Kingdom of Hungary

Hungary, 1867–1918. Draft, not yet reviewed

The Austro-Hungarian Compromise of 1867 established the dual monarchy of Austria-Hungary, which was a military and diplomatic alliance of the two sovereign states. Under the Compromise, the lands of the House of Habsburg were reorganized as a real union between the Austrian Empire and the Kingdom of Hungary, headed by a single monarch who reigned as Emperor of Austria in the Austrian half of the empire, and as King of Hungary in the Kingdom of Hungary. The Cisleithanian (Austrian) and Transleithanian (Hungarian) states were governed by separate parliaments and prime ministers. Austria-Hungary remained a European great power until World War I.

Seat of power: Budapest

Rulers

Franz Joseph I of Austria

Apostolic King of Hungary, 1848–1916

Franz Joseph was crowned King of Hungary on 8 June, and on 28 July he promulgated the laws that officially turned the Habsburg domains into the Dual Monarchy of Austria-Hungary. He concluded the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of 1867, which both granted greater autonomy to Hungary and created the dual monarchy of Austria-Hungary. On 28 June 1914, the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand in Sarajevo resulted in Austria-Hungary's declaration of war against the Kingdom of Serbia, an ally of the Russian Empire.

Portrait of Franz Joseph I of Austria: Carl Pietzner, Public domain, file

Charles I of Austria

Apostolic King of Hungary, 1916–1918

Charles I was Emperor of Austria and, as Charles IV, King of Hungary from November 1916 until the monarchy was abolished in November 1918. He began secret negotiations with the Allies, hoping to peacefully end the First World War, but was unsuccessful. He made two attempts to reclaim the Hungarian throne in 1921, but failed due to the opposition of Hungary's Calvinist regent, Admiral Miklós Horthy.

Portrait of Charles I of Austria: Hermann Clemens Kosel, Public domain, file

Culture

The two countries conducted unified diplomatic and defense policies. For these purposes, common ministries of foreign affairs and defense were maintained under the monarch's direct authority, as was a third finance ministry responsible only for financing the two common portfolios.
Hungarian society widely considered the compromise as a betrayal of the vital Hungarian interests and the achievements of the reforms of 1848. The compromise remained bitterly unpopular among ethnic Hungarian voters.

Picture

The compromise put an end to the 18-year-long military dictatorship and absolutist rule over Hungary which Emperor Franz Joseph had instituted after the Hungarian Revolution of 1848.

Image: en:User:Kpalion / modified by User:AndreasPraefcke, Public domain, file

Sources

Text adapted from the Wikipedia articles listed as sources, CC BY-SA 4.0.