Franz Joseph I (18 August 1830 – 21 November 1916) of the Hapsburg Dynasty was Emperor of Austria, Apostolic King of Hungary, and King of Bohemia from 1848 until 1916. His 68-year reign, the fourth-longest in the recorded history of Europe, made him the longest-serving German-speaking king or emperor who is known to have at least nominally ruled. (A number of German rulers had longer reigns, but only claimed a lower title such as Prince or Duke.) It was the assassination of Franz Joseph's nephew and heir presumptive, Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria, on 28 June 1914, that led to World War I. Franz Joseph did not live to see the end of the war, or the collapse of his empire. He was the elder brother of Maximilian I, the first and only Emperor of the short lived Second Mexican Empire from 1864 to 1867. Franz Joseph I in "Last Flight of the Swan of the East"[]
In 1914, Franz Joseph's heir Franz Ferdinand was killed along with his wife, Sophie, in Sarajevo by a "Serbian maniac." Franz Joseph's government immediately began making demands on the Serbian government. While Serbia agreed to most of the demands, Serbia would not let Austro-Hungarian agents to help investigate the assassination. Serbia's approach insured that its allies would support it against Austria-Hungary; conversely Franz Joseph's allies would still see Austria-Hungary as aggrieved. A global war broke out in short order as the Russian Empire came to Serbia's aid, and the German Empire backed Austria-Hungary.[1] Franz Joseph's leviathans began bombarding Belgrade in short order.[2] For further info, see the Leviathans wiki. Franz Joseph I in Southern Victory[]
![]() During his time on the United States General Staff, Major Irving Morrell had a superior who strongly resembled Franz Joseph.[4] See Also[]
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Franz Joseph I of Austria
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