March Constitution (Austria)


The March Constitution, Imposed March Constitution or Stadion Constitution was a "irrevocable" constitution of the Austrian Empire promulgated by Minister of the Interior Count Stadion between 4 March and 7 March 1849 until it was revoked by the New Year's Eve Patent of Emperor Franz Joseph I on 31 December 1851. The Stadion Constitution was very centralist in nature, and it provided very strong power for the monarch, it also marked the way of the neo-absolutism in the Habsburg ruled territories.
It had preempted the Kremsier Constitution of the Kremsier Parliament. This state of affairs would last until the October Diploma of 20 October 1860 and the later February Patent of 26 February 1861.

Hungary

The March Constitution reclaimed Habsburg power after the concessions it had made during the Revolutions of 1848. In the Kingdom of Hungary, it revoked the April Laws and reduced Hungary's territory and status within the Empire, prompting a renewal of the Hungarian Revolution. The constitution was accepted by the Imperial Diet of Austria, where Hungary had no representation, and which traditionally had no legislative power in the territory of Kingdom of Hungary; despite of this, it also tried to abolish the Diet of Hungary The new Austrian constitution also went against the historical constitution of Hungary, and even tried to nullify it.