HABSBURG. THE HOUSE OF. 



HABSBURQ, THE HOUSE OF. 



211 



Soothe*'* < Select Worki of the British Poets.' The name t the 

 bead of them ie the poetical on* be gave to UN tady whom h married. 

 They ar in three part* : the flrai conUininR louneU Mid other small 

 piece*, chiefly . ldrr.^,1 to hi* miatrea* b-fore marriage; the Meood 

 part <ttt-i-lg ciuiilxr poems, chiefly addreMed to her M hi* wife ; 

 and the piecea la the third being mainly religion* and contemplative. 

 1 The Qneea of ArragOB, a Tragi-Comedie,' acted both at court and 

 at the Bleckfrian theatre against the author* will, printed in 1640, 

 folio, brought again upon the (tag* in 1066, with a prologue and 

 epilogue by the author of ' Hudibra*,' and reprinted in nil the three 

 edition* of DodUey'i ' Old Playe/ S, The 1 1 iitory of Edward IV.,' 

 1640. fol., *ai.l to hare bean partly written by hii father. 4, ' Obeerva- 

 Uoae apon HUtory, 1 1941, 8vo. 



lUbiogton'a poem*, although infected by th tendency to puerile 

 and abetnue conceit which prevailed in hi> time, are yet in moat part* 

 exceedingly delightful Their fancy i sweet, eapecially in rural 

 deecriptinn ; their feeling i* refined and ideal ; the language is correct 

 and tasteful ; and the tone of moral sentiment is everywhere pure 

 and elevated. The romantic and chivalrous cast of thought and 

 eeiilliiHiil gives much iutereit to his play, although the story is 

 meagre, and the character* are not vigorously depicted. 



HAUSBURG, THK HOUSE OF, wa* the original title of the 

 House of Austria. Rudolf, the founder of the Austrian dynasty, wa* 

 bom in 121s, and wns the son of Albert, count of Habsburg in 

 Aargau, and of Hedwige of Kybnrg, who was descended through her 

 mother from the once powerful House of Ziiringen. In his youth he 

 wan engaged in frequent warfare with the neighbouring barons, and 

 with the banditti who infested his own or the neighbouring territories, 

 and afterwards be served under Ottocar, king of Bohemia, againt the 

 Prussians and the Hungarians. In 1234 Rudolf succeeded to the 

 rich inheritance of his uncle, Hartmann the Elder, count of Kybnrg, 

 which included the greater part of the Aargau, and portions of the 

 present cantons of Bern, Lucern, Zurich, and Zug, besides the advo- 

 cacy or protectorship of the Waldstiitter, or forest cantons. By this 

 inheritance Rudolf, whose domains were at first very limited, became 

 lord of considerable territory, though he was by no means equal to 

 the great electoral princes of Germany. But he found a powerful 

 friend in Werner, archbishop of Mainz, who was so pleased with the 

 atilHes, the wisdom, and justice which Rudolf displayed in the 

 adminittration of his enlarged territories, that he cast his eyes upon 

 him as a fit occupant of the Imperial throne. The archbishop sounded 

 the other elector*, and won them all over to his views, except Ottocar, 

 king of Bohemia, whose ambassadors protested, though in vain, against 

 Rudolf's election, which took place at Frankfurt in 1273. Rudolf 

 was then besieging Basel, the burghers of which city had killed some 

 of liis relatives in an affray. On the news of his elevation the people 

 of Basel were the first to hail him as the bead of the empire and to 

 swear allegiance to him, and Rudolf hastened to Aix-la-Chspelle, where 

 be was crowned king of the Romans by his friend the archbishop of 

 Mainz. The next thing was to have bis election acknowledged by 

 the papal see, and hero no difficulty was found. Gregory X., theu 

 pope, was a man of a moderate disposition and conciliatory temper, 

 and he willingly acknowledged Rudolf as head of the Western empire, 

 while Rudolf on his part made several concessions : be renounced all 

 jurisdiction over Rome, all feudal superiority over the marches of 

 Ancona and the duchy of Spoleto, all interference in ecclesiastical 

 elections, and, excepting the right of temporal investiture of newly- 

 elected bishops, which he retained, he acknowledged the independence 

 of the Germanic church on the crown. This was a happy termination 

 of the quarrel of two centuries' duration between the church and the 

 empire. Rudolf turned next to Ottocar, king of Bohemia, who refused 

 allegiance to him. Ottocar, besides Bohemia, had taken possession 

 of Moravia, Austria, Styria, Carintliia, in short, of the greatest part 

 of the present Austrian empire. Rudolf laid siege to Vienna, and 

 eroding the Danube on a bridge of boats, defeated Ottocar, who sued 

 for and obtained peace by giving up Austria, Styria, Carinthia, and 

 Carniola. Rudolf confirmed him in the possession of Bohemia and 

 Moravia. Rudolf appointed his two surviving sons, Albert and 

 Rudolf, joint-dukes of Austria and Styria, giving Carinthia to Hein- 

 bard, count of the Tyrol, whose daughter had married his son Albert, 

 but stipulating for the right of reversion to bis own family in the 

 event of the extinction of Meinhacd's male posterity. Ottocar having 

 oon after revolted, was again defeated and killed in battle, and his 

 on Wenc-jslaus, who had married a daughter of Rudolf, succeeded 

 him as king of Bohemia, and continued the peaceful liege of his 

 father-in law. But the great merit of Rudolf is that of having 

 restored order and tranquillity in the internal administration ol 

 Germany. In aucceaiive diets he compelled or persuaded the princes 

 to submit their differences to arbitration, to swear to the observance 

 of the public peace, and to content to the demolition of the fortresses 

 which bad been erected by the nobles for plunder an well as for war. 

 In nn year he razed leventy of these strongholds, and he condemned 

 to dntn no fewer than twenty-nine nobles of Thuringia, who stili 

 presumed to disturb the public peace. Rudolf granted a number ol 

 charters to many towns and rising municipalities, liis reign exhibited 

 remarkable novelty for Germany internal tranquillity. Hia probity 

 became proverbial, and his respect for religion is attested by mauj 

 fact*. He forgot personal wrongs, and gratefully rewarded persona 



en-rices, eipecUlly in those who had rendered him aasiftsnoe in his 

 early life, and he wa* accessible to the bumblest of hia people. 



I. died in 1291, in a good old age, leaving only one surviving 

 son, Albert, besides several daughters. Hia other son, Rudolf, died 

 before his father, leaving one eon, John, under Albert's guardianship. 

 Albert I., duke of Austria, was elected emperor in 1298, and was mur- 

 dered at Windiscb, in Aanrau, by his nephew John, to whom he would 

 not give up hi* paternal inheritance. [ALBERT I., DUKE or AUSTRIA.] 

 fie left a numerous progeny. His eldest son, Rudolf, married the 

 widow of Wenoaakus, and succeeded to the crown of Bohemia in 

 1806, but died shortly after. Albert's second son, Frederick the 

 Handsome, duke of Austria, died in 1330, without issue. His brother 

 Leopold, who shared with Frederick the administration of the Austrian 

 dominions, marched against the Swiss, and was defeated by them at 

 the battle of Morgarten, 15th November 1318. He died in 1326. 

 Albert's fourth son, Albert II., called the \Vise, succeeded his brother 

 Frederick as duke of Austria and of Styria, and died in 1358, leaving 

 a numerous family. His eldest son, Rudolf III., duke of Austria, 

 Became, in 1363, count of Tyrol and Carinthia by the extinction of 

 Meinhard's male posterity, and died in 1365. He was succeeded by 

 us brother Albert III. jointly with hu other brother, who is styled 

 Leopold 11., and who fought against the Swiss, and was defeated and 

 tilled at the battle of Sempach, 9th July 13S6. Albert himself died 

 IB 1395, leaving his dominions divided between his two sons : the 

 elder, Albert IV., became duke of Austria, and the other, Leopold, 

 duke of Styria and Carinthia. Albert IV. died in 1404, and was 

 succeeded by his son Albert V. of Austria, who married Elizabeth, 

 daughter of the Emperor Sigismund, whom be succeeded as king of 

 Hungary and Bohemia in 1437, and in the following year was elected 

 emperor by the name of Albert 1L of Germany. He died in 1439, 

 in a village of Hungary, while defending that country against 

 Anmrath II., sultan of the Ottomans. His posthumous ton LadU- 

 laus succeeded to the titles of duke of Austria and king of Hungary 

 and Bohemia, under the guardianship of his cousin Frederick, duke 

 of Styria. The Hungarians however would not acknowledge the 

 infant Ladislaus, and offered the crown to another Ladislaus, king 

 of Poland, who was shortly after killed at the battle of Varna against 

 the Turks in 1444. The Hungarians then chose as their regent John 

 Hunniades, under a nominal allegiance to Ladislaus the Posthumous. 

 The Bohemians refused to acknowledge Ladislaus and chose Polie- 

 brad as their leader. In 1451 however Ladislaus was acknowledged 

 king of Bohemia, Podiebrad submitted to him, and was confirmed in 

 his authority. Ladislaus was but a nominal king, and ho died at 

 Prague in 1458, leaving his cousin Frederick of Styria, who had been 

 elected emperor by the name of Frederick III., heir to his numerous 

 titles. The reign of Frederick, which lasted more than half a century, 

 was inglorious to himself and disastrous to his subjects. [FRE- 

 DERICK III. OF GERMANY.] Matthias Corviuus, the son of Hunuiades, 

 seized upon the crown of Hungary, and Podiebrad upon that of 

 Bohemia, and after their death bath crowns were united on the head 

 of Ladislaus, son of Casimir, king of Poland. Of his hereditary states 

 of Austria Frederick was obliged to resign a part to his own brother 

 Albert. Frederick however was successful iu marrying his sou Maxi- 

 milian to Mary, daughter of Charles the Rash, and heiress to the vast 

 dominions of the ducal house of Burgundy, by which means Franche 

 Comtc', Alsace, the Netherlands, Artois, iu short all her father's terri- 

 tories, with the exception of Burgundy Proper, which was annexed to 

 France, were united to the estates of the House of Austria, It was 

 on the occasion of this marriage, in 1477, that Frederick bestowed on 

 his ton Maximilian the title of Archduke of Austria, which his succes- 

 sors have borne ever since. Frederick died in 1493, and Maximilian 

 succeeded him in the Austrian dominions as well ta on the Imperial 

 throne, having been elected king of the Romans in his father's life- 

 time. Indeed from this time down to the dissolution of the German 

 empire in our own days the Imperial dignity may be said to have 

 become hereditary in the House of Austria. The ivign of Maximi- 

 lian was an important one both to Germany and to the Austrian 

 dominions. He consolidated both the power of his house and that 

 of the empire. He was the reformer of the public law of Germany, 

 and the creator of German military discipline, being the first to estab- 

 lish a standing army, with infantry, cavalry, and artillery, divided 

 into regiments and subdivided into companies. He secured the rever- 

 sion of Hungary and Bohemia to his posterity by a double marriage 

 of the archduchess Maria, his grand-daughter, with Ludovic, son of 

 Ladislaus, and of Anno, sister of Ludovio, with his grandson Ferdi- 

 nand. His own son Philip was married to Joanna, heiress of Castile 

 and of Aragon. Maximilian died in 1519, and was succeeded on the 

 Imperial throne by his grandson Charles V., who, in 1521, renounced 

 the hereditary dominions of Austria to his younger brother Ferdinand, 

 who afterwards, by tlio death of his brother-in-law Ludovic, king cf 

 Hungary and Bohemia, who fell in 1526 in the battle of Mohacz 

 against the Turks, was acknowledged king of Bohemia. The Hun- 

 garians however, refusing to acknowledge Ferdinand's claims, raised 

 to the throne John Xapoli, palatine of Transylvania, and after liis 

 death his son John Sigismund. This led to a lung war, iu which the 

 Turks took a part, aud which lasted the whole life of Ferdinand. By 

 the abdication of his brother Charles V., Ferdinand was raised to the 

 Imperial throne, with the sanction of tho Imperial Diet, in 1558 



