The Dark Side of Maria Theresa is a documentary film which premiered in 2023. In 2024, it was shown on French and German television (arte).
The French title is
L’expulsion des Juifs de Prague
The German title is
Kaiserin Maria Theresias dunkle Seite:
Die Vertreibung der Juden aus Prag
Here is some basic information about this film:
** Writer and director: Monika Czernin
** Narrator of the German version: Dorte Lyssewsky
** Language: French or German
** Subtitles: not available!
** Run time: 52 minutes
Six historical experts are interviewed. Here are the names. Listed in alphabetical order:
** Alexandr Putik – a historian – the Jewish Museum in Prague
** Rotraud Ries – a historian
** Christian Rutishauser – an expert on Judaism – Central European Province of the Jesuits
** Michael K. Silber – a historian – Hebrew University, Jerusalem
** Barbara Staudinger – director of the Jewish Museum in Vienna
** Barbara Stollberg-Rilinger – a historian – Institute for Advanced Studies, Berlin – author of a biography about Empress Maria Theresa
Some historical moments have been reconstructed by actors who portray Maria Theresa and other people who lived in Vienna or in Prague at the same time as her.
Maria Theresa (born 1717) was the Archduchess of Austria and the Queen of Hungary and Bohemia (1740-1780), the wife of the Holy Roman Emperor Francis I (who reigned 1745-1765), and the mother of the Holy Roman Emperor Joseph II (who reigned 1765-1790).
Maria Theresa has been described as a good and wise queen, who has one significant flaw: she accepts only one religion, the Roman Catholic Church.
She does not tolerate other religions. Protestants as well as Jews are persecuted during her reign.
On 18 December 1744 she signs a document which contains a harsh order:
The Jews of Prague must leave the city within one month and they must leave the lands over which she rules within six months.
She does not offer any explanation for writing this order. Since she is the ruler of the Habsburg dominions, she does not feel the need to justify her actions to her subjects. She is only responsible to God.
This film is about Empress Maria Theresa and her order of 18 December 1744.
This film explains why it was issued and how it was implemented.
Maria Theresa rules from Vienna. She is not in Prague. She does not know that the mayor of Prague is most unhappy to receive this instruction.
The mayor does not want to implement this order, because he does not agree with it. He thinks it is unfair and unwise.
While he cannot ignore it completely, he can make his own interpretation of it and he can implement it as slowly as possible.
The Jews in Prague are also upset when they learn about Maria Theresa’s order. They try to organize a campaign against the harsh order.
They contact Jewish communities in other European countries and ask them to contact the rulers of the countries where they live.
They want these rulers to contact Maria Theresa and implore her to cancel her order.
The campaign is surprisingly successful. Many letters from many countries are sent to Maria Theresa asking her to reconsider the harsh order. But for a long time, she refuses to change her mind.
The order affects more than 10,000 Jews. Some of them are forced to leave the city of Prague. They become refugees in the surrounding areas.
After a while, it becomes clear why the order is an example of very bad planning. Maria Theresa wants to expel the Jews, because she hates them.
She does not appreciate the fact that the Jews performed many important roles and services while they were living and working in Prague.
When they are forced out, the city faces economic problems. When they arrive as refugees in the surrounding areas, they become a burden on the local society.
In short: the expulsion of the Jews does not bring benefits to society. On the contrary, the expulsion of the Jews only causes problems and trouble. Not only for the Jews who are expelled, but also to the non-Jewish population who live in Prague and the surrounding areas.
In 1747, Maria Theresa is forced to admit that her decree was a bad idea. She has to cancel the order of 18 December 1744.
In 1748, the Jews begin to return to Prague. But when they return, they find that their old homes have been plundered and damaged by greedy inhabitants of the city. The returning Jews face a difficult situation: they have to rebuild their homes as well as their lives.
What did the Archduchess of Austria achieve with her harsh decree of 18 December 1744? Nothing positive. Only something negative.
She caused problems for the Jews of Prague and for the city of Prague.
In addition, she managed to damage her own reputation. She liked to present herself as a good and wise ruler who cared about the people.
The harsh order of 18 December 1744 showed that this image was not true at all. The order revealed the dark truth about the women who ruled the Habsburg dominions for forty years.
What do reviewers say about this film?
This question is not easy to answer.
The film is not listed on IMDb.
There are no user reviews.
The film is not available on Amazon.
There are no customer reviews.
The story of Maria Theresa’s persecution of the Jews is important. The story deserves to be told, and in this film, it is done very well.
I want to go all the way to the top with this product. I think it deserves a rating of five stars (100 percent).
REFERENCES
# 1. Articles
Aubrey Newman
“The Expulsion of the Jews from Prague in 1745 and British Policy,”
Jewish Historical Society of England
Volume 22, pages 30-41
1968-1969
David B. Green
“This Day in Jewish History, 1744: Austrian Queen Expels the Jews,”
Haaretz
18 December 2012
[This article is placed behind a paywall]
No name
“Maria Theresa and Her Persecution of the Jews,”
Coins Weekly
14 June 2023
Rabbi Menachem Levine
“The Jewish History of Prague,”
27 December 2023
# 2. Books
Maria Theresa of Austria
By J. Alexander Mahan
(2008 = hardcover)
(2010 = paperback)
Maria Theresa:
The Habsburg Empress in Her Time
By Barbara Stollberg-Rilinger
(2022)
[The original German version was published in 2017]
*****
Maria Theresa
(Born 1717)
(Died 1780)
Archduchess of Austria 1740-1780
Painted in 1759
by the Swedish-Austrian painter
Martin van Meytens
(1695-1770)
*****
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