Regensburg or Augsburg? The Perpetual Imperial Diet and the last plague epidemic in 1713/1714 through the eyes of the Bohemian envoy Franz Karl Wratislaw von Mitrowitz

Abstract

The article explores issues relating to the Perpetual Imperial Diet and the consequences of its relocation from Regensburg to Augsburg in response to an epidemic of plague. A key figure in these events was Franz Karl Wratislaw von Mitrowitz, who at the time was the Bohemian envoy to the Diet; he experienced the situation in person, and documents from his posthumous estate – especially the diplomatic reports which he sent – are a valuable source of information. Because the functioning of the Diet and the activities of its envoys have been almost completely neglected by Czech (and indeed international) historiography, this article aims to provide an introduction to the topic. To do so, the first part of the text gives details of the Diet’s structure and the legislative process. The second part focuses on the plague epidemic of 1713/1714 and its consequences for the Diet.