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Edict of Toleration
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German:
Toleranzpatent
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Edict of Toleration

Holy Roman Empire
Also known as: Toleranzpatent
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History

Edict of Toleration, (Oct. 19, 1781), law promulgated by the Holy Roman emperor Joseph II granting limited freedom of worship to non-Roman Catholic Christians and removing civil disabilities to which they had been previously subject in the Austrian domains, while maintaining a privileged position for the Catholic Church. In an edict of Jan. 2, 1782, sometimes also called the Toleranzpatent, Joseph regulated the status of Jews in the Habsburg territories, freeing them from many discriminatory restrictions.