<!-- Image with unknown copyright status removed: thumb|Kuestenland (until 1918) -->
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thumb|300px|right|Austrian Littoral in the Austrian Empire 
The '''Austrian Slovenian: ''Avstrijsko primorje'', ) or '''Küstenland''' (''Litorale'', ''Primorska'') was a crown land (Kronland) within the Austrian Empire (later Austria-Hungary) from 1813 to 1918.

The Austrian Littoral included the '''Germans, Istriots being the main ethnic groups.  In 1910, it had an area of 7969 km² and a population of 894,287.

An area of similar extent under the name of German forces during World War II after capitulation of Italy in September 1943 until the end of the war.

==History==
The Fiume (Rijeka) on the northern Adriatic coast in autonomy until into the 18th century.

Emperor Charles VI increased Habsburg sea power by making peace with the Ottomans and declaring free shipping in the Adriatic. In 1719, Trieste and Fiume were made free ports. In 1730, administration of the Littoral was unified under the '''Intendancy in Trieste'''.

However, in Joseph II divided the administration of the two main ports, assigning Trieste as the port for the Austrian Hereditary Lands and Fiume for the Kingdom of Hungary. Shortly after, Trieste was merged with Gorizia and Gradisca. 

During the Istrian Peninsula and the Quarnero (Kvarner) Islands as part of the Treaty of Campo Formio of 1797.

However, these territories  and all of the new French Empire's Kingdom of Italy in the Treaty of Pressburg of 1805. The 1809 Treaty of Schönbrunn then transferred the area to the Illyrian Provinces which were directly ruled by France.
 
With Napoleon's defeats, the Austrian Empire regained the region and, in Karlstadt (Karlovac) became one administrative unit. From 1816, the Littoral was a part of the Austrian Empire's Kingdom of Illyria.

In 1822, Fiume and Civil Croatia were separated from the territory and ceded to the Kingdom of Hungary (and in 1849 to Croatia).

thumb|right|250px|Austrian Littoral in 1897
The Littoral was officially the Trieste (''Triest'') Province, one of two provinces (or ''gouvernements'') of the Kingdom, the other being Laibach (Ljubljana). It was subdivided into four districts (kreis): Gorizia (''Görz''; including Gorizia and the Julian March), Istria (''Istrien''; Eastern Istria and the Quarnero Islands), Trieste (''Triest''; the Trieste hinterland and Western Istria), and Trieste city (''Triester Stadtgebiet'').

Around Mitterburg (Pisino/Pazin) and Gorizia with Trieste and its immediate surroundings under the direct control of the crown and separate from the local administrative structure.

In 1849, the Kingdom of Illyria was dissolved and the Littoral became a separate Margravate of Istria and the Princely County (''Gefürstete Grafschaft'') of Gorizia and Gradisca with Trieste remaining separate from both.

In 1861, Gorizia and Gradisca and Istria became administratively separate entities and, in 1867, Trieste received separate status as well.

Following the dissolution of Austria-Hungary, the Littoral fell within Venezia Giulia (the Julian March). After Second Yugoslavia. Today Croatia and Slovenia each hold portions of the territory and the city of Trieste remains under Italian rule.

thumb|Einteilung Österreich-Ungarns; das Gebiet des Österreichischen Küstenlandes wird mit der Zahl 7 bezeichnet und ist blau hinterlegt
thumb|Österreichisches Küstenland (1897)

Das '''Österreichische Küstenland''' (auch bekannt als '''Litorale''' bzw. auf italienisch '''Litorale Austriaco''') war vor 1918 die Bezeichnung für die Gemeinschaft der Kronländer Gefürstete Grafschaft Görz und Gradisca, Markgrafschaft Istrien und der Stadt Triest innerhalb Österreich-Ungarns. Alle drei Gebiete hatten jeweils eine eigene Selbstverwaltung, unterstanden aber gemeinsam dem kaiserlichen Statthalter in Triest.

Die einzelnen Länder und auch einzelne Landstriche waren zu ganz unterschiedlichen Zeiten zwischen 1382 (Triest) und 1797 (Westküste von Istrien) unter habsburgische Herrschaft gekommen und waren bis 1849 Teil des in nachnapoleonischer Zeit geschaffenen Königreiches Illyrien.

Das Küstenland hatte eine Größe von etwa 8.000 km² und rund 900.000 Einwohner (1910). Von den Einwohnern waren fast die Hälfte Italiener, ein Viertel Slowenen, ein Fünftel Kroaten und 5 % Deutsche.

Triest hatte als größter See- und Handelshafen der Donaumonarchie enorme wirtschaftliche Bedeutung für die Monarchie; die Eröffnung der Eisenbahnlinie Wien-Triest war entsprechend wichtig.

Aufgrund des aufkommenden Tourismus hatte die Küste von Görz und Istrien – nördlich und südlich von Triest sowie um Abbazia – den Beinamen ''Österreichische Riviera''.

1918 ging das Küstenland an Zweiten Weltkrieg fiel es (ohne Görz und Triest) an Jugoslawien.