Soldaten zwischen nationalen Fronten. Die Auflösung der Militärgrenze und die Entwicklung der königlich–ungarischen Landwehr (Honvéd) in Kroatien–Slawonien 1868–1914

The Hungarian Defence Force was created after the conclusion of the Compromise with Austria in 1867 and following the reforms of the armed forces. How the creation of the Hungarian defence force came to being, and how it became a national Hungarian army, make an important part of this book. In fact, the Honvéd was a central demand of the Hungarian government. The main question in introduction to this work is: how was this „Croatian“defence force born, and what aim did Hungary pursue with it? Were the units transnational like in the common Army or mainly Croatian? The efforts to build an independent Hungarian Armed Force caused not only in Vienna, but also in Croatia, many thoughts. The claim of the Croatians was mostly territorial, namely the reunification of Croatia–Slavonia with Dalmatia and the military border. The military border as well as the Croatian and Serbian regiments of the border deserve a particular study regarding on one hand the Habsburg State (Gesamtstaat) and on the other hand the Croatian nation building and the relation of the former triune Kingdom of Croatia, Slavonia and Dalmatia to the Hungarian Kingdom. In the Croatian–Slavonian units of the Honvéd and the Gendarmerie, Croatian was not only the language of the regiment but also the one of the commando and the inner language of communication in the troop. On the contrary to what was the rule in the Common Army, troop and officers lived in a world which was mainly unilingual. The question of the tongue became more significant at the end of the 19^th century. On the eve of the First World War, the Honvéd found itself in a phase of technical modernisation and administrative Reform, which was also felt in Croatia–Slavonia. An independent army existing, even only in the limits of the Compromise of 1867 beside the Common Austro-Hungarian Army meant for Hungary an important factor of her national identity. Historical tradition and collective self-consciousness were crucial motives fort the creation and organisation of this national–Hungarian army. The Croatian officers and soldiers as well as the Croatian regiments stood between the field of Hungarian and Austrian concurrence and the Croatian-Hungarian nationality conflict.