Nation: Austria-Hungary
Description
Austria-Hungary is dual monarchy, with a leader for each half of the empire. The Austrian side is the
more powerful side and it is made up of Germans. It is an empire made up of many different
nationalities. It was called a “melting pot on a cold fire” because these nationalities did not want to
blend together; they each wanted their own independent nation. If Austria-Hungary grants each
nationality its own nation, there will be nothing left of the empire. Most recently, Austria-Hungary
annexed the Slavic provinces of Bosnia-Herzegovina (who had once been part of the Ottoman Empire) in
1908. The Serbs felt that those provinces should be part of Serbia (seeing that both Serbia and BosniaHerzegovina are made up of Slavs). This is an example of nationalism, all of the southern Slavs wanting
to be in the same country. The left hand map shows Austria-Hungary, Bosnia-Herzegovina, and Serbia.
The right hand map shows the many nationalities that make up the Austro-Hungarian Empire.
http://www.lib.utexas.edu/maps/europe/macedona.jpg
Goals
Austria –Hungary fears that if they let one nationality break away, they are all going to think they can
break away. Due to this, they cannot let the Slavs of Bosnia-Herzegovina break away to join Serbia.
Austria-Hungary’s Friends and Rivals
Due to the fact that the Austrian portion of the empire is mainly made up Germans, they have a close
relationship with Germany. Austria-Hungary does not trust Serbia or Russia.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/nol/shared/spl/hi/europe/04/changing_borders/img/maps/1900.gif
Alliances
Austria-Hungary belongs to the Triple Alliance with Germany and Italy. It is a defensive alliance. They
come to each other’s aid if one of them is attacked.