Czernin, Ottokar

Czernin, Ottokar (von und zu Chudenitz), b 26 September 1872 in Dymokury, Bohemia, d 4 April 1932 in Vienna. Austrian count, political leader, and diplomat. In 1916–18 Czernin was the minister of foreign affairs for Austria-Hungary. He headed the Austro-Hungarian delegation at the peace negotiations in Brest and on 9 February 1918 signed the Peace Treaty of Brest-Litovsk with Ukraine, including a secret agreement on the crown lands of Galicia and Bukovyna. His concessions to Ukraine on the Kholm region and the crown lands provoked protests from the Poles in Austria and undermined his position as the minister of foreign affairs. In April 1918 he resigned. Czernin signed the peace treaty with Ukraine mainly because of the food crisis in Austria. He coined the term ‘Brotfrieden’ (Bread Peace) for the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk.

[This article originally appeared in the Encyclopedia of Ukraine, vol. 1 (1984).]