidays in Tyrol (Schiitzen) and firefighters (Feuerwehrfeste).

September October

In autumn, a festival is held in honor of the return of livestock from alpine pastures. (Viehscheid or Almabtrieb). Such holidays are held throughout the country, but they are especially bright in Pfunds and St. Johann in Tyrol.

Wine festivals are held in the villages located in the Danube Valley, Styria and Burgenland.

November December

(Christkindlmarkt) open all over the country during Advent. Markets are most often held in front of cathedrals. In the evenings, local choirs and brass bands perform Christmas carols. In the markets you can buy Christmas decorations made of wood and straw or woolen products. Join the locals who, ignoring the cold, crowd around eating sausages (Bratwurst) or potato pancakes (Reiberdatschi) washing them down with mulled wine (Gliihwein)- hot wine with spices and (optional) rum.

In most churches, concerts are held on the eve of Christmas and after the holiday.

In many villages and cities, nativity scenes are shown and nativity scenes are played (Krippen).

Saint Martin's Day. Children with paper lanterns and candles enter houses and sing songs, receiving candy for it (a tradition reminiscent of American Halloween). The holiday ends with a traditional roast goose meal.

Public holidays

The date changes every year - the Ascension of the Lord

May June (date changes annually)- Spirits day

June (date changes annually)- Feast of Corpus Christi

October 26 - National holiday of the Republic of Austria, the anniversary of the signing of the declaration of neutrality

Weekend itineraries

Burgenland. Take a look at Eisenstadt, the capital of the federal state of Burgenland. Start your tour of the city with Esterhazy Castle. The Haydn House has been turned into a museum open to the public. The great composer is buried in the Bergkirche (mountain church) located outside the city. Stop at the quarries of St. Margaret, where you can see artists from around the world at work. In the summer, go to a performance of The Passion of the Lord. Admire the Renaissance and Baroque houses in Rust, where storks settled on the roofs. In the small town of Neusiedl, stroll along the promenade of the lake of the same name.

Explore the Altstadt (Old city), literally stuffed with churches, palaces, museums, fountains and shops. Take the funicular up to the Salzburg Fortress. Explore the local museum and attend a concert in the Golden Hall. Experience Austrian respect for death at St. Peter's Cemetery, one of the oldest and most beautiful cemeteries in the world.

Walks for two days

Danube. Travel from Vienna to Salzburg along the Danube Valley. Cruise from Krems to Melk and bike back on Europe's most popular cycling trail through beautiful valleys, wine-producing villages and majestic monasteries.

Grossglockner. A trip along this high Alpine road can be combined with a trip along the Felbertauernstraße (B108)- and you will get a great circular route. This road passes through the Hohe Tauern National Park and is surrounded by classic mountain landscapes. From here, magnificent views of the harsh Dolomites open up. This route will allow you to get acquainted with the mountain world of East Tyrol.

Cruise through the Oetztal and neighboring valleys. Take a break from the car and re-experience the mighty forces of nature that created this beauty at the end of the last ice age. Visit the Stubai waterfall, the highest in Tyrol, take a look at the tiny mountain village of Rofenhof (2014 m), - the highest mountain village in Austria, whose inhabitants do not leave their homes all year round.

Travel along the Ringstrasse, a magnificent boulevard ring around the historic center of Vienna. Leave the whole day for museums and the Hofburg (Imperial Palace). Dedicate half a day to Schönbrunn. Spend an evening at the Opera and the next at the MuseumsQuartier, where DJs throw parties in courtyards surrounded by contemporary art.

Excursions for a week

The Kitzbühel and Ziller valleys, the Krimml waterfall. Combine your exploration of the Kitzbühel and Ziller valleys with a tour of the federal state of Salzburg. Visit the foot of the highest waterfall in Europe - Krimml. Ride the cable car in Zell am See or take the Penkenbahn gondola from Mayrhofen to the Zillertal Alps. Be sure to use the toll mountain road to get to Hirschbichlalm. Get away from the ubiquitous tourists in the highland Wildschenau valley in the heart of Kitzbühel.

Innsbruck and the Lower Inn Valley. Visit Innsbruck, Kufstein Castle, Rattenberg, the historic center of Hall and the open-air museum in Kramsach. Take the old-fashioned train up to the Achensee. Walk along the picturesque Wolfsklamm Gorge, which will lead you to the monastery of St. Georgenberg. Take a look at the Alpbach valley, where the most beautiful, according to the Austrians themselves, alpine village of the country is located.

Salzkammer lakes. Visit Salzburg and then cruise around turquoise lakes and historic villages like Hallstatt. Spend a couple of days in a small historic town - Gmunden or Bad Ischl. If possible, use alternative modes of transport - 19th century ferries, vintage trains and dizzying cable cars that will take you to the Alpine peaks.

When to go

If you are not going to ski, then the best time to travel to Austria is late spring and early autumn. May, September and the first half of October are the driest months of the year. The weather is wonderful, there are few tourists, it is very easy to find a place in a hotel. In autumn, wine festivals and harvest festivals are held throughout the country. April and November receive the most rainfall. The amount of rain depends on the altitude. In some areas of the Alps, the average rainfall exceeds 200 cm per year, while in the plains around Lake Neusiedl it is only 60 cm.

Summer time is ideal for climbers. Daylight hours at this time are very long. (light until 21.00). This time of year is a good time to explore the remote mountains of the Hohe Tauern. (the largest in Central Europe) and admire (or storm her) Austria's highest mountain, the Grossglockern. Of course, you have to be careful at high altitudes.

Thunderstorms are frequent here from June to August, and even snow storms occur above 2000 m. Summer is the peak tourist season in Salzburg and Vienna, but the opera houses are closed during this time and you won't get to hear the Vienna Boys' Choir or see the Spanish Riding School in Vienna. On the roads of the Salzkammergut (Lake District) traffic jams occur. In some cities it is difficult to find a place to park.

In winter, most tourists come to Austria to ski. In normal years, snow lies in the valleys from December to March, and in the mountains from November to May. In most areas above 2500 m, the snow does not melt at all. Naturally, sightseeing at this time is associated with certain inconveniences. The days are short, the parks are empty, the fountains don't work. Museums close earlier and some attractions, such as castles and caves, are closed altogether. However, in another respect, winter is the perfect time to visit Salzburg and Vienna. There are almost no tourists, the opera and concert seasons are in full swing. Both cities are very beautiful under the snow, especially on Christmas and New Year's Eve.

Transport

Public transport

Vienna is divided into 23 districts, which are called Bezirke. The public transport system in the Austrian capital is considered one of the best in Europe. The city has trains, trams and buses. S-Bahn is a high-speed underground train; U-Bahn - metro, and Strassen-bahnen - trams. For convenience, it's a good idea to purchase Tageskarte (day pass) or Wochenkarte (week pass). These tickets give the right to use any public transport. Night buses run from 0.30 to 5.00, when the trains and metro are not working. The same ticket is valid for tram, bus and metro. It is often more convenient to leave your car in a parking lot and use public transport for sightseeing in large cities. There are combined tickets in Innsbruck, Salzburg and Vienna, which can be bought at the tourist offices. (valid 1-3 days). They give the right to unlimited use of urban public transport, free or discounted visits to museums and other attractions.

Austria has an excellent railway system. For timetables, visit www.oebb.at or call the central information desk (tel.: 05-17-17). At most stations, you can always order a timetable and print it out for yourself. At some local stations, you can rent a bike and combine a train journey with a bike ride.

The Eurails "Austria Pass" is the best way to travel for tourists from North America who only intend to visit Austria. To visit neighboring countries it is better to purchase Eurail Selectpass, which allows you to travel 15 days within two months in three, four or five neighboring countries. If you want to take a grand tour of Europe, buy a Eurailpass valid in 18 countries. To learn about all the possibilities, take a look at www. raileurope.com (tel.: 888-382-72-45).

Automobile

On autobahns, the speed limit is 130 km/h, on class B roads - 100 km/h, and in cities - 50 km/h. Compliance with speed limits is strictly monitored, and very tangible fines are charged for violation. Austria has very strict blood alcohol limits. Only 0.5 mg of alcohol per 1 ml of blood is allowed (in the UK, for example, this figure is 0.8 mg). Seat belts must be fastened in both the front and rear seats. Be sure to also turn on the headlights at any time of the day. On autobahns, you must have a tax sticker. Such stickers are sold at border gas stations in neighboring countries, at car rental agencies and at OAMTS offices. (Osterreichischer Automobil, Motorrad und Touring Club). At the entrance to the high Alpine roads you will also have to pay. Toll roads are through the Brenner and Gerlos passes, the Felbertauernstrasse and Grossglockner roads.

River transport

Cruises on the Danube are arranged from the beginning of April to the end of December (Donau Schiff Wurm & Kock, www.donauschiffahrt.de). A boat is the best way to get to know the thousand Austrian lakes. On large lakes (Achensee, Bodensee, Wolfgangsee and Attersee) ferries operate. Some of them were built in the 19th century.

Accommodation

The Austrian authorities assign categories to hotels and guesthouses based on the strictest criteria and regular checks. However, the classification does not determine the category of the hotel. With the exception of luxury, the standards in all the rest are almost the same. Most of the rooms are absolutely clean and comfortable. Service in hotels is always good, and often cordial. The room charge includes all taxes and duties, and, with rare exceptions, breakfast. Prices are often quoted pro person (per person, pay attention to the abbreviation pp), so you should specify the price of a double room.

Gasthof is something like an inn or boarding house. These hotels are often family run. Guests are served by the owner himself and members of his family. Many of these hotels have a Gasthaus, Gaststcitte or Weinslube where you can drink local beer or wine and sample local cuisine. TVs and telephones are not always available in the rooms, but in most of these hotels the rooms are always equipped with bathrooms. Small guesthouses may not have a restaurant (but breakfast is still served), and the most inexpensive rooms are equipped only with a washbasin, and the rest of the amenities are located in the corridor.

Private houses

Private houses and farms are quite a comfortable and inexpensive way to stay in Austria. But to find such accommodation, you have to overcome the language barrier. Hosts register with the local tourist office and the office staff will be happy to reserve a spot for you. Where rooms are rented, you will see "Frem-denzimmer" or "Zimmer Frei" signs. Rooms in private houses are clean, as a rule, they have a bathroom and a toilet. In most houses, rooms are rented for at least three nights, with an additional charge for shorter stays. A room for the weekend on a bed and breakfast basis can be reserved through the website www.privatvermieter.at.

Farm Weekend

If you are ready to spend three nights in one place, you can arrange a weekend at the farm. This is a great way to get to know the locals and their way of life. Information can be obtained from the Urlaub am Bauernhof (Brixnerstrasse, 7, A-6020 Innsbruck. Tel.: 0512-56-18-82. Fax: 0512-56-73-67).

Camping

Austria has a huge number of campsites. Camping outside the campsite is prohibited. Information available from the Osterreichischer Camping-Club (OCC) (Schubertring, 1-13, 1010 Vienna. Tel: 01-711-99-27-51. Fax: 01-71-99-27-54. www.campingclub.at).

Hostels

Austrian hostels (Jugendherberge) accept people of all ages. Many hostels have several double or family rooms, but these need to be reserved in advance, (www.oejhv.or.at).

Room rates

During festivals, trade fairs and during the peak ski season, accommodation prices almost double, and it's hard to find a room. On the other hand, in cities on weekends and during the low season, prices are reduced. This decline is especially noticeable in the Alps.

Food and drink

Austria is not a place for those who go on a peiuwi diet. More than 300 pork and sausage dishes are cooked in Tyrol. Due to imperial history, Austrian cuisine includes national dishes from different territories - whether it is Hungarian goulash or Italian ravioli (Schlutzkrapfen). Wiener schnitzel is just one of three dozen varieties of breaded veal cutlets. And coffee in Austria is prepared in 40 different ways. Thirst is best quenched with wonderful Griiner Veltiner Riesling or dessert wines. And Austrian beer is not inferior to wines in quality.

Food

Many Austrian hotels serve breakfast, which will keep you full until the evening. A typical breakfast consists of coffee or tea, fruit juices, sliced ​​cooked and smoked hams, liverwurst, cheeses, hard-boiled eggs, yoghurts, jams, and several types of bread. Gabelfriihstuck is a hot snack served around noon. As a rule, these are sausages or sausages. The main meal of the day is lunch. Jause is a sort of afternoon snack, serving cakes, sandwiches and coffee. In the evening, Austrians most often dine at home. A typical dinner is quite modest and usually consists of sandwiches.

The main dish of Austrian cuisine is dumplings, Knodel. They are made from potatoes, stale bread (Semmelknodel) or with liver (Leberknodel). Dumplings are often served in a clear broth, such as Markknodelsuppe, which is made from bone marrow. Spatzle (Nockern in Tyrolean)- These are thin dumplings resembling noodles. Germknodel - steamed dumplings topped with vanilla or sweet fruit sauce. Tafelspitz is a beef stew served with horseradish. Hirsch and Wildschwein (venison and wild boar meat) most often served on the table in autumn and winter. Such meat is stewed or cooked with wild mushrooms. On Saint Martin's Day (In November) and at Christmas the Austrians bake goose with herbs, apples and red cabbage. Wiener Schnitzel is a veal cutlet (kalb) or pork (Schwein), rolled in a mixture of milk and eggs, breaded and poached in a pan. If there is a purely national dish in Tyrolean cuisine, it is Tiroler Grostl - a kind of peasant stew of pork, veal and / or beef, onions, marjoram and potatoes.

Portions in Austria are reminiscent of medieval feasts. Think twice before choosing the Tagesmenu three-course meal (starter, main course and dessert). Fish is the only exception to the very greasy Austrian cuisine. In cafes and restaurants you can order fresh trout, carp or pike. Fish is prepared in two ways: either boiled (blau), or slightly poached and breaded (Mullerin). Sausages and sausages are offered as fast food in Austria. They are sold on street stalls, served in pubs and eateries. There are a lot of sausages and sausages in Austria. Weisswurst is made from veal and served with sweet mustard. Blutwurst - black pudding. Bratwurst are pork sausages that are grilled or pan fried and served with bread and medium spicy mustard. Naturally, such dishes will not please vegetarians, but there is something for them in Austria. The menu is always full of huge fresh salads (ask for a salad without Speck - no bacon). Many dishes are prepared with mountain cheeses - for example Ktisespatzle (noodles with melted cheese and caramelized onions). Austrian bread is a gourmet's delight. Even in the most ordinary church bakery you will be offered a dozen varieties - from simple rolls to loaves of wholemeal flour of three to six varieties.

There are many gourmet restaurants in Austria, where national, traditional dishes, and the highest achievements of international culinary. Neue Kuche, for example, is the Teutonic answer to French nouvelle cuisine. Eateries Gaststatte, Brduhaus, Weinstube are not restaurants. It serves purely national dishes - Gutbiirgerliche Kuche. In them, just like in cafes or bars, you can just drink and eat nothing. It is enough to order only beer or coffee. In Gaststatte, people are often seated at common tables if all the individual ones are already occupied. Observing the rules of etiquette, first ask if you can sit down. Foreigners often break taboos by sitting at tables with Stammtisch signs. This should not be done, as such tables are intended for regulars, and other visitors are not allowed to sit at them. Austrian cafes fall into two categories: sophisticated, trendy places decorated in ultra-modern style, and elegant, pre-war coffee houses, Kaffeehaus, where Austrians come to drink coffee and cakes - Kaffee und Kuchen. At some butcher shops and bakeries there are “standing cafes” - Steh-cafe, where you can have a bite to eat at high tables without sitting down. hastily. Imbiss is another place for a light snack. Here they eat either standing or sitting at plastic tables.

Beverages

Austria's main hot drink is coffee. Drinking coffee at the Kaffeehaus or Cafe Konditorei is an old tradition, a great opportunity to chat with friends or read a newspaper taken from a wooden shelf. Coffee in Austria is prepared in a variety of ways: a large espresso with the addition of milk or cream (ein grosser Brauner), coffee with milk (melange), small, very strong espresso (Ein kleiner Mokka). Coffee is often served with dessert or sweets - strudel or the famous decadent Sacher chocolate cake. (Sachertorte). Tea is most often in the form of ordinary boiling water with a tea bag on a saucer. tap water (Leitungwasser) you can drink almost everywhere. Water in Vienna comes from the mountains. Yet many Austrians prefer bottled water. Beer is the most traditional Austrian drink. During the spring Gauderfest in Tyrol, beer flows like water, just like during the famous Oktoberfest in Munich. Pilsner is the most popular, but there are many other varieties in different shades. (Hell means "amber", Dunkel means "dark brown") and fortresses - be careful with beer, in the name of which there will be a suffix "-ator". Weienbier or Weissbier (wheat beer) especially popular in summer. Such beer is often served with a slice of lemon. Radler is a refreshing blend of beer and lemonade.

The main wine regions of Austria are Burgenland, Wachau and Styria. The number of white wines significantly exceeds the number of red ones, which is explained by the relatively northern location of Austria. Cheap Austrian wines are labeled as Tafelwein or Landwein. Qualitcitswein is the next level, followed by Pradikatswein and Qualitcitswein Kabinett. The Spatlese and Auslese brands are made from grapes harvested much later, resulting in a naturally sweet wine with a unique aroma. Traditional restaurants in wine regions usually serve local Offene Weine wines. (glasses and decanters). People sharing a meal are not at all obliged to order a decanter of the same wine. They can order wines of their choice by the glass: achtel (0.125 l) or viertele (about 0.25 l). This wine is served in a large glass or small decanter. In autumn they drink young, freshly made wine. (Sturm), and in the summer it's time for Schdrle - wine mixed with mineral water or soda.

Entertainment

Entertainment in Vienna is not limited to symphony concerts and balls. If you feel like waltzing, remember that the season in Vienna runs from December to March. But club life in Vienna is in full swing all year round. There are many bars that are open until late, and even until the morning. There are also many bars, clubs and discos in Salzburg and Innsbruck. In the major ski resorts, the nightlife is in full swing. There is entertainment for every taste - from discos to folklore concerts.

Staatsoper and Volksoper are the two main opera houses in Vienna. Performances are held here every day, with the exception of July and August. The Vienna Boys' Choir can be heard every Sunday and also on religious holidays (January 1 - end of June; mid-September - December 31). Tickets for cheap standing places are most often sold shortly before the start of the performance. In the theatre, you can put a sweater or scarf on the balcony railing to “reserve” your seat and then go down to the buffet. The Spanish Riding School gives performances on Sundays (beginning of March - end of June; September - end of October).

In the coffee houses of Vienna and Salzburg, bitter disputes are still going on today - just like in the days when Trotsky and Freud took part in them. Another Viennese tradition - balls - is still alive today. From December 31 until Ash Wednesday, Vienna is a huge ballroom. Viennese balls are given for every taste - from the famous ball at the Opera to the Ball of Bad Taste. In order not to disgrace yourself, you can sign up for short-term courses where you will be taught the basics of the waltz.

The so-called Bermuda Triangle (Bermuda Dreieck) (south of the Danube Canal, near the Church of St. Ruprecht) full of bars and clubs. Some of these venues have live music. Most of the bars are open until 4 o'clock or even until the morning, and on weekends the bars don't close at all. Volksgarten is located on the territory of the palace park. There are several concert venues, a garden bar and a dance floor open to all winds.

In the homeland of Mozart, in Salzburg, music festivals are held almost every month. The festivities culminate in a five-week grand festival of opera, theatre, church music, folk music, symphony concerts and performances by the Austrian Marionette Theatre. (end of July to end of August). The best way get acquainted with the atmosphere of the Hohensalzburg fortress - go to one of the almost every evening chamber music concerts (www.mozartfestival.at). Concerts are held in the Golden Hall or in the Prince's Chambers, a wood-paneled room built in 1500. Salzburg hosts many jazz and rock music concerts. The schedule of concerts, performances, music festivals and other events can be found on the website www.salzburginfo.at.

In Innsbruck, classical music concerts are held in the summer at Ambras Palace, and medieval brass bands perform on the Golden Roof balcony. "Tyrolean Evenings" are concerts of folk dances, yodels and wind music. The opera and ballet season at the Landestheater lasts all year round.

Fun after skiing

After a long, busy day on the slopes, skiers from all over the world fill the bars and clubs of the many Austrian Alpine resorts. Many towns and villages turn into a miniature globe for two months. A large number of clubs, bars, restaurants and eateries operate everywhere. In Mayrhofen or Kitzbühel, entertainment for all tastes awaits you. In numerous alehouses one can sing in chorus; Germans and residents of other German-speaking countries like to come here. There are traditional English pubs, jazz clubs, clubs where blues or techno are performed at the resorts.

Casino

Entrance to the casino is free, but at the entrance you need to present an identity card. Although you can't confuse Vienna with Las Vegas, it is here that two of the largest poker rooms in Europe are located - the Concord Card Casino and Poker World. For more traditional entertainment, take the train to the spa town of Baden bei Wien (Baden-bei-Wien). "Baden Casino" (www.casinos.at) is located in a restored palace, richly decorated with frescoes, gilding and crystal. There are fountains in the garden. The casino has an excellent restaurant.

Purchases

Austrians and visitors to the country love to shop. The pedestrian Karntnerstrasse in Vienna is crowded even on days when the temperature drops below zero. Locals can't deny themselves the pleasure of walking past the luxurious storefronts and admiring the goods offered by the numerous department stores and boutiques.

The most popular Austrian souvenirs are embroidery, knitwear, traditional coats and jackets, Tyrolean hats, dresses (Dirndls), quilts, hand-painted porcelain, woodcarving, dolls, woolen and leather products, crystal.

Art lovers will be delighted to look into the magnificent antique shops and frequently held auctions. Dorotheum, the famous Vienna auction house, operating since 1707, is the largest in Central Europe.

Local markets sell handicrafts and the freshest picnic products right on the street. Check out the flea markets on Saturdays. Here you can find the most unusual gifts for relatives and friends.

Christmas markets are an old tradition in Austria. They work in most cities. Christmas markets sell handmade Christmas decorations, mountain cheese (Bergkcise), candles (Kerzen), carved wooden figurines on religious themes (Schnitzfiguren), strong alcohol (Obstbrand, Schnaps), crystal (Crystal glass), smoked ham (Schinkenspeck) and jewelry made of semi-precious stones (Halbedelsteinen).

Folk costumes (trachten) are not cheap and are never sold in souvenir shops. There you can buy only cheap fakes from China or Korea. If you want to buy a real Tyrolean hat, shawl (Schultertuch), dress (Dirndl) or leather pants (Lederhosen), go to a local tailor.

The cost of most goods and services includes value added tax. Theoretically, guests from non-EU countries can get this tax back if their purchases in one store exceed 75 euros. In practice, obtaining this compensation is quite difficult. Pay attention to the signs "Tax-Free Shopping" in the shop windows and ask the sellers to complete the necessary documents. Before leaving Austria, you will be stamped at customs, and then you can receive money at a special cash desk at the airport or at the border point. It is impossible to receive a refund without properly completed documents. You may also be asked to show purchased items that are tax refundable.

Sports and recreation

Austria is one of the most sporting countries in the world. With alpine slopes, you can easily find places in Austria to ski, golf and swim on the same day. Local guides and tour companies will help you climb or jump from a mountain, raft down one of the many mountain streams or simply fly like a bird.

Air sports

In Austria, you can practice a wide variety of air sports - from gliding and paragliding to hot air ballooning. Created here Better conditions for balloon flights over the Alps, the Alpine lakes of the Salzkammergut and the steppes in the vicinity of Lake Neusiedl. Conditions for paragliding are also first class. If the wind allows, an experienced paraglider can fly from one mountain to another.

Cycling

Bicycling is very popular in the Inna and Danube valleys. Austria has many scenic mountain bike trails. There are excellent trails in the Hohe Tauern National Park and in the Tyrolean Alps.

Golf

Most of Austria's 150 golf courses have been built in the last 15 years. Golfclub Zell am See is located at the foot of the 3,000-meter Kitzsteinhorn. Mondsee Golf Club is located on the shores of the lake of the same name at the foot of the Drachenwand. "Gold Egg" - an 18-hole course - spread between dairy farms.

Mountaineering and hiking

In Austria, mountaineering and hiking are as popular as skiing. The program of long hikes often includes overnight stays in mountain huts. Thousands of kilometers of flat and mountain trails are clearly marked. You will always find a detailed map of any area. In Tyrol, the trails on the maps are shown in different colors depending on their difficulty. Ski slopes are marked in the same way. blue color the easiest are shown, trails of moderate difficulty are shown in red, and those where climbing skills may be required are in black.

Very often, the best way to start a hike is by climbing the cable car. Many dangers await tourists in the mountains - from sunburn (they are especially dangerous in the snow) and mountain sickness (first symptoms headache, nausea and dizziness) before hypothermia (decrease in body temperature). Ticks are found in mountain forests. If you notice a tick on the body, do not pull it out, but lubricate it with oil or sprinkle with salt. The insect will fall off on its own. You can swim in the Alpine rivers, but it is not always safe to drink water from them. Boil this water for ten minutes or use Potable Aqua iodine tablets.

Austria is a paradise for skiers. There are slopes for every taste - from the simplest to the most difficult. Some high mountain glaciers can be skied all year round. (e.g. on the Stubai Glacier in Tyrol). When planning a vacation, find out everything in advance. In lesser-known resorts, vacations can cost you half as much as in those that are internationally famous and popular. Winter activities include ice skating, horse-drawn sleigh rides and local curling.

Water sports

Water sports include swimming, scuba diving, sailing, surfing, water skiing and rowing.

Most of the rivers and lakes are clean enough to swim in. In such places, swimming is free, but entry to many lake beaches is paid. At the lake resorts you can rent a rowing, sailing or motor boat. On the mountain rivers in the Alps, you can go rafting. Isel and Drau in East Tyrol and Lammer and Salzach in the federal state of Salzburg are particularly suitable for this purpose. Fishing permits can be obtained through the local tourist office.

Osterreichischer Alpenverein (Austrian Alpine Club).
www.bergsteigen.at

hiking

www.wanderdoerfer.at

www.europasportregion.info

Water sports

Alpinschule Club Monte, Salzburg.
www.montee.com

Oesterreichischer Kanuverband.
www.kanuverband.at

Osttirol Adventures (canoes and kayaks).
www.osttiroi-adventures.at

www.fischwasser.com

www.radtouren.at

Golf

Gold Egg.
www.seehof-goldegg.com

Mondsee Golf Club
www.goifclubmondsee.at

Osterreichischer Golf-Verband (Austrian Golf Club)
www.golf.at

Zell am See Golf Club at Kaprun.
www.europasportregion.at/golfclub

Hot air balloons and paragliding

OAEC, Osterreichischer Aero-Club (Austrian flying club).
www.aerociub.at

Children

Austria is able to inspire any child. Take a river ride along the Danube, admire the wonderful dancing horses, listen to the Vienna Boys Choir, taste the legendary chocolate cake - your child will not be bored. Austria has excellent conditions for children of all ages. The hotels offer a crib and babysitting services, and teenagers can take a ski course with an instructor.

Accommodation

Most hotels and pensions welcome families with children. There is a special association of family hotels (Kinderhotels). Most of these hotels are located in the countryside. (one in Vienna). Some have swimming pools and spas, others have winter ski schools, and a few hotels are located right on the farms. All these hotels have developed programs designed for parents and children of different ages. There are nannies, toys and baby care items. English is not spoken everywhere, so check everything in advance. www.babyhotel.at www. kinderhotels.co.uk

Food

In pubs and cafes, children are just as welcome as the adults who accompany them. But smoking is not allowed everywhere. Almost everywhere there are special highchairs for children.

Transport

In Austria, children under 13 must sit in the back seat of a car. (if it exists). For children under four years old, it is better to use special safety seats. If you are renting a car, please bring a child seat with you, as car rental companies charge an additional fee for this service.

In Vienna, children under 15 can use public transport free of charge during school holidays, Sundays and public holidays. On all other days, you can buy a cheap children's ticket from tobacconists or ticket machines.

Things to do

Austria has many castles, museums and zoos that children love so much. There are cable cars, locomotives and ferries. Many ski resorts have special family weekends. There are schools for children on the slopes (Check if the instructors speak English). Qualified babysitters can keep your kids entertained while you ride. Among the hundreds of museums in Vienna, there are some that will also interest children. In addition to the fun fair (www.prater.at), kids will love Minopolis (www.minopolis.at) and the butterfly house (www.sehmetterlinghaus.at) where sometimes it gets too crowded. In Innsbruck, go to the Alpine Zoo (alpenzoo) and an armory at Ambras Castle. These are just two of the many different entertainments. To introduce children to opera, head to Salzburg's puppet theater and then relax among the fountains in Hellbrunn Castle Park. Easy mountain hikes, salt mines (Hallstatt), ice caves (Dachstein)- great fun and a great introduction to the basics of geography.

Arrival

By plane

Regular flights between Moscow and Vienna are operated by Aeroflot and Austrian Airlines. Flight duration Moscow - Vienna 3 hours 20 minutes. Every half an hour between Vienna Schwechat Airport and Central Station (district 3) trains run. Travel time - 16 minutes.

Customs regulations

EU citizens can bring an almost unlimited number of goods into Austria for personal consumption (within reason: if you bring a truck of whiskey, customs officers may have questions). Citizens of other countries can bring with them 200 cigarettes, 50 cigars, 1 liter of strong alcohol (over 22°) or 2 liters of wine, 500 g of coffee, 50 g of perfume or 0.25 liters of cologne.

Electricity

Mains voltage - 220 V, 50 Hz. European style plugs with two round pins.

Currency

The official currency of the country is Euro. In Austria, you can pay with debit and credit cards at gas stations, chain hotels, expensive restaurants and tourist shops. But, to the surprise and embarrassment of many foreign tourists, other places accept only cash.

Opening hours

Opening hours are set by law and in accordance with tradition. The situation in Austria is very ambiguous. Large shops open early and close on weekdays at 20.00 and on Saturdays at 17.00. These shops are closed on Sundays. Small shops in Austria close on weekdays at 18.00. They have a lunch break. On Saturdays, such shops are open until 13.00, and on Sundays they are closed. (Some shops are open longer on Saturdays.) During those hours when other shops are closed, some food and small items can be bought at stations in big cities. Banks are open from Monday to Wednesday and Fridays 8.00-12.30 and 13.30-15.00, Thursdays 8.00-12.30 and 13.30-17.30 (head offices do not close for lunch). Tourist offices are open 9.00-18.00 on weekdays and until 13.00 on Saturdays (in tourist centers, such bureaus work longer). Gas stations on the autobahns are open around the clock. Restaurants usually open at 11.00 and close around 23.00. Many restaurants are closed during the day. Traditional taverns serve food during the day (durch-gehend means "open during the day") or late at night.

Passports and visas

Austria is part of the Schengen area. To enter the territory of Austria, Russian citizens need a passport valid for at least three months from the date of entry, as well as a Schengen visa. If you purchase a tourist voucher, the travel agency will take care of all the work on issuing a visa. Otherwise, you will have to contact the Austrian embassy yourself.

Mail

The post office in Austria is open from Monday to Friday 8.00-18.00, and on Saturdays 8.00/9.00-12.00. Different services are provided at the post offices, so immediately check whether you are in the right queue. Behind the counter with the inscription Briefmarken they sell postage stamps, and with the inscription Rakete they accept parcels. You can also exchange money at the post office. Major post offices have public telephones and fax machines that accept calling cards.

Mozart with phone

Phones

Payphones in Austria work with cards - you can buy them at tobacconists or at the post office. A pre-paid phone card for international calls can be used both in a pay phone and in a hotel (but in a hotel it will cost you much more). Austria has an excellent mobile phone system. Of course, it is better to choose the most favorable communication conditions even before departure. The international dialing code for Austria is 43. For a phone call from Austria to Russia, dial 007 + the area code of the corresponding city (Moscow - 495)+ subscriber number.

Time

Austria lives on Central European time, which is 2 hours behind Moscow (when it's noon in Moscow, in Austria it's 10 a.m.). At the end of March, Austria switches to summer time, and at the end of autumn - to winter.

toilets

At autobahn gas stations and in public toilets, you must leave 50 cents to the attendant. Men's toilets are designated Herren, women's - Damen. Outside the tourist centers, you can always go to a cafe to use the toilet.

Tourist Information

There are tourist offices in almost every Austrian city and in many villages. They are usually located at or near the main station, as well as in the market square. In such a bureau you will find maps of the city with indication of parking places. Here they will help you find a room (sometimes there is a small fee for this). This is especially convenient for those who want to settle in a boarding house or a private house.

Information for the disabled

Many museums, theatres, cinemas and public buildings have wheelchair day ramps. More and more trams are equipped with special devices. Tourist offices are happy to help disabled tourists find a suitable hotel, public toilet, etc. Large chain hotels always have all the amenities. Disabled parking is free, in the blue zones. To do this, it is enough to have an international invalid sticker on the car.

Language

The official language in Austria is German (with characteristic English pronunciation) . However, most hotels, restaurants, and sports shops that sell or rent sports equipment have English-speaking staff. Here are some useful German words and phrases to help you feel more at ease.

Emergency help

accidents

If you have a serious accident in Austria, you must wait for the police to arrive. The emergency services in Austria are very efficient and arrive at the scene quickly, even by helicopter if necessary.

car breakdown

If a breakdown occurs, you should roll the car off the road if possible. Then set up an emergency triangle 100m behind the machine. If you are on the autobahn, find the emergency number (they are located at intervals of 2 km), pick up the handset and wait for the operator to answer. You can also dial 120. You will have to pay for evacuation and spare parts. However, if you are a member of a car club in your country, you will be able to obtain documents for reimbursement of expenses incurred in Austria.

Crime

Crime is not a serious problem for Austria. Vienna is considered one of the safest European capitals. Just be guided common sense: lock your car, avoid dark streets and shady neighborhoods, keep an eye on your purse and wallet. It is best to carry the bag not on the shoulder, but in front of you, and keep the wallet in a fanny pack. If there is a robbery, report it to the police immediately. You will need an official report to receive insurance. You are required by law to carry an ID card with you at all times. (the passport).

Insurance

When leaving your own country, you must have travel insurance. However, citizens of EU countries can receive free emergency care in public hospitals. To do this, citizens of the European Union and citizens of other countries residing on the territory of the EU must have with them the European insurance card EHIC, which replaced the old E111 from January 2006. We also advise you to stock up on travel or private health insurance.

Drivers must have civil liability insurance (American Express and other credit card companies provide this insurance if you rent a car with their card and provide an insurance policy). The driver also needs personal insurance to cover medical expenses. (such insurance is usually included in the travel insurance) and liability insurance that will protect you from claims (Most car rental companies charge extra for this type of insurance).

Pharmacies

In Austria, pharmacies are called Apotheke. The nearest pharmacy may not always be open, but there will definitely be a duty officer nearby who works around the clock. The addresses and phone numbers of the nearest open pharmacies are usually posted on the doors of all the others. When you see the "open" sign, you will have to ring the bell to be let in and served.

Emergency telephone numbers

emergency services (Rettungsdiens): 144
Ambulance (Arztenotdienst): 141
Fire Department (Feuerwehr): 122
Police (Polizei): 133
Snow information: www.lawine.at
Mine rescuers (Bergrettung): 140
Austrian Automobile Club (OAMTS - Osterreichischer Automobil, Motorrad und Touring Club): 120
Austrian Automobile Association (ARBO - Auto, Motor und Radfahrerbund Osterreichs): 123

The official name is the Republic of Austria (Republik Osterreich, Republic of Austria). Located in the southern part of Central Europe. The area is 83.9 thousand km2. Population - 8.14 million people. (Estimated as of Ser. 2002). The official language is German. The capital is Vienna (1.6 million people). Public holiday - October 26 (since 1955). Monetary unit - euro (since 2002).

Member ok. 70 international organizations, incl. UN since 1955, EU since 1995, as well as the IMF, OECD, WTO, etc.

Sights of Austria

Geography of Austria

The coordinates of the extreme points of the country: northern -15 ° 1 ' east longitude and 49 ° 1 ' northern latitude; eastern - 17 ° 10 ' east longitude and 48 ° 0 ' north latitude; southern - 14°34' east longitude and 46°22' north latitude; western - 9°32' east longitude and 47°16' north latitude. The greatest length from north to south is 294 km, from west to east - 573 km. Austria has no access to the sea.

The total length of the borders is 2706 km. Austria borders 8 countries: Germany (466 km) and the Czech Republic (816 km) in the north, Slovakia (107 km) and Hungary (354 km) in the east, Slovenia (330 km) and Italy (430 km) in the south, Switzerland ( 166 km) and Liechtenstein (35 km) in the west.

Most of the country's territory is occupied by the Eastern Alps (62.8%). The highest peak is Grossglockner (3798 m). Along the Danube is a low-lying plain. In the east - the Styrian-Burgenland hilly plain.

Minerals: iron ore, oil, lead-zinc ores (Klagenfurt-Bleyberg), hard and brown coal (Styria, Upper Austria).

Podzolic and brown forest soils predominate, in the southeast - chernozem soils. In the mountains, stony, as well as mountain brown forest and mountain-meadow soils.

In Austria, different climatic zones coexist. In general, the country is characterized by a temperate continental climate, influenced by the Atlantic. In the foothills of the Carpathians, in the northern regions, the climate is more continental. The average temperature in July is approx. +19°C, January approx. 0°C. The average annual rainfall is 800 mm (much more in the western regions, 2100 mm in the mountains).

In Austria, the rivers of the Danube basin flow. The Austrian part of the Danube - 350 km, Mur - 348 km, Inn - 280 km. There are more than 500 relatively small lakes and two large ones on the territory of the country: on the border with Hungary - Neusiedler See (156.9 km2, the Austrian part - 135 km2), on the border with Germany and Switzerland - Lake Constance (total - 538.5 km2) .

The country is rich in forests (47% of the entire territory). The Austrian flora is characterized by an oak-beech forest in the valleys, and at an altitude of more than 500 m - a beech-spruce mixed forest. Above 1200 m, spruce predominates, larch and cedar are found. Alpine meadows in the foothills.

The fauna is typical Central European. There are roe deer, hare, deer, pheasant, partridge, fox, marten, badger, squirrel. The surroundings of Lake Neusiedl are unique protected nesting sites for birds of various species. In the highlands of the Eastern Alps, the composition of the fauna is typically alpine.

Population of Austria

According to the 2001 census, the total population of Austria was 8.03 million people. There is almost no natural increase in the population in Austria: every year the number of births and deaths is almost the same. At the same time, both the birth rate and the death rate are declining in Austria: in 2001, 75.5 thousand were born, and 74.8 thousand died (by 9.3‰). A slight excess of births over deaths in recent years is provided by foreigners (+8.2 thousand versus -7.5 thousand for the Austrians). Infant mortality 4.8 pers. per 1000 live births. Average life expectancy is 78.8 years, incl. 75.9 years for men and 81.7 years for women (2001). In 2001, there were 3,889,189 men and 4,143,737 women. 20% (including more than 7% - older than 75 years).

The ethnic composition of the population of Austria is homogeneous, approx. 98% are German-speaking Austrians. In addition, there are 6 recognized national minorities: Croats, Slovenes, Czechs, Slovaks, Hungarians, Gypsies (a total of about 300 thousand people).

The number of foreigners according to the 2001 census is 707 thousand people. (8.8%), according to estimates - more than 760 thousand, of which 45% are citizens of the former Yugoslavia.

The spoken language is the Austrian dialect of German; There are many local dialects in the country.

According to the 2001 census, 73.6% of Austrians are Catholics, 4.7% are Protestants, 6.5% of the population belongs to other religious denominations (Islam - 4.2%, Orthodox Church - 2.2%, Judaism - 0.1 %; a total of 12 confessions are registered), 12% of the population do not identify themselves with any of the confessions (in 1991 there were only 8.6%).

History of Austria

During the era of the Great Migration of Peoples, the territory of Austria was invaded by various tribes, in clashes between which the foundations of the future national-territorial structure of the Austrian lands were laid. In the 6th c. German tribes (Bavarians) settle in western Austria, and Slavs (mainly Slovenes) settle in central and eastern Austria.

From the 10th c. in the Margraviate of Austria, the Bavarian dynasty of the Babenbergs established itself, making Vienna their residence. In 1156, under Margrave Henry II Jazomirgott, Holy Roman Emperor Frederick Barbarossa raised the status of a margraviate to a duchy, which was finally separated from Bavaria. This year is considered the year of the emergence of the Austrian state.

In 1246, the Babenberg dynasty ended, and after a short Czech rule, in 1278 the Austrian territories were captured by Rudolf I of Habsburg (originally from Swabia), who in 1282 transferred Austria and Styria to his two sons. This marked the beginning of the domination of the Habsburgs in Austria, which lasted until 1918. In the 14th century. Carinthia, Carniola and Tyrol were annexed to Austria. But until the end. 15th c. Austria remained fragmented into lands connected only by dynastic ties.

In the 16th century rapid economic development begins, primarily in the mining industry, controlled by the South German capital of the Fuggers and Hochstetters. At the same time, the offensive of the Ottoman Empire began in Southeastern Europe, and in 1529 the Turks laid siege to Vienna. In the 16-18 centuries. heavy Austro-Turkish wars are being waged. Violent forms took the clashes of supporters of the Reformation and counter-reformation. The anti-Habsburg Czech uprising of 1618-20 gave impetus to the all-European Thirty Years' War, which devastated all of Central Europe. In 1648, the Treaty of Westphalia was signed, according to which Austria ceded part of its territories to France. But in con. 17th-18th centuries Austria conquered vast new territories.

Maria Theresa (ruled 1740-80) introduced important economic and administrative reforms, strengthening the power of the center. The institution of the civil service was established, manufactories were encouraged, a policy of mercantilism and protectionism was pursued, the army and the general education system were reformed. Austria begins to acquire the glory of the "country of great musicians." The reform was continued by the son of Maria Theresa, Joseph II, but ran into strong resistance from the nobility.

The Napoleonic Wars turned into heavy military defeats, territorial losses and financial collapse for Austria. But by decision of the Congress of Vienna (1814-15), Austria regained part of what was lost. Economically backward feudal Austria under chancellor K. von Metternich became a stronghold of reaction in Europe.

From the beginning 19th century factory production is developing in the country, the first railway was built in 1822, and in 1848 agrarian reform. The foreign policy of Austria was unsuccessful. Having suffered defeat in the Austro-Prussian and Austro-Italian wars in 1866, Austria actually lost the status of a great European power. A multinational Austria-Hungary was formed in 1867, but this did not strengthen the position of the remaining purely reactionary monarchy. In foreign policy, the Austro-Hungarian Empire was under the complete influence of Germany.

After the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand in Sarajevo on June 28, 1914, Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia, thus starting World War I. The defeat in it led to the fall of the Habsburgs and the collapse of Austria-Hungary. November 12, 1918 Austria was proclaimed a republic. On October 1, 1920, the Constitution of the Republic was adopted, providing for a federal structure of the state. But in 1929, changes were made to it, which soon led to authoritarian management.

In March 1938, the "Anschluss" took place - the annexation of Austria to Nazi Germany. As an integral part of the Reich, Austria took part in the 2nd World War. After its completion, Austria and Vienna, as a special district, were divided into four zones of occupation. In 1946–48, heavy industry was nationalized in the country, as well as three large banks. Since 1948, Austria has participated in the Marshall Plan.

On May 15, 1955, in Vienna, representatives of the four victorious countries and Austria signed the State Treaty on the restoration of an independent and democratic Austria. The occupation of the country was terminated, and on October 26, 1955, a law on the permanent neutrality of Austria was adopted. During the Cold War, Vienna became one of the centers of diplomatic efforts to defuse and establish cooperation between West and East. January 1, 1995 Austria became a member of the EU.

State structure and political system of Austria

Austria is a democratic republic with a federal state structure. The Constitution was adopted by the Constitutional National Assembly on October 1, 1920. It enshrined the fundamental rights and freedoms of citizens, the principles of equality, rule of law, separation of powers, and separation of justice and administration.

Administrative division. The federation consists of 9 lands (the capital of the state, Vienna, is equated to the land).

The lands are divided into communities in which communal self-government is exercised.

The largest cities: Vienna, Graz (238 thousand people), Linz (203 thousand people), Salzburg (144 thousand people), Innsbruck (118 thousand people). The share of the urban population is 60%.

Principles of public administration. The constitution is based on the principle of representative democracy: all power comes from the people, who exercise it during elections and delegate it to the legislative, executive and judicial bodies.

Bills, which are mainly developed by the government, are discussed and adopted by the National Council by a majority vote with a quorum of 1/3 of the deputies (constitutional laws and regulations, as well as school laws - 2/3 of the votes).

With regard to the legislative process and management, they exercise multilateral control: political - the opposition, legal - the Constitutional Court of Justice, economic - the Accounts Chamber, for violations - the prosecutor's office.

The head of state is the federal president. He is elected for a term of 6 years (with the possibility of a single re-election) in popular direct equal elections by secret ballot.

The federal president performs mainly representative functions (primarily in the international legal sphere), accredits and appoints ambassadors, appoints and dismisses federal officials, incl. officers. Based on the results of parliamentary elections, he appoints the federal chancellor and, on his recommendation, other members of the government. He can dissolve the National Council with the consent of the Bundesrat, dismiss the federal chancellor or the entire government (but not individual ministers), although this has never happened in practice. The President is the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces.

Federal President - Heinz Fischer (since July 8, 2004), former speaker of the National Council (parliament), who won the presidential election on April 25, 2004. His predecessors since 1945 were K. Renner, T. Körner, A. Scherf, F. Jonas, R .Kirchschleger, K.Waldheim, T.Klestil.

The highest body of legislative power and the body of people's representation is the bicameral Federal Assembly, consisting of the National Council (NC) and the Federal Council (Bundesrat). Joint meetings of the Federal Assembly are held when the president is sworn in and to decide whether to declare war. It may also call a referendum to remove the president.

Legislative functions are performed by the National Assembly (together with the Bundesrat), elected for 4 years in general direct elections by secret ballot. The leadership of the National Assembly is carried out by the President of the National Assembly, as well as the Second President of the National Assembly and the Third President of the National Assembly. These three presidents form the college and act as federal president when he is unable to do so.

Since February 2000, a "black-and-blue" coalition has been in power - the ANP and the APS. As a result of the November 24, 2002 elections, the parliament was formed with 183 deputies.

The second chamber of the Austrian Parliament is the Bundesrat. Its 64 members represent 9 federal states in proportion to their population (for example, Lower Austria - 12, and Vorarlberg and Burgenland - 3 each). Members of the Bundesrat are elected and delegated by the Landtags for 4 or 6 years. The Bundesrat can protest the law, and then the National Council votes again with a larger quorum. The president of the Bundesrat is elected in alphabetical order from each state for a period of six months. The supreme body of executive power is the federal government. Formed on February 28, 2003 from representatives of the ANP and the APS, the government consists of 11 federal ministries: social welfare, generations and consumer protection (Minister Vice-Chancellor H. Haupt, APS); foreign affairs; internal affairs; justice; national defense; finance; economy and labor; agriculture and forestry, environment and water management; health and women's affairs; transport, innovation and technology; education, science and culture.

The government is headed by the Federal Chancellor. He forms the cabinet and coordinates its work. When making decisions, the principle of unanimity applies. The chancellor must take into account the opinion of the vice-chancellor, whose role in the Austrian coalition government is great.

Since February 2000, Wolfgang Schüssel (ANP) has been Federal Chancellor. Among his predecessors, B. Kraisky (SPA, 1970–83) and F. Vranitzki (SPA, 1986–97) stand out.

Elections to all bodies of popular representation shall be universal, direct, free and equal by secret ballot. The right to vote is granted to all citizens who have reached the age of 18. Participation in presidential elections is mandatory. Elections to the National Assembly are held according to the proportional system (three-stage proportional system: 1 vote for a certain party list, inside the list - for a certain candidate in the regional and land constituencies). In the National Assembly there are parties that have won a regional mandate or received 4% of the vote throughout Austria. Citizens of other EU countries residing in Austria can also participate in local government elections.

The governments of the federal states are formed by the Landtags (land parliaments). They are led by Landeshauptmann (Prime Minister). The land government decides the most important issues as a collegiate body.

The main parties represented in the parliament: ANP (established in 1945 on the basis of the former Christian Social Party, chairman W. Schüssel), SPA (established in 1945 as the Socialist Party of Austria on the basis of the Social Democratic Party, since 1991 it is again called the Social Democratic Party , chairman A. Gusenbauer), APS (created in 1955 on the basis of the right-wing radical Union of Independents, chairman S. Riss-Passer), the recently created Green Party (chairman of Austria van der Bellen).

One of the characteristic features of the Austrian political system is a highly developed system of alliances and close cooperation between interest alliances and the government.

The largest trade union organization is the Austrian Association of Trade Unions (AOP), founded in April 1945. It includes 16 branch trade unions. There is also the Federal Chamber of Labor.

Leading business organizations are the Economic Chamber of Austria and the Conference of Presidents of Agricultural Chambers.

If the AOP functions as a voluntary association, then membership in the chambers is mandatory. The chambers of labor include all workers and employees of the private sector, the chambers of commerce - all entrepreneurs (except agricultural, who are members of the agricultural chambers, and freelancers).

Austria has one of the most effective systems of social partnership, and it is not enshrined in the Constitution or in any law, but functions through the voluntary cooperation of unions.

Maintaining law and order and the rule of law are the main tasks of Austria's domestic policy. For many decades, social peace was maintained in the country (on the basis of a highly developed welfare state, but not least thanks to a system of social partnership and complicity in governance). Only in 2003, as a result of the planned pension reform, there were mass protests and strikes - for the first time in many decades.

Increasing in the 1990s the influx of refugees and immigrants led to the strengthening of right-wing radical and nationalist sentiments among a part of the Austrian society, which was expressed by the leader of the APS, J. Haider. The entry of his party into the federal government on February 4, 2000 caused a wave of protests at home and abroad and EU sanctions. On February 29, Haider resigned as chairman of the party. Nevertheless, the problem of right-wing radicalism has become one of the main ones for Austrian domestic politics.

Status of permanent neutrality and non-participation in military-political blocs established a certain framework for the foreign policy activity of Austria. This did not mean isolationism or "equidistance" from West and East, and did not prevent it from effectively integrating into the Western democratic community. In 1956 Austria became a member of the Council of Europe, and in 1960 - a member of the European Free Trade Association (EFTA). 1970s were the highest point of the country's activity in the UN.

Even greater opportunities for using Austria's openness emerged after its accession to the EU in 1995. Since February 10, 1995, Austria has been participating in the NATO Partnership for Peace program. By signing the Amsterdam Treaty (1998), Austria actually agrees to participate in the common defense policy of the EU countries.

Central offices of a number of international organizations are located in Vienna, incl. IAEA, UNIDO, OPEC, and the OSCE Secretariat and Permanent Council.

Since the 1970s Austria pursued a policy of "active neutrality", promoting "diplomacy of contacts" (including between the leaders of the USSR and the USA), supporting political and military detente. In the 1980-90s. strengthened the European orientation of Austrian foreign policy. In the 1990s, the Austrian foreign policy in relation to the neighboring countries of Central and Eastern Europe.

The armed forces of Austria consist of ground and air forces. Their number is approx. 50 thousand people

Austria has diplomatic relations with the Russian Federation (renewed with the USSR in October 1945; first established on February 25-29, 1924; ceased in March 1938).

Economy of Austria

Austria is one of the most developed countries in Europe. GDP per capita in 2002 amounted to 24.7 thousand euros (in 1995 prices). This figure is constantly growing (in 1990 it was 20.1 thousand euros, in 1995 - 21.4 thousand euros), and in US dollars at current prices and at purchasing power parity in 2001 - 28.2 thousand (with an average of EU 25.5 thousand). Thus, Austria was ahead of Sweden, Great Britain, Italy, France, Germany, and was second only to Denmark, the Netherlands, Ireland and Luxembourg.

The volume of GDP in constant prices in 2002 amounted to 200.7 billion euros. GDP production per 1 employed person in 2001 (labor productivity) - 58.3 thousand euros.

The Austrian economy is distinguished by a relatively low level of inflation (in 2002 - 1.8%) and unemployment (in 2000 - 3.7% of the working-age population, in 2002 - 4.3%). The consumer price index in 2002 to 1996 was 108.8, while in the EU as a whole it was 110.8.

Approximately 2.2% of GDP is produced in agriculture and forestry, 32.3% - in industry, energy and construction, 65.5% - in services, trade, transport and communications, banking and insurance systems.

The most important industrial sectors are engineering, food, chemical, pulp and paper, and metallurgical. In the automotive industry, the most important part is the production of engines (900 thousand units per year) and gearboxes, with the share of their exports over 90%. In the field of electronic technology, Austria has gained international recognition for its custom-made integrated circuits and chips. The production, mainly for export, of complex industrial equipment is becoming increasingly important.

The potential of hydroelectric power plants is constantly expanding, Austria is the largest producer of hydroelectric power in the EU. If in 1998 hydroelectric power plants produced 38.7 thousand GW (67.4% of all electricity produced in the country), then in 2000 - 43.5 thousand GW (70.5%). At the same time, in 2000 the country exported 15.1 GW and imported 13.8 GW.

Industrial production in 2002 increased by 32.9% compared to the level of 1995, with the largest increase observed in Carinthia (by 56.5%), while in Vienna it decreased by 3.6%. The growth in the production of investment goods over the same period was 56.5%, while consumer durables decreased by 0.5% (although in 2000 the index was 110.6). Clothing production fell by 2 times, but production in the tobacco industry increased by more than 2 times. The production index in mechanical engineering was 173.8, in electrical engineering - 203.0, in the production of vehicles and their components - 203.9. Especially rapid growth was observed in the production of office equipment and information processing devices - the index in 2002 to 1995 was 656, and in 2001 it was even higher - 699.

Despite the fact that the mountainous terrain is not very suitable for agriculture, the use of modern farming methods makes it possible for Austria to provide 3/4 of the needs of the domestic agricultural market.

41% of the country's area is in agricultural use. Agricultural and forestry workers make up only 5% of the working population. In agriculture, there are strict standards for the use of plant protection products and fertilizers. In Austria, 70% of enterprises using 90% of agricultural land participate in the national environmental program (on average in the EU - approx. 20%). More than 20 thousand farms produce environmentally friendly bio-products.

The length of railways is a little over 6 thousand km, of which more than half are electrified. The total length of highways is 133.4 thousand km, incl. more than 1600 km - high-speed roads. More than 4 million cars and approx. 350 thousand trucks. Inland waterways - 358 km. In passenger traffic, bus transport is the leader - 608 million people. in 2000, followed by rail - 183 million. In terms of freight traffic, road transport is more than 3 times higher than rail, but in terms of ton-kilometers, their indicators are approximately equal (in 2001, road - 17,556 million tkm, rail - 17,387 million tkm).

6 international airports: in Vienna, Salzburg, Graz, Innsbruck, Linz and Klagenfurt. The largest airline, Austrian Airlines, has 90 aircraft and carried 8 million passengers in 2000 (out of a total of 15.6 million).

The length of oil pipelines is 777 km, gas pipelines - 840 km. Approx. 60 million tons of products.

Despite being landlocked, Austria has 10 merchant ships.

Communications are well developed in the country, approx. 30 companies. There are 4 million telephone points and 6 million mobile phones. Almost half of the population - 4 million people. - uses the Internet.

Austria is a highly industrialized country, but the majority of the population works in retail, banking, healthcare, education and tourism, the latter being one of the most profitable industries in the economy.

In 2002, the number of tourists amounted to 27.4 million, incl. 18.6 million - foreign. Gross tourism receipts in 2002 are estimated at 9.6 billion euros (which is almost 1.7 billion euros less than in 2001, although the number of tourists has increased).

In recent years, a number of important economic and political functions have been carried out to a greater or lesser extent by supranational government bodies(First of all, this applies to foreign trade and monetary policy). Nevertheless, at the national level, the Austrian government continues to carry out important tasks of economic and social policy.

A characteristic feature of the post-war development of Austria is a significant specific gravity in the industry of public sector enterprises. In 1986, the share of state-owned enterprises united in the Esterreichische Industriholding A.G. ("EIAG"), in the volume of industrial production was approx. 30%, and in the total number of people employed in industry - 20%.

In 1987, the Austrian government adopted the EIAG "rehabilitation" program, aimed at the consistent privatization of promising and profitable enterprises and the elimination of inefficient industries. By 2000, the state retained only 2 enterprises in full ownership, and in the rest it retains equity participation, the largest in the tobacco industry (more than 40%), in the Austrian Airlines company (39.7%), in the capital of the largest concerns in the black metallurgy (35-39%).

In economic policy in the 1990s. a line was drawn towards further reduction of the public sector, privatization, reduction of the direct participation of the state in economic activity, support for private entrepreneurship, shifting the center of gravity of state regulation to improving the framework conditions for the activities of economic entities.

The coalition government of the ANP and APS, having proclaimed the slogan "manage in a new way", has outlined a reform program that, to a certain extent, can lead to a gradual erosion of the social partnership system that has guaranteed social stability in society for decades.

The government pays great attention to the tasks of financial consolidation, sanitizing the country's budget, improving the financial situation individual structures with the direct or indirect participation of the state. The most important components of the government program are the implementation of the pension reform, which caused violent protests in the country, the consistent privatization of state property, the reform of the administrative and managerial sphere, the development of the national capital market, and the strengthening of the scientific potential of the economy.

Of particular importance is the comprehensive reform of the social security system. In Austria, social insurance is compulsory for all non-self-employed workers (except government officials). Employees and employers pay in equal shares numerous social contributions, from which the relevant social funds are formed: pension, medical, accident, unemployment insurance, contribution to compensation funds in case of bankruptcy of an enterprise, contribution to equalize the situation of families, assistance in housing construction and some others .

After 1999, the main functions of monetary regulation in connection with the formation of the Economic and Monetary Union were transferred to the European Central Bank (ECB). The National Bank of Austria is a member of the European System of Central Banks and implements policies formulated by the ECB. At the same time, the National Bank of Austria retains the functions of control over the payment turnover and the issuance of euro banknotes, and the management of its gold and foreign exchange reserves.

Credit institutions in Austria are very diverse. In terms of balance sheet value, the leading place is occupied by savings banks (38% of the total balance sheet amount at the end of 2000), and in terms of the number of institutions and branches, Raiffeisenbanks (625 main institutions out of a total of 923 and 1,741 branches out of 4,556). In addition, there are joint-stock banks (second place in terms of balance sheet), construction savings banks, land mortgage banks, Volksbanks, and special banks. If in the 1980s the number of credit institutions grew, then in the 1990s it slightly decreased.

The share of GDP redistributed by the state is very large, although it has been declining slightly in recent years. If in 1990 total government spending, including social funds, amounted to 53.1% of GDP, then in 1993 it was 57.9%, but then decreased to 52.5% in 2000 and 52.3% in 2001.

The state budget deficit is practically constant (with the exception of 2001, when there was a surplus of +0.3% of GDP). But if in the beginning 1990s it fluctuated from -3 to -5.2%, then since 1997 it did not exceed -2.4%, and in 2002 it was -0.6%, i.e. the country complies with the Maastricht criteria for this indicator. However, the public debt, which until 1992 was less than 60% of GDP, then increased to 69.2% and now fluctuates at the level of 67-68% (or 146.5 billion euros, including 132.2 billion - federal debt) , exceeding the 60% limit set by the Maastricht Treaty.

Federal budget expenditures, according to preliminary data, in 2002 amounted to 61.8 billion euros, and revenues - 59.4 billion euros. Approximately 45% of income comes from taxes on income and property, 29.7% comes from turnover tax, 8% from excises. The main part of the expenditure is for the social sphere.

The government is implementing a tax reform to reduce the level of taxation of wages and other incomes of citizens and their families while providing some tax benefits to entrepreneurs, as well as to simplify the tax system as a whole while tightening control over tax payments.

Austria has a developed system of social security and protection, which has two levels: compulsory insurance and state social assistance. While providing social stability and confidence, this system is nevertheless very expensive and requires - incl. and for demographic reasons, ever-increasing deductions. Therefore, if in 1990-2001 the total gross wages increased by 51%, then the net wages - by only 35% (at the same time, deductions in the form of payroll tax and social contributions doubled).

In 2001, the average nominal wage per 1 employee was 2,400 euros per month (gross), having increased by 41% compared to 1990 (net wages per 1 employee in 2001 amounted to 1,620 euros and increased compared to 1990 by 26.6 %).

A positive factor for the sustainability of the standard of living of the population is the low growth in prices for consumer goods and services; over the past 2 years, the price of tobacco products has increased the most (by 10.8%), and the least (by 1.1%) - for household electricity and home heating.

So far, unemployment in Austria is relatively low, but if the stagnation of the European economy drags on, it could rise significantly. The number of registered unemployed averaged 232.4 thousand people. The number of vacancies has decreased markedly. Among the unemployed, the proportion of people over 50 in 2002 was 48.4%. The number of job seekers for more than 1 year is only 5.5%, the average duration of registration at the labor exchange is 137 days.

An important role is played by external economic relations; Austria trades with 150 countries of the world.

Export of goods in 2002 was 77.3 billion euros (4.1% more than in 2001; in 2000 the growth was 15.6%, in 2001 - 6.5%). Cars, paper and cardboard, automobiles, ferrous metals are exported. Almost half of exports are consumer goods.

Import of goods in 2002 - 76.9 billion euros (2.2% less than in 2001; in 2000 the growth was 14.7%, in 2001 - 5%). Imports are predominantly finished products, with consumer goods accounting for half of the imports.

In 2002, there was a slight positive trade balance, while in previous years it was negative.

The vast majority of Austrian trade is with EU countries (60.2% of exports and 65.8% of imports). Germany is the main trading partner (its share in the trade turnover is 36.1%), followed by Italy, Switzerland, France, and Hungary by a wide margin. Trade with Eastern European countries is growing steadily: exports to these countries (excluding CIS countries) amounted to 13.5 billion euros (17.5%), while imports from them - 10.2 billion euros (13.2%).

Trade turnover between Austria and the Russian Federation has also been growing in recent years: from 1893 million euros in 2000 to 1985 million euros in 2002, however, imports from the Russian Federation fell from 1238 million to 1032 million, and exports to the Russian Federation increased from 655 million to 953 million. The main exports from Austria to the Russian Federation are machinery, products of the chemical industry (primarily pharmaceuticals), paper and cardboard, steel pipes for oil production, and imports of energy and metals from the Russian Federation.

The balance of payments on current operations in Austria in 2002 was positive (both in goods and services). The balance of capital movements is more often negative or with a slight plus.

Foreign investment on the basis of reciprocity is granted national treatment in Austria. A state specialized agency established in 1983 successfully supports the placement of foreign enterprises in Austria. The largest foreign investor is Germany (approx. 30% of investments).

Science and culture of Austria

The state system of school education in Austria was introduced as early as 1774; compulsory eight-year education was introduced in 1869, and nine years in 1962. After 4 years elementary school You can enroll in a primary school or a general education school of a higher level (gymnasium).

Universities in Austria carry out both teaching and research. Access to the university is open to all residents of the country who have passed the matriculation examination. As in schools, university education is free for Austrians. Now there are 19 universities in Austria, incl. 7 - in Vienna. More than 220 thousand students study in them (the share of foreigners is more than 12%). In addition to universities, there are special higher schools, colleges, academies and other universities.

The Austrian Academy of Sciences, founded in 1847, is the largest non-university scientific institution in the country. She is mainly engaged in fundamental research. It includes the Institute for Comparative Behavior Research. K. Lorenz, International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis, etc.

Altogether in Austria approx. 2,200 scientific institutions employing approximately 25,000 people. Austria is characterized by active participation in international scientific cooperation: it participates in more than 1000 research projects of the EU framework program.

Small Austria is a country of great scientists and entire schools, not only in the natural sciences, but also in the humanities. The Austrian school of economics is widely known (K. Menger, F. von Wieser, E. von Beem-Bawerk), liberal theorist L. von Mises, psychologist S. Freud, economist J. Schumpeter, Nobel Prize winners F. von Hayek and K. .Lorenz.

In the field of culture, Austria is associated with music. However, it also has deep traditions in the field of literature. Even in the 12th-13th centuries. Austria became one of the centers of literary creativity thanks to Walter von der Vogelweide and the Nibelungenlied. In an era closer to us, the literary glory of Austria was created by S. Zweig, who lived in Prague (then in Austria-Hungary) R. M. Rilke and F. Kafka, R. Musil.

The country has many architectural monuments of different eras and styles, starting from the 11th century. But special meaning has a baroque, still reflecting the inner essence of the Austrians.

In the field of fine arts, artists G. Klimt, E. Schiele and O. Kokoschka gained world fame.

But music is still the most important of all the arts in Austria. The traditions of the "Viennese classics" - J. Haydn, W. A. ​​Mozart, L. van Beethoven - were continued and developed by F. Schubert, A. Bruckner, J. Brahms, G. Mahler, and already in the 20th century. in the new musical aesthetics - A. Schoenberg, A. Berg, A. Webern. In the 2nd floor. 19th century the Viennese operetta was developed (J. Offenbach, J. Strauss, F. Legar, etc.).

In 1869, the Vienna Opera House was opened, directed by G. Mahler, R. Strauss, K. Böhm, G. von Karajan. The Salzburg Music Festival, held since 1920, is of great cultural significance.

Austrian museums are famous, especially the Vienna Kunsthistorisches Museum, the Natural History Museum, the world's largest collection of Albertina graphics, the Austrian Gallery (in the Belvedere Castle) and many others.

Very little is known about the first inhabitants of Austria. Scant historical evidence suggests the existence of a pre-Celtic population. Around 400–300 B.C. militant Celtic tribes appeared with their own dialect, religious cults and traditions. Mixing with the ancient inhabitants, the Celts formed the kingdom of Norik.

At the beginning of the 2nd c. BC. Roman power extended to the Danube. However, the Romans were forced to constantly fight against the nomadic Germanic barbarians who invaded from the north across the Danube, which served as the border of Roman civilization. The Romans built fortified military camps at Vindobona (Vienna) and at Carnunte, 48 km from the first; in the Hoher Markt district of Vienna, remains of Roman buildings have been preserved. In the region of the middle Danube, the Romans contributed to the development of cities, crafts, trade and the ore industry, built roads and buildings. Emperor Marcus Aurelius (died at Vindobona 180 AD) composed part of his immortal Meditations at Carnuntum. The Romans implanted among the local population pagan religious rites, secular institutions and customs, the Latin language and literature. By the 4th c. is the Christianization of this region.

In the 5th and 6th centuries Germanic tribes overran most of the Roman possessions in the western part of modern Austria. The eastern and southern parts of modern Austria were invaded by Turkic-speaking nomads - the Avars, along with them (or after them) the Slavic peoples migrated - the future Slovenes, Croats and Czechs, among whom the Avars disappeared. In the western regions, missionaries (Irish, Franks, Angles) converted pagan Germans (Bavarians) to Christianity; The cities of Salzburg and Passau became the centers of Christian culture. Approximately in 774 a cathedral was built in Salzburg, and by the end of the 8th century. the local archbishop was given authority over neighboring dioceses. Monasteries were built (for example, Kremsmünster), and the conversion of the Slavs to Christianity began from these islands of civilization.

The invasion of the Hungarians in the Eastern March.

Charlemagne (742-814) defeated the Avars and began to encourage the German colonization of the Eastern March. German settlers received privileges: they were given land allotments, which were processed by slaves. Cities on the Middle Danube flourished again.

Frankish rule in Austria ended abruptly. The Carolingian Empire was ruthlessly devastated by the Hungarians. These warlike tribes were destined to have a lasting and profound influence on the life of the middle part of the Danube valley. In 907, the Hungarians captured the Eastern March and from here carried out bloody raids on Bavaria, Swabia and Lorraine.

Otto I, German emperor and founder of the Holy Roman Empire (962), defeated a powerful Hungarian army in 955 on the Lech River near Augsburg. Pushed east, the Hungarians gradually settled downstream in the fertile Hungarian Plain (where their descendants still live) and adopted the Christian faith.

Babenberg rule.

The place of the expelled Hungarians was taken by German settlers. The Bavarian Eastern Mark, which at that time covered the area around Vienna, was transferred in 976 as a fief to the Babenberg family, whose family possessions were located in the Main valley in Germany. In 996, the territory of the Eastern March was first named Ostarriki.

One of the prominent representatives of the Babenberg dynasty was the macrograve Leopold III (reigned 1095-1136). The ruins of his castle on the Leopoldsberg mountain near Vienna have been preserved. Nearby is the monastery of Klosterneuburg and the majestic Cistercian abbey in Heiligenstadt, the burial place of the Austrian rulers. The monks in these monasteries cultivated the fields, taught the children, wrote chronicles and looked after the sick, greatly contributing to the enlightenment of the surrounding population.

German settlers completed the development of the Eastern Mark. The methods of cultivating the land and growing grapes were improved, and new villages were founded. Many castles were built along the Danube and inland, such as Dürnstein and Aggstein. During the period of the Crusades, the cities prospered, and the wealth of the rulers grew. In 1156 the emperor conferred the title of duke on Henry II, Margrave of Austria. The land of Styria, south of Austria, was inherited by the Babenbergs (1192), while parts of Upper Austria and Krotna were acquired in 1229.

Austria entered its heyday during the reign of Duke Leopold VI, who died in 1230, having become famous as a merciless fighter against heretics and Muslims. Monasteries were showered with generous gifts; the newly created monastic orders, the Franciscans and Dominicans, were cordially received in the duchy, and poets and singers were encouraged.

Vienna, which had been in decline for a long time, in 1146 became the residence of the duke; great benefit was derived from the development of trade through the Crusades. In 1189 it was first mentioned as a civitas (city), in 1221 it received city rights and in 1244 it confirmed them, having received formal city privileges that determined the rights and obligations of citizens, regulated the activities of foreign merchants and provided for the formation of a city council. In 1234, a more humane and enlightened law on their rights was issued for the Jewish residents than in other places, which remained in force until the expulsion of the Jews from Vienna almost 200 years later. At the beginning of the 13th c. the boundaries of the city were expanded, new fortifications arose.

The Babenberg dynasty died out in 1246 when Duke Frederick II died in battle with the Hungarians, leaving no heirs. The struggle for Austria, an economically and strategically important territory, began.

Strengthening of the Austrian state under the Habsburgs.

The Pope handed over the vacant throne of the duchy to Margrave Hermann of Baden (reigned 1247–1250). However, the Austrian bishops and the feudal nobility elected the Bohemian king Přemysl II (Otakar) (1230–1278) (1230–1278) as duke, who reinforced his rights to the Austrian throne by marrying the sister of the last Babenberg. Přemysl captured Styria and received Carinthia and part of Carniola by marriage contract. Premysl sought the crown of the Holy Roman Empire, but on September 29, 1273, Count Rudolf of Habsburg (1218–1291), respected both for his political prudence and for his ability to avoid disputes with the papacy, was elected king. Přemysl refused to recognize his election, so Rudolph resorted to force and defeated his rival. In 1282 - one of the key dates in Austrian history - Rudolph declared the lands of Austria that belonged to him to be hereditary possession of the House of Habsburg.

From the very beginning, the Habsburgs considered their lands to be private property. Despite the struggle for the crown of the Holy Roman Empire and family strife, the dukes from the house of Habsburg continued to expand the boundaries of their possessions. An attempt had already been made to annex the land of Vorarlberg in the southwest to it, but this was only completed by 1523. Tyrol was annexed to the possessions of the Habsburgs in 1363, as a result of which the Duchy of Austria came close to the Apennine Peninsula. In 1374 a part of Istria was attached to the northern tip of the Adriatic Sea, and 8 years later the port of Trieste voluntarily joined Austria in order to free itself from the rule of the Venetians. Representative (estate) assemblies were created, consisting of nobles, clergy and townspeople.

Duke Rudolph IV (reigned 1358-1365) made plans to annex the kingdoms of Bohemia and Hungary to his possessions and dreamed of achieving complete independence from the Holy Roman Empire. Rudolph founded the University of Vienna (1365), financed the expansion of the Cathedral of St. Stephen and supported trade and crafts. He died suddenly, without realizing his ambitious plans. Under Rudolf IV, the Habsburgs began to bear the title of archdukes (1359).

Austrian Economy in the Renaissance.

In peaceful periods, trade flourished with neighboring principalities and even with distant Russia. Goods were transported to Hungary, the Czech Republic and Germany along the Danube; in terms of volume, this trade was comparable to trade along the great Rhine route. Trade developed with Venice and other northern Italian cities. Roads were improved, making it easier to transport goods.

Germany served as a profitable market for Austrian wines and grains, Hungary bought textiles. Iron household products were exported to Hungary. In turn, Austria bought Hungarian livestock and minerals. In the Salzkammergut (Lower Austrian Eastern Alps) a large amount of table salt was mined. Domestic needs for most products, except for clothing, were provided by domestic manufacturers. Craftsmen of the same specialty, united in a guild, often settled in certain urban areas, as evidenced by the names of streets in the old corners of Vienna. Wealthy members of the guilds not only controlled the affairs of their industry, but also participated in the management of the city.

Political successes of the Habsburgs.

Friedrich III. With the election of Duke Albrecht V as German king in 1438 (under the name of Albrecht II), the prestige of the Habsburgs reached its apogee. By marrying the heiress to the royal throne of Bohemia and Hungary, Albrecht increased the possessions of the dynasty. Nevertheless, his power in Bohemia remained nominal, and soon both crowns were lost to the Habsburgs. The duke died on the way to the place of the battle with the Turks, and during the reign of his son Vladislav, the possessions of the Habsburgs were significantly reduced. After the death of Vladislav, the connection with the Czech Republic and Hungary was completely severed, and Austria itself was divided among the heirs.

In 1452 Albrecht V's uncle Frederick V (1415–1493) was crowned Holy Roman Emperor under the name Frederick III. In 1453 he became Archduke of Austria, and from that time until the formal liquidation of the Holy Roman Empire in 1806 (not counting a short period in the 18th century), the Habsburgs retained the imperial crown.

Despite the endless wars, as well as the rebellions of the nobles and residents of Vienna, Frederick III managed to expand his possessions by annexing part of Istria and the port of Rijeka (1471). Frederick believed that the Habsburg dynasty was destined to conquer the whole world. His motto was "AEIOU" (Alles Erdreich ist Oesterreich untertan, "The whole land is subject to Austria"). He inscribed this abbreviation on books and ordered it to be carved on public buildings. Frederick married his son and heir Maximilian (1459–1519) to Mary of Burgundy. As a dowry, the Habsburgs got the Netherlands and lands in what is now France. During this period, the rivalry between the Austrian Habsburgs and the French kingdom began, which continued until the 18th century.

Maximilian I (king in 1486, emperor in 1508), who is sometimes considered the second collector of the Habsburg possessions, acquired, in addition to possessions in Burgundy, the regions of Goroitia and Gradisca d'Isonzo and small territories in the southern parts of modern Austria. He entered into an agreement with the Czech-Hungarian the king on the transfer of the Czech-Hungarian crown to Maximilian in the event that Vladislav II dies without leaving a male heir.

Thanks to skillful alliances, successful inheritances and advantageous marriages, the Habsburg family achieved impressive power. Maximilian found excellent matches for his son Philip and his grandson Ferdinand. The first married Juan, the heiress of Spain with its vast empire. The dominions of their son, Emperor Charles V, surpassed those of any other European monarch before or after him.

Maximilian arranged for Ferdinand to marry the heiress of Vladislav, King of Bohemia and Hungary. His marriage policy was motivated by dynastic ambitions, but also by a desire to turn Danubian Europe into a cohesive Christian bulwark against Islam. However, the apathy of the people in the face of the Muslim threat made this task difficult.

Along with minor reforms in administration, Maximilian encouraged innovations in the military field, which foreshadowed the creation of a standing regular army in place of the military aristocracy of warrior knights.

Expensive marriage contracts, financial turmoil and military spending emptied the state treasury, and Maximilian resorted to large loans, mainly from the wealthy Fugger magnates of Augsburg. In return, they received mining concessions in Tyrol and other areas. Funds were taken from the same source to bribe the votes of the electors of the Holy Roman Emperor.

Maximilian was a typical Renaissance sovereign. He patronized literature and education, supported scholars and artists such as Konrad Peutinger, a humanist from Augsburg and a specialist in Roman antiquities, and the German artist Albrecht Dürer, who, in particular, illustrated books written by the emperor. Other Habsburg rulers and the aristocracy encouraged the fine arts and amassed rich collections of paintings and sculptures that later became the pride of Austria.

In 1519, Maximilian's grandson Charles was elected king, and in 1530 became Holy Roman Emperor under the name of Charles V. Charles ruled the empire, Austria, Bohemia, the Netherlands, Spain and the Spanish overseas possessions. In 1521 he made his brother, Archduke Ferdinand, ruler of the Danube lands of the Habsburgs, which included Austria proper, Styria, Carinthia, Carniola and Tyrol.

Accession of the Czech Republic and Hungary.

In 1526 the troops of Suleiman the Magnificent invaded Hungary. Civil strife within the ruling class of the country facilitated the victory of the Turks, and on August 29 the flower of the Hungarian cavalry was destroyed on the Mohacs field, and the capital Buda capitulated. The young king Louis II, who fled after the defeat at Mohacs, died. After his death, the Czech Republic (with Moravia and Silesia) and Western Hungary went to the Habsburgs.

Until then, the inhabitants of the Habsburg dominions spoke almost exclusively German, except for the population of small Slavic enclaves. However, after the accession of Hungary and the Czech Republic, the Danube State became a very heterogeneous state in terms of population. This happened just at the time when mono-national states were taking shape in the west of Europe.

The Czech Republic and Hungary had their own brilliant past, their own national saints and heroes, traditions and languages. Each of these countries also had its own national estate and provincial diets, which were dominated by wealthy magnates and the clergy, but there were much fewer nobles and townspeople. Royal power was more nominal than real. The Habsburg Empire included many peoples - Hungarians, Slovaks, Czechs, Serbs, Germans, Ukrainians and Romanians.

The court in Vienna undertook a series of measures to integrate Bohemia and Hungary into the Habsburg ancestral domains. The central government departments were reorganized to meet the needs of an expanding power. A prominent role began to be played by the palace office and the secret council, which advised the emperor mainly on issues of international politics and legislation. The first steps were taken to replace the tradition of electing monarchs in both countries with Habsburg hereditary law.

Turkish invasion.

Only the threat of Turkish conquest helped to rally Austria, Hungary and the Czech Republic. The 200,000-strong army of Suleiman advanced along the wide valley of the Danube and in 1529 approached the walls of Vienna. A month later, the garrison and the inhabitants of Vienna forced the Turks to lift the siege and retreat to Hungary. But the wars between the Austrian and Ottoman empires continued intermittently for two generations; and almost two centuries passed until the armies of the Habsburgs completely expelled the Turks from historical Hungary.

The rise and fall of Protestantism.

The area of ​​residence of the Hungarians became the center for the spread of reformed Christianity on the Danube. Many landlords and peasants in Hungary adopted Calvinism and Lutheranism. Luther's teachings attracted many German-speaking townspeople; in Transylvania, the Unitarian movement aroused wide sympathy. In the eastern part of the Hungarian proper lands, Calvinism prevailed, and Lutheranism became widespread among part of the Slovaks and Germans. In that part of Hungary which fell under Habsburg control, Protestantism ran into considerable resistance from the Catholics. The court in Vienna, which highly valued the importance of Catholicism in maintaining the absolute power of the king, proclaimed it the official religion of Hungary. Protestants were required to pay money to maintain Catholic religious institutions and for a long time were not allowed to hold public office.

The Reformation spread surprisingly quickly in Austria itself. The newly invented printing allowed both opposing religious camps to publish and distribute books and pamphlets. Princes and priests often fought for power under religious banners. A large number of believers in Austria left catholic church; the ideas of the Reformation were proclaimed in the Cathedral of St. Stephen in Vienna and even in the family chapel of the ruling dynasty. Anabaptist groups (such as the Mennonites) then spread to Tyrol and Moravia. By the middle of the 16th century. the clear majority of the Austrian population seemed to have embraced Protestantism in one form or another.

However, there were three powerful factors that not only restrained the spread of the Reformation, but also contributed to the return of a large part of the neophytes to the bosom of the Roman Catholic Church: the internal church reform proclaimed by the Council of Trent; the Society of Jesus (Jesuit order), whose members, as confessors, teachers and preachers, focused their activities on converting the families of large landowners to this faith, correctly calculating that their peasants would then follow the faith of their masters; and physical coercion carried out by the Viennese court. The conflicts culminated in the Thirty Years' War (1618–1648), which began in Bohemia, where Protestantism was deeply rooted.

In 1606–1609, Rudolf II guaranteed freedom of religion to Czech Protestants by a series of agreements. But when Ferdinand II (reigned 1619–1637) became emperor, Protestants in Bohemia felt their religious and civil rights threatened. Zealous Catholic and authoritarian ruler Ferdinand II, bright representative Counter-Reformation, ordered the suppression of Protestantism in Austria itself.

Thirty Years' War.

In 1619, the Czech Diet refused to recognize Ferdinand as emperor and elected Elector Frederick V, Count Palatine of the Rhine, as king. This demarche led to the beginning of the Thirty Years' War. The rebels, who disagreed on all the most important issues, were bound only by hatred of the Habsburgs. With the help of mercenaries from Germany, the Habsburg army utterly defeated the Czech rebels in 1620 at the Battle of Belaya Gora near Prague.

The Czech crown was once and for all assigned to the house of Habsburg, the Sejm was dispersed, and Catholicism was declared the only legal faith.

The estates of Czech Protestant aristocrats, which occupied almost half of the territory of the Czech Republic, were divided among the younger sons of the Catholic nobility of Europe, mostly of German origin. Until the collapse of the Habsburg Monarchy in 1918, the Czech aristocracy spoke predominantly German and was devoted to the ruling dynasty.

During the Thirty Years' War, the population of the Habsburg Empire suffered huge losses. The Peace of Westphalia (1648) put an end to the massacre, according to which the Holy Roman Empire, which included Germany and Italy, actually ceased to exist, and many princes who owned its lands were able to fulfill their old dream of independence from the power of the emperor. However, the Habsburgs still retained the imperial crown and influence over German state affairs.

victory over the Turks.

In the second half of the 17th century. Ottoman armies resumed the onslaught on Europe. The Austrians fought the Turks for control of the lower reaches of the Danube and Sava rivers. In 1683, a huge Turkish army, taking advantage of the uprising in Hungary, again besieged Vienna for two months, and again caused great damage to its suburbs. The city overflowed with refugees, artillery shelling caused damage to the Cathedral of St. Stephen and other architectural monuments.

The besieged city was saved by the Polish-German army under the command of the Polish king Jan Sobieski. On September 12, 1683, after a fierce skirmish, the Turks withdrew and never returned to the walls of Vienna.

From that moment on, the Turks began to gradually lose their positions, and the Habsburgs derived more and more new benefits from their victories. When in 1687 most of Hungary, with Buda as its capital, was liberated from Turkish rule, the Hungarian Diet, in gratitude, recognized the hereditary right of the Habsburg male line to the Hungarian crown. However, at the same time, it was stipulated that before accession to the throne, the new king had to confirm all the "traditions, privileges and prerogatives" of the Hungarian nation.

The war against the Turks continued. Austrian troops recaptured almost all of Hungary, Croatia, Transylvania and most of Slovenia, which was officially secured by the Peace of Karlowitz (1699). Then the Habsburgs turned their eyes to the Balkans, and in 1717 the Austrian commander Prince Eugene of Savoy captured Belgrade and invaded Serbia. The Sultan was forced to cede to the Habsburgs a small Serbian region around Belgrade and a number of other small territories. After 20 years, the Balkan territory was again captured by the Turks; The Danube and the Sava became the border between the two great powers.

Hungary, which was under the rule of Vienna, was devastated, its population decreased. Vast tracts of land were given to nobles loyal to the Habsburgs. Hungarian peasants moved to free lands, and foreign settlers invited by the crown - Serbs, Romanians and, above all, German Catholics - settled in the southern regions of the country. According to estimates, in 1720 the Hungarians made up less than 45% of the population of Hungary, and in the 18th century. their share continued to decline. Transylvania retained a special political status under the administration from Vienna.

Although the Hungarian constitutional privileges and local government were not affected, and the tax breaks of the aristocracy were confirmed, the Habsburg court was able to impose its will on the Hungarian ruling elite. The aristocracy, whose landholdings grew with their allegiance to the crown, remained loyal to the Habsburgs.

During periods of revolts and strife in the 16th and 17th centuries. more than once it seemed that the multinational state of the Habsburgs was on the verge of imminent collapse. Nevertheless, the Viennese court continued to encourage the development of education and the arts. Important milestones in intellectual life were the founding of universities in Graz (1585), Salzburg (1623), Budapest (1635) and Innsbruck (1677).

military successes.

In Austria, a regular army was created, equipped with firearms. Although gunpowder was first used in war in the 14th century, it took 300 years for guns and artillery to turn into truly formidable weapons. Artillery pieces made of iron or bronze were so heavy that at least 10 horses or 40 oxen had to be harnessed to move them. To protect against bullets, armor was needed, burdensome for both people and horses. Fortress walls were made thicker in order to withstand artillery fire. The disregard for the infantry gradually disappeared, and the cavalry, although reduced in numbers, lost little of its former prestige. Military operations largely began to be reduced to the siege of fortified cities, which required a lot of manpower and equipment.

Prince Eugene of Savoy rebuilt the armed forces along the lines of the army of France, where he received his military education. Food was improved, troops were housed in barracks, veterans were given land reclaimed from the Turks. Nevertheless, the reform was soon obstructed by aristocrats from the Austrian military command. The changes were not deep enough to allow Austria to win against Prussia in the 18th century. For generations, however, the Habsburgs' armed forces and bureaucracy provided the stronghold they needed to maintain the integrity of the multinational state.

Economic situation.

The basis of the Austrian economy remained agriculture, but at the same time there was an increase in manufacturing production and finance capital. In the 16th century the country's industry several times experienced a crisis due to inflation caused by the import of precious metals into Europe from America. At this time, the crown no longer had to apply for financial assistance to usurers, now the state loan has become a source of funds. In sufficient quantities for the market, iron was mined in Styria and silver in Tyrol; to a lesser extent, coal in Silesia.

architectural masterpieces.

After the feeling of the Turkish threat disappeared, intensive construction began in the cities of the Habsburg empire. Masters from Italy trained local designers and builders of churches and palaces. Baroque buildings were erected in Prague, Salzburg and especially in Vienna - smart, elegant, with rich exterior and interior decoration. Luxuriously decorated facades, wide staircases and luxurious gardens became characteristic features of the city residences of the Austrian aristocracy. Among them stood out the magnificent Belvedere Palace with a park built by Prince Eugene of Savoy.

The ancient seat of the court in Vienna, the Hofburg, was enlarged and decorated. The chancellery of the court, the huge Karlskirche church, which took 20 years to build, and the imperial summer palace and park in Schönbrunn are just the most striking buildings in a city that shone with its architectural splendor. Churches and monasteries damaged or destroyed during the war were restored throughout the monarchy. The Benedictine monastery in Melk, perched on a cliff above the Danube, is a typical baroque example in rural Austria and a symbol of the triumph of the Counter-Reformation.

Rise of Vienna.

Vienna, which finally became an archbishopric, was the center of Catholic Germany and the capital of the Habsburg state. Artists and merchants flocked to the city from all over Austria, from the Czech Republic and Hungary, from Spain and the Netherlands, from Italy and southern Germany.

The court and the aristocracy encouraged the development of theatre, fine arts and music. Along with popular theatrical performances, Italian-style opera flourished. The emperor himself wrote operas in which the archduchess played. The local folk music that made Vienna famous all over the world originated in the city's taverns, haunts for singers and musicians. During this period, the foundations were laid for what made the Habsburg residence the musical capital of Europe.

Austria in the 18th century.

Throughout the 1700s, Austria experienced severe military trials, achieved new heights of power and prestige, and achieved significant cultural advances.

At first, the prospects for development did not seem bright at all. Luck turned away from Emperor Charles VI (reigned 1711-1740). With no male heirs, he feared that the multi-ethnic state after his death would plunge into internal conflicts or be dismembered by foreign powers. To avoid this, the court entered into negotiations with the landed diets and foreign states in order to achieve recognition as the heir to the throne of Charles's daughter, Maria Theresa.

These efforts were initially successful. Official document, known as the Pragmatic Sanction of 1713, provided that all Habsburg possessions would have to remain indivisible for all time and be transferred by seniority. However, when approving this decision, the diets of the Czech Republic and the Hungarian lands made it clear that if the Habsburg dynasty fades away, they will be able to choose another ruling house.

Empress Maria Theresa (reigned 1740–1780).

In accordance with the Pragmatic Sanction of 1713, Maria Theresa ascended the Austrian throne (1740). A heavy burden of responsibility fell on the shoulders of the 23-year-old empress. King Frederick II of Prussia immediately laid claim to most of the prosperous province of Silesia, which was part of the Czech kingdom.

The Prussian monarch did not recognize the rights of Maria Theresa to the inheritance of Charles VI and announced his intention to free half of the Silesian population, who professed Protestantism, from Catholic Austria. The King of Prussia attacked Silesia without any formal pretext or declaration of war, contrary to accepted international norms. Thus began a long struggle between Prussia and Austria for dominance in Central Europe, which ended with the final military defeat of Austria in 1866. France and a number of small German principalities, seeking to expand their possessions, took part in the attack on the possessions of the Habsburgs.

Unprepared for war and worse armed, Austria easily succumbed to the onslaught of the enemy. At times it seemed that the monarchy was disintegrating. Stubborn and courageous, Maria Theresa took a decisive step, turning to her Hungarian subjects for help. In response to promises of real concessions, the Hungarian magnates demonstrated their loyalty, but their help was insufficient. In 1742 most of Silesia went to Prussia. Despite repeated attempts by Austria to regain the lost province, Prussia owned the land until the end of World War II.

In an effort to improve the international position of the country, the empress entered into dynastic marriages of her children (those of 16 who had reached maturity). So, Marie Antoinette became the bride of the heir to the throne of France, the future King Louis XVI.

Due to the turbulent political events in Europe, Austria made a number of territorial acquisitions. At the beginning of the century, the Spanish Netherlands (now Belgium) were annexed, which remained a kind of colony until 1797. Wealthy provinces in Italy were acquired: Tuscany, most of Lombardy, Naples, Parma and Sardinia (the last three were held by Austria for a short time).

Largely contrary to the moral convictions of Maria Theresa, although in accordance with the wishes of her son Joseph, Austria joined Russia and Prussia in the first partition of Poland (1772) and received the principalities of Auschwitz and Zatorsky, the southern part of the Krakow and Sandomierz voivodships, Russian (without the Kholm land ) and Belz Voivodeship. About a million people lived in this territory, there were fertile lands and salt mines. 23 years later, another part of Poland, with its ancient capital Krakow, came under Austrian rule. Claims were also made to the northern part of the Principality of Moldavia, southeast of Galicia. This area was controlled by the Turks; in 1775 it was incorporated into the Habsburg state under the name of Bukovina.

Internal reforms.

Measures were taken to improve the mechanism of public administration in Austria and the Czech Republic, strengthen the unity and stability of the provinces, overcome chronic financial deficits and improve the state of the economy as a whole. In all these areas, Prussia served as a model and an inspiring example. In Austria, it was considered that modernization would increase the military power of the state, confirm Austria's claims to the status of a great power and prepare the way for the weakening of the power of King Frederick of Prussia.

The Austrian armed forces, public administration and tax system were completely restructured. The central place in the reorganization of state power was occupied by the State Council, which had advisory functions and consisted of specialists from each of the departments of internal affairs. A new supreme court was created and the judiciary was separated from the public administration system. In accordance with the trends characteristic of the Enlightenment, new codes of laws were issued. The foreign policy and military departments were radically updated.

Military spending increased, a centralized recruitment was introduced. The more complex organization of the armed forces required the involvement of more civilian workers. To increase the effectiveness of public administration and ensure centralization, the contingent of civil servants in Vienna and in the provinces was expanded; now they were drawn from the middle class. In the hereditary lands of the crown and in Bohemia, local councils lost a number of important functions, and crown officials were given a wide range of powers, ranging from supervision of serfs to jurisdiction in matters of police and education.

The reforms also affected the countryside. According to the so-called. corvée patents (1771-1778), the corvee of the peasants was limited to three days a week.

In the economic sphere, the development of manufactory production was encouraged. Despite the resistance of traditional guild associations, new, modern industrial enterprises were created. Hungary was to serve as a market for industrial products from Austria and as a breadbasket for the Austrian cities. Universal income tax, a unified system of border and internal duties. In order to expand international trade, a small merchant fleet was created, and ports in Trieste and Rijeka were modernized. There were companies that carried out trade relations with South Asia.

enlightened despotism.

Maria Theresa's son, Joseph II, who became his mother's co-ruler after 1765, often entered into disputes with her on matters of public policy. In 1780 he took the reins of government into his own hands. The new emperor sought to strengthen the power of Austria and its unity, to improve the system of state administration. He was convinced that the personal power of the sovereign should be unlimited and that he should instill in the minds of the peoples inhabiting the country the spirit common homeland. Decrees were issued declaring German the official language, which made it possible to unify the sphere of public administration and speed up judicial procedures. The powers of the Hungarian Sejm were curtailed, and soon he ceased his activities altogether.

Demonstrating enlightenment and good will, Joseph II proclaimed the equality of all subjects before the court and in the collection of taxes. Print and theater censorship was temporarily relaxed. The amount of dues paid by peasants was now regulated by crown officials, and the amount of taxes levied depended on income from the land.

Although Joseph II declared himself the defender of Catholicism, he waged a vigorous struggle against the power of the Pope. In fact, he sought to turn the church in his possessions into an instrument of the state, independent of Rome. The clergy were deprived of their tithes and were forced to study in seminaries under state control, and the archbishops were required to officially take an oath of loyalty to the crown. Ecclesiastical courts were abolished, marriage began to be regarded as a civil contract, outside the competence of the church. The number of religious holidays was reduced, and the decoration of religious buildings was regulated by the state. Approximately one in three of the monasteries was closed.

Joseph II issued a decree on universal and compulsory schooling. Funds for education were to be allocated by the nobility and local authorities. Although this measure was not fully implemented, school attendance increased significantly.

Joseph II died untimely in 1790. His brother, Leopold II, who had a good reputation as the ruler of Italian Tuscany, quickly restored the shaken order. Serfdom in Hungary was restored, and in Austria the peasant, although he remained personally free, fell into an even more difficult dependence on the landowner.

The Hungarian Diet, which had not convened under Joseph II, was reconvened and confirmed the old freedoms and constitutional rights of the kingdom. Leopold II also made a number of political concessions to the Czech Republic and was crowned as the Czech king. In order to enlist the support of the Czech educated class, in which a sense of national identity was awakening, a department of the Czech language was established at the University of Prague.

Achievements in the field of culture.

By decree of Joseph II, the "Palace Theater" (founded by Maria Theresa in 1741) was renamed in 1776 into the "Court National Theater" ("Burgtheater"), which retained a high level of performance until the 20th century. Vienna was famous for its musical culture, the tone was set by the Italians. In 1729, Metastasio (Pietro Trapassi) arrived in Vienna, taking the position of court poet and librettist, he wrote texts for operas by the Neapolitan Niccolo Jommelli and Christoph von Gluck.

The great composers Joseph Haydn and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart worked in Vienna, representatives of the so-called. Viennese classical school. Melody from string quartet op. 76 No. 3 formed the basis of the Austrian national anthem (1797), and then the German anthem.

The era of the French Revolution and the Napoleonic Wars.

Like all of Europe, Austria experienced the consequences of the French Revolution and the rule of Napoleon Bonaparte. The thirst for territorial conquest, dynastic kinship with the French Queen Marie Antoinette, sister of Joseph II and Leopold II, fear that the ideas of the French Revolution would influence the various peoples of the monarchy, the growth of patriotism, especially among the German-speaking population - the combination of all these diverse tendencies and motives made Austria irreconcilable enemy of France.

Wars against France.

Military operations against France began in 1792 and continued intermittently until the autumn of 1815. More than once during this time, the Austrian armies were defeated, twice Napoleon's grenadiers stormed the famous Vienna, which in terms of population (about 230 thousand people) in Europe was second only to London and Paris. The Habsburg army suffered great losses, the suffering and hardships of the inhabitants of large and small cities are comparable to the hardships experienced in the world wars of the 20th century. Galloping inflation, the collapse of the tax system and chaos in the economy brought the state to the brink of disaster.

More than once Napoleon dictated terms of peace to Austria. Emperor Franz I was forced to marry his daughter Maria Louise to Napoleon (1810), whom he had previously called the "French adventurer". The peasants of Tyrol, led by the innkeeper Andreas Gofer, revolted and resisted the Napoleonic troops. The Austrian troops inflicted a severe defeat on the French near Aspern near Vienna (1809), but were defeated by Napoleon a few days later at Wagram. The Austrian army was commanded by Archduke Karl, whose military glory rivaled that of Prince Eugene of Savoy: their equestrian statues adorn the Heldenplatz ("Heroes' Square") in the center of Vienna. Austrian field marshal Karl Schwarzenberg commanded the Allied forces, which in 1813 defeated Napoleon at the Battle of Leipzig.

Austrian Empire.

Franz I in 1804 appropriated the name of the Austrian Empire to his state. By the will of Napoleon, the Holy Roman Empire of the German nation, whose crown had actually been inherited in the Habsburg family for almost four centuries, ceased to exist (1806).

Congress of Vienna.

The territorial changes in Europe made during the era of Napoleon also affected Austria. It is significant that the international congress, which laid the foundations for a peaceful order after the overthrow of Bonaparte, was convened in Vienna. For several months in 1814–1815, the capital of the Habsburgs was a meeting place for politicians of the highest rank of large and small European states. A widely branched network of Austrian spies followed the arriving high-ranking persons.

The Vienna debate was chaired by Count (later Prince) Clemens Metternich, Foreign Minister and later Chancellor of Austria. At the congress, he successfully secured a secure position in Europe for the House of Habsburg and prevented Russia from extending its influence to the central part of the continent.

Austria was forced to abandon Belgium, but received substantial compensation for this. Dalmatia, the western part of Istria, the islands in the Adriatic that previously belonged to Venice, the former Venetian Republic itself and the neighboring Italian province of Lombardy passed under the scepter of Vienna. Representatives of the Habsburg family received the crowns of Tuscany, Parma and Modena. Austria enjoyed strong influence in the Papal States and the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies. As a result, the Apennine peninsula actually turned into an appendage of the Danubian monarchy. A significant part of Polish Galicia was returned to Austria, and in 1846 the small Republic of Krakow was annexed, the only free section of Poland saved by peacekeepers in 1815.

Opinions about the form of the future German statehood were sharply divided. Metternich managed to prevent the creation of a lasting alliance, and a loose confederation was formed - the German Confederation. It covered the German-speaking states of Europe and that part of Austria that was part of the abolished Holy Roman Empire. Austria received the post of permanent chairman of the confederation.

Franz I and Metternich.

During the first half of the 19th century. the leading figure in the public life of Austria was Emperor Franz I. As the chancellor of the empire, Metternich had significant political weight. After the excesses of the French Revolution, the horrors and turmoil caused by the Napoleonic Wars, he strove for order and inner harmony. The chancellor repeatedly advised to create a parliament from representatives of different peoples of Austria and to give real powers to the provincial diets, but the emperor did not heed his advice.

In the field of diplomacy, Metternich made a significant contribution to maintaining peace in Europe. When the opportunity presented itself, Austrian troops were sent to suppress local uprisings, creating for themselves, their country and its first minister, an odious reputation among the supporters of freedom and national unification.

Domestic policy was determined mainly by Emperor Francis I. State officials kept the entire field of education and students under tight control, prescribing what could be read and studied. The head of the censorship department, Count Josef Siedlnicki, banned literary works hostile to the absolutism of the emperor or religion, and organizations suspected of political heresy were persecuted. Journalists were forbidden even to use the word "constitution".

The development of culture.

The prestige of Vienna as a musical capital remained at its height thanks to Ludwig van Beethoven. Franz Schubert's works can be considered the pinnacle of song lyrics. Josef Lanner and Johann Strauss-father became famous for their waltzes.

The outstanding Austrian playwright of this period was Franz Grillparzer. Light, witty plays were written by Ferdinand Raimund and Johann Nestroy.

In the field of religion, enlightened religious tolerance prevailed. No one could be excommunicated from the Roman Catholic Church without the consent of the emperor. The clergy oversaw education, and the Jesuits were allowed to resume their activities in the empire. Restrictions on Jews were eased and synagogues were built in Vienna for adherents of both Orthodox and Reformed Judaism. A number of families of Jewish bankers have achieved a prominent public position and recognition; Solomon Rothschild stood out among them, who was friendly with Metternich and in 1823 received the title of baron.

Unrest among national minorities.

The Czech intelligentsia developed their native language, literary and historical works were written, in which the medieval Czech Republic was glorified. Patriotic Czech journalists denounced the Austrian administration and restrictions on civil liberties. In Galicia, Polish patriots in 1846 proclaimed the independence of their people. However, the most active in the struggle for national freedom were the Hungarians, or rather the middle strata of the Hungarian nobles. Hungarian writers and scientists revived the golden pages of the past and awakened hopes for a glorious future. The recognized apostle of the cultural and national revival of Hungary was Count Istvan Szechenyi, who belonged to one of the proudest aristocratic families in the kingdom. A widely traveled cosmopolitan, he remained loyal to the Habsburgs but advocated reforms in government. Lawyer Lajos Kossuth took over the leadership of the national movement. In 1847, his supporters achieved a majority in the Hungarian Diet.

After the death of Franz I in 1835, the leadership of the Austrian government was entrusted to a regency council with the participation of Metternich, since the new emperor, Ferdinand I (1793–1875), proved incapable of governing. Censorship was softened, universities received more freedom.

Revolutions 1848–1849.

The revolution in Paris in 1848 resonated with performances in Vienna, Bohemia, Hungary, and the Italian provinces. The Habsburg Empire was threatened with disintegration. Groups of students and artisans and the liberal bourgeoisie demanded that Prince Metternich resign from government posts and that a constitution be adopted in the country. The Habsburg court agreed. 75-year-old Metternich, who for two generations was a "rock of order", fled to England.

The Austrian Constituent Assembly abolished serfdom. This was the main achievement of the revolutionary storm. In October 1848, Vienna experienced a second wave of mass unrest. The street fighting waged by the reformers caused serious destruction in the cities. The imperial army crushed the uprising. Prince Felix Schwarzenberg, having appropriated dictatorial powers, replaced the feebleminded Emperor Ferdinand I with his 18-year-old nephew, Franz Joseph. A constitution was drafted that provided for the creation of a federal legislature with the participation of various national groups and the equality of nations. But this document never entered into force. Later, a single imperial constitution was proclaimed, but it was not put into effect either.

national requirements.

In the Czech Republic, the Czech-speaking and German-speaking opposition initially united to win concessions from the House of Habsburg. However, their paths diverged when Czech patriots demanded self-government for the Czech Republic and opposed unification into a single German state. Supporters of moderate views spoke out for the preservation of the Austrian Empire, transformed into a federation based on the equality of peoples.

In June 1848, a congress of the Slavic leaders of Austria and representatives of foreign Slavs met in Prague to discuss political problems. There was a clash of Czech patriots with the Germans. As a result, the city was occupied by the Austrian army, which was the beginning of the restoration of the power of the Habsburgs.

The uprising in Hungary developed along a more intricate plot. At the request of Kossuth, the Vienna court gave Hungary almost complete control over its internal affairs, while maintaining dynastic and military ties with Austria. The serfs were emancipated and broad civil liberties were promised. But the Hungarian politicians stubbornly denied elementary human rights to the small peoples of the kingdom, who in the aggregate were more numerous than the Hungarians. For Croats and Romanians, Hungarian chauvinism was even worse than Habsburg authoritarianism. These peoples, instigated by Vienna, entered into a struggle with the Hungarians, which was soon joined by the Austrian troops.

April 14, 1849 Kossuth proclaimed the independence of Hungary. Since the Austrian government did not have sufficient military forces to suppress the uprising, it turned to the Russian Tsar Nicholas I for help. He responded immediately, and Russian troops dealt a mortal blow to the Hungarian uprising. The remnants of Hungarian autonomy were completely eliminated, Kossuth himself fled.

When it seemed that the Habsburg dynasty was on the verge of collapse, Lombardy and Venice rose in revolt, and the Venetian Republic was revived. However, the Austrian troops crushed the rebellion and restored Austrian dominance over the Italian provinces and the entire Apennine Peninsula.

The court of Vienna also sought to prevent the unification of the German states in order to prevent Prussia from gaining a dominant position in German-speaking Europe. Austria emerged from the revolutionary upheavals weakened, but retained its integrity.

reaction and reform.

Prince Felix Schwarzenberg actually ruled Austria until his death in 1852, and then Franz Joseph assumed full power. The Germanization of all the peoples of the empire who did not speak German was carried out. The Czech patriotic movement was suppressed, the Hungarians were pacified. In 1850 Hungary was united with Austria into a single customs union. Under the concordat of 1855, the Roman Catholic Church received the right to its own education system and press.

On the Apennine Peninsula, the movement for national unification was led by the skillful politician of the Kingdom of Sardinia (Piedmont), Count Camillo Cavour. His plans included the liberation of Lombardy and Venice. In accordance with a secret agreement with the French Emperor Napoleon III, Cavour in 1859 provoked a war with Austria. The united Franco-Sardinian forces defeated Franz Joseph's troops and Austria was forced to give up Lombardy. In 1860, the pro-Austrian dynasties in the small states of Italy were overthrown, and a united Italian kingdom was formed under the leadership of Piedmont. In 1884, Austria, in alliance with Prussia, began a war against Denmark for control of the small territories of Schleswig and Holstein.

In 1866 a dispute over the division of Danish spoils led to a war between Austria and Prussia. Italy took the side of Prussia, and the Austrian Empire was defeated. However, the terms of the peace treaty dictated by Bismarck turned out to be quite tolerable. This was the subtle calculation of the Prussian chancellor. The House of Habsburg had to renounce its historical role in German affairs, without ceding any territories to Prussia (except for the lands taken from Denmark). On the other hand, although the Austrian troops defeated the Italians on land and at sea, Venice was transferred to Italy, a number of Italian regions remained under the control of the Habsburgs.

Birth of the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy.

The loss of territories and prestige necessitated a new form of relationship between Austria and Hungary. Various draft constitutions providing for the creation of a unified parliament were prepared without the participation of the Hungarians. Finally, in 1867 the famous "compromise" (Ausgleich) was worked out. The Austrian Empire, proclaimed in 1804, was transformed into a dualistic Austria-Hungary, with the rule of the Hungarians in Hungary and the Austrians the rest of the new state. In the sphere of international relations, both states had to act as a single entity, maintaining autonomy in internal affairs.

constitutional reforms.

Political parties.

national minorities.

constitutional reforms.

One of the directions of the reorganization of public administration in the 1860s in the Austrian half of the dual monarchy was the further development of the constitution. The constitution guaranteed civil liberties and equality for all linguistic groups. A bicameral state parliament, the Reichsrat, was established. The members of the lower house were elected through indirect elections. The constitution provided broad powers for the legislature, which were to meet once a year. The Cabinet of Ministers was responsible to the lower house. Both chambers had equal legislative power. One of the paragraphs of the constitution (the famous Article XIV) gave the monarch the power to issue decrees between sessions of parliament that had the force of law.

Legislative assemblies of 17 Austrian lands (Landtags) received more powers, but the crown appointed governors who could override the decisions of the Landtags. Initially, it was the Landtags who elected deputies to the lower house of the Reichsrat, but in 1873 direct elections were introduced in districts and curiae (classes or qualified ranks of voters).

Political parties.

The Austrian-German deputies were divided into rival political factions. The largest group was made up of adherents of the monarchy. In the 1880s, two new parties were organized - the Christian Social and the Social Democratic. The first of these spoke mainly on behalf of the Austrian-German peasants and petty bourgeoisie, and its leaders were loyal to the Habsburg dynasty and the Roman Catholic Church.

The Social Democrats declared their adherence to the teachings of Karl Marx, but advocated the implementation of political and social reforms by constitutional methods. Party leader Viktor Adler and national theorist Otto Bauer were at the head of the party. Disputes over the national question weakened the movement, yet it campaigned successfully for universal suffrage for all adult males.

There was also a small but noisy faction of the Great Germans, which demanded the unification of areas with a German-speaking population with the German Empire. This trend in Austrian politics had a serious impact on the mindset of Adolf Hitler, who spent several years in Vienna.

national minorities.

The Czechs demanded that the Czech Republic be given the same status in the monarchy as Hungary received, but they never managed to achieve this. The development of educational opportunities and economic prosperity gave greater confidence to the Czech middle class. In general, Czech patriots, such as Tomas Masaryk, sought internal self-government for the Czech Republic, without demanding the destruction of the empire and the creation of an independent Czech state. In the Sejm of the Czech Republic there was a struggle between Czech deputies and representatives of the Austrian-German elements. The Czech-German enmity from time to time paralyzed the work of the parliament in Vienna. The Czechs won concessions in the fields of language, access to the civil service and education, and yet no constitutional formula was adopted that could satisfy the claims of the Czechs and at the same time be acceptable to the Austro-Germans.

The Poles in Galicia received a significant degree of autonomy, which they were quite satisfied with. This province became the object of envy and admiration of the Polish patriots who lived in the Russian and Prussian-German parts of Poland. Among the large Ukrainian minority in Galicia, unrest continued due to discrimination and repression by the Poles, and a small stratum of Ukrainian intellectuals fought for the rights of their compatriots. One of the Ukrainian factions spoke out for political unification with the Ukrainians of the Russian Empire.

Of all the Austrian peoples, the southern Slavs (Slovenes, Croats, Serbs) caused the greatest concern of the Vienna court. The number of representatives of this national group increased in 1908, when Austria-Hungary annexed the former Turkish province of Bosnia and Herzegovina. The South Slavs in Austria varied greatly in their views. Some of them sought to unite with the Kingdom of Serbia, others were satisfied with the existing situation, others preferred the creation of a South Slavic state within the framework of the Habsburg Monarchy.

This last alternative meant the formation of a state covering the areas with South Slavic populations of both Hungary and Austria, with the same status as the Austrian Empire or the Kingdom of Hungary. This proposal met with some support in Austria, but was negatively received by almost all Hungarian politicians. Wider projects were also proposed to reorganize the monarchy into a federal union of peoples, but the concept of the Habsburg "United States" was never put into practice.

There was no unity among the Italian minority of Austria, who lived in South Tyrol, Trieste and its environs. Some Italian-speaking residents tacitly agreed to the rule of Vienna, while militant separatists called for unification with Italy.

Partly to calm national feelings, partly in response to strong pressure from the Social Democrats, in 1907 universal suffrage was introduced for the adult male population in elections to the Austrian parliament (Reichsrat). However, political unrest in the multinational empire intensified. In the spring of 1914, a break was announced in the work of the Reichsrat, and the parliament did not meet for three years.

World War I.

The news of the beginning of the war was greeted with enthusiasm. The danger of the offensive of the Russian army rallied the Austrians, even the Social Democrats supported the war. Official and unofficial propaganda inspired the will to win and to a large extent quenched inter-ethnic conflicts. The unity of the state was ensured by a tough military dictatorship, the dissatisfied were forced to submit. Only in the Czech Republic the war did not cause much enthusiasm. All the resources of the monarchy were mobilized to achieve victory, but the leadership acted extremely inefficiently.

Military failures at the beginning of the war undermined the spirit of the army and the population. Streams of refugees rushed from the war zones to Vienna and other cities. Many public buildings were converted into hospitals. Italy's entry into the war against the monarchy in May 1915 increased the fervor of war, especially among the Slovenes. When the territorial claims of Romania to Austria-Hungary were rejected, Bucharest went over to the side of the Entente.

It was at the very moment when the Romanian armies were retreating that the eighty-year-old Emperor Franz Joseph died. The new ruler, young Charles I, a man with limited abilities, removed the people on whom his predecessor relied. In 1917 Karl convened the Reichsrat. Representatives of national minorities demanded the reformation of the empire. Some sought autonomy for their peoples, others insisted on complete secession. Patriotic sentiments forced the Czechs to desert the army, and the Czech rebel Karel Kramař was sentenced to death on charges of high treason, but then pardoned. In July 1917 the emperor declared an amnesty for political prisoners. This gesture of reconciliation reduced his authority among the militant Austro-Germans: the monarch was reproached for being too soft.

Even before the accession of Charles to the throne, the Austrian Social Democrats were divided into supporters and opponents of the war. Pacifist leader Friedrich Adler, son of Viktor Adler, assassinated Austrian Prime Minister Count Karl Stürgk in October 1916. At the trial, Adler made a sharp criticism of the government. Sentenced to a long prison term, he was released after the revolution in November 1918.

End of the Habsburg dynasty.

A low grain harvest, a decrease in food supplies to Austria from Hungary, and a blockade by the Entente countries doomed ordinary Austrian city dwellers to hardships and hardships. In January 1918, the workers of the military factories went on strike and returned to work only after the government promised to improve their living and working conditions. In February, a riot broke out at the naval base in Kotor, in which the participants raised a red flag. The authorities brutally suppressed the riots and executed the instigators.

Separatist sentiments grew among the peoples of the empire. At the beginning of the war, patriotic committees of Czechoslovaks (led by Tomasz Masaryk), Poles and South Slavs were created abroad. These committees campaigned in the countries of the Entente and America for the national independence of their peoples, seeking support from official and private circles. In 1919, the Entente states and the USA recognized these emigrant groups as de facto governments. In October 1918, the national councils within Austria, one after another, declared the independence of the lands and territories. The promise of Emperor Charles to reform the Austrian constitution on the basis of the principles of federalism hastened the process of disintegration. In Vienna, Austro-German politicians set up a provisional government for German Austria, while the Social Democrats campaigned for a republic. Charles I abdicated on November 11, 1918. The next day, the Republic of Austria was proclaimed.

First Austrian Republic (1918–1938)

Under the terms of the Treaty of Saint-Germain (1919), the new Austrian state had a small territory and a German-speaking population. Areas with a German population in the Czech Republic and Moravia went to Czechoslovakia, and Austria was forbidden to unite with the newly created German (Weimar) Republic. Significant territories in South Tyrol, inhabited by the Germans, went to Italy. Austria received from Hungary the eastern land of Burgenland.

The Constitution of the Republic of Austria, adopted in 1920, provided for the introduction of the post of president with representative functions, a bicameral legislative body, the lower house of which was to be elected by the entire adult population of the country. The government, headed by the chancellor, was responsible to parliament. New Austria was actually a federation, the population of the city of Vienna and eight lands elected land assemblies (landtags), which enjoyed broad self-government rights.

Party conflicts.==

Vienna was a stronghold of the Social Democrats; Socialist organizations also operated effectively in a number of other large settlements. The Christian Social Party remained the largest in the country, representing the interests of peasants, small merchants and Catholics. The Legitimist faction called for the return of the Habsburgs, and the Pan-German Party actively advocated unification with Germany. The Communist Party had only a limited number of supporters.

In 1922, the Christian Social Party won a majority in parliament and held it until the takeover of Austria by Nazi Germany in 1938. To meet the financial needs of the government, a huge money supply was put into circulation. The middle class experienced great hardship, including many dismissed civil servants. Impoverished workers reacted to their calamities with outbursts of vandalism. When the state treasury was empty in 1923, the League of Nations provided assistance to Austria. In the late 1920s, the state of the economy improved significantly, and there was hope that Austria could maintain political independence.

Dollfuss mode.

In 1933, when the crisis led to the impoverishment of the population in the cities, Chancellor Engelbert Dollfuss (HSP) launched a frontal attack on the socialists. In May 1934 a new constitution was adopted, turning Austria into a corporate state based on Catholic social principles.

The coming to power in Germany of the National Socialists (1933) inspired the Austrian supporters of the Anschluss. German propaganda fueled the enthusiasm of Hitler's local followers. In July 1934, the National Socialists broke into the residence of Chancellor Dollfuss and mortally wounded him. However, troops loyal to the government prevented the implementation of the Anschluss.

After Dollfuss's death, power passed to his deputy, Dr. Kurt Schuschnigg, a passionate supporter of Austrian independence. Relying on the organization of the Fatherland Front, the new chancellor tried to strengthen the state, but measures to improve the economy were ineffective. Having entered into contact with Hitler in 1936, the Austrian leader received guarantees from him for the independence of Austria. However, this agreement remained on paper, and Nazi propaganda continued to have an increasing influence on the minds of impoverished Austrians. Benito Mussolini, who had previously defended Austrian independence and the Dollfuss-Schuschnigg regime, renounced his Austrian allies in November 1936 after the creation of the Rome-Berlin political axis, and from that time began to support the Anschluss.

German occupation of Austria.

Applying political pressure in early 1938, Hitler forced the appointment of three well-known Nazis to positions in the Austrian government. Large street demonstrations of the National Socialists were held in the cities. Fearing the loss of Austrian independence, Schuschnigg unexpectedly announced a plebiscite on the future of the country. Belatedly, he tried to win the support of the socialists. Enraged Hitler, in turn, demanded the cancellation of the planned plebiscite and concentrated troops on the border with Austria.

At this point, Schuschnigg resigned (he later took refuge in the United States). On March 12, the Nazi armies occupied Austria, which was then incorporated into the German Reich. In Austria, again renamed the Eastern March, all Nazi institutions and laws were introduced.

The Second World War.

Incorporated into the German Reich as a province, Austria began to work for the Nazi war machine. After the economic crisis, from which the republic suffered, a period of prosperity began. Hydropower and oil resources were quickly mastered, modern plants and factories were built. After the outbreak of World War II in 1939, the human and material resources of the Eastern Mark were directed to providing for the German army. Thousands of Austrian soldiers fought for Hitler on the Eastern Front. As the fighting continued, poverty and war weariness gripped the country much as it had during the war of 1914–1918. Allied bombers raided Austrian cities, causing great destruction. Small but active resistance groups fought against the Nazi regime.

At the end of the war Soviet troops entered Austria from the territory of Hungary, and British and American troops entered the southern and western lands. The capture of the "Fortress Vienna" was accompanied by fierce street fighting.

Austria was divided into four zones of occupation. The Soviet zone included the northeast of the country, where many factories and oil fields. The American zone was located to the north and west; British - in the south, French - in the southwest. Vienna, which was inside the Soviet zone, was also divided into four occupation sectors, with the old center (inner city) under the joint control of all four allied powers.

Second Republic.

Freed from the Nazi yoke, the Austrians sought independence and the restoration of the original name of the country - Austria. With the permission of the occupying authorities, the Second Republic was created. Veteran Social Democracy Karl Renner was appointed chancellor of the provisional government to lead the process of restoring the democratic order. An experienced politician respected by all, Renner, as chancellor, and then president of the republic, contributed a lot to establishing order and stability in the country. In April 1945, he formed a provisional government, which included representatives of his own Socialist Party (the former Social Democratic Party), the People's Party (as the Christian Social Party became known) and the Communists. The constitutional system that existed before the dictatorship of Dollfuss was restored. The powers and legislative power of the new Austrian government were expanded step by step. Mandatory participation in elections was introduced, and refusal to vote could be punished by a fine or even imprisonment.

In the November 1945 elections, the Austrian People's Party (ANP) won 85 seats in parliament, the Socialist Party (SPA) 76, and the Communists 4 seats. Subsequently, this balance of power changed little, the communists lost all their seats in 1959. In 1949, a right-wing extremist group, the Union of Independents, was created (in 1955 it was transformed into the Austrian Freedom Party, APS).

Revival of the economy.

In 1945 the Austrian economy was in a state of chaos. The destruction and impoverishment caused by the war, the influx of refugees and displaced persons, the transition of military enterprises to the production of civilian products, shifts in world trade and the presence of borders between the zones of occupation of the Allies - all this created seemingly insurmountable obstacles to economic recovery. For three years, most of the inhabitants of the Austrian cities fought desperately for survival. The occupying authorities helped in organizing the supply of food. Thanks to a good harvest in 1948, food rationing was relaxed, and two years later, all food restrictions were lifted.

In the western zones of occupation, aid from the Marshall Plan and other programs produced quick results. The nationalization of the three largest Austrian banks and almost 70 industrial concerns (coal mining, steel, energy, engineering and river transport) in 1946-1947 gave significant economic advantages. Revenues from state-owned enterprises were directed to the further development of industry. The ANP proposed to allow elements of private ownership in the nationalized sector of the economy by selling part of the shares to small owners, while the socialists called for an expansion of the scope of state ownership.

The radical monetary reform stabilized and accelerated the recovery of the economy. Foreign tourists appeared, a vital source of government revenue. The railway stations destroyed during the bombings were rebuilt. In 1954, the volume of products produced by factories and mines exceeded the level of 1938, crops in the fields and vineyards, and logging almost returned to their previous level.

Revival of culture.

With the recovery of the economy, a revival of culture also began. Theaters, musical performances and the development of the arts in the city and province were now funded by the state, and not by wealthy patrons. In Vienna, the main efforts were focused on the restoration of the Cathedral of St. Stefan, and in 1955 the opera house and the Burgtheater were reopened. A second opera house, in Salzburg, opened in 1960.

Austrian schools of all levels, cleansed of the influence of the Nazis, resumed their activities. In addition to the universities in Vienna, Graz and Innsbruck, the University of Salzburg was founded in 1964. Newspapers, magazines, and books began to appear again.

State contract.

The occupying Allied troops were stationed on the territory of Austria for 10 years. In 1943, at a meeting in Moscow, leaders Soviet Union, Great Britain and the United States announced their intention to recreate Austria as an independent, sovereign and democratic state. Until 1948, when Yugoslavia was expelled from the Soviet bloc, Moscow supported Yugoslavia's claims to the border part of Austrian territory. In March 1955, the Kremlin changed its position and invited the Austrian government to send a delegation to Moscow to determine the terms for the conclusion of the State Treaty, which was already signed on May 15, 1955 The State Treaty was signed in Vienna in an atmosphere of great rejoicing.

The state treaty restored the independence and full sovereignty of Austria. It entered into force on July 27, 1955, after which the Allied troops were withdrawn from the country. On October 26, 1955, following the withdrawal of the last foreign military units, the government approved a federal constitutional law declaring the permanent neutrality of Austria and excluding the possibility of joining any military alliances or establishing foreign military bases in Austria.

Austria assumed heavy economic obligations. The most valuable "Nazi property" was the oil fields and refineries, whose output increased significantly under Soviet rule. Although under the terms of the treaty the equipment and facilities passed to Austria, it was obliged to send one million tons of oil to the Soviet Union annually until 1965. Austria also agreed to restore the pre-war positions of British and American firms that they held in the oil industry before the Nazis came. In addition, Austria was supposed to supply goods to the Soviet Union worth $150 million for six years.

Since armed forces were needed to maintain Austrian neutrality, an army was created with just over 20 thousand soldiers. In December 1955 Austria was admitted to the United Nations. Two years later, Vienna was chosen as the permanent seat of the International Agency for atomic energy(IAEA).

The economic growth.

At the time of the signing of the State Treaty, Austria was experiencing an economic boom. In 1954-1955, the gross national product - the monetary value of all goods and services produced - increased by almost 20%; Subsequently, the growth rate slowed down, but The general trend preserved. In addition to the already developed hydropower resources, a number of new long-term projects have been developed with the attraction of financial resources from abroad. These projects made it possible to export electricity to neighboring countries. The electrification of railways and the improvement of the quality of roads, such as the magnificent Vienna-Salzburg autobahn, have accelerated communication between the regions of the republic.

Record exports and tourism kept Austria's balance of payments in balance. Financial obligations in favor of the USSR, in accordance with the 1955 agreement, turned out to be less burdensome than it seemed at first. The USSR gradually went to reduce the volume of payments. Austria sent the last batch of its reparations supplies in 1963.

Maintaining a neutral status for political reasons, Austria decided in 1960 to join the European Free Trade Association, and not its competitor, the Common Market. However, since more than half of all trade was with the countries of the Common Market, Austria became its associate member in 1973.

foreign policy issues.

When Soviet troops put down the Hungarian uprising in 1956, almost 170,000 refugees arrived in Austria from Hungary. Most of the Hungarian refugees actually found permanent residence here. The same situation followed after the Warsaw Pact invasion of Czechoslovakia, when in 1968–1969 nearly 40,000 Czechs fled across the Austrian border and approx. 8 thousand of them found refuge in Austria.

Austria was constantly infiltrated by illegal immigrants from Yugoslavia. From time to time, the Yugoslav government protested against violations of the rights of the Slovene and Croatian minorities living in southern Austria.

South Tyrol problem.

This painful problem for Austria was the subject of a constant dispute with Italy. It was about people of Austrian nationality living in a small alpine region, which the Austrians called South Tyrol, and the Italians called Trentino Alto Adige. The roots of the problem go back to the 1915 agreement: in accordance with it, Italy was promised this region in exchange for its entry into the First World War on the side of the Entente and a declaration of war on Austria.

According to the Treaty of Saint-Germain, this territory with 250,000 German-speaking inhabitants was included in Italy. 78 thousand inhabitants left the region after 1938.

At the end of the war, the Austrians called for the inclusion of the territory of South Tyrol in the Second Republic. The victorious powers rejected this demand, although a special Italian-Austrian agreement of 1946 provided for the introduction of internal self-government in this territory. Austria stated that the German minority was being discriminated against. Demonstrations and riots broke out there from time to time. Italy responded by accusing Austria of supporting pan-German and Nazi elements. Terrorist attacks, which Italy claimed were staged on Austrian territory, continued in South Tyrol throughout the 1960s. At the end of 1969, Italy and Austria reached an agreement under which the region received the rights of extended autonomy, the influence of the Tyroleans on the national policy in the province increased, the German language received the appropriate status and the German name of the territory was recognized - South Tyrol.

Coalition governments, 1945–1966.

The ANP and SPA formed a coalition cabinet after the 1945 elections. The brutal experience of the First Republic told both parties that compromise was the price to be paid for a democratic revival. The labor coalition collapsed after the 1966 elections, and the new government was formed exclusively from members of the ANP. The SPA, led by Bruno Kreisky, a former foreign minister, went into opposition.

During these years, the presidency was invariably occupied by socialists. The Burgomaster of Vienna, "Red" General Theodor Körner, was President of Austria from 1951-1957. He was replaced by the experienced manager Adolf Scherf (1957–1965). Another former burgomaster of the capital, Franz Jonas, held the presidency in 1965-1974, Rudolf Kirchschleger held this post for two six-year terms. The post of chancellor was held by members of the ANP: Julius Raab, a moderate supporter of the development of private enterprise, held it from 1953–1961, he was succeeded by Alfons Gorbach, who resigned in 1964. The next chancellor was Josef Klaus, who then headed the one-party ANP cabinet in 1966, until in 1970 did not give way to Bruno Kreisky. Ministerial and political posts during the coalition years were distributed between the two main parties.

Socialist government in the 1970s.

The 1970 elections gave the SPA a majority of the vote, and Kreisky formed the first purely socialist cabinet in Austrian history. The socialist government took a course, first of all, to create new jobs and allocate subsidies. GDP grew by an average of 4.3% annually, which was ahead of the pace of the most developed countries; inflation and unemployment levels were well below world levels. This policy caused a rapid increase in public debt, but Austria managed to avoid the consequences of high debt repayment costs through record export growth and large tourism receipts.

1980s.

The far right has reasserted itself on the political scene as a third force in Austrian politics. In 1983, the SPA received 48% of the vote in the federal election; APS gained 5%, and the SPA invited her to take part in the formation of the government.

In 1986, the ANP nominated Kurt Waldheim, who was Secretary General of the United Nations from 1972-1982, as a candidate for the presidency. The investigation revealed that in 1942-1945, as a lieutenant in the German army, he took part in Nazi atrocities in the Balkans, and then hid the facts about his past. In the November 1986 elections, the APS doubled its vote to 10%; The SPA and ANP together scored 84%, and Franz Vranitzky formed a "grand coalition" reminiscent of the coalition of 1945–1966.

The implementation of tax reform and partial denationalization gave impetus to the further development of the economy. This was facilitated by the increase in trade exchange with former communist countries after 1989.

1990s.

Despite the scandals that involved many prominent socialists, the SPA, which again took the name of the Social Democratic Party, received a relative majority in the 1990 elections. APS increased to 17%. The grand coalition led by Vranitsky continued its work. With the unification of Germany in 1990, Austria began to move away from the policy of neutrality, amending the State Treaty, which allowed for cooperation with the German armed forces. Austria was the only neutral state to allow Allied aircraft to fly over its territory during the Gulf War. She officially approved the decision to divide Yugoslavia and was one of the first to recognize the new states - Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina. With the collapse of communist regimes in Eastern Europe Austria faced increasing immigration from the region and in 1990 introduced entry restrictions for foreign workers, affecting primarily Romanian immigrants. Fearing a new wave of immigration from the former Soviet Union and spurred on by agitation from APS leader Jörg Haider, the government tightened asylum laws in 1993. The new policy was criticized by international human rights organizations and Austrian liberals.

In 1992, the long-standing dispute over the autonomy of the German-speaking population in South Tyrol was resolved. The governments of Austria and Italy adopted and put into effect a package of measures to ensure autonomy.

Waldheim, who found himself in international isolation, was persuaded to refuse re-election after the expiration of his term in 1992. In the subsequent elections, Thomas Klestil (ANP), supported by the APS, scored 57% of the vote, defeating the Social Democratic candidate Rudolf Streicher.

The unification of Germany, the growth of emigration from the countries of Eastern and South-Eastern Europe and propaganda by right-wing extremists supported by APS leader Haider contributed to the intensification of xenophobia. In late 1993, neo-Nazis mailed bombs to politicians and other prominent figures involved in the "foreigner controversy". Helmut Zilk, the popular burgomaster of Vienna, was seriously wounded in the process. The violence came to a head when five people, including four Roma, were killed in a bomb explosion. Left-wing extremists responded with a series of attacks on right-wing leaders in early 1995.

In June 1994, in a popular referendum, two-thirds of voters voted for the country's accession to the EU, despite opposition from Haider and the Greens. January 1, 1995 Austria, along with Finland and Sweden, became a member of the EU.

In the 1994 parliamentary elections, the polarization of political forces acquired an open character. It marked a radical change in the politics of post-war Austria. The APS received 22.5% of the votes, the ANP - only 27.7% of the votes, having practically lost their traditional positions as the country's second largest party. Together, SPA and ANP received only 62.6% of the vote. The number of votes cast for the Greens has more than doubled since 1990: they collected 7.3%. A new political party, the Liberal Forum (LF), which broke away from the APS, was supported by 5.5% of voters.

The SPA and the ANP formed a new coalition after the 1994 elections, but their union broke up almost immediately due to disagreements over economic policy. Both parties disagreed on how to achieve a reduction in the state budget deficit and meet the criteria necessary for Austria's entry into the European Economic and Monetary Union. The ANP advocated drastic cuts in social spending, while the SPA proposed raising taxes. Disagreements eventually led to the collapse of the coalition, and in December 1995 a new general election was held. Their results again showed that the population supported the leading historical parties: the SPA and the ANP achieved better results than in 1994, while the position of the APS, renamed by Haider in 1995 into the Svobodniki party, weakened somewhat.

In early 1996, a new coalition government of the SPA and ANP was formed. Both parties agreed to adopt an austerity plan that calls for cuts in social spending and further privatization of state-owned enterprises. The mid-term elections reflected growing discontent among the population: the anti-EU Freemen won the 1996 elections to the European Parliament and to the city parliament of Vienna.

In January 1997, Chancellor Vranitzky abruptly resigned, citing age and fatigue after an 11-year tenure as head of government. Finance Minister Viktor Klima became the new federal chancellor and chairman of the SPA party.

In the parliamentary elections in October 1999, the SPA won by a small margin from its rivals. The Svobodniki and the NPA received approximately an equal number of votes.