Maria Theresa (1717-1780) Constitutio Criminalis Theresiana oder der Romisch-Kaiserl. zu Hungarn und Boheim &c. &c. Konigl. Apost.
Vienna: Johann Thomas Edlen von Trattnern, 1769.
First edition, folio, illustrated with twenty-seven full page and three folding plates depicting torture devices and people implementing torture to victims; bound in contemporary boards, rebacked, lower corners repaired, 13 1/2 x 8 in.
[Together with] a autograph note by Maria Theresa in German circa 1776, on laid mourning paper, asking for money for her son, 7 1/2 x 6 in.
"The Constitutio Criminalis Theresiana, a criminal code that was binding across the entire Monarchy, typifies Maria Theresa's fundamentally conservative attitude. What was important was the creation of a unified legal framework rather than the modernization of legal practice as such; torture continued to be a legal means of finding the truth, despite vehement criticism from representatives of the Enlightenment. It was not until 1776 with Joseph II's support that torture was finally abolished." (Quoted from Martin Mutschlechner's The Dark Side of Maria Theresa https://www.habsburger.net/en/chapter/dark-side-maria-theresa)
