The Revolutions of 1848 marked a turning point in the history of the Austrian Navy. Up until that time, the Navy had been dominated by the Italian language, customs, and traditions. Prior to the revolution, the Austrian Navy was mostly made up of Italian crew members, the Italian language was the primary language, and even Italian ship names were used over German ones, such as "Lipsia" rather than "Leipzig". Indeed, in the years before 1848, the Navy was largely considered to be a "local affair of Venice". In the years after 1848, most of the navy's officers corps hailed from the German-speaking parts of the Empire, while most of the sailors came from Istria and the Dalmatian Coast, leading to Croats, Germans, and even Hungarians to begin to be represented among the ranks of the Austrian Navy.