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Joseph II was born in Vienna, Austria
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With his father's death, Joseph also became his mother's co-regent, and took over the handling of the army and foreign affairs. Although Joseph was co-regent, Maria Theresa maintained control of the empire. His mother made some changes that Joseph supported, such as an expansion of elementary education.
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He forbade religious orders to obey foreign superiors, suppressed all contemplative orders, and even sought to interfere with the training of priests.Joseph's reforms included abolishing serfdom, ending press censorship and limiting the power of the Catholic Church. And with his Edict of Toleration, Joseph gave minority religions, such as Protestants, Greek Orthodox and Jews, the ability to live and worship more freely.
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In 1780, The death of Maria Theresa resulted in Joseph II becoming the ruler and taking over all the power.
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Joseph II main/most important reform was the abolition of serfdom and feudal dues. Heb enabled tenants to acquire their own lands from the nobles for moderate fees and allowed peasants to marry whom they wished and to change their domicile.
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Joseph enacted the Edict of Tolerance which was a law that allowed Jews to be engaged in their religious practices. However, these religious practices did have to be private. This act ensured the rights of the Jews in this Austrian empire.
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Joseph tried to acquire Bavaria. He had tried to acquire Bavaria before, and this time he was doing it in exchange for the Austrian Netherlands. He wanted to secure the passage to the sea for the Austrian Netherlands. However, Frederick II of Prussia did not allow it and managed to block the scheme once more.
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To counter Prussia's strength, Joseph created an alliance with Catherine II of Russia. When Catherine brought on war sooner than expected on to turkey, it did not go well because of Joseph's weak and unprepared army. Additionally, Joseph made enemies with Turkey. This alliance was unsuccessful as well and it opened the door for more unrest in the Austrian empire.
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Joseph II died all alone on his deathbed. He had made a lot of enemies with all of the liberal reforms he created. His brother, Leopold, who would eventually be his successor, wasn’t even with him in his death. He died at the age 48
