Charles I of Austria
Charles I or Karl I (Karl Franz Joseph Ludwig Hubert Georg Otto Maria; 17 August 18871 April 1922) was the last Emperor of Austria, the last King of Hungary (as Charles IV, ), the last King of Bohemia (as Charles III), and the last monarch belonging to the House of Habsburg-Lorraine. After his uncle Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria was assassinated in 1914, Charles became heir presumptive of Emperor Franz Josef. Charles I reigned from 1916 until 1918, when he "renounced participation" in state affairs, but did not abdicate. He spent the remaining years of his life attempting to restore the monarchy until his death in 1922. Beatified by Pope John Paul II in 2004, he is known to the Catholic Church as Blessed Karl of Austria.
History of Austria
The next emperor, his son Francis II (1792–1835), found himself at war with France in the First (1792–1797) and Second Coalition Wars (1798–1802) the prelude to the Napoleonic Wars (1803–1815), in which Austria lost further territory. Following further Austrian losses in the Third Coalition War (1803–1806) the future of the Hapsburg Empire looked increasingly uncertain. Napoleon I had declared himself Emperor of France in May 1804 and was busy reorganising much of the lands of the Holy Roman Empire, and looked to be assuming the title of emperor too, as a second Charlemagne. Francis II responded by proclaiming the Empire of Austria in August, taking the new title of Emperor. In 1806, having held both titles in the interim, he resigned the imperial crown of the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation, which then ceased to exist.