Mother Zita of Bourbon-Parma | Name Robert, of | |
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Tenure 16 April 1917 – 7 February 1996 Born 8 February 1915Schonbrunn ( 1915-02-08 ) Issue Archduchess Maria BeatriceLorenz, Archduke of Austria-EsteArchduke GerhardArchduke MartinArchduchess Isabella Children Prince Lorenz of Belgium, Archduke of Austria-Este Siblings Otto von Habsburg, Archduke Felix of Austria Parents Zita of Bourbon-Parma, Charles I of Austria Similar People Margherita - Archduchess of Austria, Prince Lorenz of Belgium, Charles I of Austria, Zita of Bourbon‑Parma, Princess Astrid of Belgium | ||
Archduke Robert, Archduke of Austria-Este (Schönbrunn Palace, 8 February 1915 – Basel, 7 February 1996), was born as the second son of Karl I, (beatified) last Emperor of Austria-Hungary, and Princess Zita of Bourbon-Parma.
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Archduke of Austria-Este
On 16 April 1917, at the age of two, Robert was created Archduke of Austria-Este by his father, the Emperor. Archduke Robert was thereby chosen to preserve, in the form of a distinct secundogeniture, the Habsburg-Lorraine representation of the once-sovereign Duchy of Modena which had belonged to the House of Este. He was thus made heir to his assassinated relative Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria, (1863–1914), who had inherited in 1875 the Austria-Este designation and what had been salvaged of the Este fortune when the duchy was annexed to Italy in 1860.
Archduke Robert descended through his Habsburg father from Ercole III d'Este, Duke of Modena, and his mother Zita was a descendant of Maria Beatrice d'Este, heiress of Modena and her husband, Archduke Ferdinand of Austria. Thus the lineage of the last Este dukes, in female descent, remained joined to the Austria-Este legacy. Archduke Robert eventually adopted use for himself and his descendants in male line the surname Austria-Este, and he took also the title Duke of Este, intended henceforth to be borne by the head of the Austria-Este branch of the House of Habsburg-Lorraine.
Upon his death in 1996, the day before his 81st birthday, he was succeeded as head of this line by his son, Archduke Lorenz of Austria-Este, Prince of Belgium (born 1955). Although the marriage of his eldest son to Princess Astrid of Belgium, relegated use of the Austria-Este archdukedom to a secondary title in that realm, the title continues in use elsewhere among his cadet descendants.
Family
Archduke Robert married Princess Margherita of Savoy-Aosta (born 7 April 1930), elder daughter of the late Amadeo, 3rd Duke of Aosta on 28 December 1953 in Bourg-en-Bresse, France (civilly) and 29 December 1953 (religiously), in Brou, France.
The couple had five children, all of whom use the designation of Austria-Este: