Fear of Democratization in Late Habsburg Austria: From Social Conflicts to National Narratives
Dr. Claire Morelon – University of Manchester
This talk examines reactions against the process of democratization in the Late Habsburg Empire. It highlights the unease provoked by democratic progress and attempts to stall it. Beyond formal opposition to suffrage reforms, it focuses on other instances of resistance to broader political participation, such as violence and intimidation during elections, counter-demonstrations, and strategies against strikers. The overemphasis on national conflicts in the Late Habsburg Empire has tended to obfuscate the role played by other forms of social tensions. This talk will explore how and why specific episodes of violence that can be traced to social causes were primarily interpreted along national lines or framed as radical nationalist unrest. The goal is to reinterpret events that have been understood through the lens of national conflict, both at the time and then, through a different lens, namely the push for democratization and its consequences.