65 Years a Ruler

News was received that Prince John II of Liechtenstein recently celebrated the 65th year of his reign. According to reports from Austrian sources, all school children in the Principality received a ration of white bread and a dish of sausages to celebrate the occasion. The Prince, who spends a good deal of his time in Vienna, made a practical contribution of 10,000 Swiss francs ($1,728) toward the building of a fifth bridge over the Rhine, which divides Liechtenstein from Switzerland. Prince John, aged 83, ascended the throne of Liechtenstein on Nov. 12, 1858, when he was 18.

Liechtenstein, except for the Principality of Monaco (8 square miles), and the Republic of San Marino (38 square miles.), is the smallest independent country in Europe, having an area of 65 square miles. The capital is Vaduz, where, it is said, cows graze in the main streets. Until 1868 the Principality maintained an army of 91, but in that year the army was abolished. The population, mostly of German extraction and Catholic in religion, is about 11,000. The budget in 1922 was balanced at 384,500 Swiss francs ($66,441), and there is no public debt. The language was formerly Romonsch (dialect of the old Roman Empire), but is now German with only a few traces of the Romance.

The history of the country started in 1713, when the Liechtenstein family bought the fiefs of Schellenburg and Vaduz from the impecunious Graf von Hohenems, although the lordship was bought in 1699. In 1719, Emperor Karl VI of the Holy Roman Empire raised these territories to a Principality under the name of Liechtenstein. It remained a part of the Empire until 1806, when for nine years it was a Sovereign State in the Rhine Confederation. From 1815 to 1866 it was a part of the German Confederation, but since the last date it has been a Sovereign State.

This little State lies between the Swiss Cantons of St. Gallen an Graubiinden and the Austrian province of Voralberg. Until after the War the State was in the Austrian Customs Union, but in 1921 it joined the Swiss Customs Union and it is Switzerland who administers the telegraph, postage and coinage systems. According to the Constitution, granted in October, 1921, Liechtenstein is a limited monarchy.