Privilegium minus

Privilegium minus, document issued by Emperor Friedrich I Barbarossa, dated September 17, 1156, granted to Duke Heinrich II Jasomirgott and his wife Theodora. With the settlement of the dispute over Bavaria, Austria was transformed from a march into a duchy and granted special privileges. Austria was separated from Bavaria and the ducal couple were given the right to appoint their own successor if there was no heir (libertas affectandi). No courts of justice were to be held inside the administrative district without the approval of the duke. In addition, the Austrian duke was only obliged to attend diets when they were held in Bavaria and was only liable for military service on the territory of Austria´s neighbours. The rights contained in the Privilegium minus corresponded to the normal conditions that prevailed in German lands in the mid-12^th  century.

Literature: H. Appelt, Privilegium minus, das staufische Kaisertum und die Babenberger in Österreich, 1973.