Last updated A Purveyor to the Imperial and Royal Court (k.u.k. Hoflieferant) was allowed to publicly display the imperial eagleImperial and royal warrant of appointment issued to Johann Backhausen on November 8, 1888Imperial eagle displayed at the store of the purveyor Rudolf Waniek, in Vienna
An Imperial and Royal Warrant of Appointment during the Austro-Hungarian Empire was issued to vendors who supplied goods or services to the Austrian imperial court in Vienna and/or the Hungarian royal court in Budapest. The warrant was normally an official document, which enabled the supplier to advertise the fact and thus lend itself prestige.
Suppliers continued to charge for their goods and services. The application process took years and was given only to those deemed of the highest quality to be worth to receive the honour upon personal approval of the monarch. The warrant was typically advertised on company letter-heads and products by displaying the coat of arms or the heraldic badge of the imperial eagle. Underneath the coat of arms would usually appear the phrase "k.u.k. Hoflieferant", which translates into English as "Purveyor to the Imperial and Royal Court". Depending on where the supplier was located within the dual monarchy, it could be adapted into the local language such as "Ces. i Król. dostawca Dworu" in Polish, "C. a k. dvorní dodavatel" in Czech, or "Fornitore di corte imperiale e reale" in Italian.
The warrant was initially given to the owners of a company or a tradesperson, not the company itself. Only later were entire companies given the warrant.
The warrant was given as a supplier for the overall court. However personal suppliers to the emperor or the empress were given a higher warrant as "k.u.k. Kammerlieferant", which translates as "Purveyor to the Imperial and Royal Chamber". It was possible for a supplier to receive both warrant forms for exceptional quality of services and goods.
To this date, certain brands preserve and use this title. In Vienna, there is a dozen of them, such as A.E. Köchert, Ch. Demel's Söhne / Demel, Fischer / Herend, J. & L. Lobmeyr, Pauly Beds / J. Pauly & Sohn, Resch Gustav / Albin Denk, Stiebitz Franz Joseph / Zum Schwarzen Kameel, Stollwerck and Knize & Comp.
Joachim Kronsbein. „Haben gewählt?“: Wiens Hoflieferanten pflegen die Nostalgie. In: Spiegel Geschichte, 6/2009. Die Habsburger: Aufstieg und Fall der mächtigsten Familie Europas.
Catharina Christ: Jüdische k. und k. Hoflieferanten in der Textilbranche mit Niederlassung in Wien in der Zeit von 1870 bis 1938. Dipl.-Arb., Vienna: University, 2000
Ingrid Haslinger: Kunde – Kaiser. Die Geschichte der ehemaligen k. u. k. Hoflieferanten. Schroll, Vienna 1996, ISBN3-85202-129-4.
Sachertorte is a chocolate cake, or torte of Austrian origin, invented by Franz Sacher, supposedly in 1832 for Prince Metternich in Vienna. It is one of the most famous Viennese culinary specialties.
The phrase Imperial and Royal, typically abbreviated as k. u. k., k. und k., k. & k. in German, cs. és k. in Hungarian, c. a k. in Czech, C. i K. in Polish, c. in k. in Slovenian, c. i kr. in Croatian, ц. и кр. in Serbian, and I.R. 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.
Royal warrants of appointment have been issued for centuries to tradespeople who supply goods or services to a royal court or certain royal personages. The royal warrant enables the supplier to advertise the fact that they supply to the issuer of the royal warrant; thus lending prestige to the supplier. Royal families of the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, Monaco, Denmark, Sweden, and Japan among others, allow tradesmen to advertise royal patronage.
Demel is a famous pastry shop and chocolaterie established in 1786 in Vienna, Austria. The company bears the title of a Purveyor to the Imperial and Royal Court up to today.
The Vienna Porcelain Manufactory Augarten is a porcelain manufactory located in Vienna, Austria.
The Herend Porcelain Manufactory is a Hungarian manufacturing company, specializing in luxury hand painted and gilded porcelain. Founded in 1826, it is based in the town of Herend near the city of Veszprém.
Wilhelm J. Sluka or the Conditorei Sluka is a famous Konditorei and café in Vienna, and a traditional k.u.k. Hoflieferant. It is located at Rathausplatz 8 in the first district of Vienna, the Innere Stadt.
Gaston Bodart (1867–1940) was a military historian, statistician, and government official. He was born in 1867 in Vienna, Austria. He achieved distinction for his analysis of casualties of war in Austria's wars, from the Thirty Years War to the Russo-Japanese War in 1905 and for many years his studies of military casualties remained the standard in the literature. As an assistant commissioner of the Imperial and Royal Commission, he also helped to organize Austria's presentations at various world fairs and exhibitions.
Royal warrants of appointment have been issued since the 15th century to those who supply goods or services to a royal court or certain royal personages. The warrant enables the supplier to advertise the fact that they supply to the royal family, thereby lending prestige to the brand and/or supplier. In the United Kingdom, grants are currently made by the two most senior members of the British royal family to companies or tradespeople who supply goods and services to individuals in the family.
Royal warrants of appointment have been issued for centuries to those who supplied goods or services to the King of Spain. The warrant enables the company to advertise the royal approval of distinction with the display of the royal coat of arms, thus lending prestige to the company.
The Common Army as it was officially designated by the Imperial and Royal Military Administration, was the largest part of the Austro-Hungarian land forces from 1867 to 1914, the other two elements being the Imperial-Royal Landwehr and the Royal Hungarian Landwehr. However, it was simply known as the Army (Heer) by the Emperor and in peacetime laws, and, after 1918, colloquially called the k.u.k. Armee.
The Imperial and Royal Infantry was an arm of the Common Army of the Austro-Hungarian monarchy and comprised two elements:
Anton Rumpelmayer was an Austrian confectioner and k.u.k. Hoflieferant. He worked in France, where he was known as Antoine Rumpelmayer.
Georg Leykauf was a steel metalware producer and trader in Nuremberg, Bavaria.
Carl Dörr was a piano manufacturer in Wieden, Vienna, Austria.
J. Pauly & Sohn now known as Pauly Beds is one of the oldest bedding companies in the world. It was the sole official supplier of beds to the Austrian Empire for several generations.
Zwilling J. A. Henckels AG is a German knife-maker based in Solingen, Germany. It is one of the largest and oldest manufacturers of kitchen knives for domestic and professional use, having been founded in June 1731 by Peter Henckels. The brand's namesake was Johann Abraham Henckels (1771–1850), who renamed the brand after himself under his leadership. J.A. Henckels is one of the leading manufacturers of chef's knives.
Kniže & Comp. is a men's outfitter from Vienna, considered the first men's fashion brand in the world. The first men's fragrance series "Knize Ten" was also created by the traditional house.
Therese Mirani was an embroiderer and teacher, who was director of the Imperial and Royal School for Art Embroidery of the Ministry of Commerce in Vienna. She invented a new type of lacework, points imperial, and a new technique of embroidery, broderie dentelle, which was collected by Empress Elisabeth of Austria. She was awarded an Imperial and Royal Warrant of Appointment.
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