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Curated category

Sons of emperors

  • 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…
  • Maximilian III JosephMaximilian III Joseph, the Elector of Bavaria, died on the 30th of December 1777 without a single heir to his name. But what made his final weeks so…
  • Frederick II, Holy Roman EmperorFrederick II was born in Jesi, near Ancona, on the 26th of December 1194, and the circumstances surrounding that birth were so extraordinary that rumors…
  • Henry IV, Holy Roman EmperorHenry IV stood barefoot in the snow outside Canossa Castle for three days in January 1077, dressed in sackcloth, waiting for a pope to forgive him.
  • 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…
  • Sigismund, Holy Roman EmperorSigismund of Luxembourg was born on the 15th of February 1368 and died on the 9th of December 1437 -- a man who wore so many crowns that keeping track of…
  • Ferdinand Karl, Archduke of Austria-EsteFerdinand Karl, Archduke of Austria-Este, was born on the 1st of June 1754 at Schönbrunn Palace in Vienna, the fourteenth child of Holy Roman Emperor Franz I…
  • Napoleon IINapoleon II was Emperor of the French for exactly two days. He never sat on the throne. He never held a scepter. He never gave an order that anyone was bound…
  • Dara ShikohOn the 20th of March 1615, a son was born to Prince Shahib-ud-din Muhammad Khurram and his second wife Mumtaz Mahal in Ajmer, Rajasthan.
  • Charles LéonCharles Léon Denuelle de la Plaigne was born on the 13th of December 1806 at No. 29, Rue de la Victoire in the 9th arrondissement of Paris.
  • 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…
  • Archduke Charles, Duke of TeschenArchduke Charles of Austria was the man Arthur Wellesley named the greatest general of his time. That verdict carries real weight, coming from a commander…
  • Alexandre Colonna-WalewskiAlexandre Colonna-Walewski was born on the 4th of May 1810 during a thunderstorm, and according to family lore, the lightning was taken as a sign that his…