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| Minister of War | |
|---|---|
| War Ministry | |
| Type | Minister |
| Reports to | Emperor of Austria |
| Seat | Ringstraße, Vienna |
| Appointer | Emperor of Austria |
| Precursor | Hofkriegsrat |
| Formation | 21 December 1867 (1867-12-21) |
| First holder | Franz von John |
| Final holder | Rudolf Stöger-Steiner von Steinstätten |
| Abolished | 11 November 1918 (1918-11-11) |
| Superseded by | Minister of Defense |
TheImperial and Royal Minister of War (German:K.u.k. Kriegsminister;Hungarian:cs. és k. hadügyminiszter), until 1911:Reich Minister of War (Reichskriegsminister;birodalmi hadügyminiszter), was the head of one of the three common ministries shared by the two states which made up thedual monarchy ofAustria-Hungary from its creation in theCompromise of 1867 until its dissolution in 1918.
The CommonAustro-Hungarian Army (Gemeinsame Armee) and theAustro-Hungarian Navy (K.u.k. Kriegsmarine) were institutions shared by the constituent parts of the dual monarchy, although both Austria and Hungary possessed their owndefence ministries charged with the internal administration of the homeland troops (that is, theK.k. Landwehr andMagyar Királyi Honvédség), known as theK.k. Ministerium für Landesverteidigung andK.u. Honvédministerium respectively.
According to the Delegation Law of 21 December 1867, the Minister of War, together with the Minister of Finance and the Minister of the Imperial and Royal House and of the Exterior formed the Council of Ministers for Common Affairs under the direction of theForeign Minister. The three Imperial and Royal ministers were appointed and relieved from office by theEmperor of Austria andKing of Hungary himself.
Until 1911, the ministers were called Reich Ministers of War. Upon the accession ofMoritz von Auffenberg, following Hungarian requests not to be summarized under an Austrian realm that did not consist of the Hungarian lands at that time, the ministers were called Imperial and Royal (k.u.k.) Ministers of War.
List:[1]
| No. | Portrait | Minister | Took office | Left office | Time in office |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  | von John, FranzLieutenant Field Marshal Franz von John (1815–1876) | 21 December 1867 | 18 January 1868 | 28 days |
| 2 | .jpg) | von Kuhnenfeld, FranzLieutenant Field Marshal Franz Kuhn von Kuhnenfeld (1817–1896) | 18 January 1868 | 14 June 1874 | 6 years, 147 days |
| 3 |  | von Koller, AlexanderGeneral of the Cavalry Alexander von Koller (1813–1890) | 14 June 1874 | 20 June 1876 | 2 years, 6 days |
| 4 |  | von Bylandt-Rheidt, ArturGeneral of the Artillery Artur Maximilian von Bylandt-Rheidt (1821–1891) | 20 June 1876 | 16 March 1888 | 11 years, 270 days |
| 5 |  | von Bauer, FerdinandGeneral of the Artillery Ferdinand von Bauer (1825–1893) | 16 March 1888 | 24 July 1893 | 5 years, 130 days |
| – |  | von Merkl, RudolfGeneral of the Artillery Rudolf von Merkl (1825–1893) Acting | 24 July 1893 | 22 September 1893 | 60 days |
| 6 |  | von Krieghammer, EdmundGeneral of the Cavalry Edmund von Krieghammer (1832–1906) | 22 September 1893 | 17 December 1902 | 9 years, 86 days |
| 7 | ![Heinrich von Pitreich [de]](/mt/?noimg=&dark=on&url=http%3a%2f%2fen.wikipedia.org%2fwiki%2fFile%3aHeinrich_von_Pitreich_GT%25C3%2596_1905_A._Huber.png) | von Pitreich, HeinrichGeneral of the Artillery Heinrich von Pitreich [de] (1841–1920) | 18 December 1902 | 24 October 1906 | 3 years, 310 days |
| 8 | ![Franz Xaver von Schönaich [de]](/mt/?noimg=&dark=on&url=http%3a%2f%2fen.wikipedia.org%2fwiki%2fFile%3aFZM_Franz_Sch%25C3%25B6naich_1906_Scolik.png) | von Schönaich, FranzGeneral of the Infantry Franz Xaver von Schönaich [de] (1844–1916) | 24 October 1906 | 20 September 1911 | 4 years, 331 days |
| 9 |  | von Auffenberg, MoritzGeneral of the Infantry Moritz von Auffenberg (1852–1928) | 20 September 1911 | 12 December 1912 | 1 year, 83 days |
| 10 |  | von Krobatin, AlexanderField Marshal Alexander von Krobatin (1849–1933) | 12 December 1912 | 12 April 1917 | 4 years, 121 days |
| 11 |  | von Steinstätten, RudolfColonel General Rudolf Stöger-Steiner von Steinstätten (1861–1921) | 12 April 1917 | 11 November 1918 | 1 year, 213 days |
The influence of the Austro-Hungarian War Minister was limited, due to the rivalry between the AustrianMinister-President and thePrime Minister of Hungary. Moreover, it was the Emperor who acted ascommander-in-chief of the Imperial and Royal Armed Might, served by his personal military chancellery and represented by an Inspector General, a position held by Field Marshal ArchdukeAlbert of Austria-Teschen from 1869 to 1895. His successor General of the Cavalry and Admiral ArchdukeFranz Ferdinand of Austria-Este in 1906 achieved the dismissal of Minister Pitreich and 76-year-old Chief of the General StaffFriedrich von Beck-Rzikowsky, who was replaced by Franz Ferdinand's confidant Field Marshal LieutenantFranz Conrad von Hötzendorf. Dismissed in 1911 but again appointed together with Minister Alexander von Krobatin during the 1912Balkan Wars, Conrad acted autonomously, being directly responsible to the emperor. In the 1914July Crisis upon theassassination of Franz Ferdinand, he and Minister Krobatin declared the Austro-Hungarian armed forces 'prepared for war'.
On 30 October 1918, EmperorCharles I of Austria assigned the Naval command to the newly established YugoslavianState of Slovenes, Croats and Serbs. After theKingdom of Hungary left thereal union with Austria the next day, the last Austro-Hungarian minister Stöger-Steiner had to supervise the liquidation of the remainingCisleithanian troops. Upon the resignation of Emperor Charles on 12 November, he was answerable to an Army state secretary of the republicanGerman-Austrian government under ChancellorKarl Renner. The 'War Ministry in Liquidation' was renamed 'Military Liquidation Agency' in 1920, when the AustrianFederal Ministry of the Army was established. It was not dissolved until 1931.
The Ministry initially was located at the historical seat of theHofkriegsrat, the Court Council of War serving theHabsburg monarchs onAm Hof square in the centralInnere Stadt borough ofVienna. After the Council's dissolution in the1848 Revolution, the building had housed the War Ministry of theAustrian Empire; MinisterTheodor Franz Baillet von Latour was lynched in front of it during theOctober Uprising.
From 1909 to 1913, the imposingNeoclassical Imperial and Royal War Ministry headquarters onRingstraße boulevard, the department's final home, was erected according to plans designed by architectLudwig Baumann, who had also built the Oriental Academy, the currentUS embassy. Dedicated on 1 May 1913 during the reign of EmperorFrancis Joseph I and Minister Krobatin's tenure, it can still be seen in Vienna today; it is officially called Government Building (Regierungsgebäude) and is used as seat of the Minister for Economy, the Minister for Social Affairs and the Minister for Agriculture and Environment. In front of the ministry buildingAm Hof as well as, since 1913, of the existing building stands the equestrian monument of Field MarshalJoseph Radetzky, the most venerated military leader of the Austrian monarchy, designed byKaspar von Zumbusch.
The Navy Section of the ministry (k.u.k. Marinesektion) had its own building atVordere Zollamtsstrasse, corner ofMarxergasse, behind the headquarters and is still existing, too. At the outside of this building the coats of arms of 16 Imperial and Royal ports on theAdriatic Coast are displayed.
