Editing Serfdom (section)

===Habsburg monarchy===
In the Habsburg monarchy, the [[enlightened absolutist]] Emperor [[Joseph II, Holy Roman Emperor|Joseph II]] issued the  [[Serfdom Patent (1781)|Serfdom Patent]] that abolished serfdom in Bohemia and the German speaking areas in 1781. In the Kingdom of Hungary, Joseph II issued a similar decree in 1785 after the [[Revolt of Horea, Cloșca, and Crișan|peasant revolt in Transylvania]]. 

The Serfdom Patent diminished the long-established mastery of the landlords; thus allowing the serfs to independently choose marriage partners, pursue career choices, and move between estates.<ref>{{cite book|author=Barbara Jelavich|title=Modern Austria: Empire and Republic, 1815-1986|url=https://archive.org/details/modernaustria00barb|url-access=registration|date=25 September 1987|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-0-521-31625-5|pages=[https://archive.org/details/modernaustria00barb/page/25 25]–}}</ref> The document allowed the serfs legal rights in the Habsburg monarchy, but it did not affect the financial dues and the physical [[corvée]] (unpaid labor) that the serfs legally owed to their landlords. It continued to exist and was only abolished during the [[revolutions of 1848]].