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of institutional and family history, but also to use the approaches of elite
studies and political cultural history to create a more nuanced picture. In my
interpretation the integration of the high nobility in Vienna was a complex
process that took place in several parallel scenes, and I have tried to maintain
its plurality in the presentation of the story. The Hungarian elite offers par¬
ticularly good opportunities for a similar study, since by the 17-18" century
the Czech-Moravian and the Austrian aristocratic elite (among others the
Colloredo, Dietrichstein, Harrach, Liechtenstein or Waldstein families) were
so closely linked that it would be problematic to study one or the other group
independently. One of the important issues addressed in the book is how
Hungarian magnates were able to assert themselves in the various scenes of
the imperial city in the period under study, among the Austrian, German,
Catalan, Czech, Italian, Lorraine or Moravian aristocrats, and how they were
able to establish relations with members of the latter families. In outlining
the context of the Viennese court and in making comparative analyses or ex¬
trapolations, the results of international research in the last decade and a half
(among others the works of Jeroen Duindam, Ivo Cerman, Mark Hengerer,
Andreas Peéar) have been very helpful.
The study of the integration of the Hungarian aristocracy in Vienna has a
double research background as it can be integrated into the research tradition
of the Viennese court and of the Hungarian aristocratic elite as well. Despite
the importance of the topic, little comprehensive information is available on
the details of the integration of the Hungarian nobility and the Hungari¬
an political elite in Vienna in the 18" century. Hungarian historiography is
mainly concerned with case studies on the subject. However the study of the
Hungarian sovereigns staying in the imperial city and at the same time in the
center of government of the Habsburg Monarchy has not only important for
Family or Cultural History, but also has foundational political-historical rel¬
evance. The primary objective of this volume is to alleviate this research gap
and to provide new details and contexts for the interpretation of the presence
and influence of the Hungarian political elite in Vienna.
The monograph examines the process of integration in three thematic
units. First, there is a section on “Education and Service”, which focuses on
the Viennese schools, the Habsburg court (Hofstaat) and the institutions of
the Royal Hungarian Bodyguard as the main integration centers for young
noblemen. The second thematic unit is entitled ,,Official careers and advisory
influence”, in which the most important offices and institutions of the Vien¬
nese government from the Hungarian perspective (Hungarian Court Chan¬
cellery, Transylvanian Court Chancellery, Court Military Council, Court
Chamber, Government of Lower Austria, Secret or Ministerial Conference)
were dealt with, with special emphasis on the presentation of official careers