Quick Question: How Important was Hungary in event of an Invasion

How important was Hungary to Austria Hungary if Austria itself was in danger? Would they go out of their way to protect it?
 

Delta Force

Banned
The terms of the Austro-Hungarian dual monarchy were established by negotiations that took place every ten years. It was something of an equal relationship, because both parts couldn't survive without each other. The Austrians and Hungarians might disagree over the terms of the union (and they certainly had many disagreements), but they didn't disagree over its mutual necessity.

As part of the agreement, both sides retained some functions under control of their own crown (royal powers) and some functions were unified (imperial powers). Royal powers were managed by the parliaments, imperial powers were managed by the emperor and required the consent of both parliaments. The army was a royal function, with Austria and Hungary having separate forces. The navy was an imperial function, with Austria and Hungary having to jointly agree to its funding. If the worst happens, the armies would probably fall under control of their respective royal (parliamentary) authority and defend their own territory, while the navy would be more complicated, especially with its large number of Croatian, Slovenian, and Polish personnel.

Basically, you can look at the Confederate war effort during the American Civil War (especially the later part) to see how things might go for Austria-Hungary under severe circumstances.
 

Vitruvius

Donor
So I guess the big question is what caused the invasion on Hungary. Was it provoked by Hungary (unlikely) or by Austrian actions. In either case the Dual Monarchy has a joint ministry for foreign affairs so theoretically it has only one foreign policy so any decisions that lead to war would be a joint responsibility. In any event I think Austria would be more inclined to defend Hungary than the other way around. Mostly because Cisleithania forms a peripheral shell around most of Hungary especially with Galicia vis a vis Hungary and Russia. The only place Hungary could be directly attacked would be from Serbia or Romania. And the Austrian half has as much to fear from a Serbian attack (Bosnia and Dalmatia) as Hungary. Plus Austria had more interest in projecting power and was more wary of its neighbors' designs on its territory (Italy on Istria and Trento, Serbia in the Balkans, Russia/Russian Poland in Galicia) but Hungary has no interest in expansion and aside from Romania (which it could probably handle on its own) there isn't really a state that would threaten it directly.

In other words Austria needed an intact and friendly Hungary to support its Empire but Hungary didn't really need Galicia, Dalmatia, or Trento to sustain its own existence at least economically and politically. Perhaps someone with a broader strategic vision would be wary of Serbia annexing Bosnia or Dalmatia, Russia annexing Galicia or Italy grabbing Trento and Trieste but it doesn't provoke and immediate crisis for the Hungarian state. For Austria, however, an unfriendly state annexing Transylvania or the Banat poses a serious existential threat to Bosnia or Galicia and to their dominance in the Balkans and especially of the Danube.

On the other hand rebuilding after a war would be another story. IIRC the Hungarians balked at using any joint funds on reconstruction efforts in Galicia after the Russian invasion in 1914. Since it was part of Cisleithania they considered it a solely Austrian responsibility. Never mind the fact that the Russians didn't draw a distinction on who they were attacking, it was only that Galicia was on the border. So a major invasion into Hungary might be repelled with Austrian support but cleaning up the mess thereafter may be left to Hungary alone. You could also see Austrian troops being used and maybe even Austrian war material but I could see Vienna sending Budapest a Bill especially if an invasion coincides closely with the decennial renegotiation of the customs union between the two halves of the Empire.
 
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