An Austro-Hungarian love story
This is Archduke Franz Ferdinand, heir to the Austrian throne, with his bride Sophie, whom he married against the will of the Emperor in an unequal union.
Franz Ferdinand as a fairly young man. As the eldest son of Archduke Karl Ludwig, younger brother of the Emperor Franz Josef, he would not have originally have been expected to succeed to the throne, but the situation was tranformed when Rudolf, the only son of the Emperor committed suicide in 1889. If it had not been for that, his love for a commoner might not have become such a thorny issue.
The Countess Sophie Chotek was a member of a Bohemian noble family. This is the most familiar photograph of her, published as a commemorative card after her murder. Franz Ferdinand is supposed to have first met her at a ball in Prague in 1895. They fell in love and met secretly for some years until FF sought the Emperor's approval for a marriage. He initially refused to grant it because the Countess was not of royal blood; and in the end, he would only agree on condition that it should be a morganatic marriage. In other words, Sophie would not become a full member of the Imperial family and any children would be excluded from the succession.
The couple were married at Reichstadt in Bohemia on July the 1st 1900 in the absence of the Emperor and most members of the Imperial family. Sophie was known as the Princess, and latterly Duchess, of Hohenburg. Only in exceptional circumstances would she accompany her husband on official occasions, but their home life was very happy, as is clear enough in these photographs.
They had three children (not counting a stillborn son), Sophie, Maximilan and Ernst.
FF with the young Sophie.
An attractive photograph of the couple in their latter years.
Finally there came the fateful visit to Sarajevo in 1914. This is the famous photograph of them going down the steps on June 28th to start the car-journey on which they would be assassinated. Sophie would not normally have accompanied him on an official trip like this; I think that FF specially arranged for her to accompany him since it was their Anniversary. So both fell victim the Sebian assassin Princip.
A commemorative card issued after their death.
Sophie before their joint funeral.