The Austrian Littoral (German: Österreichisches Küstenland, Italian: Litorale Austriaco, Slovene: Avstrijsko primorje, Croatian: Austrijsko primorje, Hungarian: Tengermellék) was established as a crown land (Kronland) of the Austrian Empire in 1849. In 1861 it was divided into the three crown lands of the Imperial Free City of Trieste and its suburbs, the Margraviate of Istria, and the Princely County of Gorizia and Gradisca, which each had separate administrations and Landtag assemblies, but were all subject to a k.k. statholder at Trieste.
Trieste had strategic importance as Austria-Hungary's primary sea port and the coast of the Littoral was a resort destination, the Austrian Riviera. The region was a multi-national one with Italians, Slovenes, Croats, Germans and Friulians being the main ethnic groups. In 1910, it had an area of 7,969 square kilometres (3,077 sq mi) and a population of 894,287.
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—George Bernard Shaw (1856–1950)