Inner Austria (; ; ) was a term used from the late 14th to the early 17th century for the

Habsburg The House of Habsburg (; ), also known as the House of Austria, was one of the most powerful dynasties in the history of Europe and Western civilization. They were best known for their inbreeding and for ruling vast realms throughout Europe d ...

hereditary lands south of the

Semmering Pass Semmering () is a mountain pass in the Eastern Northern Limestone Alps connecting Lower Austria and Styria, between which it forms a natural border. Location Semmering Pass is located west of Sonnwendstein and Hirschenkogel and east of the ...

, referring to the Imperial duchies of

Styria Styria ( ; ; ; ) is an Austrian Federal states of Austria, state in the southeast of the country. With an area of approximately , Styria is Austria's second largest state, after Lower Austria. It is bordered to the south by Slovenia, and cloc ...

Carinthia Carinthia ( ; ; ) is the southernmost and least densely populated States of Austria, Austrian state, in the Eastern Alps, and is noted for its mountains and lakes. The Lake Wolayer is a mountain lake on the Carinthian side of the Carnic Main ...

and

Carniola Carniola ( ; ; ; ) is a historical region that comprised parts of present-day Slovenia. Although as a whole it does not exist anymore, Slovenes living within the former borders of the region still tend to identify with its traditional parts Upp ...

and the lands of the

Austrian Littoral The Austrian Littoral (, , , , ) was a crown land (''Kronland'') of the Austrian Empire, established in 1849. It consisted of three regions: the Margraviate of Istria in the south, Gorizia and Gradisca in the north, and the Imperial Free City ...

. The residence of the Inner Austrian

archduke Archduke (feminine: Archduchess; German: ''Erzherzog'', feminine form: ''Erzherzogin'') was the title borne from 1358 by the Habsburg rulers of the Archduchy of Austria, and later by all senior members of that dynasty. It denotes a rank within ...

s and

stadtholder In the Low Countries, a stadtholder ( ) was a steward, first appointed as a medieval official and ultimately functioning as a national leader. The ''stadtholder'' was the replacement of the duke or count of a province during the Burgundian and ...

s was at the ''Burg'' castle complex in

Graz Graz () is the capital of the Austrian Federal states of Austria, federal state of Styria and the List of cities and towns in Austria, second-largest city in Austria, after Vienna. On 1 January 2025, Graz had a population of 306,068 (343,461 inc ...

Geography

The Inner Austrian territory stretched from the northern border with the

Archduchy of Austria The Archduchy of Austria (; ) was a major Princes of the Holy Roman Empire, principality of the Holy Roman Empire and the nucleus of the Habsburg monarchy. With its capital at Vienna, the archduchy was centered at the Empire's southeastern periph ...

on the Alpine divide over Upper and

Lower Styria Styria (, ), also known as Slovenian Styria (; ) or Lower Styria (; ) to differentiate it from Austrian Styria, is a traditional region in northeastern Slovenia, comprising the southern third of the former Duchy of Styria. The population of St ...

down to

, where the

Lower Lower may refer to: * ''Lower'' (album), 2025 album by Benjamin Booker *Lower (surname) *Lower Township, New Jersey *Lower Receiver (firearms) *Lower Wick Lower Wick is a small hamlet located in the county of Gloucestershire, England. It is sit ...

and

White Carniola White Carniola (; ; or ''Weiße Mark'') is a traditional region in southeastern Slovenia on the border with Croatia. Due to its smallness, it is often considered a subunit of the broader Lower Carniola region, although with distinctive cultural, l ...

n lands (the former Windic March) bordered on the Habsburg Kingdom of Croatia. In the west, the Carinthian lands stretched to the Archbishopric of Salzburg and the Habsburg

County of Tyrol The (Princely) County of Tyrol was an Imperial State, estate of the Holy Roman Empire established about 1140. After 1253, it was ruled by the House of Gorizia and from 1363 by the House of Habsburg. In 1804, the County of Tyrol, unified with th ...

, while in the east, the Mur River formed the border with the

Kingdom of Hungary The Kingdom of Hungary was a monarchy in Central Europe that existed for nearly a millennium, from 1000 to 1946 and was a key part of the Habsburg monarchy from 1526-1918. The Principality of Hungary emerged as a Christian kingdom upon the Coro ...

. In the south, the County of Görz, which had passed to the

House of Habsburg The House of Habsburg (; ), also known as the House of Austria, was one of the most powerful Dynasty, dynasties in the history of Europe and Western civilization. They were best known for their inbreeding and for ruling vast realms throughout ...

in 1500, and

Duino Duino (, ) is today a seaside resort on the northern Adriatic Sea, Adriatic coast. It is a ''hamlet (place), hamlet'' of Duino-Aurisina, a municipality (''comune'') of the Friuli–Venezia Giulia region of northeastern Italy. The settlement, pict ...

(''Tybein'') bordered on the ''

Domini di Terraferma The () or () was the hinterland territories of the Republic of Venice The Republic of Venice, officially the Most Serene Republic of Venice and traditionally known as La Serenissima, was a sovereign state and Maritime republics, maritime ...

'' of

Venice Venice ( ; ; , formerly ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 islands that are separated by expanses of open water and by canals; portions of the city are li ...

. The

Imperial Free City of Trieste The Imperial Free City of Trieste and its Territory (, ) was a possession of the Habsburg monarchy in the Holy Roman Empire from the 14th century to 1806, a constituent part of the German Confederation and the Austrian Littoral from 1849 to 1920, ...

on the

Adriatic The Adriatic Sea () is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkans, Balkan Peninsula. The Adriatic is the northernmost arm of the Mediterranean Sea, extending from the Strait of Otranto (where it connects to the Ionian Se ...

Coast linked to assorted smaller possessions in the

March of Istria March is the third month of the year in both the Julian and Gregorian calendars. Its length is 31 days. In the Northern Hemisphere, the meteorological beginning of spring occurs on the first day of March. The March equinox on the 20 or 21 ...

around Pazin and the

free port A free-trade zone (FTZ) is a class of special economic zone. It is a geographic area where goods may be imported, stored, handled, manufactured, or reconfigured and re-exported under specific customs regulation and generally not subject to ...

Rijeka Rijeka (; Fiume ( �fjuːme in Italian and in Fiuman dialect, Fiuman Venetian) is the principal seaport and the List of cities and towns in Croatia, third-largest city in Croatia. It is located in Primorje-Gorski Kotar County on Kvarner Ba ...

(later '' corpus separatum'' of Fiume) in Liburnia.

History

The Styrian lands had already been ruled in

personal union A personal union is a combination of two or more monarchical states that have the same monarch while their boundaries, laws, and interests remain distinct. A real union, by contrast, involves the constituent states being to some extent in ...

by the Babenberg dukes of

Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...

since 1192 and were finally seized with the Austrian lands by the Habsburg king

Rudolph I of Germany Rudolf I (1 May 1218 – 15 July 1291) was the first King of Germany of the Habsburg dynasty from 1273 until his death. Rudolf's election marked the end of the Great Interregnum which had begun after the death of the Hohenstaufen Emperor ...

upon his victory in the 1278

Battle on the Marchfeld The Battle on the Marchfeld (''i.e. Morava (river), Morava Field''; ; ; ); at Dürnkrut, Austria, Dürnkrut and Jedenspeigen took place on 26 August 1278 and was a decisive event for the history of Central Europe for the following centuries. T ...

. In 1335 Rudolph's grandson Duke

Albert II of Austria Albert II (; 12 December 1298 – 16 August 1358), known as ''the Wise'' () or ''the Lame'' (), a member of the House of Habsburg, was duke of Austria and duke of Styria, Styria from 1330, as well as duke of Carinthia and margrave of Carniola fro ...

also received the Carinthian duchy with the adjacent

March of Carniola March is the third month of the year in both the Julian and Gregorian calendars. Its length is 31 days. In the Northern Hemisphere, the meteorological beginning of spring occurs on the first day of March. The March equinox on the 20 or 21 ...

at the hands of Emperor

Louis the Bavarian Louis IV (; 1 April 1282 – 11 October 1347), called the Bavarian (, ), was King of the Romans from 1314, King of Italy from 1327, and Holy Roman Emperor from 1328 until his death in 1347. Louis' election as king of Germany in 1314 was cont ...

as Imperial fiefs. When in 1365 Albert's son Duke

Rudolf IV of Austria Rudolf IV (1 November 1339 – 27 July 1365), also called Rudolf the Founder (), was a scion of the House of Habsburg who ruled as duke of Austria (self-proclaimed archduke), Styria and Carinthia from 1358, as well as count of Tyrol from 136 ...

suddenly died at the age of 26, Emperor Charles IV enfeoffed his younger brothers Albert III with the Pigtail and Leopold III the Just, who however began to quarrel about the Habsburg heritage. By the 1379

Treaty of Neuberg The Treaty of Neuberg, concluded between the Austrian duke Albert III and his brother Leopold III at Neuberg Abbey on 25 September 1379, determined the division of the Habsburg hereditary lands into the Albertinian line and the Leopoldian l ...

they finally split late Rudolf's territories: The elder Albertinian line would rule in the

proper (then sometimes referred to as "Lower Austria" (''Niederösterreich''), but comprising modern

Lower Austria Lower Austria ( , , abbreviated LA or NÖ) is one of the nine states of Austria, located in the northeastern corner of the country. Major cities are Amstetten, Lower Austria, Amstetten, Krems an der Donau, Wiener Neustadt and Sankt Pölten, which ...

and most of

Upper Austria Upper Austria ( ; ; ) is one of the nine States of Austria, states of Austria. Its capital is Linz. Upper Austria borders Germany and the Czech Republic, as well as the other Austrian states of Lower Austria, Styria, and Salzburg (state), Salzbur ...

), while the younger Leopoldian line ruled the Styrian, Carinthian and Carniolan duchies, then subsumed under the denotation of "Inner Austria". At that time their share also comprised Tyrol and the original Habsburg possessions in

Swabia Swabia ; , colloquially ''Schwabenland'' or ''Ländle''; archaic English also Suabia or Svebia is a cultural, historic and linguistic region in southwestern Germany. The name is ultimately derived from the medieval Duchy of Swabia, one of ...

, called

Further Austria Further Austria, Outer Austria or Anterior Austria (; , formerly ''die Vorlande'' (pl.)) was the collective name for the early (and later) possessions of the House of Habsburg in the former Swabian stem duchy of south-western Germany, includin ...

; both collectively referred to as "Upper Austria" (''Oberösterreich'') in that context, also not to be confused with the modern state of that name. When Leopold III was killed in the 1386

Battle of Sempach The Battle of Sempach was fought on 9 July 1386, between Leopold III, Duke of Austria and the Old Swiss Confederacy. The battle was a decisive Swiss victory in which Duke Leopold and numerous Austrian nobles died. The victory helped turn the lo ...

against the

Old Swiss Confederacy The Old Swiss Confederacy, also known as Switzerland or the Swiss Confederacy, was a loose confederation of independent small states (, German or ), initially within the Holy Roman Empire. It is the precursor of the modern state of Switzerlan ...

, the Leopoldian heritage fell to his eldest son Duke William the Courteous, who upon the death of his uncle Albert III in 1395 also raised claims to the Archduchy of Austria against Albert's only son and heir Duke Albert IV. Both sides came to an agreement to maintain the Neuberg division but also to assert the common rule over the Habsburg lands. Therefore, from 1404 William acted as Austrian regent for his minor nephew Albert V. The Tyrolean and Further Austrian lands passed to William's younger brother Duke Leopold IV the Fat. When Duke William died without issue in 1406, the Leopoldian line was further split among his younger brothers: while Leopold IV assumed the regency in Austria, the Inner Austrian territories passed to Ernest the Iron, while the Tyrolean/Further Austrian passed to the youngest brother Frederick of the Empty Pockets. In 1457 the Leopoldian line again could assume the rule over the Austrian archduchy, when Ernest's son Duke Frederick V of Inner Austria succeeded his Albertine cousin

Ladislaus the Posthumous Ladislaus V, more commonly known as Ladislaus the Posthumous (; ; ; ; 22 February 144023 November 1457), was Duke of Austria and King of Hungary, King of Croatia, Croatia and King of Bohemia, Bohemia. He was the posthumous birth, posthumous son ...

who had died without issue. 1490 saw the reunification of all Habsburg lines, when Archduke

Sigismund Sigismund (variants: Sigmund, Siegmund) is a German proper name, meaning "protection through victory", from Old High German ''sigu'' "victory" + ''munt'' "hand, protection". Tacitus latinises it ''Segimundus''. There appears to be an older form of ...

of Further Austria and Tyrol resigned in favour of Frederick's son Maximilian I. In 1512, the Habsburg territories were incorporated into the Imperial Austrian Circle. The dynasty however was split up again in 1564 among the children of deceased Emperor Ferdinand I of Habsburg. Under the Inner Austrian line founded by his younger son Archduke Charles II, the lands became a centre of the

Counter-Reformation The Counter-Reformation (), also sometimes called the Catholic Revival, was the period of Catholic resurgence that was initiated in response to, and as an alternative to or from similar insights as, the Protestant Reformations at the time. It w ...

, carried out by the

Jesuits The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order (Catholic), religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rom ...

with great determination. The cadet branch prevailed again, when Charles' son and successor as regent of Inner Austria, Archduke Ferdinand II, was crowned

King of Bohemia The Duchy of Bohemia was established in 870 and raised to the Kingdom of Bohemia in Golden Bull of Sicily, 1198. Several Bohemian monarchs ruled as non-hereditary kings and first gained the title in 1085. From 1004 to 1806, Bohemia was part of th ...

in 1617,

King of Hungary The King of Hungary () was the Monarchy, ruling head of state of the Kingdom of Hungary from 1000 (or 1001) to 1918. The style of title "Apostolic King of Hungary" (''Magyarország apostoli királya'') was endorsed by Pope Clement XIII in 1758 ...

in 1618, and finally succeeded his cousin

Matthias Matthias is a name derived from the Greek Ματθαίος, in origin similar to Matthew. Notable people Notable people named Matthias include the following: Religion * Saint Matthias, chosen as an apostle in Acts 1:21–26 to replace Judas Isca ...

in the Archduchy of Austria (as Ferdinand III) and as

Holy Roman Emperor The Holy Roman Emperor, originally and officially the Emperor of the Romans (disambiguation), Emperor of the Romans (; ) during the Middle Ages, and also known as the Roman-German Emperor since the early modern period (; ), was the ruler and h ...

in 1619. His intentions to translate the absolutist and anti-reformationist Inner Austrian policies to the

Crown of Bohemia The Lands of the Bohemian Crown were the states in Central Europe during the medieval and early modern periods with feudal obligations to the Bohemian kings. The crown lands primarily consisted of the Kingdom of Bohemia, an electorate of the Hol ...

sparked the

Thirty Years' War The Thirty Years' War, fought primarily in Central Europe between 1618 and 1648, was one of the most destructive conflicts in History of Europe, European history. An estimated 4.5 to 8 million soldiers and civilians died from battle, famine ...

. The Further Austrian/Tyrolean line of Ferdinand's younger brother Archduke Leopold V survived until the death of his son Sigismund Francis in 1665, whereafter all territories ultimately returned to common control with the other Austrian Habsburg lands. The political administration of Inner Austria was centralized at

in 1763. Inner Austrian

s went on to rule until the days of Empress

Maria Theresa Maria Theresa (Maria Theresia Walburga Amalia Christina; 13 May 1717 – 29 November 1780) was the ruler of the Habsburg monarchy from 1740 until her death in 1780, and the only woman to hold the position suo jure, in her own right. She was the ...

in the 18th century.

Administration from 1748

Duchy of Styria The Duchy of Styria (; ; ) was a duchy located in modern-day southern Austria and northern Slovenia. It was a part of the Holy Roman Empire until its dissolution in 1806 and a Cisleithanian crown land of Austria-Hungary until its dissolution i ...

***

District: ***

Marburg Marburg (; ) is a college town, university town in the States of Germany, German federal state () of Hesse, capital of the Marburg-Biedenkopf Districts of Germany, district (). The town area spreads along the valley of the river Lahn and has ...

District *** Cilli District **

Upper Styria Upper Styria (), in the Austrian usage of the term, refers exclusively to the northwestern, generally mountainous and well-wooded half of the federal state of Styria. The southeastern half of the state around the capital of Graz is known as Cent ...

***

Bruck Bruck may refer to: People * Bruck (surname) * Bruck Dawit, Ethiopian–American musician and producer Places Bruck (Bavarian for "bridge") is a common name for towns: Austria * Bruck am Ziller, in the district of Schwaz in Tyrol * Bruck an de ...

District *** Judenburg District *

Duchy of Carinthia The Duchy of Carinthia (; ; ) was a duchy located in southern Austria and parts of northern Slovenia. It was separated from the Duchy of Bavaria in 976, and was the first newly created Imperial State after the original German stem duchies. Car ...

** Klagenfurt District (Lower Carinthia) ** Villach District (Upper Carinthia) *

Duchy of Carniola The Duchy of Carniola (, , ) was an imperial estate of the Holy Roman Empire, established under House of Habsburg, Habsburg rule on the territory of the former East Frankish March of Carniola in 1364. A hereditary land of the Habsburg monarc ...

** Laibach District (

Upper Carniola Upper Carniola ( ; ; ) is a traditional region of Slovenia, the northern mountainous part of the larger Carniola region. The largest town in the region is Kranj, and other urban centers include Kamnik, Jesenice, Jesenice, Jesenice, Domžale and ...

) ** Adelsberg District (

Inner Carniola Inner Carniola ( ; ) is a traditional region of Slovenia, the southwestern part of the larger Carniola region. It comprises the Hrušica (plateau), Hrušica karst plateau up to Postojna Gate, bordering the Slovenian Littoral (the Goriška, Gor ...

and

Istria Istria ( ; Croatian language, Croatian and Slovene language, Slovene: ; Italian language, Italian and Venetian language, Venetian: ; ; Istro-Romanian language, Istro-Romanian: ; ; ) is the largest peninsula within the Adriatic Sea. Located at th ...

) ** Neustadtl District (

Lower Carniola Lower Carniola ( ; ) is a traditional region in Slovenia Slovenia, officially the Republic of Slovenia, is a country in Central Europe. It borders Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the south an ...

) *

Princely County of Gorizia and Gradisca The Princely County of Gorizia and Gradisca (; ; ), historically sometimes shortened to and spelled "Goritz", was a crown land of the House of Habsburg, Habsburg dynasty within the Austrian Littoral on the Adriatic Sea, in what is now a multilin ...

Görz Gorizia (; ; , ; ; ) is a town and (municipality) in northeastern Italy, in the autonomous region of Friuli-Venezia Giulia. It is located at the foot of the Julian Alps, bordering Slovenia. It is the capital of the Regional decentralization ...

District *

** Triest District

Rulers of Inner Austria

Leopoldian line

, width=auto, Leopold III the Just
1379–1386 , Leopold III of Austria

, 1 November 1351

Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...

fourth son of Albert the Wise and Joanna of Pfirt , Viridis Visconti
23 February 1365

six children , 9 July 1386

Sempach Sempach is a Municipalities of Switzerland, municipality in the district of Sursee (Amt), Sursee in the Cantons of Switzerland, canton of Lucerne (canton), Lucerne in Switzerland. History It has retained some traces of its medieval appearance, ...

aged 34 , - , width=auto, William the Courteous
1386–1406 , Wilhelm Austria

, c. 1370

eldest son of Leopold the Just and Viridis Visconti ,

Joan II of Naples Joan may refer to: People and fictional characters *Joan (given name), including a list of women, men and fictional characters ** Joan of Arc (c. 1412–1431), patron saint of France * Joan (surname) Art and media * ''Joan'' (Alexander McQuee ...

13 November 1401

no issue , 15 July 1406

aged 36 , - , width=auto, Leopold IV the Fat
1406–1411 ,

, c. 1371

second son of Leopold the Just and Viridis Visconti ,

Catherine of Burgundy Catharine of Burgundy (Montbard, 1378 – Dijon, 26 January 1425) was Duchess of Further Austria by marriage to Leopold IV, Duke of Austria. She was the second daughter of Philip the Bold, Duke of Burgundy and Margaret III, Countess of Flanders. ...

15 August 1393

no issue , 3 June 1411

aged 40 , - , width=auto, Ernest the Iron
1406–1424 ,

, c. 1377

Bruck an der Mur Bruck an der Mur () is a city of some 15,970 people located in the district Bruck-Mürzzuschlag, in the Austrian state of Styria. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Mur and Mürz. Its manufacturing includes metal products and paper. ...

third son of Leopold the Just and Viridis Visconti , (1) Margaret of Pomerania
14 January 1392

no issue
(2)

Cymburgis of Masovia Cymburgis of Masovia (; ; 1394 or 1397 – 28 September 1429), also spelled Zimburgis or Cimburga, was a Duchy of Masovia, Princess of Masovia of the Polish Piast dynasty and a List of Austrian consorts, Duchess of Austria from 1412 until 1424, by ...

25 January 1412

Kraków , officially the Royal Capital City of Kraków, is the List of cities and towns in Poland, second-largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in Lesser Poland Voivodeship, the city has a population of 804,237 ...

nine children , 10 June 1424

aged 47 , - , width=auto, Frederick V the Peaceful
1457–1493 , , 21 September 1415

Innsbruck Innsbruck (; ) is the capital of Tyrol (federal state), Tyrol and the List of cities and towns in Austria, fifth-largest city in Austria. On the Inn (river), River Inn, at its junction with the Wipptal, Wipp Valley, which provides access to the ...

first son of Ernest the Iron and

, Eleanor of Portugal
16 March 1452

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

five children , 19 August 1493

Linz Linz (Pronunciation: , ; ) is the capital of Upper Austria and List of cities and towns in Austria, third-largest city in Austria. Located on the river Danube, the city is in the far north of Austria, south of the border with the Czech Repub ...

aged 77 , - Frederick became Archduke of

in 1457, Habsburg territories united in 1490.

Inner Austrian line

, width=auto, Charles II
1564–1590 , Anonym Erzherzog Karl II

, 3 June 1540

fourth son of Ferdinand I and

Anne of Bohemia and Hungary Anna of Bohemia and Hungary (23 July 1503 – 27 January 1547), sometimes known as Anna Jagellonica, was Queen of Germany, List of Bohemian consorts, Bohemia, and List of Hungarian consorts, Hungary and Archduchess of Austria as the wife o ...

, Maria Anna of Bavaria
26 August 1571

fifteen children , 10 July 1590

aged 50 , - , width=auto, Ferdinand II
1590–1637
''under regency of''
Ernest of Austria (1590–1593)
Maximilian III (1593–1595) , Kaiser Ferdinand II

, 9 July 1578

second son of Charles II and Maria Anna of Bavaria , (1) Maria Anna of Bavaria
23 April 1600

seven children
(2) Eleonor Gonzaga
2 February 1622

no issue , 15 February 1637

aged 58 , - Ferdinand became Holy Roman Emperor in 1619.

References

{{coord, 46, 41, 40.8, N, 14, 32, 45.23, E, region:AT_dim:400km, display=title History of Upper Austria Political history of Slovenia Former states and territories in Slovenia