Incomplete State-Making in a Divided Polity: Habsburg Austria, 1618-1914

Abstract

Habsburg Austria is a unique case for the study of “state-making:” the creation of means by which a sovereign state asserts its ability to control its territory. Examples of state-making include the creation of a professional army and the means with which to pay for it, or the defense of state borders. This thesis examines two periods in Austrian history for evidence of how the Habsburg Austrian state succeeded or failed in this process. The first period centers on the Thirty Years War (1618-1648) which challenged the very existence of the state and which resulted in the establishment of Europe’s first professional standing army by the end of the war. The second period also features a challenge to the state’s existence. However, in this case, the Habsburgs were constrained by a variety of domestic and economic factors, which amplified their international challenges. Ultimately, their failure to engage in effective state-making combined with their desperate need to preserve their great-power status resulted in a decision for a war that would ultimately destroy the state.