Archduke Felix of Austria

Archduke Felix of Austria (given names: Felix Friedrich August Maria vom Siege Franz Joseph Peter Karl Anton Robert Otto Pius Michael Benedikt Sebastian Ignatius Marcus d'Aviano; 31 May 1916 – 6 September 2011) was the last surviving child of the last Austrian Emperor Charles I and a member of the House of Habsburg-Lorraine. He was a younger brother of former Crown Prince Otto of Austria, who predeceased Felix by two months.

Early life and exile

Archduke Felix was born in the Schönbrunn Palace in Vienna the third son of the then heir presumptive to the throne of Austria-Hungary the Archduke Charles and his wife Zita of Bourbon-Parma. He was christened at Schönbrunn on 8 June 1916 in the presence of his great-grand uncle Emperor Franz Joseph while his godfather was his great-uncle King Frederick Augustus III of Saxony, brother of his grandmother Princess Maria Josepha of Saxony. On 21 November 1916 the Emperor Franz Joseph died and Felix's father succeeded as the new Emperor of Austria and King of Hungary.

Archduke Felix was less than three years old when Austria-Hungary collapsed following its defeat in the First World War. As a result, republics were declared in the now-separate countries Austria and Hungary which led to exile of the Imperial Family. Originally exiled in Switzerland the Imperial Family were taken to Portuguese island of Madeira in 1921 after Archduke Felix's father's failed attempts to claim the throne in the Kingdom of Hungary from the regent Miklós Horthy. On 1 April 1922 his father Emperor Charles died in Madeira.

In the autumn of 1937 Archduke Felix was permitted to return to Austria, entering the Theresian Military Academy in Wiener Neustadt. He became the first Habsburg since the abolition of the monarchy to pursue a career as an officer in the Austrian Army. With the Anschluss approaching Archduke Felix, his sister Archduchess Adelheid and Archduke Eugen fled Austria crossing the border to Czechoslovakia.

During the Second World War while in the United States, Felix and his brother Carl Ludwig volunteered to serve in the 101st Infantry Battalion known as the "Free Austria Battalion". However the battalion was disbanded when a number of exiled Jewish volunteers who made up the majority of force ultimately declined to confirm their enlistment.

Return to Austria

Felix, unlike his brother Otto, always refused to renounce his rights to the Austrian throne and membership of the Habsburg family, saying that doing so would violate his human rights. As a result, he was banned from entering Austria except for a brief three-day stay in 1989 in order to attend his mother's funeral. On 10 March 1996, after Austria had joined the European Union and the concurrent dropping of staffed border checkpoints between Austria and other EU countries, he crossed into the country from Germany and held a press conference the next day to announce his illegal arrival. After his presence became known, he was warned by the Austrian government that he would face prosecution if he ever tried to enter the country illegally again. Ultimately, a deal was reached between Felix, his brother Carl Ludwig and the Austrian government whereby they declared their allegiance to the republic without any reference being made to their rights to the throne or to their membership in the Imperial Family.

In June 1998, in a joint action with his brother Carl Ludwig, Felix attempted to have the properties which were given to their ancestor Maria Theresa of Austria by her husband Francis I, Holy Roman Emperor restored to them after the properties had been taken from the Habsburg family by Adolf Hitler during the Anschluss.

Felix built up a number of successful businesses in Mexico and Brussels and worked as a marketing consultant.

During his time in exile Archduke Felix lived in Portugal, Belgium, Mexico and the United States. He lived in the colonia of San Ángel in Mexico City where he died 6 September 2011. He was interred in the family crypt in Muri Abbey, near Zürich. The abbey is a favoured burial place of the Habsburg dynasty, and also contains the remains of his wife and the hearts of his parents.

Marriage and children

Felix was married civilly on 18 November 1952 at Beaulieu, France, and religiously a day later, to Princess and Duchess Anna-Eugénie of Arenberg (1925–1997). They had seven children, and twenty-two grandchildren.

• Archduchess María del Pilar of Austria (born 1953) married in 1980 Vollrad-Joachim Ritter und Edler von Poschinger (born 1952): one son and four daughters
  • Kinga (born 1981),
  • Karl Ludwig (born 11 August 1982),
  • Maria Benedicta (born 2 September 1983),
  • Maria Franziska (born 17 May 1987),
  • Antonia Josepha (born 30 October 1991).
• Archduke Carl Philipp (Carlos Felipe) of Austria (born 1954) married firstly in 1994 (div. 1997) Martina Donath. Married secondly in 1998 Annie-Claire Christine Lacrambe (born 1959, daughter of Henri Lacrambe and Fanny Provost de Montrichard): two sons, one from his first wife, and one from the second wife
  • Julien (born 29 May 1994),
  • Louis-Damien (born 23 September 1998).
• Archduchess Kinga Barbara of Austria (born 1955) married in 1985 Baron Wolfgang von Erffa (born 1948): one son and four daughters
  • Zita (born on 6 September 1986),
  • Hubert Laszlo (born on 28 May 1988),
  • Maria Assunta(born on12 August 1990),
  • Maria-Isabel (born on 22 January 1993),
  • Constanza (born on 23 Oct 1999).
• Archduke Raimund (Ramón) of Austria (1958–2008) married in 1994 Bettina Götz (born 1969, daughter of Heinrich Götz and Helgar Hager): one son and two daughters
  • Felix (born on 12 December 1996),
  • Sophia (born on 12 March 1998),
  • Maria (born on 8 April 2000).
• Archduchess Myriam of Austria (born 1959) married in 1983 Jaime Corcuera Acheson (born 1955), a Mexican descendant of the Earls of Gosford (son of Fernando Corcuera and Lady Mary Virginia Shirley Acheson, daughter of Archibald Acheson, 5th Earl of Gosford): four sons
  • Karl Sebastian (born on 20 February 1984),
  • Pedro Johannes (born on 25 Dec 1985),
  • Felipe (born on 5 August 1987),
  • Andres (born on 20 December 1988).
• Archduke István (Esteban) of Austria (born 1961) married in 1993 Paola de Temesváry (born 1971, daughter of Laszlo Imre de Temesváry and Maria Csilla Rozenszki): two sons and one daughter
  • András Francesco (born on 22 December 1994),
  • Pál Melchior (born on 10 January 1997),
  • Margaretha (born on 25 March 1999).
• Archduchess Viridis of Austria (born 1961, twin of Archduke Istvan) married in 1990 Carl Dunning-Gribble, Lord of Marnhull (born 1961): three sons and one daughter
  • Carl-Léopold (born on 25 September 1991),
  • Ferdinand (born on 1 October 1992),
  • Maximilian (born on 26 October 1996),
  • Marie-Charlotte (born on 14 May 2001).

As they all lived in Mexico, and some still do, they are called by the Spanish equivalent to their names.

Honours and patronages

• Knight of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta
• Knight of the Order of the Golden Fleece

Along with his brothers Otto and Rudolf, Archduke Felix was a patron for the revived Almanach de Gotha.

Titles and styles

• His Imperial and Royal Highness Archduke Felix of Austria, Prince Imperial of Austria, Prince Royal of Hungary and Bohemia

Ancestry