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November 1918 Liechtenstein putsch

The November 1918 Liechtenstein putsch, also known as the Beck putsch (German: Novemberputsch 1918) was a de facto coup d'état by the leaders of the Christian-Social People's Party (Christlich-Soziale Volkspartei or VP) against the government of Governor of Liechtenstein, Leopold Freiherr von Imhof. The coup forced Imhof's government to resign and established a Provisional Executive Committee in his place until 7 December.

Background

Following the outbreak of World War I in August 1914, Liechtenstein remained neutral. The government and general population were supportive of the Central Powers, particularly Austria-Hungary, as the two countries had been in a customs union since 1852. The majority of the Liechtenstein government did not expect the war to last long, thus no food or economic preparations were made for it. In addition, due to this belief, no official declaration of neutrality was made and France, Russia and the United Kingdom interned Liechtensteiners and partially confiscated their assets. As a result, the Liechtenstein government made various declarations that the country was neutral and a separate entity from Austria-Hungary.

From September, food deliveries from Austria-Hungary began to decrease, which quickly reduced the initial level of support for the war, due to Liechtenstein being reliant on them. In addition, due to the country's close ties to Austria-Hungary, Switzerland was forced to cease its food exports with Liechtenstein as the result of pressure from Britain and France to do so. In response, the Liechtenstein government, led by Leopold Freiherr von Imhof, issued emergency commissions throughout the country on 14 December 1914. These commissions aimed to manage the procurement of food and raw materials, now in short supply, and to distribute them to the population.

Despite this, food shortages increased as the war continued, and by 1916 all food deliveries from Austria-Hungary had ceased, which forced Liechtenstein to seek closer ties with Switzerland in order to ensure food deliveries continued. As a result, smuggling within the country increased significantly for bringing food and raw materials into the country. From 1916 Liechtenstein was embargoed by the Entente countries.

As the war continued, the population grew increasingly dissatisfied with Imhof's leadership. This allowed for politicians such as Wilhelm Beck to gain prominence and growing support. Beck formed a social liberal-minded opposition group against Imhof in 1914. This movement was supported by the Oberrheinische Nachrichten newspaper. This primarily advocated for the expansion of welfare, broader voting rights and a Liechtensteiner head of government (Imhof was Austrian). Imhof soon faced accusations that the measures he took to address the economic crisis were inadequate and that he was incompetent. Fierce debates took place between Beck and Imhof in the Landtag of Liechtenstein. The Christian-Social People's Party was formed in February 1918 and in the 1918 Liechtenstein general election it won five out of thirteen seats in the Landtag.

Coup

In November 1918, Beck who wanted a Liechtensteiner head of state, joined with the Landtag members Martin Ritter and Fritz Walser and the three men plotted to overthrow Imhof. On 7 November 1918, they proposed a motion of no confidence in the Landtag against him. Imhof asked for a vote of confidence and at the same time agreed to submit his resignation due to pressure from members of the Landtag. While the Landtag unanimously expressed its confidence in him it was decided by the elected members, against the constitution and the princely appointed Landtag members, to transfer the power of governor to a Provisional Executive Committee led by Martin Ritter.

Other figures who opposed Beck's ideals, such as Albert Schädler, resigned in protest to the establishment. Prince Johann II accepted Imhof's resignation on 13 November. Schädler met with Johann II for talks in Vienna, where it was agreed that the committee would only last one month and that Prince Karl Aloys of Liechtenstein would be appointed governor upon the committee's conclusion as a compromise due to the popular demand for a Liechtensteiner head of government.

Aftermath and legacy

Within the general population of Liechtenstein the coup was popular, as Imhof was largely seen as the reason for the country's economic crisis. However, in the Landtag it was far more controversial. Martin Ritter in particular was a controversial figure in the government as the first Liechtensteiner head of government, due to the unconstitutional means that he had come into power, despite having only served for one month, from 7 November to 7 December 1918. In response to the coup, all three members of the Landtag appointed by Johann II resigned in protest.

Johann II reportedly responded with reservation in response to the coup. He remained in Vienna throughout the committee's duration but did not make any efforts to act against it, primarily due to its popularity within the country. The committee did not intend to break with the monarchy, its proclamation itself ended with the phrase "May the prince and the country live long." An expression of his involvement in state affairs was a telegram sent by his office to Albert Schädler:

His Majesty reacted with reservation to the fact that a committee had taken over power in the country. Official decisions on the committee will follow.

The coup had directly undermined the 1862 Constitution of Liechtenstein and in combination with the economic devastation created from World War I it had created a large and significant basis of support for constitutional revision in the country. Soon afterwards, a constitutional committee was elected, which would begin a period of the next three years where both the Progressive Citizens' Party and Christian-Social People's Party worked together in creating a new constitution based on a constitutional monarchy as a continuation of Beck's ideals with assistance from Josef Peer. The constitution was signed into law by Prince Karl Aloys on behalf of Johann II and Josef Ospelt as a government representative on 5 October 1921.

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