Page - 709 - in THE FIRST WORLD WAR - and the End of the Habsburg Monarchy, 1914 – 1918

The Reopening of the Reichsrat 709 The German leadership had to struggle with a double problem. It continued to attempt to pry Russia out of the front of opponents, whilst on the other hand, it could not afford to simultaneously lose Austria-Hungary for the continuation of the war. German criti- cism of Austria-Hungary’s willingness to make peace was so strong and so widespread that at the beginning of May 1917 the War Surveillance Office eventually stopped German newspapers from being sent to Austria and ordered an intensified censorship of letters for post leaving the German Empire.1617 Berlin was not only alarmed by the open attempts to make peace but perhaps even more so by the changes in Austrian domestic policy. It was there that the dramatic effects of the February Revolution could be felt most strongly. An imperial edict from 12 March had demanded the speedy meeting of parlia- ment.1618 This expression of the imperial will occurred almost simultaneously with the outbreak of the Russian Revolution and was, therefore, not a consequence of the latter. The parallel events in Russia brought forth their consequences almost instantly. The Reopening of the Reichsrat Until March 1917 there had repeatedly been plans for an octroi on the constitution for the Austrian half of the Empire ; the plans were even on file, already worked out. Suddenly, however, all relevant considerations became obsolete. Since the autocracy in Russia had for the time being come to an end in such dramatic circumstances, it was almost unthinkable to apply such a measure by force. It would have been met by the strongest resistance from practically all non-German parties, but also among German Austrian parliamentarians, who were urgently needed in a completely different context. This applied above all to the Social Democrats. Adler and Renner wanted to lend them- selves to contact with the Russian Social Democrats only if the government abandoned its plans for an octroi. Czernin promised this and wanted to win over the Emperor for a corresponding decision.1619 It was not only the Foreign Minister, however, who evinced an altered stance in the negotiations with the leaders of the Social Democrats. The same thing could also be observed in others, since with the end of tsarism an eminent bogeyman had fallen away for the Social Democrats, as was well-known. With regard to tsarist despotism, the Social Democrats had backed the war up to this point. Now, however, this important incentive ceased to exist. The Tsar had been removed and Russia, or so it seemed, was on the path to democracy. And now it had to be asked whether the party truce could be maintained in the event of a continuation of the war in the east. There was also another specific problem : before the Austrian Reichsrat met, the trial of Friedrich Adler was due to begin.