Margraviate of Istria Markgrafschaft Istrien (de) Marchesato d’Istria (it) Markgrofovija Istra (hr) Mejna grofija Istra (sl) |
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Part of the Austrian Littoral Crown land of the Austrian Empire (1861–1867) Cisleithanian crown land of Austria-Hungary (1867–1918) |
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Istrian margraviate (outlined in yellow), Justus Perthes 1855 |
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Capital | Rovingo (Rovinj) | |||||
Government | Monarchy | |||||
Legislature | Diet of Istria | |||||
History | ||||||
• | March Constitution | 1849 | ||||
• | Crown land according to February Patent | 1861 | ||||
• | Cisleithanian crown land | 1867 | ||||
• | Disestablished | 1918 | ||||
• | Ceded to Italy | 1919 |
The March of Istria (or Margraviate of Istria /ˈɪstriə/) was originally a Carolingian frontier march covering the Istrian peninsula and surrounding territory conquered by Charlemagne's son Pepin of Italy in 789. After 1364, it was the name of the Istrian province of the Habsburg Monarchy, the Austrian Empire and Austria-Hungary.
The settlement area of the ancient Histri tribes had been conquered by the Roman Empire until 178 BC and was incorporated into the northeastern Venetia et Histria region of the Italia province under Emperor Augustus. Upon the Decline of the Roman Empire and the Migration Period, the Lombards under King Alboin from 568 onwards conquered Venetia, where they established the Duchy of Friuli, part of their Kingdom of Italy. The Istrian peninsula remained under Byzantine (Eastern Roman) influence, while South Slavic tribes (Croatians and Slovenes) settled in the east and north.