Product Description

In 1848, 28-year-old Francis Joseph became King of Hungary and Emperor of Austria. He would reign for almost 68 years, the longest of any modern European monarch. Focusing on the life of Emperor Francis Joseph and his family, this book examines their personal relationships against the turbulent background of the 19th century.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #95377 in Books
• Published on: 2005-05-19
• Format: Illustrated
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 256 pages

About the Author
John Van Der Kiste has written nearly 20 books on British and European royalty. His most recent are: 'William and Mary' and with Coryne Hall, 'Xenia: Sister of Nicholas' (June 2002. He also writes historical articles and reviews afor local and national journals. and contributed to the New Dictionary of National Biography.

Customer Reviews

Doing one' s duty does not mean one is getting it right
FRANZ JOSEPH was born 1830, became Emperor of Austria and King of Hungary 1848 and died 1916, properly the longest ruling European monarch.

His reign is one of the most remembered in Austria as its seems to spark public imaginations - desastrous wars, the "Ausgleich with Hungary", the beautiful and biazare Empress Elisabeth (Sissi)murdered by an anarchist, the only son and heir Rudolf who committed sucide and the second heir Franz Ferdinand, his nephew, gunned down by another anarchists triggering WW I, a changing world from 1830 till 1916 presided over by a seemingly unchangable Emperor-King. Duty above all. The Emperor himself becoming an icon, the one who had been always there and seems to be the only force to keep the forces at bay who wanted to destroy the monarchy. The last decades were like a dance on the vulcano.

John Van Der Kiste is one of my favorite authors and I have read most of his books. He can combine the political and human side of things in an highly readable and interesting way. Francis Joseph' s personality emerges. He can paint a picture of the man and the king-emperor, one does understand what he was about. It is vivid, lively and absorbing. A long-gone area is coming alive again.

It is interesting to observe how a monarch who did get the most important things not right, who was nevertheless hardly ever critizied as person, who gained an iconed status properly just for being around 68 odd years and doing till the last minute his duty could not ensure the survival of the institution he served so faithfully. Maybe an interesting parallel when judging present European monarchs?

All in all this is an excellent book! I enjoyed every page.