Archduke Felix of Austria
Encyclopedia
Archduke Felix of Austria (given names: Felix Friedrich August Maria vom Siege Franz Joseph Peter Karl Anton Robert Otto Pius Michael Benedikt Sebastian Ignatius Marcus d'Aviano; 31 May 1916 – 6 September 2011) was the last surviving child of the last Austrian Emperor Charles I and a member of the House of Habsburg-Lorraine. He was a younger brother of the late Crown Prince Otto of Austria
.
in Vienna the third son of the then heir presumptive
to the throne of Austria-Hungary
the Archduke Charles and his wife Zita of Bourbon-Parma
. He was christened at Schönbrunn on 8 June 1916 in the presence of his great-grand uncle Emperor Franz Joseph
while his godfather was his great-uncle King Frederick Augustus III of Saxony
, brother of his grandmother Princess Maria Josepha of Saxony
. On 21 November 1916 the Emperor Franz Joseph died and Felix's father succeeded as the new Emperor of Austria and King of Hungary.
Archduke Felix was less than three years old when Austria-Hungary collapsed following its defeat in the First World War. As a result, republics were declared in the now-separate countries Austria
and Hungary
which led to exile of the Imperial Family. Originally exiled in Switzerland the Imperial Family were taken to Portuguese island of Madeira
in 1921 after Archduke Felix's father's failed attempts
to claim the throne in the Kingdom of Hungary
from the regent Miklós Horthy
. On 1 April 1922 his father Emperor Charles died in Madeira.
In the autumn of 1937 Archduke Felix was permitted to return to Austria, entering the Theresian Military Academy
in Wiener Neustadt
. He became the first Habsburg since the abolition of the monarchy to pursue a career as an officer in the Austrian Army. With the Anschluss
approaching Archduke Felix, his sister Archduchess Adelheid
and Archduke Eugen
fled Austria crossing the border to Czechoslovakia
.
During the Second World War while in the United States, Felix and his brother Karl Ludwig volunteered to serve in the 101st US Infantry Battalion known as the "Free Austria Battalion". However the battalion was disbanded when a number of exiled Jewish volunteers who made up the majority of force ultimately declined to confirm their enlistment.
, always refused to renounce his rights to the Austrian throne and membership of the Habsburg family, saying that doing so would violate his human rights. As a result he was banned from entering Austria except for a brief three-day stay in 1989 in order to attend his mother's funeral. On 10 March 1996, after Austria had joined the European Union
and the concurrent dropping of staffed border checkpoints between Austria and other EU countries, he crossed into the country from Germany and held a press conference the next day to announce his illegal arrival
. After his presence became known, he was warned by the Austrian government that he would face prosecution if he ever tried to enter the country illegally again. Ultimately, a deal was reached between Felix, his brother Karl Ludwig and the Austrian government whereby they declared their allegiance to the republic without any reference being made to their rights to the throne or to their membership in the Imperial Family.
In June 1998, in a joint action with his brother Karl Ludwig, Felix attempted to have the properties which were given to their ancestor Maria Theresa of Austria
by her husband Francis I, Holy Roman Emperor
restored to them after the properties had been taken from the Habsburg family by Adolf Hitler
during the Anschluss
.
Felix built up a number of successful businesses in Mexico
and Brussels
and worked as a marketing consultant.
During his time in exile Archduke Felix lived in Portugal
, Belgium, Mexico
and the United States. He lived in the colonia of San Ángel
in Mexico City where he died 6 September 2011. He was interred in the family crypt in Muri Abbey
, near Zurich
. The abbey is a favoured burial place of the Habsburg dynasty, and also contains the remains of his wife and the hearts of his parents.
, France, and religiously a day later, to Princess and Duchess Anna-Eugénie of Arenberg
(1925–1997). They had seven children.
As they all lived in Mexico, and some still do, they are called by the Spanish equivalent to their names.
Along with his brothers Otto
and Rudolf
, Archduke Felix was a patron
for the revived Almanach de Gotha
.
Otto von Habsburg
Otto von Habsburg , also known by his royal name as Archduke Otto of Austria, was the last Crown Prince of Austria-Hungary from 1916 until the dissolution of the empire in 1918, a realm which comprised modern-day Austria, Hungary, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Slovakia,...
.
Early life and exile
Archduke Felix was born in the Schönbrunn PalaceSchönbrunn Palace
Schönbrunn Palace is a former imperial 1,441-room Rococo summer residence in Vienna, Austria. One of the most important cultural monuments in the country, since the 1960s it has been one of the major tourist attractions in Vienna...
in Vienna the third son of the then heir presumptive
Heir Presumptive
An heir presumptive or heiress presumptive is the person provisionally scheduled to inherit a throne, peerage, or other hereditary honour, but whose position can be displaced by the birth of an heir or heiress apparent or of a new heir presumptive with a better claim to the position in question...
to the throne of Austria-Hungary
Austria-Hungary
Austria-Hungary , more formally known as the Kingdoms and Lands Represented in the Imperial Council and the Lands of the Holy Hungarian Crown of Saint Stephen, was a constitutional monarchic union between the crowns of the Austrian Empire and the Kingdom of Hungary in...
the Archduke Charles and his wife Zita of Bourbon-Parma
Zita of Bourbon-Parma
Princess Zita of Bourbon-Parma was the wife of Emperor Charles of Austria...
. He was christened at Schönbrunn on 8 June 1916 in the presence of his great-grand uncle Emperor Franz Joseph
Franz Joseph I of Austria
Franz Joseph I or Francis Joseph I was Emperor of Austria, King of Bohemia, King of Croatia, Apostolic King of Hungary, King of Galicia and Lodomeria and Grand Duke of Cracow from 1848 until his death in 1916.In the December of 1848, Emperor Ferdinand I of Austria abdicated the throne as part of...
while his godfather was his great-uncle King Frederick Augustus III of Saxony
Frederick Augustus III of Saxony
This article is about King Frederick Augustus III of Saxony. For the elector Frederick Augustus III, see Frederick Augustus I of Saxony.Frederick Augustus III was the last King of Saxony and a member of the House of Wettin.Born in Dresden, Frederick Augustus was the son of King George of Saxony...
, brother of his grandmother Princess Maria Josepha of Saxony
Princess Maria Josepha of Saxony
Princess Maria Josepha of Saxony was the mother of Emperor Charles I of Austria and the fifth child of George of Saxony and Infanta Maria Anna of Portugal.-Early life:...
. On 21 November 1916 the Emperor Franz Joseph died and Felix's father succeeded as the new Emperor of Austria and King of Hungary.
Archduke Felix was less than three years old when Austria-Hungary collapsed following its defeat in the First World War. As a result, republics were declared in the now-separate countries Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
and Hungary
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
which led to exile of the Imperial Family. Originally exiled in Switzerland the Imperial Family were taken to Portuguese island of Madeira
Madeira
Madeira is a Portuguese archipelago that lies between and , just under 400 km north of Tenerife, Canary Islands, in the north Atlantic Ocean and an outermost region of the European Union...
in 1921 after Archduke Felix's father's failed attempts
Charles I of Austria's attempts to retake the throne of Hungary
After Miklós Horthy had been chosen Regent of Hungary on 1 March 1920, Charles I of Austria-Hungary, who had reigned in Hungary as Károly IV, returned to Hungary twice, to try unsuccessfully to retake his throne...
to claim the throne in the Kingdom of Hungary
Kingdom of Hungary
The Kingdom of Hungary comprised present-day Hungary, Slovakia and Croatia , Transylvania , Carpatho Ruthenia , Vojvodina , Burgenland , and other smaller territories surrounding present-day Hungary's borders...
from the regent Miklós Horthy
Miklós Horthy
Miklós Horthy de Nagybánya was the Regent of the Kingdom of Hungary during the interwar years and throughout most of World War II, serving from 1 March 1920 to 15 October 1944. Horthy was styled "His Serene Highness the Regent of the Kingdom of Hungary" .Admiral Horthy was an officer of the...
. On 1 April 1922 his father Emperor Charles died in Madeira.
In the autumn of 1937 Archduke Felix was permitted to return to Austria, entering the Theresian Military Academy
Theresian Military Academy
The Theresian Military Academy is an academy, where the Austrian Armed Forces train their officers. The Academy is located in the castle of Wiener Neustadt in Lower Austria.- History :...
in Wiener Neustadt
Wiener Neustadt
-Main sights:* The Late-Romanesque Dom, consecrated in 1279 and cathedral from 1469 to 1785. The choir and transept, in Gothic style, are from the 14th century. In the late 15th century 12 statues of the Apostles were added in the apse, while the bust of Cardinal Melchior Klesl is attributed to...
. He became the first Habsburg since the abolition of the monarchy to pursue a career as an officer in the Austrian Army. With the Anschluss
Anschluss
The Anschluss , also known as the ', was the occupation and annexation of Austria into Nazi Germany in 1938....
approaching Archduke Felix, his sister Archduchess Adelheid
Archduchess Adelheid of Austria
Archduchess Adelheid of Austria was a member of the Austrian Imperial Family.Adelheid was born in Schloss Hetzendorf, the second child but eldest daughter of the then Archduke Charles of Austria and his wife Zita of Bourbon-Parma...
and Archduke Eugen
Archduke Eugen of Austria
Archduke Eugen Ferdinand Pius Bernhard Felix Maria of Austria-Teschen was an Archduke of Austria and a Prince of Hungary and Bohemia...
fled Austria crossing the border to Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia or Czecho-Slovakia was a sovereign state in Central Europe which existed from October 1918, when it declared its independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, until 1992...
.
During the Second World War while in the United States, Felix and his brother Karl Ludwig volunteered to serve in the 101st US Infantry Battalion known as the "Free Austria Battalion". However the battalion was disbanded when a number of exiled Jewish volunteers who made up the majority of force ultimately declined to confirm their enlistment.
Return to Austria
Felix, unlike his brother OttoOtto von Habsburg
Otto von Habsburg , also known by his royal name as Archduke Otto of Austria, was the last Crown Prince of Austria-Hungary from 1916 until the dissolution of the empire in 1918, a realm which comprised modern-day Austria, Hungary, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Slovakia,...
, always refused to renounce his rights to the Austrian throne and membership of the Habsburg family, saying that doing so would violate his human rights. As a result he was banned from entering Austria except for a brief three-day stay in 1989 in order to attend his mother's funeral. On 10 March 1996, after Austria had joined the European Union
European Union
The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
and the concurrent dropping of staffed border checkpoints between Austria and other EU countries, he crossed into the country from Germany and held a press conference the next day to announce his illegal arrival
Illegal immigration
Illegal immigration is the migration into a nation in violation of the immigration laws of that jurisdiction. Illegal immigration raises many political, economical and social issues and has become a source of major controversy in developed countries and the more successful developing countries.In...
. After his presence became known, he was warned by the Austrian government that he would face prosecution if he ever tried to enter the country illegally again. Ultimately, a deal was reached between Felix, his brother Karl Ludwig and the Austrian government whereby they declared their allegiance to the republic without any reference being made to their rights to the throne or to their membership in the Imperial Family.
In June 1998, in a joint action with his brother Karl Ludwig, Felix attempted to have the properties which were given to their ancestor Maria Theresa of Austria
Maria Theresa of Austria
Maria Theresa Walburga Amalia Christina was the only female ruler of the Habsburg dominions and the last of the House of Habsburg. She was the sovereign of Austria, Hungary, Croatia, Bohemia, Mantua, Milan, Lodomeria and Galicia, the Austrian Netherlands and Parma...
by her husband Francis I, Holy Roman Emperor
Francis I, Holy Roman Emperor
Francis I was Holy Roman Emperor and Grand Duke of Tuscany, though his wife effectively executed the real power of those positions. With his wife, Maria Theresa, he was the founder of the Habsburg-Lorraine dynasty...
restored to them after the properties had been taken from the Habsburg family by Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , commonly referred to as the Nazi Party). He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and head of state from 1934 to 1945...
during the Anschluss
Anschluss
The Anschluss , also known as the ', was the occupation and annexation of Austria into Nazi Germany in 1938....
.
Felix built up a number of successful businesses in Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
and Brussels
Brussels
Brussels , officially the Brussels Region or Brussels-Capital Region , is the capital of Belgium and the de facto capital of the European Union...
and worked as a marketing consultant.
During his time in exile Archduke Felix lived in Portugal
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
, Belgium, Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
and the United States. He lived in the colonia of San Ángel
San Ángel
San Ángel is a colonia or neighborhood of Mexico City, located in the southwest in Álvaro Óbregon borough. Historically, it was a rural community, called Tenanitla in the pre Hispanic period. Its current name is derived from the El Carmen monastery school called San Ángel Mártir...
in Mexico City where he died 6 September 2011. He was interred in the family crypt in Muri Abbey
Muri Abbey
Muri Abbey was a Benedictine monastery dedicated to Saint Martin of Tours. It flourished for over eight centuries at Muri, in the Canton of Aargau, near Basle in Switzerland...
, near Zurich
Zürich
Zurich is the largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zurich. It is located in central Switzerland at the northwestern tip of Lake Zurich...
. The abbey is a favoured burial place of the Habsburg dynasty, and also contains the remains of his wife and the hearts of his parents.
Marriage and children
Felix was married civilly on 18 November 1952 at BeaulieuBeaulieu
-England:* Beaulieu, Hampshire, a village in the New Forest* Beaulieu Abbey, located in Beaulieu, Hampshire* Beaulieu Palace House, located in Beaulieu, Hampshire* Beaulieu River, running through Beaulieu, Hampshire...
, France, and religiously a day later, to Princess and Duchess Anna-Eugénie of Arenberg
Arenberg
Arenberg, also spelled as Aremberg or Ahremberg, is a historic county, principality and finally duchy located in modern Germany. The Dukes of Arenberg remain a prominent Belgian aristocratic family.- History :...
(1925–1997). They had seven children.
- Archduchess Maria del Pilar of Austria (born 1953) married Vollrad-Joachim Edler von Poschinger (born 1952)
- Archduke Carl Philipp (Carlos Felipe) of Austria (born 1954) married first (div 1997) Martina Donath. Married second Annie-Claire Christine Lacrambe (born 1959)
- Archduchess Kinga of Austria (born 1955) married Baron Wolfgang von Erffa (born 1948)
- Archduke Raimund (Ramon) of Austria (1958–2008) married Bettine Götz (born 1969)
- Archduchess Myriam of Austria (born 1959) married Jaime Corcuera Acheson (born 1955), a MexicanMexican peopleMexican people refers to all persons from Mexico, a multiethnic country in North America, and/or who identify with the Mexican cultural and/or national identity....
descendant of the Earls of GosfordEarl of GosfordEarl of Gosford is a title in the Peerage of Ireland. It was created in 1806 for Arthur Acheson, 2nd Viscount Gosford. The Acheson family descends from the Scottish statesman Sir Archibald Acheson, 1st Baronet of Edinburgh, who later settled in Markethill, County Armagh...
. - Archduke István (Esteban) of Austria (born 1961) married Paola de Temesváry (born 1971)
- Archduchess Viridis of Austria (born 1962) married The Hon. Karl Dunning-Gribble (born 1961)
As they all lived in Mexico, and some still do, they are called by the Spanish equivalent to their names.
Honours and patronages
- Knight of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta
- Knight of the Order of the Golden FleeceOrder of the Golden FleeceThe Order of the Golden Fleece is an order of chivalry founded in Bruges by Philip III, Duke of Burgundy in 1430, to celebrate his marriage to the Portuguese princess Infanta Isabella of Portugal, daughter of King John I of Portugal. It evolved as one of the most prestigious orders in Europe...
Along with his brothers Otto
Otto von Habsburg
Otto von Habsburg , also known by his royal name as Archduke Otto of Austria, was the last Crown Prince of Austria-Hungary from 1916 until the dissolution of the empire in 1918, a realm which comprised modern-day Austria, Hungary, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Slovakia,...
and Rudolf
Archduke Rudolf of Austria (b. 1919)
Archduke Rudolf of Austria was the youngest son of Emperor Charles I of Austria and Zita of Bourbon-Parma.-Early life:...
, Archduke Felix was a patron
Patrón
Patrón is a luxury brand of tequila produced in Mexico and sold in hand-blown, individually numbered bottles.Made entirely from Blue Agave "piñas" , Patrón comes in five varieties: Silver, Añejo, Reposado, Gran Patrón Platinum and Gran Patrón Burdeos. Patrón also sells a tequila-coffee blend known...
for the revived Almanach de Gotha
Almanach de Gotha
The Almanach de Gotha was a respected directory of Europe's highest nobility and royalty. First published in 1763 by C.W. Ettinger in Gotha at the ducal court of Frederick III, Duke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg, it was regarded as an authority in the classification of monarchies, princely and ducal...
.
Titles and styles
- His Imperial and Royal Highness Archduke Felix of Austria, Prince Imperial of Austria, Prince Royal of Hungary and Bohemia