![]() The tension was slowly raising between the two brothers, so the Emperor preferred to send Maximilian away, appointing him as a viceroy of the Kingdom of Lombardy–Venetia (modern Italy). Even though there is no direct evidence of Maximilian's intentions to overthrow Franz Joseph, the fact that Maximilian was under the influence of the most progressive liberal ideas was a dormant threat to the older brother. However, when the 30-year-old prince took his own life in 1889, Elizabeth was shaken to her core and from that day for the rest of her life wore only colors of mourning.Īnother prominent character in The Empress – Franz Joseph’s younger brother the Archduke Ferdinand Maximilian of Habsburg – was, indeed, an active figure at the Austrian court. Contrary to popular belief, Crown Prince Rudolf's relationship with his mother was not particularly warm. The death of her first child shocked Sissy so much that she completely handed over the upbringing of her older children (Gisela and Rudolf) to the mother-in-law. In 1857, during one of the trips to Hungary, her eldest daughter – two-year-old Sophie – died of an infection. This behavior was widely condemned among the Austrian nobility, even though Franz Joseph did not try to restrict his wife’s wanderings. Elizabeth, on the contrary, was increasingly neglecting her official royal duties and indulging herself in an isolated and whimsical lifestyle.įrom the 1860s on, the Empress spent her time traveling, rarely seeing her husband and hardly ever seeing her children. Sophie was, indeed, an ambitious woman who placed royal duties above anything else. In multiple biographies and fiction describing Elizabeth’s life, Sophie is often portrayed as a controlling and power-hungry tyrant, ruthlessly submitting her daughter-in-law to her own will. The relationship between Elizabeth and her mother-in-law Sophie progressively spiraled down, as the latter was convinced that the young and free-spirited Empress could not provide an adequate upbringing to the royal children. The engagement proposal itself was made in a much more formal way – through Archduchess Sophie, who approached her sister and arranged the agreement between the families to marry Elizabeth and Franz Joseph. Even the bold "two cotillions in a row" move Franz Joseph allowed himself at the ball, inviting Elizabeth one dance after another (which was a telltale sign of an upcoming engagement), was discussed between Franz and his mother prior to the ball. ![]() The romanticized version of their encounter depicted in The Empress – in the woods – is one of many myths circling Elizabeth and her life. Back then Elizabeth was too young to spark the interest of the future Emperor who was too busy dealing with revolutionary events that threatened to collapse the monarchy. Technically, the first meeting between Elisabeth and Franz Joseph happened in June 1848 when Duchess Ludovika with children visited her sister, Archduchess Sophie, in Innsbruck. The celebration in Bad Ischl was not, in fact, the first time Franz Joseph saw his cousins. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |