The State Council (german: Staatsrat) was the executive leadership of the

Republic of German-Austria The Republic of German-Austria (german: Republik Deutschösterreich or ) was an unrecognised state that was created following World War I as an initial rump state for areas with a predominantly German-speaking and ethnic German population wi ...

, a collegiate body established in the last days of

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

by the Provisional National Assembly.

Details

The council comprised the three co-equal Presidents of the National Assembly Franz Dinghofer, Johann Hauser (who had replaced

Jodok Fink Jodok Fink (19 February 1853 – 1 July 1929) was an Austrian farmer and politician who was a member of the Christian Social Party of Austria (CS). He served as first Vice-Chancellor of Austria from 1919 to 1920. Life Fink was born in Andelsbuc ...

) and

Karl Seitz Karl Josef Seitz (; 4 September 1869 – 3 February 1950) was an Austrian politician of the Social Democratic Workers' Party. He served as member of the Imperial Council, President of the National Council and Mayor of Vienna. Early life Sei ...

, as well as 20 other elected members of the National Assembly. One member was chosen to serve as state notary and had the task to sign acts of the State Council into law. The state notary was solely charged with validating these acts and not with countersigning them, which would have otherwise granted him the power of denial. The three Presidents of the National Assembly, the head of the chancellery (

Chancellor Chancellor ( la, cancellarius) is a title of various official positions in the governments of many nations. The original chancellors were the of Roman courts of justice—ushers, who sat at the or lattice work screens of a basilica or law cou ...

Karl Renner Karl Renner (14 December 1870 – 31 December 1950) was an Austrian politician and jurist of the Social Democratic Workers' Party of Austria. He is often referred to as the "Father of the Republic" because he led the first government of German ...

) and the state notary formed the Directory of the State Council. The State Council appointed the First Renner government as of 30 October 1918. On 12 November 1918, the council provisionally assumed all constitutional powers of the

emperor An emperor (from la, imperator, via fro, empereor) is a monarch, and usually the sovereignty, sovereign ruler of an empire or another type of imperial realm. Empress, the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife (empress consort), ...

Executive role

The State Council exercised its executive powers through the state secretaries who in turn were coordinated by the state chancellor – all of these together formed the state government. The state secretaries headed the state offices (analogous to modern ministries), commonly in direct succession of the monarchic ministries. The State Office of Foreign Affairs for example succeeded the Imperial and Royal Ministry of Foreign Affairs (the first State Secretary was

Victor Adler __NOTOC__ Victor Adler (24 June 1852 – 11 November 1918) was an Austrian politician, a leader of the labour movement and founder of the Social Democratic Workers' Party (SDAP). Life Adler was born in Prague, the son of a Jewish merchant, who ...

, who already died on 11 November 1918), the State Office of Military Affairs succeeded the

Imperial and Royal Ministry of War The Imperial and Royal Minister of War (german: K.u.k. Kriegsminister), until 1911: Reich Minister of War (''Reichskriegsminister''), was the head of one of the three common ministries shared by the two states which made up the dual monarchy of Aus ...

and the Imperial and Royal Ministry of Defence, the State Office of Traffic Affairs succeeded the Imperial and Royal Ministry of Railways. Undersecretaries of state could be assigned as political assistants to the state secretaries.

Dissolution

With the implementation of the ''law on the state government'' (created on 14 March 1919), the State Council and its directory as well as the state notary were abolished in March 1919. The status of head of state was transferred to

as President of the Constituent National Assembly. Remaining powers were overtaken by the state government and the newly established standing principal committee of the National Assembly.

References

{{reflist Government of Austria Austrian Parliament Politics of Austria