Die Jugendtagebücher Kaiser Franz Josephs

The annotated edition of the recently discovered diaries from the adolescence period of Franz Josef, the emperor to be, reveals a unique historic source, providing us with a genuine insight into the family life at the court of the Habsburgs in Vienna in the late Biedermeier period. Contents: The diary entries start on August 18th, 1843 in Ischl, his 13th birthday, and end abruptly on March 13th, 1848, the day of the outbreak of the Revolution in Vienna. During 5 years the adolescent Archduke, becoming more and more aware of his role as the future ruler, puts to paper all the experiences and incidents that he deems important. The authors main interest revolves around everyday life in the extended Habsburg family with their widespread relatives that keep coming and going (Bavaria, Milan, Modena, Parma, exiled Bourbons). People to whom he relates most closely are - apart from his parents, brothers and cousins - his educators and numerous teachers, who under Metternichs guidance insist on strict discipline, forcing their renowned disciple to adopt a narrow and stressful daily routine. An oppressingly high amount of lessons left little room for leisure activities with companions selected with great care from among the highest social circles. Enthusiastically Franz Joseph illustrates his tough military training schedule as an infantryman, dragoon and artilleryman. Wearing a uniform, participating in parades and manoeuvres tended to fascinate him much more than various visits to theatre or opera performances in the company of his parents. Beside outings and hunting adventures in his beloved Salzkammergut, he makes ample room for describing the educational travels through the crown countries of the monarchy. Results: This extensive and early personal document fills a not insignificant gap in the biography of Franz Joseph. As a highly conclusive psychogram of the adolescent Archduke it allows us to infer that almost all major character features of the future ruler were latent and clearly present at the stage of puberty. The detailed entries grant a direct insight into a part of his life that has so far received little recognition, a period of his life during which due to social and educational demands and pressure the famous Archduke was literally programmed to becoming an "accomplished emperor". Thus the image of Franz Joseph as told by boundless biographers can be brilliantly completed, altered and occasionally even corrected by means of these diaries.