Publication details
Panovnice na rozhraní epoch a cesta k modernímu státu a právnímu řádu: Před třemi sty lety se narodila Marie Terezie.
| Title in English | A monarch on the borderline of two epoques, on the way towards modern state and law: Three hundred years ago Maria Theresa was born |
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| Authors | |
| Year of publication | 2017 |
| Type | Article in Periodical |
| Magazine / Source | Právník |
| MU Faculty or unit | |
| Citation | |
| Web | Repozitář MU |
| Field | Law sciences |
| Keywords | History; Right; The Habsburg monarchy; Maria Theresa; Enlightenment; Reforms |
| Attached files | |
| Description | The article commemorates the three hundredth anniversary of the birth of Maria Theresa, which falls on 13th of May 2017. The author introduces Maria Theresa as a symbol of the times when Habsburg monarchy cautiously, yet determinedly took the path that lead to the modern state (to its more effective functioning with the use of professional staff and legal norms applicable to everyone), and to more just society. In other words, to what we today call the western society – with all its strengths and weaknesses. Maria Theresa started the revolutionary transformation of the society, including the new perspective on state functioning and role of law, with her responsible attitude to her duties as a head of state and her ability to reflect the needs of society. The author deals with the motivations, content and consequences of the most important Theresian reforms. He mentions the reforms of state apparatus (new organisation and professionalisation of advisory and administrative bodies, as well as judiciary), codification of the Czech-Austrian criminal and exchange law, as well as the efforts to codify civil law and to adopt financial, military, commercial, villeinage, church and school reforms. He appreciates that, although these reforms were less radical than those later introduced by Joseph II., they were often more permanent. The author also pays attention to how the Theresian reforms were assessed by her contemporaries as well as (legal) history textbooks of the end of 19th and the beginning of 20th century, of the times of the First Czechoslovak Republic and of the post- February Czechoslovakia and Czechoslovakia in the times of normalisation. |