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Article: Joseph II (Holy Roman Empire) (1741–1790; Ruled 1765–1790)
- Article from:
- Europe, 1450 to 1789: Encyclopedia of the Early Modern World
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JOSEPH II (HOLY ROMAN EMPIRE) (1741
–
1790; ruled 1765
–
1790)
JOSEPH II (HOLY ROMAN EMPIRE)
(1741
–
1790; ruled 1765
–
1790), the eldest son of Empress Maria Theresa (ruled 1740
–
1780) and Francis of Lorraine (ruled 1745
–
1765), succeeded his father on the imperial throne in 1765, after which he acted as co-regent with his mother in ruling the Habsburg domains. Although the imperial dignity meant little in the non-Habsburg lands of the Holy Roman Empire, it was of real importance within the Austrian domains. These were held together constitutionally only by the person of the emperor and the Pragmatic Sanction of 1713, in which Emperor Charles VI (ruled ...