Charles II of Austria
| Charles II | |
|---|---|
Portrait of Archduke Charles II, by Bartolomé González y Serrano
| |
| Archduke of Inner Austria | |
| Reign | 25 July 1564 – 10 July 1590 |
| Predecessor | Ferdinand I |
| Successor | Ferdinand III |
| Born | 3 June 1540 Vienna, Archduchy of Austria |
| Died | 10 July 1590 (aged 50) Graz, Duchy of Styria |
| Burial | Seckau, Austria |
| Spouse | Maria Anna of Bavaria (m. 1571) |
| Issue | Anne, Queen of Poland and Sweden Maria Christina, Princess of Transylvania Archduchess Catherine Renata Ferdinand II, Holy Roman Emperor Archduchess Gregoria Maximiliana Archduchess Eleanor Archduke Maximilian Ernest Margaret, Queen of Spain Leopold V, Archduke of Further Austria Constance, Queen of Poland Maria Maddalena, Grand Duchess of Tuscany Charles, Bishop of Wroclaw |
| House | Habsburg |
| Father | Ferdinand I, Holy Roman Emperor |
| Mother | Anna of Bohemia and Hungary |
| Religion | Catholic Church |
Charles II Francis of Austria (German: Karl II. Franz von Innerösterreich) (3 June 1540 – 10 July 1590) was an Archduke of Austria and a ruler of Inner Austria (Styria, Carniola, Carinthia and Gorizia) from 1564. He was a member of the House of Habsburg.
Biography
A native of Vienna, he was the third son of Ferdinand I, Holy Roman Emperor, and of Anne of Bohemia and Hungary, daughter of King Vladislaus II of Hungary and his wife, Anne of Foix-Candale. In 1559 and again from 1564 to 1568, there were negotiations for a marriage between Charles and Elizabeth I of England. Emperor Ferdinand I expected Elizabeth to promise in the proposed marriage treaty that Charles, as her widower, would succeed her if she died childless. The negotiations dragged on until Elizabeth decided that she would not marry the Archduke since he was a Catholic and the political coalition that formed the foundation upon which the monarch built her authority in England and Ireland demanded that the royal succession follow the Norman-Anglo-Saxon lineage.[1]
In 1563, Charles was also a suitor of Mary, Queen of Scots, with her uncle Charles, Cardinal of Lorraine, advising her to marry Charles to obtain assistance in governing Scotland. Mary disagreed, as did Charles's older brother Maximilian.
Unlike his brother, Emperor Maximilian II, Charles was a religious Catholic and promoted the Counter-Reformation, such as by inviting the Jesuits to his territory. However, in 1572, he had to make significant concessions to the Inner Austrian Estates in the Religious Pacifications of Graz and in the 1578 Libellum of Bruck. In practice, that resulted in tolerance towards Protestantism.
As the Inner Austrian line had to bear the major burden of the wars against the Ottoman Empire, the fortress of Karlovac, in Croatia, was founded in 1579 to protect against invasions by the Ottoman Empire and it was named after him. Charles is also remembered as a benefactor of the arts and sciences. In particular, the composer Orlando di Lasso was one of his protégés, as was the music theorist Lodovico Zacconi.
In 1573, Charles founded the Akademisches Gymnasium in Graz, the oldest secondary school in Styria. In 1580, Charles founded a stud for horses of Andalusian origin in Lipica, Slovenia and thus played a leading role in the creation of the Lipizzan breed. In 1585, Charles founded the University of Graz, which is named Karl-Franzens-Universität after him.
He died at Graz in 1590.
Charles's mausoleum, in Seckau Abbey in which other members of the Habsburg family are also buried, is one of the most important edifices of the early Baroque in the south-eastern Alps. It was built from 1587 onwards by Alessandro de Verda and was completed by Sebastiano Carlone by 1612.
Marriage and children
On 26 August 1571, Charles married his niece Maria Anna of Bavaria in Vienna. They had 15 children, 12 of whom lived to adulthood:
| Name | Picture | Birth | Death | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Archduke Ferdinand | Judenburg, 15 July 1572 | Judenburg, 3 August 1572 | Died in infancy. | |
| Archduchess Anna | 
|
Graz, 16 August 1573 | Warsaw, 10 February 1598 | Married on 31 May 1592 to Sigismund III Vasa, King of Poland, Grand Duke of Lithuania and King of Sweden. |
| Archduchess Maria Christina | 
|
Graz, 10 November 1574 | Hall in Tirol, Tyrol, 6 April 1621 | Married on 6 August 1595 to Sigismund Bathory, Prince of Transylvania; they divorced in 1599. |
| Archduchess Catherine Renata | 
|
Graz, 4 January 1576 | Graz, 29 June 1599 | Died unmarried. |
| Archduchess Elisabeth | Graz, 13 March 1577 | Graz, 29 January 1586 | Died in childhood. | |
| Archduke Ferdinand | File:Portrait of Ferdinand II, Holy Roman Emperor (Kunsthistorisches Museum, Wien).jpg | Graz, 9 July 1578 | Vienna, 15 February 1637 | Holy Roman Emperor as Ferdinand II in 1619. |
| Archduke Charles | Graz, 17 July 1579 | Graz, 17 May 1580 | Died in infancy. | |
| Archduchess Gregoria Maximiliana | File:Jakob de Monte 004.jpg | Graz, 22 March 1581 | Graz, 20 September 1597 | Died unmarried. |
| Archduchess Eleanor | File:Frans Pourbus d. J. 003.jpg | Graz, 25 September 1582 | Hall in Tirol, Tyrol, 28 January 1620 | Died unmarried. |
| Archduke Maximilian Ernest | File:Joseph Heintz d. Ä. 006.jpg | Graz, 17 November 1583 | Graz, 18 February 1616 | Teutonic Knight. |
| Archduchess Margaret | File:Margaret of austria 1609.jpg | Graz, 25 December 1584 | El Escorial, 3 October 1611 | Married on 18 April 1599 to Philip III, King of Spain. |
| Archduke Leopold | File:Joseph Heintz d. Ä. 007.jpg | Graz, 9 October 1586 | Schwaz, 13 September 1632 | Archduke of Further Austria and Count of Tirol under the name Leopold V. |
| Archduchess Constance | File:Frans Pourbus d. J. 005.jpg | Graz, 24 December 1588 | Warsaw, 10 July 1631 | Married on 11 December 1605 to Sigismund III Vasa, King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania (widower of her older sister). |
| Archduchess Maria Magdalena | File:Frans Pourbus d. J. 004.jpg | Graz, 7 October 1589 | Passau, 1 November 1631 | Married on 19 October 1608 Cosimo II de' Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany. |
| Archduke Charles | File:Silesia Bishop Charles of Austria.jpg | Graz, 7 August 1590 | Madrid, 28 December 1624 | Bishop of Wroclaw and Brixen (1608–24), Grand Master of the Teutonic Order (1618–24). |
.jpg){kind=link}
Ancestors
- Ancestors of Charles II of Austria
- 8. Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor[2]
- 4. Philip I of Castile[3]
- 9. Mary, Duchess of Burgundy[2]
- 2. Ferdinand I, Holy Roman Emperor
- 10. Ferdinand II of Aragon[3]
- 5. Joanna I of Castile[3]
- 11. Isabella I of Castile[3]
- 1. Charles II, Archduke of Inner Austria
- 12. Casimir IV Jagiellon[4]
- 6. Vladislaus II of Bohemia and Hungary[4]
- 13. Elisabeth of Austria[4]
- 3. Anne of Bohemia and Hungary
- 14. Gaston de Foix, Count of Candale[5]
- 7. Anne of Foix-Candale[4]
- 15. Catherine of Foix[6]
Male-line family tree
- v
t
e
House of Habsburg[7] - Original line
- Albert
Count of Habsburg
c. 1188–1239 - Rudolf I
of Germany
c. 1218–1291 - Albert I
of Germany
1255–1308 — Hartmann
1263–1281 — Rudolf II
Duke of Austria
1270–1290 - Rudolf I
of Bohemia
1281–1307 — Frederick
the Fair
c. 1289–1330 — Leopold I
Duke of Austria
1290–1326 — Albert II
Duke of Austria
1298–1358 — Henry
the Friendly
1299–1327 — Otto
Duke of Austria
1301–1339 — John
Parricida
c. 1290–1312/1313 - Albertinian line — Leopoldian line
- Rudolf IV
Duke of Austria
1339–1365 — Frederick III
1347–1362 — Albert III
Duke of Austria
1349–1395 — Leopold III
Duke of Austria
1351–1386 — Frederick II
Duke of Austria
1327–1344 — Leopold II
Duke of Austria
1328–1344 - Albert IV
Duke of Austria
1377–1404 — William
Duke of Austria
c. 1370–1406 — Leopold IV
Duke of Austria
1371–1411 — Ernest
Duke of Austria
1377–1424 — Frederick IV
Duke of Austria
1382–1439 - Albert II
of Germany
1397–1439 — Frederick III
HRE
1415–1493 — Albert VI
Archduke of Austria
1418–1463 — Sigismund
Archduke of Austria
1427–1496 - Ladislaus
the Posthumous
1440–1457 — Maximilian I
HRE
1459–1519 - Philip I
of Castile
1478–1506 - Spanish / Iberian line — Austrian / HRE line
- Charles V
HRE
1500–1558 — Ferdinand I
HRE
1503–1564 - Philip II
of Spain
1527–1598 — Maximilian II
HRE
1527–1576 — Ferdinand II
Archduke of Austria
1529–1595 — Charles II
Archduke of Austria
1540–1590 - Carlos
Prince of Asturias
1545–1568 — Philip III
of Spain
1578–1621 — Rudolf II
HRE
1552–1612 — Ernest
of Austria
1553–1595 — Matthias
HRE
1557–1619 — Maximilian III
Archduke of Austria
1558–1618 — Albert VII
Archduke of Austria
1559–1621 — Wenceslaus
Archduke of Austria
1561–1578 — Andrew
Margrave of Burgau
1558–1600 — Charles
Margrave of Burgau
1560–1618 — Ferdinand II
HRE
1578–1637 — Maximilian Ernest
of Austria
1583–1616 — Leopold V
Archduke of Austria
1586–1632 — Charles
of Austria
1590–1624 - Philip IV
of Spain
1605–1665 — Charles
of Austria
1607–1632 — Ferdinand
of Austria
1609–1641 — John-Charles
of Austria
1605–1619 — Ferdinand III
HRE
1608–1657 — Leopold Wilhelm
of Austria
1614–1662 — Ferdinand Charles
Archduke of Austria
1628–1662 — Sigismund Francis
Archduke of Austria
1630–1665 - Balthasar Charles
Prince of Asturias
1629–1646 — Charles II
of Spain
1661–1700 — Ferdinand IV
King of the Romans
1633–1654 — Leopold I
HRE
1640–1705 — Charles Joseph
of Austria
1649–1664 - Joseph I
HRE
1678–1711 — Charles VI
HRE
1685–1740 - Lorraine
- Maria Theresa
HRE
1740–1780 — Francis I
HRE
1745–1765 - Habsburg-Lorraine
- Joseph II
HRE
1765–1790 — Leopold II
HRE
1790–1792 - Francis II
HRE
1792–1806 - Notes:
References
- Back to citation Doran pp.73–98
- Back to citation occurrence 2.0 Back to citation occurrence 2.1 Wurzbach, Constantin von, ed. (1861). "Habsburg, Philipp I. der Schöne von Oesterreich". Biographisches Lexikon des Kaiserthums Oesterreich [Biographical Encyclopedia of the Austrian Empire] (in German). Vol. 7. p. 112 – via Wikisource.
- Back to citation occurrence 3.0 Back to citation occurrence 3.1 Back to citation occurrence 3.2 Back to citation occurrence 3.3 Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Joanna". Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 15 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press.
- Back to citation occurrence 4.0 Back to citation occurrence 4.1 Back to citation occurrence 4.2 Back to citation occurrence 4.3 Priebatsch, Felix (1908). "Wladislaw II.". Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie (in German). Vol. 54. Leipzig: Duncker & Humblot. pp. 688–696.
- Back to citation Boureau, Alain (1995). The Lord's First Night: The Myth of the Droit de Cuissage. Translated by Cochrane, Lydia G. The University of Chicago Press. p. 96.
- Back to citation Noubel, P., ed. (1877). Revue de l'Agenais [Review of the Agenais]. Vol. 4. Société académique d'Agen. p. 497.
- Back to citation "Habsburg family tree". Habsburg family website. 28 October 2023. Retrieved 28 October 2023.
Bibliography
- Doran, Susan (1996). Monarchy and Matrimony: The Courtships of Elizabeth I. Routledge.