Political Considerations of Vienna Period
in Frederick the Great, a symbol to endure for all time.
But after this great war the House of Hapsburg began slowly but implacably, with desperate determination, to exterminate the dangerous Germanity (of whose true sentiments there could be no doubt) in the Dual Monarchy—for this was certainly the purpose of the policy of Slavicization; then the resistance of this people marked for destruction flamed up in a fashion new to German history.
For the first time, patriotic and nationally-minded men became rebels. They were rebels not against the nation, not even against the state in itself, but rebels against a way of government which they were conscious must lead to destruction of their own nationality.
For the first time in recent German history the customary dynastic patriotism was distinguished from national love of Fatherland and people.
To the Pan-German movement of German Austria in the nineties belonged the credit for realizing clearly and unmistakably that a state’s authority has the right to demand respect and protection only if it helps the interests of a nationality, or at least does them no harm.
State authority cannot exist as an end in itself, or every tyranny in the world would be sacred and untouchable.
If by governmental means a nationality is being driven to its destruction, the rebellion of that nationality’s every member is not merely a right, but a duty.
But the question of when such a condition exists is decided not by theoretical treatises, but by force—and by success.
Of course every governing power claims the duty of preserving state authority, no matter how bad, and though it betray the interests of a nationality a thousand times over. In fighting down such a power, therefore, in winning freedom or independence, the peoples’ instinct of self-preservation will have to use the same weapon by which its adversary attempts to maintain itself. That is to say, the battle will be carried on by “legal” means so long as the power which is being overthrown also em-
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