History of Austria

The territory of Austria was conquered by the Romans during the reign of Augustus around 16 BC. Later it was conquered by Huns and other tribes and armies (till about 800). In 803 Charlemagne established a territory in the Danube Valley and the area became Christianized and predominantly Germanic. Finally, after 50 years of Hungarian rule (907 to 955), the core territory of Austria was awarded to Leopold of Babenberg in 976. As a part of the Holy Roman Empire the Babenbergs ruled and expanded Austria from the 10th century to the 13th century.

By 1278 the Habsburgs dynasty had gained control and managed to rule Austria until World War I. In 1571 the emperor granted religious freedom and the vast majority of Austrians turned to Protestantism. In 1576, the new emperor, Rudolf II, embraced the Counter-Reformation and most of the country was forced to revert to Catholicism. The attempt to impose Catholicism on Protestant areas of Europe led to the Thirty Years War, which started in 1618 and devastated much of Central Europe. Peace was finally achieved in 1648 with the Treaty of Westphalia. For the remaining half of the century, Austria was preoccupied rather completely absorbed with halting the advance of the Turks into Europe. Vienna nearly surrendered to a Turkish siege in 1683 but with the help of the Christian force of German and Polish soldiers it was rescued. The removal of the Turkish threat Vienna became a magnet for musicians and composers under the aegis of the musical emperor Leopold I.

After the abolition of the Holy Roman Empire in 1806, the Empire of Austria was founded, which in 1867 transformed into the double-monarchy Austria-Hungary. The empire was split into several independent states in 1918, after the defeat of the Central Powers in World War I, with most of the German-speaking parts becoming a republic. Between 1918 and 1919 it was officially known as the Republic of German Austria, and then the name was changed to simply Republic of Austria. The democratic republic lasted until 1933 till the chancellor Dollfuß established an autocratic regime oriented towards Italian fascism.

Austria became part of Germany in 1938. After the defeat of the Axis Powers, the Allies occupied Austria at the end of World War II in Europe until 1955, when the country again became a fully independent republic under the condition that it remained neutral.

After the collapse of communism in Eastern Europe, Austria became increasingly involved in European affairs, and in 1995, Austria joined the European Union and the Euro monetary system in 1999. In the post-war years Austria worked hard to overcome economic difficulties and in 1972 established a free trade treaty with the European Union. 

Austria is the home of rich culture from architecture to classical music, philosophy to literature. Its surroundings are alive with the sound of music and resound with great philosophical minds. In 2004 Austrian Elfriede Jelinek was awarded a Nobel Laureate in Literature, recognizing her powerful poetic voice in works such as Women as Lovers and Lust.