Austria-Hungary was a dual empire, in fact a combination of Austria and Hungary. Austria-Hungary became one of the world's great powers, even stepping in when the Eight-Power Alliance invaded Beijing.
However, why did such a world power suddenly disintegrate after the First World War?
After World War I, austria-Hungary was defeated, but Germany was also defeated, and even in the eyes of the Western countries, Germany was far more powerful than Austria-Hungary, and the risk was greater. However, Germany did not split, and although the reparations for the cession of land were indispensable, at least it remained unified.
There are many reasons why Germany is not divided. In the eyes of Westerners, the focus is on Germany, but there are still many contradictions between the victorious powers, and although France also wanted to divide Germany, Britain and the United States did not agree to weaken Germany too much. Moreover, when Prussia unified Germany, it was originally a small German plan, and Austria was excluded for this reason.
But the Austro-Hungarian Empire was different, it was a multi-ethnic country, and in Austria there were not even half Germans and not many Hungarians, because it had been diluted by Czechs, Poles, Slovaks, Serbs.
Of course, this is also no way, many of the peoples here were once annexed by the Austrian Empire, but it is easy to annex the country, it is not easy to eliminate the nation, so over time, the population base is getting bigger and bigger, but the difference is also getting bigger and bigger. It can be said that the Austro-Hungarian Empire not only has a wide variety of languages and cultures, but also a variety of religious beliefs.
We know that the reason why the Austro-Hungarian Empire was established was that after the decline of Austria, the Hungarians in the territory began to rebel, and after the Hungarian Revolution, the Austrian Emperor had no choice but to upgrade the status of Hungary in order to protect the status of Hungary, which led to the dual empire.
It can be seen that the Austro-Hungarian Empire has faced the revolt of the conquered regions and peoples since the Austrian period, and once the country declines, revolt is inevitable.
Of course, what is even more bizarre is that the Austro-Hungarian Empire had three governments, and in addition to the central government, Austria and Hungary had one government. Because of this, the Austrian Emperor was very worried about the future of the Empire, and once said to his confidants in private: "My Empire is a paper house, as long as someone kicks hard, it will collapse." And the facts also proved the old emperor's fears.
As the situation in World War I became more and more dangerous, the Austro-Hungarian Empire suffered frequent defeats on the battlefield, various factors of instability appeared in the country, and various ethnic groups sought independence.
In particular, the United States proposed the "Fourteen-Point Plan" on the question of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, allowing the autonomy of all ethnic groups in the Austro-Hungarian Empire. This made the Austro-Hungarian Empire even worse, and the Austrian Emperor Karl I had no choice but to abdicate, and the once huge empire went to the bottom of the body.