Slovene »Attack« on District Councils during the Era of Eduard Taaffe

Abstract

Analyzed is the struggle for political predomination in the district councils of Lower Styria during the government of Eduard Taaffe. On the basis of (predominantly) newspaper articles the author analyzes the 1889 election and the impact of the national struggle and the strained relations between Slovene and German opponents on the course of this election. Although rather prestigious on the local level, the district councils of Lower Styria did not have any significant influence on the situation elsewhere. As a rule, Slovenes won the majority in rural district councils while the Germans were more successful in urban environments. During the era of Eduard Taaffe, Slovene politicians embarked upon a well-planned political attack on the district councils in larger Styrian towns. At the end of the 1880s, their efforts were crowned with the victory in the district council of Celje, a town that represented the focus of Slovene politics in Lower Styria.