Austria Hungary Empire Map
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The year is 1914 and Europe is preparing for war. Although the events leading to a world war are sudden, the lines have long been drawn between the Clanker and Darwinist nations. While Austria-Hungary and Germany put their faith in steam-driven iron machines and guns, the British Darwinists fabricate monstrous beasties as their weapons and ships.
At the center of the conflict is Alexsandar Ferdinand, prince of the Austro-Hungarian Empire and son of the ill-fated Archduke Franz Ferdinand. With the death of assassination of his parents, Alek’s title is worthless; his own country ready to betray him. Only a battle-worn Stormwalker and a loyal crew stand between Alek and a fate similar to his parents as the young prince goes into hiding.
Meanwhile, Deryn Sharp is a girl hiding a monstrous secret to join the British Air Service. Disguised as boy, Deryn can hold her own as an airman. But the risk of discovery is as constant as the danger of battler as her airship flies nearer to battle.
Born in two different worlds, from different sides of the same war, everything will change when Alek and Deryn finally meet in Leviathan (2009) by Scott Westerfeld with illustrations by Keith Thompson. Until then, the only question is: Do you oil your war machines? Or do you feed them?
Leviathan is the first book in Westerfeld’s new series (a projected trilogy, I’m almost certain). It is nothing like his vastly popular Uglies series or anything else he has written. The first thing readers need to know about this book is that it does not fit into the traditional science fiction niche that so comfortably houses Uglies (and Peeps). Instead, Leviathan is a steampunk* novel.
Instead of looking to the future as science fiction often does steampunk looks to the past creating an alternate history where it was not the modern era but the Victorian era who made all of the great technological advances. Instead of the technology we have today, steampunk suggests a world running on clockwork mechanisms, brass and steel, and in the case of Leviathan genetic engineering that we can still only imagine.
That is the world that Alek and Deryn inhabit–a world changing before their eyes as World War One begins in Europe. Westerfeld weaves the two teenagers’ stories together to create a seamless picture of both the Clanker and Darwinist lifestyle. Their two paths also converge as both characters realize that their futures lie far from their European homes.
Leviathan might be the book I was most excited to read in 2009. It was also one of the best. As usual, Westerfeld’s writing is pitch-perfect blending science, action, and brilliant characters to create a book made of pure magic. It hardly seemed possible, but for me this book has far surpassed all of Westerfeld’s previous (awesome) books.
Keith Thompson’s brilliant illustrations set the mood for the story and bring the world of the Clankers and Darwinists to life in intricate line drawings**. The American/Canadian and Australian editions of Leviathan also feature full color endpapers with an allegorical map of Europe as drawn by Thompson*** that only adds to the book’s charm.
The series will continue with Behemoth.
* You can read more about steampunk in “Steampunk: Reclaiming Tech for the Masses” by Lev Grossman in the December 14, 2009 issue of Time Magazine (Grossman quotes Westerfeld in the article)
**If you need even more reasons to read this book, be sure to watch the Leviathan Trailer on Youtube to see some of Thompson’s illustrations quite literally come to life.
***You can view The Grand Map on Westerfeld’s blog where Thompson also provides an in-depth commentary on the making of the map.
Possible Pairings: The Spiderwick Chronicles by Holly Black and Tony DiTerlizzi, The Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare (5/10 release date), Nathaniel Fludd, Beastologist: Flight of the Phoenix by R. L. LaFevers with illustrations by Kelly Murphy, Around the World in Eighty Days by Jules Verne, The Time Machine by H. G. Wells, Firefly (television series) The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen (graphic novel and movie), The Secret Adventures of Jules Verne (television series), Serenity (movie)
Reminds me of the debate on the Treaty of Versailles in my history class in tenth grade. I lost, but those are still happy memories of Mr. Houser…
Comment by Paul — January 17, 2010 @ 2:30 am
“Italy’s take-away around Trieste and Dalmatia seems larger than it actually was…”
You are correct. The map shows Italy getting the area immediately north of Fiume. Historically, Fiume became a “free state” that was later taken over by Italy, while the hinterland went to Yugoslavia (a wedge about 12 km wide at the southern base and about 30 long).
Also, at the very northern end of that region, Yugoslavia got the valley of the Sava up to its headwaters, about 35 km NW of the border shown.
As to Dalmatia – Italy got the city of Zara (now Zadar); the rest went to Yugoslavia.
Another difference from the historical outcome is the border between Romania and Hungary, which was drawn well west of the line suggested.
Comment by Rich Rostrom — January 17, 2010 @ 8:48 am
there was talk of detaching Vorarlberg province of western Austria and giving it to Switzerland, but that didn’t happen.
Comment by ES — January 17, 2010 @ 9:30 am
[...] Paying The Fiddler January 17, 2010 eoinpurcell Leave a comment Go to comments Strange Maps has a wonderful map and article on the dismemberment of the Austro-Hungarian Empire after [...]
Pingback by Austria: Paying The Fiddler « Uncovered History — January 17, 2010 @ 9:54 am
The thing about Salzburg is that it was adjoined to Austria mearly a hundret years earlier after the Napolean Wars.
If you look at how intolerant today’s Austrians can be against foreigners, even against those who where in the same empire back then, it’s sad that this empire fell and with it the multicultural meltpots it had.
Comment by Thomas R. Koll — January 17, 2010 @ 10:48 am
As for Salzburg, there had been a popular vote in favour of joining Germany. The Entente powers rejected that decision.
It also seems that parts of Southern Styria (now belonging to Slovenia) still belong to Austria, including the town of Maribor / Marburg, which in fact was still the case in 1919.
And Austria would not have lost the Burgenland. It wasn’t a part of Austria until its handing over by Hungary in 1920 according to the Triannon Treaty.
The dalmatian territories were offered to Italy by the Entente for entering the war.
Slovakia was ceded by Hungary only 9 days before the publication of this map.
Also, by this time the Romanians were approaching westwards, so this border
So, this map gives a fascinating view on the half term of the dissolvement of the Austro-Hungarian Empire that started in 1918.
Comment by Peter — January 17, 2010 @ 2:16 pm
Actually, in this map, Austria kept parts given to Slovenia (Lower Styria and Slovenian Carinthia) as well.
Comment by Nightstallion — January 17, 2010 @ 5:06 pm
If this was the original proposal, I have to say the Hungarians fucked up rather badly at the negotiating table at Trianon.
Comment by Birdseed — January 17, 2010 @ 8:06 pm
Peter: good point about Burgenland. Maps in _Shepherd’s Historical Atlas_ show the border of Hungary as west of the Burgenland from 919 onwards.
The post-WW I revision… Shepherd’s has a map of “Races in Austria-Hungary” which shows Burgenland as German. However, the eventual border awarded some Germanophone territory to Hungary. According to Wiki, the whole territory was awarded to Austria in 1921, but Hungarian paramilitaries interfered. After further negotiations, Hungary gave up most of the region, but insisted on a plebiscite for the rest. Said plebiscite, considered fraudulent in Austria, awarded the disputed areas to Hungary, including the capital city of Odenburg/Sopron.
Comment by Rich Rostrom — January 17, 2010 @ 8:55 pm
Re: Trianon
Lest we forget, the Hungarians were equal partners with the Austrians. “Austria-Hungary” was legally two independent sovereign countries in personal union, the Apostolic Kingdom of Hungary and the Kingdoms and States Represented in the Imperial Council (aka “Austria”). Hungary was unable to escape its allotment of “war guilt” at Trianon and, unlike the Turks after Severes, were unable to change the facts on the ground through force.
As for Austria, I have always shook my head at how asinine it was to not allow it to join Germany. Austria is German from stem to stern, the only thing that is different is that it is not part of Germany. The only thing that distinguishes it from Germany is the fact that it was Hapsburg land, ironic considering how the Republic treats the former Imperial Family…
Comment by Yinzer — January 18, 2010 @ 5:26 am
Also, this map shows that the whole Duchy of Teschen was supposted to become part of “Czecho-slavia”. In fact, it was divided in half between Czechoslovakia and Poland.
Both sides were unsatisfied, and a brief war was fought in early 1919. As the result, the land was still divided, but with the Czechoslovaks annexing additional grounds.
I might add that this left Poland mad for the next 20 years and prevented Poles and Czechoslovaks from creating a common front against Germany in the late-1930s. Instead, in 1938, Poland teamed-up with Germany and Hungary in partitioning Czechoslovakia to finally grab the whole area of the former duchy. And lose it one year later.
Comment by ArCgon — January 18, 2010 @ 9:59 am
The actual border between Yugoslavia and Hungary are norther than on this map
Comment by East — January 18, 2010 @ 6:52 pm
Birdseed: Since the Hungarians were engaged in a civil war, Romanian troops managed to approach further westward. The Trianon treaty only acknowledged the frontline.
Comment by Peter — January 18, 2010 @ 7:46 pm
This is a propaganda map of the Hungarian diaspora, in order to prepare the peace treaty. A clever one, satisfying all the victors and harming only Austria, a former partner, but at that time, week country.
Comment by dan — January 20, 2010 @ 1:44 pm
The 14th comment is so foolish, you can see the map’s taken from the London “Sphere”. So, this ain’t have anything to do with “hungarian propaganda” whatsoever, though in fact, England was about to reconsider the Romanian-French plan of dividing the Kingdom of Hungary. That’s true that Hungary’s borders are a little inaccurate on the east and south, but today’s Slovakia was part of the Kgd.of H., Croatia and Fiume (Rijeka) were attached but had autonomy. Again, the inaccurate map is the fault of the British author(s), no more. (Note: even the Title of the map is inaccurate it should’ve been “Austria-Hungary” (from 1867 on))
Comment by Blasius — January 23, 2010 @ 1:43 pm
About Sopron (Odenburg): I can’t see how commenter no.9. could state that the Sopron region was “awarded” to Hungary. The only fact is that there was a referendum held in the city just like in the case of Vorarlberg, and it turned out the region wanted to stay within Hungarian borders.
Comment by Blasius — January 23, 2010 @ 1:59 pm
To Yinzer:
It should be: Lands of the crown of Saint Stephen
Comment by croationalist — January 24, 2010 @ 2:34 pm
Fur fun I can quote the Italian political Ciano (taken “The Habsburg monarchy 1809-1918″ by A.J.D Taylor): “In Dalmatia only the stones are Italian”. In other words, very few Italians lived there.
Comment by Anders — February 8, 2010 @ 5:01 pm
to blasius
We are all lucky to have you with such high sense of observation. Of course it’s from the London Sphere, but it’s clearly created by somebody enough dumb to stil try convince the West about the “legitimate” teritory of the SOVIET REPUBLIC of HUNGARY. The situation is quite ridiculous, because on the August 4th, the Romanian Royal Army occupied Budapest and crashed the regime of Bela Kun. Funny isn’t it?
Comment by dan — February 8, 2010 @ 5:44 pm
…so, I wonder if Sir John Ellerman’s staff wasn’t infiltrated with bolsheviks ? Remember, the map was published 2 days before the colapse of the soviet republic .
Comment by dan — February 8, 2010 @ 5:55 pm