1. Claim
2. Verdicts
1. Claims | Magistrate | City of Vienna
The following charts show the claim interests in the main proceedings. Chart 1.0 covers the entire period of investigation. Using the arrows located to the right and left of the chart you can access further charts which each, starting with the number 1.1, differentiate between the different time segments. Slideshow 1 deals with the claim interests independent of the sex of the plaintiff, slideshow 2 contains the claim interests of the wives, slideshow 3 those of the husbands.
The charts make it clear that the Viennese magistrate – apart from the first years – functioned as a court for divorce only. At the same time, the charts show that it was only with the gradual reintroduction of contested divorces after 1786 that divorce once again became an option.
The differentiation according to sex shows clearly that also at the Viennese magistrate it was predominantly women who filed for a divorce. In the case of uncontested divorces we could not always reconstruct if it was the wife or the husband who initiated the proceedings. Therefore, the charts by sex contain only those uncontested divorce proceedings where we could determine that the initiative was taken by the wife or by the husband.
2. Verdicts | Magistrate | City of Vienna
The following charts show the different verdicts in the main proceedings issued by the Magistrate of Vienna. Chart 1.0 of the slideshow covers always the entire period of investigation. Using the arrows located to the right and left of the chart you can access further charts which, starting with the number 1.1, each differentiate the verdicts according to the different time segments. Slideshow 2 and 3 differentiate the verdicts by sex.
The charts make it clear that at the beginning of its jurisdiction the Viennese Magistrate was also responsible for annulments, and that, at least in one case, the councilors still limited the period of separation. The charts also clearly show that the majority of the contested divorce proceedings were not decided upon by verdicts, but rather with a divorce settlement agreed upon by the couple.
The comparably lower figures in the sex-differentiated charts when compared to the overall charts can be attributed to the fact that the latter charts take only those uncontested divorce proceedings in which we could determine whether the initiative was taken by the wife or by the husband into account.
