Gentry Studies Research Papers - Academia.edu (original) (raw)

The aim of this study is to outline the causes of a deep transformation of the Austrian aristocratic community and the steps which led to it. It focuses upon the background of the situation just described, which one should not seek in the socio-political changes of the second half of the 19th century but in the very Enlightenment reforms of Maria Theresa and in the creation of a meticulously executed hierarchy of state awards, i.e. the honours system. It, in its consequences, represented one of the most important factors of the so-called title inflation in the era of Franz Joseph I.
The loss of prestige experienced by the nobility as a hereditary privileged group, which was connected to the end of the era during which it was the intermediary between the monarch and his subjects, represented an important factor, also. During the upheaval years of 1848–1849, this group, which continued to enjoy considerable privileges at the administrative and political levels even after the Enlightenment reforms, became „ordinary citizens.“ They lost most of their privileges and thus the status, undisputed for generations, of the social and political elite. The project of the Kroměříž Constitution of 1849 even originally proposed the abolition of aristocratic titles. Although the Constitutional Committee then deleted this article from the definitive draft of the Constitution, the very parliamentary discussions speak out loudly about the prevalent atmosphere in contemporary society – and especially amongst the middle classes.
A significant role in the negative attitude of the majority population against the newly elevated nobility was also undoubtedly played by antisemitism as after 1848 the Jews came to appear amongst newly ennobled aristocrats on a large scale. Their social rise was not accepted without reservations by the majority of society, nor was the position of the Jewish ethnic group improved by their relatively frequent conversions to Christianity. In contrast, the significant disruption of the traditional balance between the economic and social capital, i.e. the aristocracy’s property and title, proved to be a more serious issue. Whereas society was able to tolerate relatively poor members of the lower nobility, to a certain degree, the increasing number of non-affluent barons was, indeed, a real problem. Prior to 1848 persons ennobled to the rank of the recognized nobility (Freiherr in German) usually had sizeable capital at their disposal, which allowed them to lead a life considered appropriate to their status.
The majority of society was willing to accept the bourgeois mentality and the style of life pertaining to it only in the case of the lower nobility, which was traditionally not too affluent in the hereditary Lands. Its members traditionally entered the civil service, the church or secured employment in rich aristocratic households. After 1848 the number of non-affluent barons rapidly increased. Within the framework of constant political struggle for the preservation of the Monarchy, nobilitations also became the way and means of power, providing the government with both direct supporters and essential finances. The selling of titles for cash did not represent a new approach. Merits, for which the ruler came to award aristocratic titles could be, in fact, of various kinds – and naturally, the provision of funding for public use, was one of them. However, the problem was that this policy continued even at a time when public opinion increasingly placed the actions of the rulers and governments under examination and critical scrutiny.
While the majority of society was still willing to tolerate nobilitations in recognition of service for the public good, i.e. giving money for humanitarian purposes, direct financial support for government interests did cross the limits of acceptability. However, as time went by, it became evident that the awarding of aristocratic titles would not lead to the desired aim, namely the creation of a broad pro-Austrian minded social majority whose elite would be rewarded for its loyalty through nobilitations. The failure of this effort, as well as the decline of the prestige and political respect for the hereditary aristocracy were the main reasons for the deep crisis of the institution of nobility, which utterly collapsed soon after the fall of the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy.