Independence:
25 December 1000 (crowning of King STEPHEN I, traditional founding date)
National holiday:
Saint Stephen's Day, 20 August
Constitution:
18 August 1949, effective 20 August 1949; revised 19 April 1972; 18 October 1989; and 1997
note: 18 October 1989 revision ensured legal rights for individuals and constitutional checks on the authority of the prime minister and also established the principle of parliamentary oversight; 1997 amendment streamlined the judicial system
Legal system:
based on the German-Austrian legal system; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations
Suffrage: