Online Encyclopedia
Karl of Austria
Karl of Austria (August 17, 1887 - April 1, 1922), more formally known as Karl Franz Josef Ludwig Hubert Georg Maria von Habsburg-Lothringen, was (among other titles) the last Emperor of Austria, the last King of Hungary, and the last monarch of the Habsburg Dynasty.
| Contents |
Life
Karl was the son of Otto Franz of Austria (1865-1906), younger brother of Princess Josepha of Saxony and Archduke Franz Ferdinand, whose assassination triggered World War I. In 1911 he was married to Princess Zita of Bourbon-Parma.
His reign began in 1916. In 1917, Charles secretly sued for a separate peace with France, deserting his German ally. When news of the overture leaked, he denied all involvement, until the French published letters signed by him.
He fled to Switzerland after the empire collapsed at the end of the war, but refused to abdicate. Encouraged by Hungarian nationalists, he sought twice in the early 1920s to reclaim the throne of Hungary, but failed, due to various factors including the betrayal of the Hungarian Regent Miklós Horthy, whom Karl had helped to appoint.
He died on the island of Madeira in 1922.
After his death
Some historians have seen Karl as an honourable figure who tried as emperor-king to halt World War I. Helmut Rumpler, head of the Habsburg commission of the Austrian Academy of Sciences , has described Karl as "a dilettante, far too weak for the challenges facing him, out of his depth, and not really a politician." [1]
Beatification
A campaign for the beatification of Karl within the Roman Catholic Church, a step that requires at least one miracle, began in 1954. It continued for fifty years, as of 2004 even including a website. According to the Catholic News Service , the campaign has been sustained by a small conservative group of Austrian Catholics. [2] The Roman Catholic Church has praised Karl for putting his Christian faith first in making political decisions, and for his perceived role as a peacemaker during the war. Cardinal Christoph Schonborn of Vienna has been a strong advocate for his beatification.
Recent milestones include:
- On 14 April 2003, the Vatican's Congregation for the Causes of Saints, in the presence of Pope John Paul II, promulgated Karl of Austria's "heroic virtues."
- On 21 December 2003, the Congregation certified, on the basis of three expert medical opinions, that a miracle in 1960 occurred through the intercession of Karl. The miracle attributed to Karl was the scientifically inexplicable healing of a Brazilian nun with varicose veins; she was able to get out of bed after she prayed for his beatification.
- On 3 October 2004, he was beatified by Pope John Paul II. The Pope also declared 21 October, the date of Karl's marriage in 1911 to Princess Zita, as Karl's feast day. The beatification has caused controversy because Karl authorised his army's use of poison gas during the First World War. [3]
See also
- Otto von Habsburg, Karl's oldest son and as of 2004 head of the Habsburg family
- Austria-Hungary
External link
| Preceded by: Franz Joseph |
Emperor of Austria | Succeeded by: — |