Curated category
Grand masters of the Order of the Golden Fleece
- Charles V, Holy Roman EmperorCharles V was born during a ball in Ghent on the 24th of February 1500, and before he drew his last breath he had ruled more of the world than any Christian…
- Francis II, Holy Roman EmperorOn the 6th of August 1806, a Habsburg monarch signed away a thousand years of European tradition. Francis II declared the bond tying him to the states of the…
- Philip V of SpainPhilip V of Spain holds a record no other Spanish monarch has matched: he ruled for 45 years, 9 months, and 8 days, longer than any king or queen in the…
- Ferdinand VIIFerdinand VII of Spain was called "el Deseado" - the Desired One - by his people, who longed for his return while Napoleon held him captive in France.
- Maximilian I, Holy Roman EmperorMaximilian I was born at Wiener Neustadt on the 22nd of March 1459, the son of Holy Roman Emperor Frederick III and Eleanor of Portugal.
- Joseph II, Holy Roman EmperorOn the night of the 19th to the 20th of February 1790, Joseph II slept for a few hours, helped along by painkillers. At five in the morning he woke and asked…
- Philip II of SpainPhilip II of Spain was born on the 21st of May 1527 at the Palacio de Pimentel in Valladolid, and by the time he died on the 13th of September 1598, he had…
- Leopold II, Holy Roman EmperorLeopold II carried a name full of contradictions. Born on the 5th of May 1747 in Vienna as the third son of Empress Maria Theresa and Emperor Francis I, he…
- Charles IV of SpainCharles IV of Spain was born on the 11th of November 1748 in Naples, where his father was then ruling as King of Naples and Sicily.
- Alfonso XIIIAlfonso XIII was carried naked to the prime minister on a silver tray moments after he was born, already a king. His father, Alfonso XII, had died the…
- Otto von HabsburgOtto von Habsburg was born on the 20th of November 1912 at Villa Wartholz in Reichenau an der Rax, at a moment when Austria-Hungary still stood as one of the…