When the future Emperor Franz Joseph I of Austria was born in 1830, he was third in the line of succession. His grandfather was Francis II, Holy Roman Emperor (Francis I, Emperor Austria from the dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire in 1806) and his uncle Ferdinand, who had an intellectual disability and suffered from [read more]
On 4 November 1824, Princess Sophie of Bavaria married Archduke Franz Karl of Austria, the third son of Emperor Francis II, Holy Roman Emperor and Princess Maria Theresa of Naples and Sicily. Her family had been reluctant, and Sophie’s sister wrote, “They say he is educated, but he is not at all to the Queen’s [read more]
Read part three here. Elisabeth and Leopold lived together as he was making a career for himself in politics. Of her children, only her daughter was still living with her. She bought the so-called Windisch-Graetz Villa on the outskirts of Vienna in 1929. However, peace would be hard to find. By 1932, national socialism was [read more]
Read part two here. Prince Otto hated all the travelling that Elisabeth did, and he eventually stopped joining his family. Their marriage was now clearly in trouble, and their paths began to grow apart. Later Elisabeth would say that Otto had a venereal disease, which he passed to her. She wrote, “I fell ill as [read more]
Read part one here. After the death of Crown Prince Rudolf, Countess Elisabeth Coudenhove was appointed as a governess for young Elisabeth. The Countess would make a big impact on Elisabeth’s life, and she would remember her fondly for the rest of her life. Elisabeth’s mother, Stéphanie, had a difficult time at court – her [read more]
The baby was lovely. From the bottom of my soul, I thanked God for the treasure he had bestowed upon me, and took the little one into my arms. On 2 September 1883, Archduchess Elisabeth Marie of Austria was born as the daughter of Crown Prince Rudolf of Austria and Princess Stéphanie of Belgium. She [read more]
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