Rainer von Österreich

Archduke Rainer Joseph of Austria from the House of Habsburg-Lorraine was born on September 30, 1783, in Pisa and died on January 16, 1853, in Bolzano. He was an Austrian archduke, Generalfeldzeugmeister of the Imperial-Royal Army, and viceroy of the Kingdom of Lombardy-Venetia from 1818 to 1848. Within the family, he was also known as “the elder Rainer” to distinguish him from his son of the same name. Rainer was the fourteenth of sixteen children born to Peter Leopold, Grand Duke of Tuscany, and his wife, Maria Ludovika of Spain. In 1790, his father ascended the Roman-German imperial throne as Leopold II, whereupon the family moved from Florence to Vienna. Rainer was seven years old at the time. Just two years later, he lost both parents within a period of three months. His eldest brother Franz became Roman-German Emperor as Francis II and, in 1804, adopted the title of Emperor of Austria as Francis I. Rainer’s siblings included several figures of great importance to the Habsburg monarchy. His sister Maria Theresa married King Anton of Saxony. His brother Ferdinand later became Grand Duke of Tuscany. Archduke Charles earned distinction as a field marshal and as the victor over Napoleon at the Battle of Aspern. Archduke John became known as the “Steirian Prince,” while Archduke Joseph Anton Johann served for many years as Palatine of Hungary. Another brother, Archduke Ludwig, later headed the State Conference. Archduke Rudolf was a cardinal, Archbishop of Olmütz, and a patron of Beethoven. Rainer’s own career was initially military and later became closely connected with Austrian rule in Italy. On January 3, 1818, at the age of 25, his imperial brother Francis I appointed him viceroy of the Kingdom of Lombardy-Venetia. This state had been created at the Congress of Vienna in 1815, following the end of the Napoleonic Wars, by joining Lombardy with Venetia, the territory of the former Republic of Venice. It stood in personal union with Austria: the Austrian emperor was also its ruler and was represented locally by the viceroy and the governor-general. Rainer’s office, however, involved only limited actual administrative responsibilities. At the royal court in Milan, he and his wife mainly carried out representational and ceremonial duties. Nevertheless, his administration became the focus of political criticism on the eve of the Italian Revolution of 1848. Rainer was regarded as liberal and excessively lenient toward the national and political unrest. Field Marshal Radetzky, the imperial commander-in-chief in Italy, believed that this attitude had helped the Italian uprising grow to such an extent that the deployment of imperial troops eventually became necessary. On January 18, 1848, Rainer left Lombardy together with Governor-General Spaur and traveled to Vienna to submit a report. After the outbreak of the revolution, he was unable to return to his post. From May 1848 onward, Radetzky exercised full authority in the two provinces as military governor. The royal palaces in Milan and Monza subsequently remained unoccupied until the arrival of the new viceroy, Archduke Ferdinand Maximilian, in September 1857. In March 1848, Rainer moved with his family to Tyrol. He spent his final years in Bolzano, then known as Bozen, in South Tyrol, where he died on January 16, 1853, at the age of 70. His wife survived him by three years. They were both buried in the crypt of Bolzano Cathedral, Maria Himmelfahrt. On May 28, 1820, Rainer married Maria Elisabeth of Savoy-Carignano in Prague. She was the daughter of Prince Charles Emmanuel Ferdinand of Carignano and Princess Maria Christina of Saxony-Curland. The marriage produced eight children. Their eldest daughter, Maria Karolina Augusta, never married and died in 1844. Their second daughter, Adelheid, married her cousin Victor Emmanuel II in 1842. He became King of Sardinia-Piedmont in 1849 and, in 1861, the first King of Italy as Victor Emmanuel II. Adelheid, who became Queen of Sardinia as Maria Adelaide, did not live to see her husband’s later rise. Through her, Rainer became an ancestor of the Italian royal house. Rainer’s sons included Leopold Ludwig, Ernst, Sigismund, and Rainer Ferdinand. Several pursued military careers and attained the rank of lieutenant general. Rainer Ferdinand also became president of the Imperial Council and married Archduchess Maria Karolina Luise Christina. Archduke Heinrich entered into a morganatic marriage with Leopoldine Hofmann, who was born a commoner and was later elevated to the rank of Baroness von Waideck. The youngest son, Maximilian, died in childhood. Through his marriage and children, Rainer was closely connected both to the highest circles of the Austrian imperial family and to the future Italian royal house.