The House of Habsburg

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The House of Habsburg
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Also known as House of Austria

• is one of the most important royal houses of
  Europe and is best known for being an origin of
  all of the formally elected Holy Roman Emperors
  between 1438 and 1740, as well as rulers of the
  Austrian Empire and Spanish Empire and several
  other countries.

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• The Habsburgs controlled many regions within
  Europe beginning from the 10th Century when they
  owned territories in Alsace and Switzerland, and
  up until the early 20th century.

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• The House takes its name from Habsburg Castle, a
  fortress built around 10201030 in present day
  Switzerland by Count Radbot of Klettgau, who
  chose to name his fortress Habsburg. His
  grandson, Otto II, was the first to take the
  fortress name as his own, adding "von Habsburg"
  to his title.

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• The origins of the castle's name, located in what
  is now the Swiss canton of Aargau, are uncertain.
  Most people assume the name to be derived from
  the High German Habichtsburg (Hawk Castle), but
  some historians and linguists are convinced that
  the name comes from the Middle High German word
  "hab/hap" meaning ford, as there is a river with
  a ford nearby. The first documented use of the
  name by the dynasty itself has been traced to the
  year 1108. The Habsburg Castle was the family
  seat in the 11th, 12th and 13th centuries.

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• The House of Habsburg gathered dynastic momentum
  through the 11th, 12th and 13th centuries.
• By 1276, Count Radbot's seventh generation
  descendant, Rudolph of Habsburg, had moved the
  family's power base from Habsburg Castle to the
  Archduchy of Austria.

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• Rudolph had become King of Germany/Holy Roman
  Emperor in 1273, and the dynasty of the House of
  Habsburg was truly entrenched in 1276 when
  Rudolph became sovereign ruler of Austria, which
  the Habsburgs ruled for the next six centuries.

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• A powerful and calculating family, they often
  made land alliances through marriage, which
  resulted in much in breeding. Because of this,
  the descendents of the Habsburgs typically had
  unique facial features including a protruding
  lower lip and chin.

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• These series of dynastic marriages enabled the
  family to vastly expand its domains, to include
  Burgundy, Spain, Bohemia, Hungary, and other
  territories into the inheritance.

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• In 1453, a Habsburg descendent, Friedrich III was
  crowned Holy Roman Emperor. With that title and
  his influence, he began to raise cultural pride
  in Austria, claiming that Austria was a superior
  nation to others. In pursuit of his belief, he
  waged war against King Matthias Corvinus of
  Hungary. He defeated the Hungarian king and was
  able to acquire the city of Vienna, which had
  been under Hungarian control up until that time.

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• In 1477, Friedrich III was also able to promote
  the marriage of his son, Maximilian, to Maria of
  Burgundy in order to acquire additional land for
  the Habsburg Empire. Friedrich III was also
  influential in establishing the marriage of his
  other son, Philip, to Joan, who was the daughter
  of King Ferdinand II of Aragon and Queen Isabella
  I of Castile, thus ensuring his families
  interests in the regions held by Spain. These
  regions included not only Spain, but also
  featured land in Italy, the Netherlands, and in
  the New Worlds, including in North America.

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• As time progressed, Philip and Joan had two sons
  Charles I and Ferdinand I. Because of his
  families close ties with Spain, Charles I
  eventually became Spain's ruler in 1516. Then, in
  1519, Charles was crowned Charles V, Emperor of
  the Holy Roman Empire.

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• As Charles I controlled a vast amount of land, he
  delegated control over Austria, Bohemia, and
  Hungary to his brother, Ferdinand I. All was not
  peaceful, however, within the Habsburg Empire, as
  wars began to occur between the (Christian)
  Habsburgs and the (Moslem) Ottoman Empire
  (Turks). The Turks wanted to take control of
  Vienna, which they viewed as both an economically
  viable, and strategically located, city to
  possess. Meanwhile, Ferdinand I had moved his
  court to Vienna. Thus, Ferdinand I battled with
  the Turks to defend his city. The result was that
  the Turks withdrew from the city.

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• Unity between Charles I and Ferdinand I prevailed
  until Charles I abdicated his position as Emperor
  of the Holy Roman Empire. Upon leaving the
  throne, Charles I gave control of Spain, Italy,
  and the Netherlands to his son, Philip II.
  Concurrently, Charles brother, Ferdinand I was
  given reign over the Central European
  territories. This event was to cause a split
  within the family as Ferdinand I, not Philip II,
  was also designated by Charles I to become the
  new Holy Roman Emperor.

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• In the 16th century, the family separated into
  the senior Habsburg Spain and the junior Habsburg
  Monarchy branches, who settled their mutual
  claims in the Oñate treaty.

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• During the remaining 1500's and into the 1600's,
  the Habsburgs were involved in internal political
  intrigues, external wars with the Turks, and a
  large bout of Bubonic plague that was ravaging
  the region and that prevailed extensively in
  Vienna in the 1680s. Because of this, it was not
  until the 1700s that Charles VI, the current
  Austrian emperor, tried to unify Habsburg control
  and thus guarantee the empire's continuance.
  Since Charles VI had no male heirs, he arranged
  for his daughter, Maria Theresa to marry Francis
  I of Lorraine. This alliance was meant to extend
  the Habsburg lineage into France.

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• During the War of the Austrian Succession, which
  occurred from1740 to 1748, many European nations
  challenged Maria Theresa's rule. However, she was
  successful in retaining control over her lands.

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• During Maria Theresa's reign, a "Golden Age"
  existed for Austria, and the Habsburg Empire, as
  art and other cultural developments were
  encouraged. Additionally, many new civil policies
  were instituted. For example, a formal system of
  public education was established during this
  time. As Maria Theresa aged, her son, Joseph II,
  became her successor. Joseph II also agreed with
  his mother's established policies and tried to
  issue even more reforms within the region. These
  reforms included the tolerance, among all
  citizens, towards people of different religious
  beliefs.

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• The House of Habsburg became extinct in the male
  line in the 18th century. The Spanish branch
  ended upon the death of Charles II in 1700 and
  was replaced by the Anjou branch of the House of
  Bourbon in the person of his great-nephew Philip
  V.

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• The Austrian branch went extinct in the male
  person in 1740 with the death of Charles VI and
  in the female person in 1780 with the death of
  his daughter Maria Theresa and was succeeded by
  the Vaudemont branch of the House of Lorraine in
  the person of her son Joseph II. The new
  successor house styled itself formally as House
  of Habsburg-Lorraine (German Habsburg-Lothringen)
  , although it was often referred to as simply the
  House of Habsburg.

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• When Napoleon Bonaparte came to power in France
  in the late 18th and early 19th Centuries, the
  Habsburgs faced a new enemy who sought to control
  their lands. In 1806, Franz II, who was the
  grandson of Maria Theresa and who was the king of
  Germany and Austria as well as the Holy Roman
  Emperor, was forced by Napoleon to relinquish his
  titles to Napoleon.

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• Franz II compiled. Although the Habsburgs tried
  to appease Napoleon, even arranging the marriage
  of Franz IIs daughter, Marie Louise, to
  Napoleon, defeat over Napoleon could not be
  established until 1815 at the battle of Waterloo.

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• The 1800s saw the demise of the vast power
  maintained by the Habsburgs. In 1859, Habsburg
  control no longer existed in Italy. Then, in
  1866, the same occurred in Germany. The Habsburgs
  were, however, still able to control Austria and
  Hungary, with the combined state being called the
  Dual Monarchy of Austria-Hungary. During this
  time, the Habsburg Empire was not without
  problems, however. This is because the people who
  resided in the Central European territories began
  to want their own nations to be formed.

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• Tensions rose between the Habsburgs and these
  peoples. Then, when the heir to the Austrian
  throne, Franz Ferdinand, was assassinated in
  Sarajevo in 1914, the Hapsburgs declared war on
  Serbia. This event helped to propel Europe into
  World War I.

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• The Habsburg Empire was finally dismantled in
  1918 with the defeat of Austria and Hungary at
  the end of World War I and the founding of the
  Republic of Austria. The Habsburg descendents,
  however, were able to retain their traditional
  titles although as a monarchy, they would never
  rule again.

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A word about the coats of arms

• The Habsburg Empire was never composed of a
  single unified and unitary state as Hohenzollern
  Germany or Great Britain was. It was made up of
  an accretion of territories that owed their
  historic loyalty to the head of the house of
  Habsburg as hereditary lord. The Habsburgs had
  mostly married the heiresses of these
  territories, most famously of the Netherlands and
  Spain. They used their arms then as a statement
  of their right to rule all these territories. As
  there were many territories, so their arms were
  complex and reflected the waxing and waning
  position of the Habsburgs within European power
  politics. It was not until the 19th century that
  the arms began to take on their own life as
  symbols of a state which may have an existence
  outside of the Habsburg dynast.

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Counts of Habsburg

• Before Rudolph rose to German king, the Habsburgs
  were Counts in what is today southwestern Germany
  and Switzerland.
• Radbot of Klagau, built the Habsburg Castle (ca.
  9851035). Besides Werner I, he had two other
  sons Otto I, who would become Count of Sundgau
  in the Alsace, and Albrecht I.

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Counts of Habsburg

• Werner I, Count of Habsburg (1025 / 10301096).
  Besides Otto II, there was another son, Albert II
  who was reeve of Muri from 11111141 after the
  death of Otto II.
• Otto II, of Habsburg first to name himself as
  "of Habsburg" (died 1111) Father of Werner II.
• Werner II, of Habsburg (around 1135 died 1167)
  Father of Albrecht III.

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Counts of Habsburg

• Albrecht III of Habsburg (the Rich), died 1199.
  Under him, the Habsburg territories expanded to
  cover most of what is today the German-speaking
  part of Switzerland. Father of Rudolph II.
• Rudolph II, of Habsburg (b. c. 1160, died 1232)
  Father of Albrecht IV.

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Counts of Habsburg

• Albrecht IV, of Habsburg, (died 1239 / 1240)
  father of Rudolph IV of Habsburg, who would later
  become king Rudolph I of Germany. Between
  Albrecht IV and his brother Rudolph III, the
  Habsburg properties were split, with Albrecht
  keeping the Aargau and the western parts, the
  eastern parts going to Rudolph III. Albrecht IV
  was also a mutual ancestor of Sophia Chotek and
  of her husband Archduke Franz Ferdinand of
  Austria.