Informal ways to the Emperor’s Desk – The policy networks of Adolf Braun 1865– 1899.

Description

Policy making in the Habsburg Empire was built on negotiations between various actors as well as on attempts by politicians, members of the regional and central governments, mediators, and the emperor to establish compromises in politically sensitive questions. In my Ph.D. project I explore the practice of informal policy making by analysing the networks of Adolf Braun, director of Francis Joseph’s cabinet office between 1865 and 1899. Political negotiations were informed by activities within informal networks. Following the lead of theoretically advanced political sciences (Grunden 2014; Rüb 2014) I embark on a systematic analysis of the ways in which individual, collective, and corporate actors employed informal policy networks to influence decisions in their favour. The letters preserved among Adolf Braun’s papers provide for the reconstruction of an ego-centred-network. My focus on the ego-centred network of Braun demonstrates how the cabinet office operated as a nodal point in the communication between government, parliament, high positioned mediators, and the emperor.

Period	20 Feb 2018
Event title	New Habsburg Studies Network Graduate Seminar
Event type	Other
Location	United KingdomShow on map