Franz Anton von Raab

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Armorial coat of arms of Franz Anton von Raab, 1755.

Franz Anton Raab , from 1755 knight von Raab zu Ravenheim (born December 21, 1722 in St. Leonhard im Lavanttal , Carinthia , † April 20, 1783 in Vienna ) was an Austrian court official.

Career advancement

Raab studied in Graz Law and completed his studies with the doctorate jur. He then worked as a lawyer before moving to civil service in 1750.

Maria Theresa appointed Raab to the board of directors of Trieste . Its task was to promote the city's free port . In gratitude for the successful completion of the task, Raab was raised to the hereditary Austrian knighthood in 1755.

Business promotion

In 1773 Raab was appointed to the new commercial commission in Vienna with the rank of court counselor . The aim was to revive prosperity in the country affected by the consequences of the war, to increase production and to promote industry.

Raab has developed various concepts for this. So he suggested improving sheep farming by importing Spanish animals. He also promoted silk production and the cultivation of plants containing dyes, the establishment of businesses for wool processing and the revitalization of beekeeping. A model school for silk construction was founded in Meidling near Vienna. A woolen factory was set up in Theresienstadt .

In addition, Raab pushed for greater freedom of movement for job seekers and the abolition of the tithing of bees.

Land reforms, raabization

Raab was later appointed secret state trainee and director of the imperial domains in Bohemia . There he gained notoriety above all through the agricultural reforms that he initiated during the time of Maria Theresa . The “Raabsche System” or Raabisation , first practiced on the Kameralgüter from 1774, included the division of Meierhöfen and the emphyteutic transfer of the parcels to settlers. These were exempt from labor and payments in kind and instead obliged to pay the landlord in cash, which amounted to up to 30 percent of the gross income. In the course of the raabization, the plots were also re- measured , which resulted in the Josefin situation books .

After the measures had proved successful in Bohemia, they were also introduced in Lower Austria (1775) and Moravia (1777). There, too, Raab retained leadership of the process. Later came Steiermark (1778) and Galicia (1782) added. In the course of the raabization, 128 new villages and family settlements were created in Bohemia alone, and 117 in Moravia. 11,448 farm positions were created in both countries.

Raab died in the implementation phase. In addition to a poem in Latin on the empress, he published various writings in connection with his official activities.

As a result of resistance from the estates and the church, the raabization was stopped in 1790 after the death of Joseph II .

Works

literature

personal data
SURNAME Raab, Franz Anton von
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Raab zu Ravenheim, Franz Anton (from 1755); Raab, Franz Anton
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Austrian court official
DATE OF BIRTH December 21, 1722
PLACE OF BIRTH St. Leonhard im Lavanttal , Carinthia
DATE OF DEATH April 20, 1783
Place of death Vienna