Die Festlegung von Staatsgrenzen. Der maßgebliche Beitrag der Geodäten zur Realisierung von Grenzen. Beiträge zur Rechtsgeschichte Österreichs|Beiträge zur Rechtsgeschichte Österreichs Band 2 / 2019|

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The important contribution of surveyors to the realisation of boundariesWhen we talk about boundaries between states it might be useful to think about other boundaries in our everydaylives. This will be elaborated using the ideas of internationally well-known personalities like the writer ClaudioMagris (born 1939 in Trieste) or the philosopher Konrad Paul Liessmann (born 1953 in Villach). But also “the lawcorrectly sets borders” which are necessary for the co-existence of and within communities.According to international law, a state has four essential features: population, territory, sovereignty, and government.Usually, a state’s boundaries are defined in bilateral boundary treaties between neighbours.This is the point where surveyors start their contribution – drawing maps for a first overview of the new boundary,then defining the course of the new boundary together with other experts and finally transforming this definitioninto nature, setting permanent monuments, making the boundary survey and a first draft of the boundary documents.Boundary commissions finalise these documents by signing a boundary treaty. Based on the Treaty of St.Germain some examples will be given for the first demarcations of the new boundaries and the final definitions laiddown in this treaty.If a country wants to join the European Union it is one of the preconditions that it has no territorial conflicts withits neighbours. Of course there may remain one or the other disputed section like between France and Italy in thehigh region of Mont Blanc or between Slovenia and Croatia in the Gulf of Piran. But there may also be problems ifone country wants to leave the EU, like Great Britain with the problematic boundary between Northern Ireland,which will leave the EU, and the Republic of Ireland, which will remain in the EU. In spite of the Government ofIreland Act from 1921, this boundary never has never been clearly defined or fixed.Finally, the most important details of the Austrian boundary are presented.