Maximilian of Austria, emperor of Mexico |
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BORN 6 Jul 1832, Wien - DIED 19 Jun 1867, Queretaro BIRTH NAME Ferdinand Maximiliaan von Habsburg CAUSE OF DEATH executed by firing squad GRAVE LOCATION Wien: Kapuzinergruft, Tegetthoffstraße 2 |
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Maximilian was a younger brother of emperor Francis Joseph of Austria. In 1857 his brother made him governor of Lombardy and Venice. In the same year he married the Belgian princess Charlotte, the daughter of king Leopold I. He lived with her at Miramar, near Trieste. In 1864 emperor Napoleon III offered Maximilian the crown of Mexico. He accepted and left for Mexico in 1864. But the opposition against the monarchy was worse than expected and Maximilian was completely dependent on the French army under Bazaine. Napoleon III decided to withdraw his troops and Maximilian was advised to abdicate. He decided not to do so and in 1866 Charlotte went to Europe to look for support. After Napoleon III refused to let the French troops stay in Mexico she was showing sings of madness and didn't return to Mexico. In February, 1867 the French troops left Mexico City. Maximilian remarked that he was glad that he was 'finally free', but three months later he was imprisoned by the rebels. On June 19th he was executed. Napoleon III burst into tears when he heard the news on June 30th and Francis Joseph immediately returned to Vienna from a holiday in Bavaria. The new Mexican government would only release Maximilian's body if it was recognized by Austria. On November 26th his remains were finally given to admiral Tegetthoff who brought them back to Austria on the Navara, the same ship that had taken Maximilian to Mexico in 1864. Maximilian's remains reached the Südbahnhof in Vienna on January 17th, 1868. The entire imperial family was present, except for empress Elisabeth. On January 18th he was laid to rest in the Kapuzinergruft, next to the Duke of Reichstadt. Family • Mother: Sophie von Bayern • Wife: Charlotte, Empress of Mexico, Princess of Belgium (1857-1867) • Brother: Franz Joseph von Habsburg, Emperor of Austria • Brother: Ludwig Viktor, Erzherzog von Österreich Related persons • has a connection with Bazaine, François Achille • was pupil of Clairmont, Charles Gaulis • has a connection with Salm-Salm, Agnes zu • employed Salm-Salm, Felix zu • was painted by Winterhalter, Franz Xaver Events |
| 13/7/1866 | Empress Charlotte leaves Mexico for France. She went to France to ask for support for her husband, Emperor Maximilian. [Charlotte, Empress of Mexico, Princess of Belgium] |
| 21/8/1866 | Napoleon III formally refuses further support to Mexico. He informs Empress Charlotte, who is staying in Paris, and her husband Maximilian of this by letter. Charlotte sends a telegram to Max with the text "Todos es inutil" (everything is meaningless). [Charlotte, Empress of Mexico, Princess of Belgium][Napoleon III Bonaparte] |
| 23/8/1866 | Empress Charlotte leaves Paris after failed mission to ask support for Mexico. She had been unable to secure support from Napoleon III. She was completely distraught and now hated Napoleon fiercely. She wrote a confused letter to her husband, Emperor Maximilian, calling Napoleon the devil with hell within him and Paris Babylon. She suffered from paranoia and feared that Napoleon III would burn her to ashes. She was happy to leave the region where "Napoleon poisoned the air with his villainy." Those around her were still willing to assume that her strange behavior was due to disappointment. In reality Napoleon was ill and stricken by guilt that he could not afford to help Maximilian. [Charlotte, Empress of Mexico, Princess of Belgium][Napoleon III Bonaparte] |
| 1/10/1866 | Empress Charlotte writes a farewell letter to her husband Maximilian. She was convinced she would be murdered within days. In Rome, it was announced that a woman (she) had spent the night in the Vatican; this overshadowed the news that the Empress of Mexico (also she) had gone mad. [Charlotte, Empress of Mexico, Princess of Belgium] |
| 30/6/1867 | Napoleon III bursts out in tears after hearing of Maximilian's death. Maximilian of Austria, emperor of Mexico, was executed on 19 June 1867. The news reached France by telegram from Washington. The young Count of Gontaut-Biron received the message and gave it to Napoleon, who burst out in tears. Eugénie had seen it coming but took it badly as well, because she felt responsible. The news was kept silent for the moment because the closing ceremony for the Exhibition Universelle was planned for the next day and Paris was full of festivities. [Napoleon III Bonaparte] |
| 18/1/1868 | Maximilian of Austria is buried in Vienna. On 17 January his body had arrived at the Südbahnhof (Southern Railway Station) in Vienna. Apart from the empress Elisabeth the entire imperial family was there. The next day he was buried in the Kapuzinergruft, where he was laid to rest next to the Duke of Reichstadt, Napoleon's son. Because it was cold in Vienna and it was carnival, the service at the Hofburg on the 17th had received little visitors. Maximilian's mother Sophia insisted on accompanying the body to the Kapuzinergruft through the cold. [Franz Joseph von Habsburg, Emperor of Austria][Sophie von Bayern] |
| Images | ||
 The coffin of Maximilian of Austria, emperor of Mexico, at the Kapuzinergruft, Vienna. Picture by Androom (13 Aug 1995) |
 Statue of Maximilian, emperor of Mexico, in Hietzing, Vienna. Picture by androom (15 Aug 2006) |
 The statue of Maximilian, emperor of Mexico, in Trieste. It was created by Johannes Schilling and unveiled in 1875. Picture by Androom (24 Aug 2022) |
Sources • Vincent, Benjamin, Haydn's Dictionary of Dates, and Universal Information, Ward, Lock & Co, London, 1906 • Haslip, Joan, Imperial Adventurer: Emperor Maximilian of Mexico and his empress, Cardinal, London, 1974 |
