Franz Joseph I of Austria

Franz got married to his cousin, Elisabeth, on April 24, 1854, at ‘St. Augustine’s Church,’ Vienna. His wife was assassinated in 1898.

His brother, Emperor Maximilian of Mexico, was assassinated in 1867, and Franz’s only son and heir, Crown Prince Rudolf, committed suicide in 1889.

On November 21, 1916, Franz Joseph died at the ‘Schönbrunn Palace’ due to pneumonia. His grandnephew, Charles I, succeeded to the throne and ruled until 1918, after which the empire ended.

Francis Joseph was born on August 18, 1830, at the ‘Schönbrunn Palace,’ Vienna. The oldest son of Archduke Franz Karl and Princess Sophie of Bavaria, Franz had three younger brothers: Archduke Ferdinand Maximilian, Archduke Karl Ludwig, and Archduke Ludwig Viktor.

He also had a sister named Maria, who passed away at the age of 4. Franz was very attached to his grandfather, der Gute Kaiser Franz, who remained on the throne for 38 long years.

After his death, young Franz was trained to be the next emperor of Austria, although he was not in the line of succession. His uncle, Emperor Ferdinand, was mentally feeble, and his father was not efficient either. Thus, the young duke was raised to be a responsible monarch.

He had a short-lived childhood, as he started his career at the age of 13 and was soon joined by his brothers. He was also appointed as the governor of Bohemia after the resignation of Chancellor Prince Metternich.

Franz never took up the governor’s post. Soon, King Charles Albert of Sardinia rebelled against the Austrian forces.

With the help of his prime minister, Schwarzenberg, and advisors such as Felix, Leo, and Alexander, Franz Joseph established the era known as neoabsolutism that lasted throughout the 1850s. The foundation of neoabsolutism spelled the defeat of Charles Albert of Sardinia, who had rebelled against Austria in 1849.

However, his on-going war with Hungary soon went out of control. This made him request Tsar Nicholas I of Russia to intervene. The Hungarians were defeated and absolute centralism was established.

After the death of Schwarzenberg in 1852, it became quite a task to find a man of his caliber. Thus, Franz himself took over the role of the prime minister.

On February 18, 1853, Franz was stabbed in the neck by Hungarian nationalist János Libény. Although, he bled and was wounded, Franz survived the assassination attempt due to the high collar of his uniform that enclosed his neck.

Libény was eventually tried and hanged for attempted regicide. A church was constructed on the site of the attack, which is now known as the ‘Votivkirche,’ and is situated near the ‘University of Vienna.’