Which Enlightenment-era monarch of Austria abolished serfdom?

• A. Leopold II
• B. Francis I
• C. Joseph II
• D. Maria Theresa

Answer: (C)

Enlightenment-era rulers aimed to modernize governance by curbing old feudal privileges and expanding individual rights. The Austrian emperor who moved most decisively to break the grip of serfdom was Joseph II. In 1781 he issued reforms that began the process of freeing many peasants from the obligations owed to landowners, reducing the power of landowners over the lives of serfs, and granting peasants greater personal and legal freedoms, such as rights to marry and to own property more independently. This fit his broader program of Enlightened despotism: rationalizing administration, expanding religious tolerance, and reorganizing the legal system to reflect more egalitarian principles. The reforms were revolutionary for their time and faced strong resistance from the nobility, and after his death some measures were rolled back, but the move to lessen serfdom stands out as the hallmark of his reform efforts. Other Austrian rulers of the period did not undertake abolition on that scale.