Austrian Kaiserlichen und Königlichen Rubber Stamp

Austrian Kaiserlichen und Königlichen rubber stamp

The phrase Imperial and Royal (German: kaiserlich und königlich, pronounced [ˈkaɪzɐlɪç ʔʊnt ˈkøːnɪklɪç]), typically abbreviated as k. u. k., k. und k., k. & k. in German (the "und" is always spoken unabbreviated), cs. és k. (császári és királyi) in Hungarian, c. a k. (císařský a královský) in Czech, C. i K. (Cesarski i Królewski) in Polish, c. in k. (cesarski in kraljevski) in Slovenian, c. i kr. (carski i kraljevski) in Croatian, ц. и кр. (царски и краљевски) in Serbian, and I.R. (Imperiale Regio) in Italian, refers to the court/government of the Habsburgs in a broader historical perspective. Some modern authors restrict its use to the Dual Monarchy of Austria-Hungary from 1867 to 1918.

During that period, it indicated that the Habsburg monarch reigned simultaneously as the Kaiser (Emperor of Austria) and as the König (King of Hungary), while the two territories were joined in a real union (akin to a two-state federation in this instance). The acts of the common government, which was responsible only for the Imperial & Royal ("I&R") Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the I&R Ministry of War and the I&R Ministry of Finance (financing only the two other ministries), were carried out in the name of "His Imperial and Royal Majesty", and the central governmental bodies had their names prefixed with k. u. k.