Austrian partition
Encyclopedia
The Austrian partition refers to the former territories of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth
Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth
The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth was a dualistic state of Poland and Lithuania ruled by a common monarch. It was the largest and one of the most populous countries of 16th- and 17th‑century Europe with some and a multi-ethnic population of 11 million at its peak in the early 17th century...

 acquired by the Austrian Empire
Austrian Empire
The Austrian Empire was a modern era successor empire, which was centered on what is today's Austria and which officially lasted from 1804 to 1867. It was followed by the Empire of Austria-Hungary, whose proclamation was a diplomatic move that elevated Hungary's status within the Austrian Empire...

 during the partitions of Poland
Partitions of Poland
The Partitions of Poland or Partitions of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth took place in the second half of the 18th century and ended the existence of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, resulting in the elimination of sovereign Poland for 123 years...

 in late 18th century.

History

The Austrian Empire
Austrian Empire
The Austrian Empire was a modern era successor empire, which was centered on what is today's Austria and which officially lasted from 1804 to 1867. It was followed by the Empire of Austria-Hungary, whose proclamation was a diplomatic move that elevated Hungary's status within the Austrian Empire...

 (known from the second half of the 19th century as the Austro-Hungarian Empire) acquired Polish territories in the First
First Partition of Poland
The First Partition of Poland or First Partition of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth took place in 1772 as the first of three partitions that ended the existence of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth by 1795. Growth in the Russian Empire's power, threatening the Kingdom of Prussia and the...

 (1772) and Third
Third Partition of Poland
The Third Partition of Poland or Third Partition of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth took place in 1795 as the third and last of three partitions that ended the existence of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth.-Background:...

 (1795) partitions of Poland
Partitions of Poland
The Partitions of Poland or Partitions of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth took place in the second half of the 18th century and ended the existence of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, resulting in the elimination of sovereign Poland for 123 years...

.

Major historical events of the Austrian partition include:
  • Formation of the Napoleonic Duchy of Warsaw
    Duchy of Warsaw
    The Duchy of Warsaw was a Polish state established by Napoleon I in 1807 from the Polish lands ceded by the Kingdom of Prussia under the terms of the Treaties of Tilsit. The duchy was held in personal union by one of Napoleon's allies, King Frederick Augustus I of Saxony...

     (1807), its enlargement after the Polish-Austrian War
    Polish-Austrian War
    Polish–Austrian War or Austro-Polish War was a part of the War of the Fifth Coalition in 1809...

     (1809) and abolition after the Congress of Vienna
    Congress of Vienna
    The Congress of Vienna was a conference of ambassadors of European states chaired by Klemens Wenzel von Metternich, and held in Vienna from September, 1814 to June, 1815. The objective of the Congress was to settle the many issues arising from the French Revolutionary Wars, the Napoleonic Wars,...

     (1815)
  • Formation of the Free City of Kraków
    Free City of Kraków
    The Free, Independent, and Strictly Neutral City of Kraków with its Territory , more commonly known as either the Free City of Kraków or Republic of Kraków , was a city-state created by the Congress of Vienna in 1815, and controlled by its three neighbours until 1846, when in the aftermath of the...

     (1815) and its abolition after the Kraków Uprising
    Kraków Uprising
    The Kraków Uprising of February 1846 was an attempt, led by Edward Dembowski, to incite a Polish fight for national independence. Even though most of Poland was part of the Russian Empire, the Polish risings were conducted mainly in Prussia and in the Austrian Empire.-History:Most of the...

     (1846)
  • Formation of the Polish Legions in World War I
    Polish Legions in World War I
    Polish Legions was the name of Polish armed forces created in August 1914 in Galicia. Thanks to the efforts of KSSN and the Polish members of the Austrian parliament, the unit became an independent formation of the Austro-Hungarian Army...

     to fight alongside the Austro-Hungarian Army
    Austro-Hungarian Army
    The Austro-Hungarian Army was the ground force of the Austro-Hungarian Dual Monarchy from 1867 to 1918. It was composed of three parts: the joint army , the Austrian Landwehr , and the Hungarian Honvédség .In the wake of fighting between the...

     in World War I (1914)

Administrative division

The Austrian Empire divided the former territories of the Commonwealth it obtained into:
  • Kingdom of Galicia and Lodomeria
    Kingdom of Galicia and Lodomeria
    The Kingdom of Galicia and Lodomeria was a crownland of the Habsburg Monarchy, the Austrian Empire, and Austria–Hungary from 1772 to 1918 .This historical region in eastern Central Europe is currently divided between Poland and Ukraine...

     - from 1772 to 1918.
  • New Galicia - from 1795 to 1809
  • Free City of Kraków
    Free City of Kraków
    The Free, Independent, and Strictly Neutral City of Kraków with its Territory , more commonly known as either the Free City of Kraków or Republic of Kraków , was a city-state created by the Congress of Vienna in 1815, and controlled by its three neighbours until 1846, when in the aftermath of the...

     - from 1815 to 1846

Two important and major cities of the Austrian partition were Kraków
Kraków
Kraków also Krakow, or Cracow , is the second largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in the Lesser Poland region, the city dates back to the 7th century. Kraków has traditionally been one of the leading centres of Polish academic, cultural, and artistic life...

 (Cracow) and Lwów (Lviv).

In the first partition, Austria received the largest share of the formerly Polish population, and the second largest land share (83,000 km² and over 2.65 million people). Austria did not participate in the second partition, and in the third, it received 47,000km² with 1.2 million people. Overall, Austria gained about 18 percent of the former Commonwealth territory (130,000 km²) and about 32 percent of the population (3.85 million people). From the geographical perspective, much of the Austrian partition corresponded to the Galicia region.

Society

At first, the Austrian government made little or no concessions to their new Polish constituents. However, by the early 20th century, out of the three partitioned regions, the Austrian partition had the most local autonomy. The local government had much influence, Polish language was accepted as the official regional language, Polish language was used in schools, Polish organizations had the freedom to operate, Polish parties could participate in the Austro-Hungarian politics.

Economics

On the other hand, economically, Galicia was rather backward, and universally regarded as the poorest of the three partitions. There was much corruption during the elections, and the region was seen by the Vienna government as a low priority for investment and development. It was a poor agricultural country, with inefficient agriculture and little industry. In 1900, 60% of the village population (age 12 and over) couldn't read or write. Education was obligatory till the age of 12, but this requirement was often ignored. Between the years 1850 and 1914 it is estimated that about 1 million people from Galicia (mostly Poles) emigrated to United States. Galician poverty to this day has survived in Polish language as an expression (adage
Adage
An adage is a short but memorable saying which holds some important fact of experience that is considered true by many people, or that has gained some credibility through its long use....

: bieda galicyjska or nędza galicyjska).

Further reading

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
x
OK