ABSTRACT
This chapter examines the administrative reform in early modern Austria under Maria Theresia and interprets them in the context the problems the Austrian state had to face at the beginning of the archduchess reign. It shows that these reforms did not intend to follow a master plan to create a modernised central state as often claimed in older historiography. They rather adapted latest Enlightened administrative ideas into practice following the traditional aim to maintain the state. Analysing the language which accompanied the reform on its way to being implemented shows that the reform was based on improvement (“Verbesserung”) of already existing adminstrative units and new establishment (“Errichtung”) of a system of government leading to more efficiency in administration.
