debt amounted to £82,500,000, in 1880 to £108,000,000, in 1848 to £125,000,000, in 1857 to £289,000,000, in 1866 to £291,000,000, and in 1874 to £323,800,000, of which £264,000,000 was funded, £22,200,000 redeemable, and £37,600,000 floating debt. By the cession of the Lombardo-Venetian provinces in 1866, Austria was relieved of £3,500,000 of debt affecting those territories. The kingdom of Hungary had also at the end of 1878 a debt of £48,871,783. Austria is said to have "during the last few years made greater sacrifices to improve the efficiency of her army and obtained greater results than any other nation in Europe. Her military educational establishments and system of training, both elementary and professional, for officers and men, are of a very high order" (Captain W. S. Cooke On the Armed Strength of Austria, 1873). A new scheme of army organisation was brought into operation in 1869, by which the military forces of the whole empire are divided into the standing army with its reserve, the Landwehr, the Ersatzreserve, and the Landsturm. The standing army is maintained for the defence of the empire against a foreign foe, and for the preservation of order and security at home. The Landwehr is intended to support the standing army in time of war and for home defence. The Ersatz-reserve is composed of a certain class of conscripts who are destined to fill up the ranks of the standing army in time of war, but in peace remain on permanent furlough. The Landsturm is made up of volunteers who do not belong either to the standing army, the navy, or the Landwehr. It is called out and organised to the extent required when the country is threatened by a hostile invasion, and is intended to support the standing army and Landwehr. Military service is compulsory on all citizens capable of bearing arms. The term of service lasts for twelve years-three in the standing army, seven in the reserve, and two in the Landwehr. The strength of the army in peace is fixed at 252,000 men, to be raised during war to 800,000, of which Austria has to furnish 457,012, and Hungary 342,988. It is composed of 80 regiments of infantry, 41 regiments of cavalry, 13 regiments of artillery, 2 regiments of engineers, 1 regiment pioneers, and other troops. (See ARMY, vol. ii. p. 604.) The navy was in 1874 composed of 47 steamvessels, of 96,700 tons burden and 16,635 horse-power, carrying 395 guns; 17 sailing vessels, of 11,800 tons; and 6 steam tenders, of 1260 tons burden and 366 horse-power. The number of seamen in peace, 5782; in war, 11,532. The naval stations are Pola and Trieste. The present empire of Austria took its rise in a margraviate founded by Charlemagne, towards the close of the 8th century, in that fertile tract of country lying along the southern bank of the Danube to the east of the River Enns, and now included in Lower Austria. It was called Ostreich or Oesterreich, the eastern country, from its position relative to the rest of Germany. It continued to be ruled by margraves (Ger. Markgraf, lord of the marches) for several centuries, down to the year 1156, when the territory west of the Enns was added to it, and it was raised to a duchy. It subsequently received further accessions of territory, and in 1453 was made an archduchy. The country of the present archduchy of Austria was in early times inhabited by the Taurisci, a Celtic race, who were afterwards better known as the Norici. They were conquered by the Romans in 14 B.C.; and thereafter a portion of what is now Lower Austria and Styria, together with the municipal city of Vindobona, now Vienna, and even then a place of considerable importance, was formed into the province of Pannonia; and the rest of Lower Austria and Styria, together with Carinthia and a part of Carniola, into that of Noricum. Tyrol was included in Rhætia, while north of the Danube, and extending to the borders of Bohemia and Moravia, were the territories of the Marcomannt and the Quadi. These were not unfrequently troublesome to the Romans; and during the greater part of the reign of Marcus Aurelius, from 169 to 180 A.D., they maintained with varying success a harassing war against them. In 174 the Roman army was so nearly cut off by the Quadi that its safety was attributed to a miracle. The emperor died at Vindobona when on an expedition against those troublesome neighbours, and his successor, Commodus, was glad to make peace with them. On the decline of the imperial power these Roman provinces became a prey to the incursions of barbaric tribes, In Albert acquired Tyrol and some other districts, and died in 1395. He was succeeded by his son, Albert IV., who was poisoned at Znaim in 1404, when on an expedition against Procopius, count of Moravia. Albert V. succeeded his father, and having married the daughter of the Emperor Sigismund, he obtained the thrones of Hungary and Bohemia, and became emperor (Albert II.) in 1438. He died the following year, and was succeeded by his posthumous son Ladislaus, who died without issue in 1457. The Austrian branch of the family thus became extinct, and was succeeded by that of Styria. The crowns of Hungary and Bohemia passed for a time into other hands. During the 5th and 6th centuries the country was suc-| 1386, but his descendants continued to rule in Styria cessively occupied by the Boii, Vandais, Heruli, Rugii, Goths, Huns, Lombards, and Avari. About 568, after the Lombards had settled in Upper Italy, the River Euns became the boundary between the Bajuvarii, a people of German origin, and the Avari, who had come from the east. In 788 the Avari crossed the Enns and attacked Bavaria, but were subsequently driven back by Charlemagne, and forced to retreat as far as the Raab, their country from the Enns to that river being then made a part of Germany. It was taken by the Hungarians in 900, but was again annexed to Germany in 955 by Otho I. 983 the emperor appointed Leopold I., of Babenberg or Bamberg, margrave of Austria, and his dynasty ruled the country for 263 years. He died in 994, and was succeeded by his son, Henry I., who governed till 1018. In 1156 Austria received an accession of territory west of the Enns, and was raised to a duchy by the Emperor Frederick I. The first duke was Henry Jasomirgott, who took part in the second crusade. He removed the ducal residence to Vienna, and began the building of St Stephen's cathedral. His successor, Leopold V., in 1192, obtained Styria as an addition to his territory, and Frederick II. received possession of Carniola. Frederick, in the latter years of his life, contemplated the erection of Austria into a kingdom, but | his sudden death in a battle against the Magyars, in 1246, put an end to the project, and with him the line became extinct. The Emperor Frederick II. now declared Austria and Styria to have lapsed to the imperial crown, and appointed a lieutenant to govern them on the part of the empire. But claims to the succession were brought forward by descendants of the female branch of the Babenberg line; and after various contests Ottocar, son of the king of Bohemia, gained possession about 1252 of the duchies of Austria and Styria. In 1269 he succeeded to Carinthia, a part of Carniola and Friuli; but he lost all by refusing to acknowledge the Emperor Rudolph of Hapsburg, and eventually fell in battle in an attempt to recover them in 1278. The emperor now took possession of the country, and appointed his eldest son governor; but subsequently, in 1282, having obtained the sanction of the electors of the empire to the act, he conferred the duchies of Austria and Styria, with the province of Carinthia, on his sons Albert and Rudolph, and thus introduced the Hapsburg dynasty. The brothers transferred Carinthia to Meinhard, count of Tyrol; and in 1283 Albert became sole possessor of Austria, Styria, and Carniola. He increased his possessions considerably by wars with his neighbours, but was murdered at Rheinfelden in 1308, when on an expedition against the Swiss, by his nephew, John of Swabia, whom he had deprived of his hereditary possessions. He was succeeded by his fre sons, Frederick, Leopold, Henry, Albert, and Otto. In 1314 Frederick, the eldest, was set up by a party as emperor in opposition to Louis, duke of Bavaria, but was defeated and taken prisoner by his rival in 1322. In 1315 Duke Leopold was defeated in an attempt to recover the forest towns of Switzerland which had revolted from his father. Leopold died in 1326, Henry in 1327, and Frederick in 1330. The two surviving brothers then made peace with the Emperor Louis, and in 1335 they acquired Carinthia by inheritance. On the death of Otto in 1339 Albert became sole ruler. He died in 1358. His son and successor, Rudolph II., finished the church of St Stephen's and founded the university of Vienna, dying childless in 1365. He was succeeded by his two brothers, Albert III. and Leopold III., who in 1379 divided their possessions between them, the former taking the duchy of Austria, the latter Styria and other parts. Leopold fell at Sempach in The possession of Austria, which in 1453 had been raised to an archduchy, was for some years a subject of dispute between the Emperor Frederick III. and his brothers, but at length, on the death of Albert in 1463, the emperor obtained sole possession. His son Maximilian, by marrying the daughter of Charles the Bold, acquired the Netherlands in 1477, but on the death of his father in 1493 he succeeded him as emperor, and transferred the government of the Netherlands to his son Philip. He added Tyrol and some parts of Bavaria to his paternal possessions, and made some advances towards the recovery of Hungary and Bohemia. His son Philip, by his marriage with Johanna, daughter of Ferdinand and Isabella, acquired a right to the crown of Spain, but died in 1506. Maximilian died in 1519, and was succeeded by his grandson Charles (son of Philip), who two years before had obtained the Spanish crown, and was now made elcperor under the title of Charles V. By treaties dated 1521 and 1524, Charles resigned all his hereditary possessions in Germany, except the Netherlands, to his brother Ferdinand. The latter, by his marriage with Anna, sister of the king of Hungary, acquired right to the kingdoms of Hungary and Bohemia, together with Moravia, Silesia, and Lausatia. His right to Hungary, however, was contested by John Zapolya, waywode of Transylvania, who was elected by a party of the nobles, and was crowned king in 1527. Being unable to cope single-handed with Ferdinand, John sought the aid of the sultan, Soliman II., who in 1529 advanced with a large army to the very gates of Vienna; but after several ineffectual attempts to take the city he raised the siege and returned to Buda. At length, in 1535. an agreement was come to, in terms of which John was allowed to retain the title of king, together with half of Hungary, but his descendants were to be entitled to Transylvania only John died in 1540, but the people of Lower Hungary were opposed to Ferdinand, and set up the son of their late king against him. In the struggle which ensued the aid of the Turks was again invoked, and the result was that Ferdinand had to agree to pay an annual sum of 30,000 ducats to the sultan for this part of Hungary. Ferdinand was also under the ne cessity of surrendering Würtemberg to Duke Ulrich, on condition of its remaining a fief of Austria and reverting to that country on the extinction of the male line. Notwithstanding this, the possessions of the German line of the house of Austria at this time are estimated at 114,000 square miles. On the abdication of Charles V. in 1556, Ferdinand succeeded to the imperial throne. He died in 1564, leaving directions for the division of his possessions among his three sons. The eldest, Maximilian II., received the imperial crown, together with Austria, Hungary, and Bohemia; the second, Ferdinand, obtained Tyrol and Lowes Austria; and the third, Charles, was made master of Styria, Carinthia, Carniola, and Görtz. In 1556 the sultan Soliman again marched at the head of a great army into Hungary, but met with a very determined resistance at Szigeth, before which town he was suddenly cut off by apoplexy, Peace was concluded with his suecessor, and in 1572 Maximilian caused his eldest son Rudolph to be crowned king of Hungary. He was afterwards crowned king of Bohemia, and was also elected king of the Romans. Maximilian died in 1576, and was succeeded by Rudolph on the imperial throne. This monarch was little fitted to rule, and left the management of affairs very much to others. He was entirely under the power of the Jesuits, set at nought the ancient laws of the country, and persecuted the Protestants. The latter, under Bocskay, revolted in 1604, and having secured the aid of the sultan, gained repeated victories over the imperial troops, compelling Rudolph to give them terms of peace in 1606. During this reign the possessions of the Archduke Ferdinand of Tyrol reverted to the two other lines; while in 1608 Rudolph was compelled to cede Hungary, and in 1611 Bohemia and Austria, to his brother Matthias, who on the death of Rudolph in 1612 was crowned emperor. His reign was full of promise, but unfortunately it was only of short duration. Being an old man and childless, he chose as his successor his cousin Ferdinand, archduke of Styria, whom he caused to be crowned king of Bohemia in 1616, and of Hungary in 1618. He died the following year, when Ferdinand became emperor. Before the death of Matthias, the memorable struggle between Roman Catholicism and Protestantism, known as the Thirty Years' War (1618 to 1648), had commenced. It originated in an insurrection of the Protestants of Bohemia, who renounced their allegiance to Ferdinand and chose for their king the elector palatine Frederick V. Frederick was supported by all the Protestant princes except the elector of Saxony, while Ferdinand was assisted by the king of Spain and the other Catholic princes. At first success attended the arms of the insurgents, who repeatedly routed the imperial troops, and even laid siege to Vienna. But the Duke Maximilian of Bavaria, coming to the assistance of the imperialists at the head of a well-appointed army, totally defeated Frederick at the White Hill near Prague (8th November 1620). The following day Prague opened its gates to the conqueror, and in a short time the whole country was reduced to subjection, and the territories of the elector palatine divided among the allies. The war might have ended here had Ferdinand adopted a conciliatory policy, but impelled by revenge and fanatical zeal he adopted an opposite course, and instituted against the Protestants a severe persecution. They were thus again compelled to take up arms, and in 1625 Christian IV., king of Denmark, supported by subsidies from England, put himself at their head. He was subsequently joined by Count Mansfeld and Christian of Brunswick, while opposed to him were Wallenstein and Tilly at the head of two powerful armies. In April 1626 Mansfeld was defeated by Wallenstein at Dessau, and a few months later Tilly vanquished the Danish king at Lutter. The victorious armies afterwards marched into Denmark, and the king was compelled to conclude a humiliating peace at Lübeck in 1629. The Protestants were now awed into submission, and Ferdinand was emboldened to carry out to still greater lengths his policy of suppression. Aiming at the total extirpation of Protestant doctrines throughout his dominions, he revoked all the privileges that had formerly been granted, even such as had previously received his approval. By the so-called Edict of Restitution, dated 6th March 1629, he enjoined the restitution of all ecclesiastical property secularised since the peace of Passau, and ordered the Protestants to relinquish to the Catholics all benefices which they had appropriated contrary to the peace of Passau and the Ecclesiastical Reservation. The Catholic princes themselves were now becoming alarmed at the enormous power which they had contributed to place in the hands of the emperor. They therefore | demanded a reduction of the army and the dismissal of Wallenstein, and with these demands the emperor felt himself obliged to comply. But a new champion of the Protestant cause now appeared in the north, in the person of Gustavus Adolphus, king of Sweden. This valiant prince, having received promises of aid from France as well as from England and the United Provinces, suddenly landed an army of 15,000 men at Usedom in June 1630. Pomerania and Mecklenburg were soon conquered by him, and a great part of Brandenburg was overrun by his army. He was unable, however, to relieve the town of Magdeburg, which was besieged by Tilly and taken by assault 20th May 1631, when the most barbarous atrocities were perpetrated upon the unfortunate inhabitants. The elector of Brandenburg and afterwards the elector of Saxony joined Gustavus, and the combined army met the imperialists under Tilly at Breitenfeld, near Leipsic, and defeated them with great slaughter (7th September 1631). The victor now rapidly regained all that had been lost. Again Tilly was beaten at the passage of the River Lech on 5th April 1632, and the following day he died of his wounds. Wallenstein was now recalled and placed at the head of the imperial troops. His name inspired fresh ardour among the soldiery, men flocked to his standard, and he speedily found himself at the head of a very large army. He drove the Saxons out of Bohemia, and afterwards marched to Nuremberg, where Gustavus was entrenched in a strong position. The two armies watched each other for eight weeks, when the king directed an attack against the imperialists, but after a fierce struggle was repulsed. A fortnight later Gustavus moved in the direction of Bavaria, but Wallenstein, instead of following him, marched into Saxony, and thus obliged him to suspend his operations in Bavaria and to set out in pursuit of his opponent. The two armies met at Lützen, where a battle took place on 16th November 1632. The greatest skill and bravery were displayed on both sides, and the issue was long doubtful, but at length victory declared in favour of the Swedes, though dearly purchased with the loss of their brave commander, who fell mortally wounded. The death of Gustavus was an irreparable loss to the Protestants in Germany. Wallenstein, however, made but little use of the advantages he now possessed, and has even been accused of treacherous designs against the empire. Be this as it may, his enemies at court and in the army were numerous and powerful, and he was at length assassinated by some of his own officers, 25th February 1634. The Protestant cause met with another disaster in the defeat of Bernard of Weimar at Nordlingen on 6th September. On 30th May 1635 Saxony concluded at Prague a treaty of peace with the emperor, in terms of which the Lutherans were freed from the operation of the Edict of Restitution. The other Lutheran princes soon after accepted the like terms; but the Calvinists, who were disliked by both parties, were left to their fate. Sweden, no longer able to carry on the war as she had done, entered into a treaty with France, resigning the direction of operations to that power, a position of which Richelieu gladly availed himself, as according with his ambitious designs. The war now assumed a new phase, France and Sweden being allied against the empire and the Lutheran states of Germany, aided by Spain. Richelieu's efforts were in great measure directed to humbling the latter power. He sent an army into Spain, and entered into leagues with the dukes of Savoy and Parma and the United Provinces for attacking the Spanish power in Italy and the Netherlands. These projects did not meet with success, and the war was for a time carried into the French territories. In the meantime the Swedes, under General Baner, gained a brilliant victory over the Saxons and imperialists at Wittstock (4th October 1636). The emperor died on the 15th February 1637, and was succeeded by his son Ferdinand III. The war was carried on for eleven years longer; and the success which at first was with the imperialists, after a time came round to their adversaries, till at length the emperor, pressed on all sides and deserted by his allies, was glad to agree to terms of peace. By the peace of Westphalia, signed 24th October 1648, France acquired Alsace; Sweden got Upper Pomerania, the Isle of Rugen, and some other territory; the sovereignty and independence of the different states was recognised; the Calvinists were placed on the same footing as the Lutherans; and the independence of the United Provinces and the Swiss Confederation was acknowledged. Ferdinand III. died in 1657, and was succeeded by his son Leopold I. This prince, by his harsh treatment of the Hungarians, drovo that people into revolt; and they, being unable to cope with the power of the empire singlehanded, called in the aid of the Turks, who, under Kara Mustapha in 1683, besieged Vienna, which was only saved by an army of Poles and Germans under John Sobieski. The imperial army then reduced the whole of Hungary into subjection, and united to it Transylvania, which had been hitherto governed by its own princes; and the whole was declared to be a hereditary kingdom. In 1699 Turkey, after being defeated in several sanguinary engagements by the celebrated general Prince Eugene, was compelled by the peace of Carlowitz to cede to Hungary the country lying between the Danube and the Theiss. Previous to his troubles with Hungary and Turkey, Leopold had lent his aid in 1672 to the Dutch in their struggle against the ambitious designs of France. This was brought to a close by the peace of Nimeguen in 1678; but the conflict broko out afresh the following year, when the English also came forward and contributed largely both in troops and money. The chief scenes of warfare were the Netherlands and the banks of the Rhine. At last in 1697 came the peace of Ryswick, which left the contending parties in nearly the same relative positions as at the beginning of the contest. The allies had, however, the satisfaction of having compelled the French king to stop short in his schemes of aggrandisement. The death of Charles II. of Spain in 1700, without leaving issue, led to what is known as the War of the Succession. Louis XIV. had married the eldest sister of the late king, but she had by solemn covenant renounced her right to the Spanish crown. The second sister had married the Emperor Leopold, and she had made no such renunciation, but her daughter had, who was married to the elector of Bavaria. Leopold had two sons by a second marriage, and now claimed the crown for the younger of these, on the ground of his mother being an aunt of the deceased king. Intrigues had been carried on by the several parties concerned for some time before the king's death, and he had been induced to make a secret will, in which he named Philip, duke of Anjou, grandson of Louis XIV., as his successor. Leopold, however, was by no means inclined to depart from what he considered his rights, and the other states of Europe looked with jealousy on the prospect of a union of France and Spain under a Bourbon dynasty. An alliance was accordingly formed by Austria with England and Holland against France, with which power on the other hand Bavaria allied herself. The emperor despatched an army into Italy under Prince Eugene, to take possession of the Spanish territories in that country; while the English and Dutch united their forces under Marlborough. The former experienced a good deal of hard fighting, but effected little of consequence, while the latter busied himself in taking one after another of the French strongholds in the Nether lands. At length the two generals combined their forces and met the united army of their enemies at Blenheim. The latter numbered about 56,000 men and occupied a strong position, while the number of the former was about 52,000. The fight commenced by Marlborough leading the right wing against the French, while Eugere with the left wing advanced against the Bavarians. The battle was long and fierce, the assailants being repeatedly driver back by a most terrible fire from the enemy's artillery. At length victory declared for the allied English and Austrian armies (13th August 1704). About 10,000 of the French and Bavarians fell on the field, and nearly 13,000 were made prisoners, among whom was the commander of the French army, Marshal Tallard. The elector of Bavaria was compelled to cross the Rhine with the French, and his territory was occupied by the imperialists. The following year the emperor died, and was succeeded by his eldest son, Joseph. The war was continued with vigour, but for a time nothing of importance was anywhere effected. Franco now directed her chief attention to the conquest of the Netherlands, and sent into that country a magnificent army under the command of Marshal Villeroi. But this general was no match for Marlborough; and in the battle of Ramillies (23d May 1706) he was totally defeated with a loss of about 13,000 men. Prince Eugene's efforts in Italy were also this year crowned with much success. After a memorable march of more than 200 miles, he suddenly appeared before Turin. which was then closely besieged by the enemy. Having effected a junction with the duke of Savoy, he attacked the French lines (7th September), and though repeatedly driven back, at length succeeded in totally routing the enemy. The French general, Count Marsin, was wounded, taken prisoner, and died the following day. The French power in Northern Italy was thus shattered, and soon after both French and Spaniards were driven out of the country. The like success attended the efforts of Marlborough in the Netherlands, where he took possession of every place of note. After Eugene had settled affairs in Italy, he again formed a junction with Marlborough in the Netherlands, and on 11th June 1708 they attacked and ronted the French under Vendôme at Oudenarde. France now made overtures for peace; but these being rejected, she sent a new army into the field, under the command of Marshal Villars. He was attacked by the two victorious generals in his entrenchments at Malplaquet (11th September 1709) and totally defeated. France again made proposals for peace, but these meeting with no better success, the war was continued. The emperor died on 17th April 1711, and his successor being his brother, the Archduke Charles, who laid claim to the Spanish crown, this event contributed not a little to restore peace. The prospect of the union on one bead of the crowns of Austria and Spain did not accord with the views of those who had been hitherto supporting the claims of Austria, and the transfer of Spain to a grandson of Louis XIV. appeared to them the less dangerous alternative of the two. This, joined to the change of ministry in England, and the removal of Marlborough from the command, together with the inpatience of the Dutch under so long and so burdensome a war, led to the peace of Utrecht, which was signed 11th April 1713. Austria continued the war for some tinc longer, but the next year agreed to substantially the same terms at Baden. By this treaty France engaged that the crowns of France and Spain should never be united, and that no part of the Spanish Netherlands should ever be transferred to her; she also ceded to England Nova Scotia, Newfoundland, Hudson's Bay, and St Kitt's, and agreed to destroy the fortifications of Dunkirk; Spain gave up her possessions in the Netherlands and in Italy to Austria (who, on her part, renounced her claim to the Spanish succession), and ceded Gibraltar and Minorca to England; the Dutch received a small accession of territory; and the duke of Savoy obtained Sicily, with the title of king-afterwards (1720) exchanged for the island of Sardinia. The Austrian monarchy now embraced about 190,000 square miles of territory, with nearly 29,000,000 of inhabitants. its annual revenue was between 13,000,000 and 14,000 000 florins, and its army consisted of 130,000 men. Austria next became involved in a war with the Turks, and in 1716 Prince Eugene set out at the head of an army against them. The result was a series of splendid successes, which led to a peace signed at Passarowitz (1718), by which Austria received a considerable accession of territory. Disaffection still continued to subsist between Spain and Austria, which led to repeated negotiations on the part of the other powers to preserve peace. Charles being without heirs-male, was desirous of securing the succession to his eldest daughter, Maria Theresa, and with this view he framed the celebrated Pragmatic Sanction, and it became his great object to get the assent of the other powers to this arrangement. England and almost all the other powers, except France, Spain, and Sardinia, acceded to it in 1731. In 1733 the emperor became involved in a war with France on behalf of Augustus III. of Saxony, who had been elected king of Poland. France supported the claims of Stanislaus Leczinski, and received the aid of Spain and Sardinia. The war was carried on principally in Italy, where Austria was driven out of most of her possessions, and was glad to sue for peace. By this treaty Augustus was confirmed on the throne of Poland; but Austria was obliged to cede to Stanislaus the duchies of Lorraine and Bar, to be afterwards transferred to France; Don Carlos was placed on the throne of the Two Sicilies, and the grand duchy of Tuscany was bestowed on the duke of Lorraine, the emperor receiving as compensation Parma and Placentia; and France, and afterwards Spain and Sardinia, acceded to the Pragmatic Sanction. War again broke out with the Turks, and Prince Fugene being now no more, the Austrians were repeatedly beaten and expelled from one stronghold after another, till, by the peace of Belgrade (1739), the cmperor was compelled to yield up almost all that the arms of Eugene had formerly gained for him. The emperor died on the 20th October 1740, and his eldest daughter, Maria Theresa, who was married to the duke of Lorraine or Lothringen (afterwards archduke of Tuscany), assumed the governinent. Immediately counter-claims were advanced on all sides. The elector of Bavaria claimed to be rightful heir to the kingdom of Bohemia; the elector of Saxony and king of Poland, and also the king of Spain, claimed the entire succession; the king of Sardinia laid claim to the duchy of Milan, and Frederick II. of Prussia to the province of Silesia. France espoused the cause of Bavaria, while England alone came forward to the assistance of the queen, and the Hungarians, now united and loyal, willingly recruited her armies. Aided by France and Saxony, the elector of Bavaria took possession of Bohemia, and was proclaimed king in 1741, and the following year he was elected emperor under the title of Charles VII. The king of Prussia marched suddenly into Silesia and took possession of that country. The elector of Bavaria, aided by French troops, next invaded Austria, and even threatened Vienna. The queen fled to Presburg and convoked the Hungarian diet. She appeared in the midst of the assembly with her infant son Joseph in her arms, and appealed to them for protection and help. A burst of enthusiasm followed, and a powerful Hungarian army was speedily at her service. The French and Bavarians were soon driven out of the archduchy. A battle was fought between the Austrians under the prince of Lorraine and the Prussians under Frederick, at Czaslau (17th May 1742), in which the former were defeated, and this was followed by the peace of Breslau (11th June), by which Prussia acquired possession of Upper and Lower Silesia (excepting the towns of Troppau and Jägerndorf, and the mountains of Silesia) and the county of Glatz Austria now turned her arms against the French and Bavarians, the former of whom were driven out of the country. In 1744 the king of Prussia, jealous of the success attending the Austrians, again took the field against them in support of the emperor. He marched into Bohemia and took Prague, but subsequently was forced to retreat; and the death of the emperor Charles on 20th January 1745 changed the aspect of affairs. Maria Theresa's husband was in September elected emperor under the title of Francis I., and after some more fighting, a peace was concluded with Prussia at Dresden, by which the king was confirmed in the possession of Silesia. The war with France was prosecuted for some time longer in the Netherlands and in Italy with varying success, but ultimately peace was concluded at Aix-la-Chapelle, in October 1748. Austria gave up the duchies of Parma, Placentia, and Guastalla to Don Philip, son of the king of Spain, and several districts of Milan to Sardinia; Prussia was confirmed in the possession of Silesia and Glatz; while Maria Theresa was recognised as rightful monarch of Austria. After having acquired peace, and been thus confirmed in her possessions, her great desire was to recover Silesia from Frederick, whose conduct towards her had sunk deep into her heart. She directed her attention to strengthening, and improving her army,. and to forming alliances with the other states against the Prussian king, particularly with Russia and Saxony. In 1755 war broke out in North America between Franc and England, and in view of its becoming more genera England solicited the aid of Austria, but without success. This naturally led to a union between England and Prussia while France allied herself with Austria and Russia. In July 1756, Frederick despatched a messenger to Vienna to ascertain the meaning of the large forces assembled in Bohemia and Moravia. Receiving an evasive answer, he at once marched an army of 60,000 men into Saxony, took Dresden, and made himself master of the country, the Saxon army of only about 17,000 men being shut up in a strong position, but ill provisioned, between Pirna and Königstein. An Austrian army, under the command of Marshal Browne, advanced from Bohemia to the relief of Saxony, but was met by Frederick. A battle took place at Lowositz (1st October), which, though not decisive, ended in the retreat of the Austrians; and the famished Saxon army, after an ineffectual attempt to effect a retreat to Bohemia, laid down their arms. This ended the first campaign, and both sides did their utmost to prepare for renewing hostilities the following year. The empress strengthened her forces in Bohemia, and the imperial diet conceded an army of 60,000 men to assist her. France engaged to send an army of 80,000 or 100,000 men into Germany, and Russia set in motion an army of 100,000 men against Prussia. In all, the allies were estimated to muster about 500,000 men, while Frederick could scarcely raise 200,000 of his own, his auxiliaries (English, Hanoverians, &c.) probably amounting to about 40.000 inore. Frederick renewed the war by marching an army into Bohemia, where, on 6th May, he gained a victory over the Austrians, under Prince Charles of Lorraine, in the neighbourhood of Prague, and then laid siege to that city. General Daun, at the head of an Austrian army, advanced to the relief of the city, and the king set out to meet him. The encounter took place at Kolin (18th June), and the |