Réflexions sur la « question juive » dans la monarchie des Habsbourg à l’époque moderne

Reflections on the “Jewish Question” in the Habsburg Monarchy in the Early Modern Period

Bulgarian Historical Review, 53 (2025), No. 4, pp. 3-27
DOI: https://doi.org/10.71069/BHR4.25.IP01

Ivan Parvev

Prof. Ivan Parvev, D.Sc. St. Kliment Ohridski Sofia University, Faculty of History, 15 Tzar Osvoboditel Blvd, Sofia 1504, Bulgaria, ORCID: 0000-0001-8290-5986, E-mail: parvev@clio.uni-sofia.bg

Abstract: The article traces the evolution of Jewish life in the Austrian dominions during the eighteenth century, with particular emphasis on the geopolitical context shaped by Ottoman expansion and Habsburg ambitions in the Balkans. The author situates the transformation of (the) Jewish life within a long-term framework: from expulsions and discrimination (15th – 17th centuries), through recurrent suspicions of being a “fifth column”, to a period of relative legal stabilization and improvement during the Age of Enlightenment. The analysis demonstrates how the interplay between religious zeal, dynastic interests, and financial pragmatism shaped Habsburg policy: rulers often oscillated between repressive measures and the pragmatic use of the skills characteristic of Jewish communities (banking, 27 trade, etc.). A central argument is that a particular “Balkan connection” in the latter half of the eighteenth century contributed significantly to transforming attitudes toward Jews. The reforms of Joseph II, the recruitment of Jews into the army, and the broader plans for Balkan expansion (the “Greek Project”) are presented as decisive factors in the process of Jewish emancipation within the Habsburg Monarchy. The article concludes that through a combination of enlightened absolutism and geopolitical strategy, the Habsburgs, by the end of the eighteenth century, laid the groundwork for a broader emancipation of Jews in Central Europe – a development that would become fully visible in the nineteenth century.

Keywords: Jews in Austria; Habsburg Monarchy; Joseph II; Jewish emancipation.

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