Wilhelm von Österreich

Archduke Wilhelm Franz Karl of Austria-Teschen was born in Vienna on April 21, 1827. He was the youngest son of Archduke Charles of Austria, the first Duke of Teschen, and his wife, Henriette Alexandrine, a princess of Nassau-Weilburg. His father was a prominent commander who defeated Napoleon at the Battle of Aspern in 1809 and also took part in the campaign of 1813. In recognition of his military achievements, Emperor Francis I raised him to the rank of Duke of Teschen. After Charles’s death in 1847, Wilhelm’s elder brother Albrecht inherited the title and the extensive estates. Wilhelm grew up with six siblings. They included Archduchess Maria Theresa Isabella, who later became Queen of Naples and Sicily, as well as Archdukes Albrecht and Charles Ferdinand. Several of his brothers and brothers-in-law also played important roles in the Austrian military. Wilhelm’s mother died in 1829, when he was only two years old. His brother Albrecht then took primary responsibility for his education and directed him toward a military career. In 1842 Wilhelm joined the army and entered the artillery. That same year he was appointed proprietor of the 12th Infantry Regiment, which thereafter bore his name, and was promoted to colonel. Alongside his practical duties, he continued his military education. On October 11, 1845, he also joined the Teutonic Order. The following year, he took his religious vows in Vienna’s Church am Hof. Soon afterward, the Order’s Grand Council elected him coadjutor, making him the designated successor to the grand master. Wilhelm was promoted to major general in 1847. Following Emperor Francis Joseph’s accession in 1848, he traveled to Saint Petersburg as the emperor’s envoy. His discussions may also have touched on possible Russian support against the Hungarian Revolution and War of Independence of 1848 and 1849; Russia in fact intervened on behalf of the Habsburg monarchy in 1849. At Francis Joseph’s request, Wilhelm subsequently volunteered for service with the army in northern Italy. He took part in the fighting around Venice in 1849. Later, as an army inspector, he traveled several times to Berlin and Munich on government missions concerning the affairs of the German Confederation. In 1854 Wilhelm fell seriously ill with typhus. He did not recover until the end of April. He then made a pilgrimage with fellow members of the Order to the shrine of Maria Taferl in Lower Austria. His recovery was celebrated in Vienna with a large public festival, as the archduke was highly popular. On that occasion, a march composed by Johann Strauss the Younger in honor of Wilhelm’s recovery was also performed. Wilhelm proved to be a capable artillery commander. In 1854 he was appointed proprietor of the 6th Field Artillery Regiment. In 1857 he became chief of the general staff of the Imperial-Royal Army High Command and received the rank of field marshal lieutenant a few days later. When Tsar Nicholas I died in 1855, Wilhelm once again traveled to Saint Petersburg to convey Francis Joseph’s condolences. In 1859 Wilhelm became commander of the field artillery of the Imperial-Royal First Army and took part in the Italian campaign. At the Battle of Solferino on June 24, he directed the artillery batteries of the army commanded by Franz von Wimpffen. After returning from Italy, he resumed his duties at the Army High Command. From 1860 to 1862, he served as inspector general of the field artillery of the entire army stationed in Italy. In 1862 he was given command of the federal fortress of Mainz. Two years later, he was appointed inspector general of the entire Imperial-Royal artillery. At the same time, Wilhelm held a central position in the Teutonic Order. After the death of Grand Master Archduke Maximilian Joseph in 1863, Wilhelm was elected as his successor and installed on July 25 of that year. He held the office until his death. As the Order’s 57th grand master, he was particularly interested in its chivalric and military character. Above all, he promoted the expansion of the Order’s medical facilities and the army’s field-hospital system, securing substantial financial support from the imperial household. In his capacity as grand master, he was also appointed proprietor of the 4th Hoch- und Deutschmeister Infantry Regiment. Between 1864 and 1868, Wilhelm had a representative Neo-Renaissance palace built on Vienna’s Parkring according to designs by the architect Theophil von Hansen. Because his religious vows committed him to a celibate life, the palace contained no special living quarters for a wife. Instead, it included extensive stables and facilities for horses, since the grand master and his entourage often traveled on horseback. In 1870 Wilhelm sold the palace to the Teutonic Order, which established its headquarters and the grand master’s office there. Wilhelm also took part in the Austro-Prussian War of 1866 as the artillery commander of the Austrian Northern Army. At the Battle of Königgrätz on July 3, he suffered a severe head wound. At the beginning of 1867, he was promoted to the rank of Feldzeugmeister. Wilhelm never married and had no children. On July 29, 1894, he died at the age of 67 on his estate in Weikersdorf near Baden in Lower Austria. While he was riding near the newly electrified railway line between Vienna and Baden, his horse shied and threw him. He died that same day from his severe head injuries. He was buried in Vienna’s Capuchin Church, the traditional burial place of the Habsburgs. His nephew, Archduke Eugen, succeeded him as grand master of the Teutonic Order and became its last secular grand master. Wilhelm’s Viennese palace remained the residence of the Teutonic Order’s grand masters until the Order was dissolved in Austria in 1938. After the Anschluss, it was confiscated and later used by various state institutions. In 1981, OPEC acquired the building, which, following extensive renovation, serves as the representative Vienna headquarters of the OPEC Fund. A Vienna artillery barracks, which stood until 2005, and a field howitzer regiment also bore Wilhelm’s name, preserving the memory of the archduke and artillery commander.