Historical Context
Following the Vienna Rebellion that forced Ferdinand I to abolish feudalism and adopt a constitution, many nations of the Austrian Empire saw a chance for strengthening their ideas. After the Congress of Vienna in 1815, for the first time in centuries, all Slovenes were under the rule of one emperor. They were, however, divided between different political subdivisions, namely the provinces of Carniola, Styria, Carinthia, Gorizia and Gradisca, Istria, Trieste, Lombardy and Venetia (the Venetian Slovenia) and the Kingdom of Hungary (Prekmurje). In such a fragmentation, a self-government on national basis was impossible.
The programme of United Slovenia was first formulated on 17 March 1848 by the Carinthian Slovene priest and political activist Matija Majar, and published on 29 March in the national conservative newspaper Kmetijske in rokodelske novice, edited by Janez Bleiweis. The idea advanced by Majar was elaborated and articulated by the society of Slovenes from Vienna, led at this time by the notable linguist Fran Miklošič, which published their manifesto on 29 April in the Slovene newspaper Novice from Klagenfurt. In the same period, the geographer Peter Kozler issued a map of all the Slovene Lands with ethnic-linguistic lines.
Janez Bleiweis presented these demands to the Austrian Emperor's younger brother Archduke John, who had been living amongst the Slovenes in Maribor for 15 years. The three key points of the programme (the creation of Slovenia as a distinct entity, recognition of the Slovene language and opposition to joining the German Confederation) were signed as a petition. 51 signed sheets still exist, showing that the programme was well-supported by the masses. The signed petition was presented to the Austrian parliament; however, due to the uprising in Hungary, the Parliament was dissolved before it could even discuss the Slovene issue.
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