u/MysteriousFun530

Example: Kaiserhymne, Radezky marsch, Hungarian dance no.5, Ungarn kinder

My favourite is Kaiserhymne Czech version.

Whenever history mention that the provisional government established after the collapse of Austria-Hungary was called the “Republic of German-Austria,” people immediately jump to a historical interpretation: that this was because they wanted to unite with Germany. Granted, they really did want union with Germany, but I want to reflect on whether these two things were necessarily connected.

“German-Austria” was meant to distinguish the new state from the old Austria. Why? Because Austria had always been multinational. Both the Austrian Empire and the Austrian hereditary lands were multiethnic entities. In other words, the new state was intended to be defined by the German-speaking population of the Austrian Empire (that is, Cisleithania), rather than by the old Austrian hereditary lands as a whole.

For example, they did not claim the Austrian Littoral or Slovenia, but they did claim the Sudetenland. This suggests that the defining principle was the inclusion of German-speaking populations, not simply the preservation of Austrian hereditary lands.

I’d like to hear everyone’s thoughts on this, or whether there are any blind spots or overlooked points in my reasoning.