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Curated playlist

House of Habsburg-Lorraine

  • Francis II, Holy Roman EmperorOn August 6, 1806, Francis II ended the Holy Roman Empire with a single signed declaration. He was its last emperor.
  • Marie Louise, Duchess of ParmaMarie Louise called Napoleon "the Anti-Christ" as a girl, then married him.
  • Austrian EmpireIn 1804, Francis II declared himself Emperor of Austria out of fear of Napoleon. He was already Holy Roman Emperor.
  • Maximilian I of MexicoFacing a firing squad in 1867, Emperor Maximilian of Mexico handed each executioner a gold coin.
  • Joseph II, Holy Roman EmperorEmperor Joseph II issued over 6,000 edicts and 11,000 new laws, yet many subjects came to loathe him.
  • Marie AntoinetteMarie Antoinette stepped on her executioner's shoe and apologized. Minutes later she was beheaded.
  • Austria-HungaryIn 1867, Emperor Franz Joseph signed laws creating the Dual Monarchy of Austria and Hungary. It lasted until 1918.
  • Archduke Franz Ferdinand of AustriaArchduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria was shot in Sarajevo wearing a coat that his own aides could not open. When they tried to loosen it, they discovered that they needed scissors. The outer lapel had been sewn to the inner front of the…
  • Ferdinand Karl, Archduke of Austria-EsteFerdinand Karl founded a noble house even though he never held the duchy he was promised.
  • Franz Joseph IOn the evening of the 21st of November 1916, inside Schönbrunn Palace in Vienna, Emperor Franz Joseph I gave his valet a final instruction. "Tomorrow morning, at half past three." Those were his last words. He was 86 years old. Franz…
  • Empress Elisabeth of AustriaEmpress Elisabeth of Austria, nicknamed Sisi, left the Hôtel Beau-Rivage on the shore of Lake Geneva at 1:35 in the afternoon on Saturday the 10th of September 1898. She was 60 years old and travelling under a false name. Only one…
  • Otto von HabsburgOtto von Habsburg, born to be emperor, spent nearly half a century in exile from Austria.
  • Archduke Charles, Duke of TeschenArchduke Charles of Austria beat Napoleon in 1809 at Aspern-Essling. It was Napoleon's first big pitched-battle loss.
  • Duchy of MilanA single document signed in Prague in 1395 created the Duchy of Milan. It made Gian Galeazzo Visconti a duke.

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