Venetien 1859-1866

In the months following the lost war of 1859, Emperor Franz Joseph found himself forced, at least in part, to concede to the demand of the economical elite to participate politically in the inner circles of the Empire and in the various states. The new ruling class strove for a constitutional framework in which the most important liberal basic values could be actualized and the State as a whole could be set on a new foundation. The founding of the Kingdom of Italy in the spring of 1861 and the rising Italian nationalist movement were a significant political challenge for the multiethnic and multicultural Habsburg Empire. Although police state methods were initially used to govern, it was decided in 1861 to put most of the liberal laws, which had been discarded by the government in Vienna, into force in Venice, and also to observe constitutional criteria in the fight against state opposition. Based on this background, it is attempted to portray the events and developments in the years from 1859 to 1866. A picture of the Italian provinces in the years before their relinquishment, with emphasis on bureaucracy, state representation and statutes, the church, education and culture, political opposition, emigration, economy and legislation, is presented. It will be shown that the government's attempts, which were repeatedly proclaimed, to integrate Venice into the political system of the Hapsburg monarchy finally failed.