Österreichs friedlicher Kreuzzug 1839-1917 : das Heilige Land in Aussenpolitik, Gesellschaft und Mentalitäten der Habsburgermonarchie

Author / Creator

Haider-Wilson, Barbara, 1969- author

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Summary

"This study is a source-based contribution to the history of 'Catholic Austria' with its cooperation between church and state that transcended borders and was marked by both inter- and transnationa...

"This study is a source-based contribution to the history of 'Catholic Austria' with its cooperation between church and state that transcended borders and was marked by both inter- and transnationality. Against the backdrop of the European competition for influence in the Holy Land--which was at the time part of the Ottoman Empire--this book traces a series of developments which led to an increasing commitment on the part of the Habsburg Monarchy, a major Catholic power, and a growing interest among broad sections of its population under the watchword of a 'peaceful crusade'. Combining foreign policy, society, and mindsets as parameters for analysis utilizes recent historiographical approaches for the field of research. The study focuses on state-church actors (with the dynasty at the top) and institutions: the General Commissioner's Office for the Holy Land in Vienna; the Franciscan printing press, the Consulate, and the Hospice in Jerusalem; the Maltese infirmary in Tantur; the hospital of the Order of St. John of God in Nazareth; and the mission station in Gaza. Apart from presenting the legal basis for the European presence, thoughts are offered on, for example, the 'monks' squabble at the holy sites' and on the development of pilgrimages and associations. For the decades from Metternich up to the First World War, cycles of striving for prestige as well as periods of restricted scope for action characterized Austrian activities in the Holy Land, but the 'Jerusalem milieu' always remained a constant. This book therefore adds a vital aspect to our image of the late Habsburg Empire on the international stage"--

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