1858 Royal Military Geographical Institute 17-Sheet Wall Map of the Kingdom of Hungary

This is an impressive 17-sheet 1858 Royal Military Geographical Institute map of Hungary. Beautifully engraved, this was the most important and detailed map of Hungary to date, a product of the Franziszeische Landesaufnahme, the Second Military Mapping Survey of the Austrian Empire.

A Closer Look

Coverage embraces Hungary from Bruck to Poschorita and from Grybów to Esseg. Rivers, lakes, roads, and canals are illustrated with topography defined by hachure. A key to the illustrations, symbols, and other notations is included on Sheet IV. A table on Sheet VIII 1/2 details the judicial and financial division of the Crown Land of Hungary. A further table on Sheet XIII provides the political classification and statistical overview of the Crown Land of Hungary.

The Franziszeische Landesaufnahme

The Franziszeische Landesaufname (Second Military Mapping Survey) was a military land survey of the Austro-Hungarian Empire that took place between 1806 and 1869. It was named after Emperor Francis I (r. 1804 - 1835). The Franziszeische Landesaufnahme was a military mapping project that replaced the Josephinische Landesaufnahme (First Military Mapping Survey). It was the first survey of the Austrian Empire that used triangulation and was conducted on the same scale as the Josephinische Survey. The maps were published for public distribution as 'special maps' at a scale of 1:144,000 and 'general maps' at a scale of 1:288,000.

Kingdom of Hungary

The Kingdom of Hungary existed from 1526 until 1867. It was part of the lands of the Habsburg monarchy and was a state outside the Holy Roman Empire. It became part of the Austrian Empire after it was established in 1804.

Hungary revolted against Habsburg rule in April 1848, part of the Springtime Revolutions. It implemented democratic parliamentary elections with the goal of transforming the old feudal system into a democratic representative parliament. This movement turned into an armed revolution against Habsburg rule. The Hungarians dealt the Austrians a series of defeats and appeared to be close to winning independence. Then, Austrian Emperor Franz Joseph appealed to the Russians for help. In response, Russian Tsar Nicholas 1 sent 200,000 soldiers and helped the Austrians defeat the Hungarians. The Habsburgs retained control over Hungary and quickly implemented martial law.

Following the Hungarian Revolution of 1848, Austrian Emperor Franz Joseph took absolute control of Hungary and revoked its constitution.

The first cracks in Habsburg rule appeared after France and Sardinia-Piedmont defeated Austria at the Battle of Solferino in 1859. This defeat prompted Franz Joseph to grant concessions to the Hungarians and demonstrated that ruling by decree was no longer entirely viable. Then, the Prussians defeated the Austrians in the Austro-Prussian War in 1866. This defeat rendered the weaknesses of the Habsburgs apparent to all of Europe and brought the monarchy to the negotiating table. This led to the Compromise of 1867 and the creation of the Dual Monarchy of Austria-Hungary, better known as the Austro-Hungarian Empire.

Publication History and Census

This map was created and published by the Imperial and Royal Geographical Institute (K. K. Militärisch Geographische Institut) in 1858. We note 3 examples cataloged in OCLC: two are in Germany, and one is in Switzerland.