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| Austrian Empire Coins Silver Marriage Gulden coin 1854, Emperor Franz Joseph I of Austria and Empress Elisabeth Sissi |
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| Austrian Empire Coins Silver Marriage Gulden coin 1854, Emperor Franz Joseph I of Austria and Elisabeth of Bavaria Sissi. |
Obverse: Conjoined laureated busts of Francis Joseph & his spouse Elisabeth of Bavaria Sissi right.
Legend: FRANCISC IOS I D G AVSTRIAE IMP ET ELISABETHA MAX IN BAVAR DVCIS FIL / A *
Reverse: Wedding scene showing the Emperor & Empress Sissi with clasped hands, blessed by Bishop between them.
Comment: Medallist´s signature (A. WEISS F.) at the bottom of Bishop´s robe.
Legend: MARIMONIO CONIVNCTI
Exergue: DIE XXIV APRILIS MDCCCLIV
Mint Place: Vienna (A)
Reference: Jaeger 299, KM-M1. R!
Weight: 12.96 gram of Silver
Diameter: 29 mm
Franz Joseph I of Austria
In December 1848, Emperor Ferdinand abdicated the throne as part of Ministerpräsident Felix zu Schwarzenberg's plan to end the Revolutions of 1848 in Austria, which allowed Ferdinand's nephew Franz Joseph to ascend to the throne. Largely considered to be a reactionary, Franz Joseph spent his early reign resisting constitutionalism in his domains. The Austrian Empire was forced to cede most of its claim to Lombardy–Venetia to the Kingdom of Piedmont-Sardinia following the conclusion of the Second Italian War of Independence in 1859, and the Third Italian War of Independence in 1866. Although Franz Joseph ceded no territory to the Kingdom of Prussia after the Austrian defeat in the Austro-Prussian War, the Peace of Prague (23 August 1866) settled the German question in favour of Prussia, which prevented the unification of Germany under the House of Habsburg (Großdeutsche Lösung).
Franz Joseph was troubled by nationalism during his entire reign. He concluded the Ausgleich of 1867, which granted greater autonomy to Hungary, hence transforming the Austrian Empire into the Austro-Hungarian Empire under his dual monarchy. His domains were then ruled peacefully for the next 45 years, although Franz Joseph personally suffered the tragedies of the suicide of his son, Crown Prince Rudolf in 1889, and the assassination of his wife, Empress Elisabeth in 1898.
After the Austro-Prussian War, Austria-Hungary turned its attention to the Balkans, which was a hotspot of international tension due to conflicting interests with the Russian Empire. The Bosnian crisis was a result of Franz Joseph's annexation of Bosnia and Herzegovina in 1908, which had been occupied by his troops since the Congress of Berlin (1878). On 28 June 1914, the assassination of the heir-presumptive to the Austro-Hungarian throne, his nephew Archduke Franz Ferdinand, at the hands of Gavrilo Princip, a Serbian nationalist, resulted in Austria-Hungary's declaration of war against the Kingdom of Serbia, which was Russia's ally. This activated a system of alliances which resulted in World War I.
Franz Joseph died on 21 November 1916, after ruling his domains for almost 68 years. He was succeeded by his grandnephew Charles I (the "Blessed Charles of Austria").
Empress Elisabeth of Austria
Elisabeth of Austria (24 December 1837 – 10 September 1898) was Empress of Austria and Queen of Hungary, as wife of Franz Joseph I.
Although born into the Bavarian royalty, Elisabeth (‘Sisi’) had enjoyed quite an informal upbringing, before marrying the Emperor at sixteen, and being suddenly absorbed into Habsburg court life, which she found excessively stifling. She was also at odds with her interfering mother-in-law, Princess Sophie, who took over the rearing of her daughters, one of whom died in infancy. The birth of a male heir Rudolf improved her standing at court, but her health was suffering under the strain, and she would often visit Hungary for its more relaxed environment. She came to develop a deep kinship with Hungary, and helped to bring about the dual monarchy of Austria–Hungary in 1867.
The death of her only son in a murder-suicide tragedy at his hunting lodge at Mayerling was a shock from which she never recovered. She withdrew from court duties, and travelled widely, unaccompanied by her family. In the palace, she was seen to be obsessively concerned with her health and beauty, having to be sewn into her leather corsets and spending two or three hours a day on her coiffure.
While travelling in Geneva in 1898, she was stabbed to death by an anarchist, who had missed his chance to assassinate the Duke of Orléans and wanted to kill the next member of royalty that he saw.
Sisi was the longest-reigning Empress of Austria, at 44 years.