The semi-weekly messenger., 1907-09-03
ROYAL HOUSE OF HAPsBURe
EventfuI History of the Austrian
Empire
FRANCIS Joseph Celebrates His 18th
Birthday-Reigns Has Been One OF
Comparative Peace.

There is 5uch dlVlnlty dotn heuse
king
That treason can but peep to what
it would"
On August 18th. the Emperor OF
Austria Francis Joseph, celebrated his
seventy seventh birthday, made by his
loyal and loving subjects fete day OF
such general rejoicing and elaborate
observance that it could not fail to
direct the attention of the world TO
the history of the aged ruler OF the
country over which the aged ruler so
long held sway.
1t is a remarkable fact that Francis
Joseph, heir to one Of the most aD-
solute monarchies OF modern times, was
born at the breaking out OF a great
political revolution, beginning with the
abdicatiOn of Charles X, next to the
last Of the French Bourbons, spent its
force not before the close Of the reign
. bf Louis Philippe, the "CitiZen King,
Bf France, about which time Francis
Joseph ascended the throne of his an
cestOrs, who have held the sceptre
in their line for over $50 years. The
ascension of the young monarch was
marked by the intense agitation which
prevailed all over Hungary through
the patriotic efforts and appeals Of
the celebrated Kossuth.
The Austrian house of Hapsburg
took it's origin with accounts of that
name, who held petty principaiity
and a castle or two, to which they
were now and then forced to take re-
fuge from their rebelHous vessels, in
the canton Of Berne, Switzerland. The
powerful house of Kyburg, becoming
extinct, Rudolph of Hapsburg, who
at that time ruled over nearly all
Switzerland, was invested with the
imperial purple and diadem of Austria
in the year 1878. Thirty-five years af-
ferWards his son Albert so cruelty
oppressed the Swiss that they rose in
rebellion under the leadership of the
great William Tell, and with such
success that Albert found himself fore
ed to resign the empire into the hands
OF Louis Of Bavaria. About two CEN
turies later we find Albert II, son of
Frederick, On the throne of the empire
with the united crowns of Germany.
Bohemia, and Austria.
The fortunes of Austria began to
brighten in the latter part OF the fif-
teenth century under the reign of
Maximillian |, who married the Prin-
cess OF Burgundy, and by the alliance
subjected the Netherlands to his do
m1nIOns. Austria was very powerful
under the sceptre of Charles V, grand
son of Macmillan, and also of Ferdi-
nand Of Spain. He was contemporary
with Francis I, of France, Henry VIII
OF England, and the famous Pope Leo
x, *9nd his reign was illustrated by
>,%1e reformation and the prosecution
of Martin Luther. He held the bal
ance of power in Europe, and was
man of consummate skill in state
craft and diplomacy, over and over
outwitting his royal brothers on
the English and French, thrones When
with all his towering ambition, charles
v astonished the world by his voluntary
abdication of the throne in 1856 he
had the modification of seeing the
failure of his last scheme of aggrand :
izement, the passing of the imperial
Crown to his son, Philip II who became
King of Spain, but not emperor.
During the sixteenth century the
rulers of Austria, intensely Rowan
Catholic, were characterized by bigo-
try and religious fanaticism Maxmil-
ian II, son of Ferdinand, granted lib
erty or conscience to his Protestant
subjects in Austria, but they were so
cruelty prosecuted in other parts of
the empire that the helpless Protestant
German princes invoked the aid OF
Europe They found a powerful cham
pion in the King of Sweden, Gus
, tavus Adolphus, the Lion of the
ssNorth, who swept down with a great
army like whirlwind on Austria, and
its very foundations were SHAKEN by
the shock Gustavus was killed at
the great battle of Lutzen having lived
long enough for his own imperishable
! glory, but not long enough to achieve
q. the heroic work to which he had con-
; -secrated his sword. From that time on
I, for. ,seyenty-fve years, Austria saw
no relief form the tumults and horrors
>. Of war until the treaty of Westpha-
Il lia- i ~
- During the reign of Leopold |, the
r haughty house of Hapsburg was beard
ed ia ITS very capital by the 'unspeak-
able Turk and, but for a hero, the
Rag of Islam would have been planted
upon the lofty towers of the beauti-
cfuI city of Vienna Leopold, with his
Family, his treasure and his court,
} abandoned his heritage and people to
all the horrors of siege, carried on
Thy Kara Mustapha, grand vizier of