Leopold II, Holy Roman Emperor

Leopold II (born 5th May 1747 in Vienna, died 1st March 1792) was an archduke of Austria. He was of the House Habsburg-Lorraine. From 1765 to 1790 he was grand duke of Tuscany. From 1790 to 1792 he was the Holy Roman Emperor, and king of Bohemia, Croatia and Hungary. He had a policy of Enlightenment, and he made the Grand Duchy of Tuscany a model state.  His predecessors had a policy of reforms, which led to civil unrest. He ended the war with the Osmanian Empire. As to the French Revolution he was divided: on the one hand he liked the idea of a constitutional monarchy, on the other he signed the Declaration of Pillnitz, which led to the War of the First Coalition.He was the son of Empress Maria Theresa and Emperor Francis I, and the brother of Queen Marie Antoinette of France, Queen Maria Carolina, Duchess Maria Amalia of Parma and Emperor Joseph II. Leopold was a moderate proponent of enlightened absolutism like his brother, Joseph II. He granted the Academy of Georgfili his protection. Unusually for his time, he opposed the death penalty and torture and abolished it for Tuscany on 30 November, 1786 during his rule there, making it the first nation in modern history to do so. This act has been commemorated since 2000 by a regional custom known as the Feast of Tuscany, held every 30 November. Despite his brief reign, he is highly regarded. The historian Paul W. Schroeder called him "one of the most shrewd monarchs ever to wear a crown".

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Category:Holy Roman Emperors
Category:Archdukes and Archduchesses of Austria
Category:1747 births
Category:1792 deaths