Archduchess Maria Josepha of Austria was the daughter of Emperor Joseph I. In 1719 she married the son of Augustus the...

Franz Stephan married Maria Theresa in 1736, thus founding the House of Habsburg-Lorraine. In 1740, following the...

Maria Theresa was the most important ruler of the age of Enlightened Absolutism and one of the most famous Habsburgs...

Highly educated and musical, Isabella of Parma grew up in Spain and Parma. She entered a politically arranged marriage...

Joseph II is one of the best-known representatives of Enlightened Absolutism. As a monarch he was indebted to the ideas...

Marie Christine, Maria Theresa’s favourite daughter, was allowed to marry the husband of her choice, Albert of Saxony-...

As a ruler Leopold II was prepared to initiate reforms. Following the death of his father, he became regent of the...

Marie Antoinette, Maria Theresa’s youngest daughter, was married to the heir to the French throne, the future Louis XVI...

Franz II was the last emperor of the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation. After Napoleon proclaimed the French...

Ferdinand succeeded his father Leopold as regent in Tuscany in 1791, after the latter became emperor. His life was...

Archduke Karl, a son of Leopold II, was originally destined for the Church. However, in his youth he developed military...

A brother of Emperor Franz II (I), Johann played an important role in the struggle to liberate Tyrol led by Andreas...

Archduchess Marie Louise, the eldest daughter of Emperor Franz II (I), was married to the French emperor Napoleon...

A weak leader, during his reign Ferdinand stood in the shadow of his state chancellor, Prince Metternich, and the so-...

Archduchess Leopoldine, a daughter of Emperor Franz II (I), was married to the Portuguese crown prince Dom Pedro at the...

The son of Emperor Franz II (I) and younger brother of Emperor Ferdinand I, he was a member of the Privy State...

The daughter of King Maximilian I of Bavaria, Sophie married Archduke Franz Karl, the brother of Emperor Ferdinand I in...

One of the most conservative Habsburg personalities in the nineteenth century, Archduke Albrecht came to symbolize the...

Franz Joseph ascended the throne of the Austrian Empire in 1848. His concept of rulership was informed by a great sense...

The younger brother of Emperor Franz Joseph, Maximilian was viceroy of the Kingdom of Lombardy-Venetia until 1859. He...

Karl Ludwig spent the whole of his life overshadowed by his older brothers Emperor Franz Joseph and Maximilian of...

Elisabeth, ‘Sisi’ to her family, was the daughter of Duke Max in Bavaria and Duchess Ludovika. She was betrothed to her...

Crown Prince Rudolf epitomizes the tragedy of the declining Monarchy. With his progressive ideas, so unlike those of...

Franz Ferdinand, a nephew of Emperor Franz Joseph, had become the favourite for heir to the throne after the suicide of...