AUSTRIA.
Ix strict geographical language, Austria is the name of only a large province in the south-east of Ger Jinni, but it is commonly used to denote the great empire, composed of the province in question, the kingdoms of Hungary and Bohemia, along with the provinces of Moravia, Carinthia, Styria, Tyrol, Transylvania, Galicia, Lombardy, Venice, and Dal matia. This state has, of late years, undergone fre quent changes in point of territory and population. At the beginning of the French Revolution, the Austrian dominions were computed to contain a po pulation of nearly 25,000,00. This number would have been materially increased in 1796, by the ac quisition of Galicia and other parts of Poland, had not the cession of the Netherlands and Lombardy made a deduction, which kept it at nearly its original amount. The diminution, in fact, would have been considerable, had not the French tempt ed Austria to a separate peace in 1797, by seiz ing and transferring to her the territory of one of the oldest states in Europe,—the Republic of Ve nice. In the next war, the splendid successes of the campaign of 1799 at first promised to give back to Austria a portion of her lost territory ; but the with -drawing of Russia from the coalition, and the fatal days of Marengo and Hohenlinden, led, in 1801, to a treaty which occasioned a further reduction of the imperial frontier. The third war, that of 1805, was equally short and disastrous, leading, after the over throws at Ulm and Austerlitz, to the purchase of peace by the surrender of the Venetian territory, Tyrol, and other provinces, containing in all a popu lation of nearly 8,000,000.
In 1809, the resistance of Spain prompted Austria once more to try her fortune in the field. Her army was numerous, and a large proportion of the French force was in the Peninsula ; but Prussia remained neutral, and Russia took part, to a certain. extent, against Austria. These circumstances enabled Bo naparte, at the head of a mixed force of French and Germans (of the Confederation of the Rhine), to ac quire a superiority in the field, and to enter Vienna a second time as a conqueror. This success was chequered, indeed, by a sanguinary defeat at Aspern; but the victory of Wagram reinstated him in his su periority, and the advance of a Russian force left the Emperor Francis no other alternative than peace. A treaty was concluded on terms less humiliating than was anticipated, the cause of which was unknown at' the time, but was soon found to be a conse quence of Francis consenting to give his daughter in marriage to his conqueror.
By the peace of 1809, the Austrian empire was reduced to a population of 20,000,000. The dimi nution of her power was still greater from the ces sion of her frontier line ; and France might, for a con siderable time, have overawed and controlled her, had not the extravagant march to Moscow deprived Bonaparte, in a few weeks, of that mighty army which appeared to ensure the subjection of the Continent. The subsequent successes of the allies led, as is well known, to the restoration of Austria in more than her former splendour.
We shall now proceed to give some account of the present state of this empire under the following heads : Population—Climate and physical aspect—Educa tion, Arts and Sciences—National Character—Reli gion—Government and Laws—Army—Finances-- Agriculture—Minesand Manufactures.
1. The treaty, or act of Congress at Vienna, in 1815, and the subsequent treaty of Paris in the same year, Yet this empire, so populous and fertile, wants, in a high degree, that consonance of national manners, and that congeniality of national feeling, which are so essential to ease in governing, and have so long ' formed the strength of France and Britain. Hun gary and Bohemia, which form so large a portion of the imperial dominions, have little connection or conformity with each other, and still less with the remote provinces of Galicia or Lombardy. Add to this, that the Austrian cabinet, while inferior to none in diplomatic finesse, has frequently acted with a blind adherence to old prejudices, which we should little expect in a European state in the eighteenth or nine teenth century. Frederick H. who had such bitter contests with the Austrians, both in the field and ca binet, declares that, in the former, they were uncon scious of the value of good generals, while in nego ciation they were perfectly untractable, so long as the aspect of affairs justified, in any degree, their exorbitant demands. What better opinion were we at liberty to form in the present age, when we saw their army entrusted to a Mack, and preparations of defence delayed until the French were marching on Vienna ? The grand source of future aggrandize ment to Austria is to be sought, not in the acquisi tion of additional territory, but in the improvement and consolidation of her present dominions. This doctrine, applicable to all countries to an extent sel dom apprehended by their rulers, is of the most ur gent importance to a state, whose deficient instruc tion, languid intercourse, difference of language, and blind attachment to hereditary usages, all concur to keep so many fellow-subjects in a state of alienation from each other, It has become customary, particularly of late, to consider Russia as superior in resources to Austria; an opinion sanctioned, among other authorities, by an expression of Lord Grey, in one of the debates which regarded the conduct of our ministry of 1806-7, in re spect to foreign affairs. On considering, however, the rigour of the Russian climate, the barrenness of a great proportion of the soil, the inconvenience of vast dis tances, and the general barbarism of the people, we are disposed to withhold our assent from this opi nion, and to look with more confidence to the pro bable augmentation of the population and power of Austria. The following table will convey an idea of the relative density of the population of her dif ferent provinces: Inhabitants per square League.