Chapter 71: Chapter 71 – Sabotaging Hungary

Croatia

After Lajos Kossuth issued the Hungarian Declaration of Independence, many Croatian nobles became hesitant about joining the Hungarian Republic, but they were soon forced to make a decision after the Hungarian interim government declared that the Croats wouldn't receive the rights guaranteed to the Hungarians which naturally annoyed the Croats.

For centuries, most of the land in Croatia  had been owned by the grand nobles of Hungary. Therefore, Croatians had always been tied to the Hungarian elites. Unfortunately, the Hungarian elites looked down upon the Croatians who inhabited the "barren land in the backwaters of Central Europe."

This was a golden opportunity for the Viennese government. Franz quickly released his goodwill to the Croatian nobles, who held very little land and mostly acted as stewards for the large Hungarian nobles, and promised to provide them land and a voice within the Austrian Empire.

Specifically, he revealed the news that he planned to establish a National Convention as the legislative body of Austria within which the Croatians could receive anywhere between two to five seats, but the specific amount would depend on their loyalty. The Croatians nobles quickly pledged their support to the Habsburgs.

To obtain political power, they had to participate in politics and the legislature. Theoretically, one seat in the National Convention would be given for 1% of the Empire's population. The Croatians amounted to a little less than 3% of Austria's total population, so if they obtained five seats, their political influence would greatly increase.

After enticing the upper class Croatians, Franz focused his attention on the peasants at the bottom of society since these were the people on whose loyalty he could count. After Hungary issued the Declaration of Independence, Franz authorized the Governor of Croatia, , to confiscate the lands belonging to the Hungarian nobles and liberate their serfs.

As a result, the supporters of the Viennese government suddenly skyrocketed. By May, Governor Jelačić had over 80,000 Croatian military volunteers. Then, as commanded by Franz, he issued the military merit order. Similar to how peasants and serfs who helped suppress rebellions were rewarded with land, soldiers loyal to the Habsburgs who fought the rebels would be rewarded with land.

At present, there was a lot of confiscated land in the hands of the Viennese government. In addition, there was even more land within the bounds of the Kingdom of Hungary, just waiting to be confiscated. There was also a lot of land available for development within Austria. It wasn't a big deal to give some of it to the soldiers.

Of course, in order to curb unchecked land mergers, many restrictions were placed on the land grants. Most importantly, the maximum land grant cannot exceed 50 hectares. For ordinary people, 50 hectares was a massive area, especially for the serfs who had just been given their freedom and had never owned any land, this was enough for them to willingly sacrifice themselves for the Habsburgs.

After the announcement of the military merit order, there was a continuous stream of people joining the army. For most people, the cost of buying land was too great, so it was better to go to the battlefield. The sky had just started to light up, but a crowd of people had already gathered at the enlistment site in Osijek.

"Milivoj, are you here to enlist?" asked a middle-aged man.

The young man named Milivoj replied solemnly, "Yes, Goran. After I thought about it, I decided that a man shouldn't shy away from the battlefield!"

The middle-aged Goran asked as he scratched his head in confusion, "But, Milivoj, didn't you say you were going to become a blacksmith?"

The spring breeze of the Industrial Revolution had not yet blown over Croatia. Currently, most ordinary agricultural tools in Croatia were still built by hand. For ordinary people, blacksmithing was a profession with good prospects.

Milivoj answered, determined, "No, I've changed my mind. I can become a blacksmith whenever I want, but who knows if I will get the chance to go to the battlefield again. I want to become a great knight!"

No one wished to remain a commoner; everyone wanted to reach a higher station in life. A knight, despite being ranked the lowest within the aristocracy, could determine the life or death of common peasants.

Prior to the Revolutions of 1848, European society had extremely low social mobility, especially for those of common birth. A noble's son became a noble, a merchant's son became a merchant, a doctor's son became a doctor, while a serf's son remained a serf.

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In an ancient country like Austria, the aristocracy was already filled to the brim. The nobles occupied the upper class of the society which left the people of common birth at the bottom of society with no opportunities to rise beyond their status as peasants.

To many such ambitious people, the Hungarian rebellion was an opportunity, an opportunity to bypass the class restrictions which fettered them. Like most young people, Milivoj was also ambitious. He was unwilling to remain a blacksmith for a lifetime like his father. Previously, he had no choice and had to face reality, but now things were different.

 

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The tide of enlistment in Croatia continued, but they would only enter the support corps, not the Austrian army. In other words, these troops didn't even need to go to the battlefield; their main job was to be responsible for the army's logistics. Governor Jelačić had apparently forgotten to explain this, or maybe he had deliberately decided not to explain this.

The Viennese government had recently been racking their brains over how to develop the economy of the Empire. They had realized that the ownership of so much land by the government was an impediment. To cultivate a market, demand for goods was required and to create demand, the peasants, who were the most populous, needed to become consumers. To do that they needed a steady income and land was a great source of income.

Unlike Britain, Austria had not carried out a complete agrarian revolution, which meant that the nobles still held a large amount of land, and Franz could not distribute this land for free. Even if he wanted, the treasury didn't have enough funds to purchase most of the nobles' land. He needed an excuse to distribute the land amongst the peasants without the nobles being able to oppose him. 

Therefore, he decided to create a simple criterion: the subjects who were loyal to the Emperor would receive land. Naturally, if called upon, these loyal subjects would be willing to fight for the Emperor. Once they enlist, regardless of whether they walk on the battlefield or not, they will be rewarded for their loyalty with land.

Afterwards, these peasants who acquired land would soon be able to escape poverty. Naturally, after their basic livelihood was met, they would consume goods and services with their surplus income to improve their standard of living, and this consumption would, in turn, cause the market to thrive.

After the market became prosperous, competition would grow amongst the merchants who would look for methods to increase the efficiency of the production of their goods. As a result, growth of industry would increase and more jobs would be created. Ultimately, the government would obtain more taxes following the industrial growth, and, soon, the initial investment would be recovered.

The various rebellions within the Austrian Empire had become a tool for Franz to reform Austrian society. Under the cover of war, Austria's social system would be reshaped. Croatia was just one region of Austria where great changes were occurring. Similar things were also happening in Bohemia, Slavonia, and Transylvania. Soon, other regions would follow suit.

It could be said that the Hungarian rebellion had just begun, but the Hungarian nobility had already become the biggest victim of this rebellion. Their land and titles were already considered forfeit. In fact, they, and their ancestors, had committed unspeakable acts to obtain their land and titles, so it could be considered retribution of sorts.

Now, blinded by greed they had committed a grave error when they betrayed the Viennese government in favor of the Hungarian Republic. Franz didn't plan to go easy on them. Even if it turned out that some had nothing to do with the rebellion, their land wouldn't be returned. At best, the government would pay them the market price for their land.

 

-TO BE CONTINUED-

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