![]() ![]() That meeting sought to cement an arranged marriage between the monarch and Elisabeth’s older sister. She enjoyed a relatively untroubled free-spirited upbringing until fate intervened in 1853 at a meeting with the Austrian emperor, Franz Joseph. She escaped the bindings of reality to become an iconic figure of beauty and legend.Įlisabeth was born on December 24th, 1837, in Munich, into an offshoot of the Bavarian royal family. You might consider Sisi (as she is commonly known) the most famous female in Habsburg history. We have the biographical details, but Elisabeth’s personality remains rather enigmatic. ![]() The innocent question in the heading proves quite difficult to answer. Reproduced with permission under the terms of Creative Commons License CC BY-SA 4.0. K.(Franz Xaver Winterhalter, Kaiserin Elisabeth, undated. Sisi Museum Vienna, writing and drawing utensils Hofmobiliendepot (Imperial Furniture Museum) Sisi in the film, the biography of Romy Schneider, Hofmobiliendepot (Imperial Furniture Museum) Schloss Schönbrunn Kultur- und Betriebsges.m.b.H. "The family of Austria's Emperor." Xylography by Vinzenz Katzler, about 1880 Kunsthistorisches Museum Vienna Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna The main purpose of the two main domains and is the promotion of Austria as a holiday destination.Īustrian National Tourist Office / Cross Media Redaktion Sisi fell ill and felt trapped in a golden cage. Franz Joseph accommodated his unorthodox and freedom-loving wife as far as his position and sense of tradition would allow. She neither strived to be a devoted, quiet wife nor a doting mother, and she certainly did not want to be a representative figure of the vast empire. Guided by her independent spirit, she began to rebel against the omnipresent expectations of the court and yearned to emancipate herself. ![]() But her children grew up lonely and practically without a mother. At the age of 21, Sisi was a mother of three. Then, people cheered the birth of Rudolf, heir to the throne. Even the birth of their first daughter Sophie Friederike couldn’t change that: Sophie died at the tender age of two. She only saw restrictions and suffered under the control the imperial court had over her. But for Sisi, weeks of monotonous protocol and constraints turned into months, months into years, and the joy of an adventurous, gilded life never reached her. Over the following years, the couple travelled between various courts and homes: from the Imperial Palace to Schönbrunn Palace in Vienna, between the Imperial Palace Innsbruck and Leopoldskron Castle Salzburg, and between Hof Palace and the Imperial Villa in Bad Ischl. A life with strict duties and ceremonies at the court lay in front of her. The honeymoon at Laxenburg Palace turned into a disaster the young emperor spent his days at his desk while his wife cried her heart out in the park. Yet, it is still difficult for historians to determine Sisi's true personality behind all the hype.įrom the very first day, the young and spirited empress felt caged by the rigid rituals of the Viennese court. Even 125 years after her death, the empress outshines all. Of all the Habsburgs, Austria's longest-reigning dynasty, no one has retained as much fame as Elisabeth of Austria. Eight months later, the wedding took place in Vienna. Two days after their first meeting, Franz Joseph asked Elisabeth to marry him. The event in Bad Ischl was one such moment. The 15-year-old Elisabeth, or 'Sisi,' kept her mother and sister company on the journey, and as fate would have it, the emperor fell in love with her at first sight.Įvery now and then, a single fateful moment in history turned beggars into kings, outlaws into heroes and … a girl from a small Bavarian town into a legendary empress. Franz Joseph greeted her, but his gaze wandered to the young, lively girl next to her. She was a serious 17-year-old who appeared austere and ascetic in her dark clothing. In Bad Ischl, a lovely town in Austria's Salzburg Lake District, Helene was to be presented to His Majesty Franz Joseph, ruler of the Habsburg Empire. Now they had to appear before the emperor in black for their meeting on that fateful August 16, 1853. Duchess Ludovika of Bavaria and her daughters Helene and Elisabeth were in mourning because of a recently deceased aunt. Whatever the case, the suitcases containing their colourful summer wardrobe could not be found. What exactly happened to the ladies' luggage that day will forever remain a mystery. ![]()
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