partly from fear. The latter motive has, doubtless, governed the actions of Austrian monarchs ever since; for Hungary has always enjoyed more liberty and home-rule than any other Austrian province.
Whatever was done thus far, was done under the auspices of Maria Theresa alone; but when, in 1764, Joseph was made joint-ruler, the work of reform began to be pushed forward with far more speed and energy.
One of the chief aims that Joseph II set before himself was to improve the material condition of his subjects, by removing the evils under which they suffered and lightening their tasks and burdens. He showed his benevolent spirit in the years 1770 and 1771, called the “Hungry Years,” when there was great want in the land on account of a poor harvest. There was such a scarcity of food that many of the people ate grass and the leaves of trees, in consequence of which various diseases appeared among them, causing a great mortality. When the news of this reached Vienna, Joseph himself hastened to Bohemia, opened the military magazines, sent to Hungary for rye and rice, and had the provisions freely distributed among the suffering people.
Joseph II was a zealous adherent of the French Encyclopedists; therefore he hailed with joy the news that the Order of Jesuits had been abolished by the Pope.Further Reform in Education They were now deprived of their colleges and schools; their property was taken away and formed into a fund devoted to the needs of secular education; their books, collected from numerous monasteries, were placed in the library of the university. The theological and philosophical professorships were placed into the hands of professors of other
