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The Habsburgs: Embodying Empire
"Splendidly rich...required reading for anyone who hopes to understand the real Europe."—Daily Telegraph.
The Habsburgs have been described at one extreme as demons – responsible for a ‘long history of atrocities’; and, at the other, as dodos – living fossils unable to adapt to the modern world. In reality, the flamboyant royal family appear, in many ways, to have behaved much like most other monarchies. Their story, however, is none the less enthralling for that. It is populated by such unforgettable figures as mad Queen Juana, progressing through Spain with her husband’s decaying body; the ‘heroically fertile’ Maria Theresa, and the quixotic Maximilian, ‘Emperor’ of Mexico.
445 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1995
37 people are currently reading
1025 people want to read
About the author
Andrew Wheatcroft
40 books33 followersAndrew Wheatcroftis Professor of International Publishing and Communication and Director of the Centre for Publishing Studies at the University of Stirling. He is the author ofInfidels,The Habsburgs, andThe Ottomans, and has been researching the material for The Enemy at the Gatefor more than twenty years.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 78 reviews
July 9, 2023
This is not the usual chronological political or biographical history. This book is an examination and broad overview of the Habsburg brand or institution - the main purpose and objectives of the family, how they saw themselves, how they tried to project that to their people, and how this changed and succeeded (or didn't) over the centuries. Wheatcroft has provided an interesting perspective, one I enjoyed very much. But I wouldn't recommend this book for novices to the subject.
January 6, 2009
37 inches of flat screen high definition LCD panel goodness came into my life just before the holidays, which dramatically interfered with my reading for a while. It didn't help that I was in the middle of this book at the time. Not that it was bad -- I actually quite enjoyed most of it -- just that it was extremely dry and dense. A "page-turner" it's not. Some academic or esoteric books make an effort at cross-over appeal, or at least strive for so-called readability. Andrew Wheatcroft is not interested in such pleasantries, and this book is for hard core history nerds only. Luckily I am one.
If the name Habsburg means anything to you already -- if you have a general concept of this extraordinary family that ruled anywhere from 20% to 50% of Europe for most of the past 1000 years -- then you'd be interested in this book. But if this kind of stuff doesn't fire up your engines on its own merits, steer clear. Wheatcroft has a high opinion of his readers, and doesn't bother to provide much context or description for the major historical events the Habsburgs weaved their way through.
He expects you to already know the details of the defeat of the Spanish Armada, the Treaty of Westphalia, the Reformation, the Council of Trent, the 30 Years War, the interactions between the Ottoman Empires and the Holy Roman Empire, the War of Spanish Succession, the Bourbons, the overseas possessions of various empires, the regions of Europe and their various religious affiliations, the ally/enemy breakdowns in all the major wars, etc. etc. Some of this stuff he never even mentions specifically, focusing instead on the inner workings and machinations of the family, and blowing past the political headlines of the day. Not that he doesn't think it's important, he just assumes you already know the context, can appreciate the gravity of the situation, and don't want to hear more about it. He even at one point impatiently declared his refusal to rehash the story of the Defenestration of Prague, since "everyone knows it so well."
You get the idea.
If the name Habsburg means anything to you already -- if you have a general concept of this extraordinary family that ruled anywhere from 20% to 50% of Europe for most of the past 1000 years -- then you'd be interested in this book. But if this kind of stuff doesn't fire up your engines on its own merits, steer clear. Wheatcroft has a high opinion of his readers, and doesn't bother to provide much context or description for the major historical events the Habsburgs weaved their way through.
He expects you to already know the details of the defeat of the Spanish Armada, the Treaty of Westphalia, the Reformation, the Council of Trent, the 30 Years War, the interactions between the Ottoman Empires and the Holy Roman Empire, the War of Spanish Succession, the Bourbons, the overseas possessions of various empires, the regions of Europe and their various religious affiliations, the ally/enemy breakdowns in all the major wars, etc. etc. Some of this stuff he never even mentions specifically, focusing instead on the inner workings and machinations of the family, and blowing past the political headlines of the day. Not that he doesn't think it's important, he just assumes you already know the context, can appreciate the gravity of the situation, and don't want to hear more about it. He even at one point impatiently declared his refusal to rehash the story of the Defenestration of Prague, since "everyone knows it so well."
You get the idea.
June 7, 2016
If you're expecting a play by play, day by day history of the Habsburgs, this is not the book for you. If you want a thesis about what was the main drive and focus of the family, and how it was passed down through the centuries, this is your book. Mr. Wheatcroft did a masterful job of using the history, and the standouts who ruled to put forth his theory and justification for why they did what they did. Not a light read, but a very interesting theory that history buffs will enjoy.
June 11, 2017
This history of the Habsburgs focuses on the line of succession and how the family used marriage and images rather than conquest (for the most part) to further their empire. I would have given it 5 stars if it had contained a bit more about the territorial gains & losses of the empire and had disclosed more information about societal changes that they brought about in each era but other than that it was very detailed and interesting. This is not written to be an introduction to the Habsburgs, although was for me except for the thirty year war era. I would suggest having a basic knowledge the history of the Habsburgs or being an avid reader before picking this up.
December 15, 2021
The Hapsburg Empire was the land and kingdoms of the Hapsburg line (especially Austria). For a few hundred years, a member of the Hapsburgs was Holy Roman Emperor. The Hapsburgs appear in written history around 1020. They grew rich from their percentage of trade and tolls paid as the goods passed through their towns and cities. They also provided security because cities need peace. “While others waged war, the Hapsburgs married their way to power and honor”. Inheritance also played a big role. Gutenberg’s printing press was modeled on a wine press. Before the printing press were “copying workshops” where many scribes would produce multiple copies in a prototype assembly line.
Spain was ruled by Hapsburg Kings from 1516 – 1700. They controlled Portugal from 1580 to 1640. Hapsburg Spain brought the world: Cervantes, Velazquez, El Greco, and Teresa of Avila. Hapsburg Spain ended when Charles II died in 1700. As a Hapsburg, you could be a Combo Platter: Philip II was both King of Spain and Grand poobah of the Hapsburg Netherlands (or Belgica in Latin – think of it as present-day Netherlands, plus Belgium, Luxembourg, and a smidge of France – it went from 1482-1795). Hapsburg Emperors of Austria were from 1804-1918. Hapsburg Kings of both Bohemia and Hungary were from 1780-1918. A Hapsburg was Emperor of Mexico for three years starting in 1864 before he was executed staring down his firing squad without a blindfold. Because the Hapsburgs consolidated their power usually through consanguineous marriages, they were playing Russian Roulette in the shallow end of their gene pool through inbreeding. The last of the Spanish line Charles II was severely disabled since birth.
1535, is the conquest of Tunis by Hapsburg’s extremist Catholic Charles V who captures it from the Ottomans. After landing, Charles V’s men then massacre 30,000 Tunisians. I can imagine afterwards, the men saying, “Right… where can you get a drink round here?” “You killed our bartender, Sir.” “Well, how about a nice pretty barmaid, who can fetch us something then?” “You slashed her throat, sir.” “Right.” What historically made Charles V leave the city in the end was the smell of rotting corpses (of his own making). And then under Charles’ loopy concept of Catholicism, he then made all the Jews in Tunis slaves. Moral: A Golden Fleece around the neck and a fancy name will make all religious hypocrisy seem okay. The punchline: blood-drenched Tunis was the high point in Charles V’s life. Christian devotee of the poor, Charles V kept more than 13,000 ounces of gold and silver in his retirement home where he kept tableware by Cellini. Funny how Charles V said once he had spent his lifetime “fighting heretics”. He thought all Protestants should be thrown in the fires without due process. Do all Hapsburg males make terrible moral role models, or was Charles V a one-off?
The Moorish Timeline for being in Spain is 711 – 1492. And so, Hapsburg Spain, beginning in 1516, had to deal with basically an Islamic state modified over just 20 years into a nominally Christian one. Ending overt Moorish and Morisco opposition would take almost a century for the Hapsburgs. In 1609, after Philip’s death the entire Morisco population was finally uprooted and shipped off to North Africa (Operation Come with Me to the Casbah). The extremist Catholic Hapsburgs fought Protestants in the Netherlands, as well as Spain. It’s nice to have hobbies. Ferdinand and Isabella’s first act was to remove all Jewish people from Grenada, and then they instituted “pure blood” doctrine and made it “a Spanish obsession”. This sounds way too much like a fascist prequel for Hitler. But I can also picture a model holding up a crystal bottle of a pure ounce of Catholic blood and saying to the camera, “Spanish Obsession …by Calvinist Klein”.
Just like with the Nazis, the Spanish Hapsburg’s propaganda department ran the story that a poor man with “untainted blood” was said to be worth more than the greatest person who’s slightly tainted. Sancho Panza in “Don Quijote” proudly states he was “free from any mixture of Jew or Moor”. No other royal house was so obsessed with blood as the Hapsburgs, and yet their own blood would be what made them fade into obscurity. From 1550 to 1700, the Hapsburg played a game: inbreeding became the most “desirable” and “appropriate” way to strengthen the Hapsburg name. Philip II was married twice to his kindred. Isabella married her cousin. Philip III married a cousin. Philip IV married his cousin. One of the daughters married their uncle. Carlos II had parents who were cousins, and evidently kissing cousins. Let’s face it, even twins in bassinets were eyeing each other. Charles II could not talk until age four, walk until age eight, and was described as having facial defects and was considered a lame, senile abject failure. I can picture Charles II in his library, reading “Endogamy: Is it for you?” Near the end of his life, his doctors painted Spanish Fly (cantharides) on his feet and “warm bodies of freshly killed pigeons were placed on his head.” I guess this was done medically so you’d jump out of bed cured and smack the doctor while saying, “What the f--- were you thinking?”
Cool fact to enliven a boring cocktail party: part of the French people’s hatred of Marie Antoinette was because she was a Hapsburg princess. “Spain was the strongest force in mounting a counter-offensive to the spread of Protestantism both doctrinally and in military terms.” Each Hapsburg in the otherwise visually beautiful Kapuzinergruft vaults (Google them) sadly “contributed to the advance of militant Catholicism.”
Under Charles VI during Lent in 1726, “In the streets outside there were crowds of people beating themselves with whips, while on their chests they carried notices listing their sins; others dragged heavy chains through the streets in penance or carried massive crosses on their backs. Most, if not all, were masked.” “The Emperor also liked to spend whole days in the woods with his rifle, shooting birds (who were minding their own business) and (surprisingly defenseless) small animals.” Years later in the 18th century, the Hapsburgs remained devoutly Catholic, but they now extended happiness to all their peoples, of whatever faith and beliefs. A great triumph for the Hapsburgs and Francis was the Congress of Vienna of 1814-15 where he played host basically to the shaping of Europe. If you lived in the Empire at that time, your house would have to show some visual token of your loyalty and patriotism, or your local Gladys Kravitz of the time would report you. In Vienna, during the Revolution of 1848 they chose ruthless suppression which worked, “not quite so bloody as the destruction of the Paris Commune of 1870.” 1848 was also noteworthy for being the first time that Vienna had been besieged since the Turks encamped around it in 1683. Fun fact.
This book was okay. Some of the stuff I wrote above I had to get off the internet because this book did not explain thoroughly some things well.
Spain was ruled by Hapsburg Kings from 1516 – 1700. They controlled Portugal from 1580 to 1640. Hapsburg Spain brought the world: Cervantes, Velazquez, El Greco, and Teresa of Avila. Hapsburg Spain ended when Charles II died in 1700. As a Hapsburg, you could be a Combo Platter: Philip II was both King of Spain and Grand poobah of the Hapsburg Netherlands (or Belgica in Latin – think of it as present-day Netherlands, plus Belgium, Luxembourg, and a smidge of France – it went from 1482-1795). Hapsburg Emperors of Austria were from 1804-1918. Hapsburg Kings of both Bohemia and Hungary were from 1780-1918. A Hapsburg was Emperor of Mexico for three years starting in 1864 before he was executed staring down his firing squad without a blindfold. Because the Hapsburgs consolidated their power usually through consanguineous marriages, they were playing Russian Roulette in the shallow end of their gene pool through inbreeding. The last of the Spanish line Charles II was severely disabled since birth.
1535, is the conquest of Tunis by Hapsburg’s extremist Catholic Charles V who captures it from the Ottomans. After landing, Charles V’s men then massacre 30,000 Tunisians. I can imagine afterwards, the men saying, “Right… where can you get a drink round here?” “You killed our bartender, Sir.” “Well, how about a nice pretty barmaid, who can fetch us something then?” “You slashed her throat, sir.” “Right.” What historically made Charles V leave the city in the end was the smell of rotting corpses (of his own making). And then under Charles’ loopy concept of Catholicism, he then made all the Jews in Tunis slaves. Moral: A Golden Fleece around the neck and a fancy name will make all religious hypocrisy seem okay. The punchline: blood-drenched Tunis was the high point in Charles V’s life. Christian devotee of the poor, Charles V kept more than 13,000 ounces of gold and silver in his retirement home where he kept tableware by Cellini. Funny how Charles V said once he had spent his lifetime “fighting heretics”. He thought all Protestants should be thrown in the fires without due process. Do all Hapsburg males make terrible moral role models, or was Charles V a one-off?
The Moorish Timeline for being in Spain is 711 – 1492. And so, Hapsburg Spain, beginning in 1516, had to deal with basically an Islamic state modified over just 20 years into a nominally Christian one. Ending overt Moorish and Morisco opposition would take almost a century for the Hapsburgs. In 1609, after Philip’s death the entire Morisco population was finally uprooted and shipped off to North Africa (Operation Come with Me to the Casbah). The extremist Catholic Hapsburgs fought Protestants in the Netherlands, as well as Spain. It’s nice to have hobbies. Ferdinand and Isabella’s first act was to remove all Jewish people from Grenada, and then they instituted “pure blood” doctrine and made it “a Spanish obsession”. This sounds way too much like a fascist prequel for Hitler. But I can also picture a model holding up a crystal bottle of a pure ounce of Catholic blood and saying to the camera, “Spanish Obsession …by Calvinist Klein”.
Just like with the Nazis, the Spanish Hapsburg’s propaganda department ran the story that a poor man with “untainted blood” was said to be worth more than the greatest person who’s slightly tainted. Sancho Panza in “Don Quijote” proudly states he was “free from any mixture of Jew or Moor”. No other royal house was so obsessed with blood as the Hapsburgs, and yet their own blood would be what made them fade into obscurity. From 1550 to 1700, the Hapsburg played a game: inbreeding became the most “desirable” and “appropriate” way to strengthen the Hapsburg name. Philip II was married twice to his kindred. Isabella married her cousin. Philip III married a cousin. Philip IV married his cousin. One of the daughters married their uncle. Carlos II had parents who were cousins, and evidently kissing cousins. Let’s face it, even twins in bassinets were eyeing each other. Charles II could not talk until age four, walk until age eight, and was described as having facial defects and was considered a lame, senile abject failure. I can picture Charles II in his library, reading “Endogamy: Is it for you?” Near the end of his life, his doctors painted Spanish Fly (cantharides) on his feet and “warm bodies of freshly killed pigeons were placed on his head.” I guess this was done medically so you’d jump out of bed cured and smack the doctor while saying, “What the f--- were you thinking?”
Cool fact to enliven a boring cocktail party: part of the French people’s hatred of Marie Antoinette was because she was a Hapsburg princess. “Spain was the strongest force in mounting a counter-offensive to the spread of Protestantism both doctrinally and in military terms.” Each Hapsburg in the otherwise visually beautiful Kapuzinergruft vaults (Google them) sadly “contributed to the advance of militant Catholicism.”
Under Charles VI during Lent in 1726, “In the streets outside there were crowds of people beating themselves with whips, while on their chests they carried notices listing their sins; others dragged heavy chains through the streets in penance or carried massive crosses on their backs. Most, if not all, were masked.” “The Emperor also liked to spend whole days in the woods with his rifle, shooting birds (who were minding their own business) and (surprisingly defenseless) small animals.” Years later in the 18th century, the Hapsburgs remained devoutly Catholic, but they now extended happiness to all their peoples, of whatever faith and beliefs. A great triumph for the Hapsburgs and Francis was the Congress of Vienna of 1814-15 where he played host basically to the shaping of Europe. If you lived in the Empire at that time, your house would have to show some visual token of your loyalty and patriotism, or your local Gladys Kravitz of the time would report you. In Vienna, during the Revolution of 1848 they chose ruthless suppression which worked, “not quite so bloody as the destruction of the Paris Commune of 1870.” 1848 was also noteworthy for being the first time that Vienna had been besieged since the Turks encamped around it in 1683. Fun fact.
This book was okay. Some of the stuff I wrote above I had to get off the internet because this book did not explain thoroughly some things well.
November 20, 2023
The Habsburgs rose from minor German nobility to ruling an Empire that encompassed Austria, eastern France, Belgium, Bohemia, Hungary, Spain/Portugal and their New World possessions. They ended up getting kicked out of Austria in 1918 as WW1 turbocharged nationalism and the old order collapsed.
How did they do it? Advantageous marriage and incest by the sounds of it.
Mildly interesting book. I feel that there must be better Habsburg histories out there.
How did they do it? Advantageous marriage and incest by the sounds of it.
Mildly interesting book. I feel that there must be better Habsburg histories out there.
June 9, 2021
An argument driven as opposed to descriptive history of the unity of the Habsburg approach in securing their rule. No context for major events given, so be ready to just inherently understand the effects of Napoleon on Europe and the War for Spanish Succession.
June 13, 2023
If the reader is not familiar with the Habsburg dynasty and reign or doesn't have too much prior knowledge about their impact on European history, then this book is not a good starting point. Wheatcroft assumes the reader knows all about how they ruled Central Europe, Spain and the Netherlands and therefore jumps around expecting us to know all about the Spanish secession, the Napoleonic wars and Hungary's history. He does not bother to go into details and explain them. Fortunately, I could pretty much follow along being an avid lover of European history.
But this is not actually the history of the Habsburgs. It is more a description in all the various ways the Habsburgs tried to legitimize their rule over their vast territories and their claim to the title as Emperors of the Holy Roman Empire. The Habsburgs are usually seen as being conservative, aloof rulers that gained power over almost the whole of Europe by marriage, and then losing it by being inept military leaders and poor organizers. In many ways this description is correct, although somewhat exaggerated (especially when it comes to being catastrophic military leaders, since Austria fought of the Ottomans in numerous wars). But what we tend to miss is that this not so flattering image, was deliberate, and part of a successful propaganda on their part. By ridiculous claims of being the heirs to Charlemagne, Frederick Barbarossa, Roman emperors and various Biblical personalities, the Habsburgs created a notion that they had always ruled, even though their roots were more as middle rank nobles. This propaganda was certainly reinforced by their sanguine and cool appearance to the masses that they are known for. Further, by building churches, cathedrals and monasteries for their dead, they created an image as the protectors of (catholic) Christianity, which was reinforced by fighting off heresy with the Inquisition and as being the bulwarks against the Islamic Turks. But in what way would that be different of any other king or emperor? Well the Habsburgs ruled as a collective. Most kings tried to legitimize themselves and their rule, but the Habsburg propaganda didn’t stop there. They wanted to legitimize their whole lineage, their whole family. They also reinforced this by a kind of morbid tendency of marrying relatives. In the long run this created problems in finding healthy male successors to the throne. I think every aristocrat in Europe must be somehow related to this family. The inbreeding was nuts!! No wonder quite a few of them were either mad, retarded, ugly and sickly. Puts a whole knew spin on inbreds! Glad I'm not one of them. I enjoyed it. 3.5 stars.
But this is not actually the history of the Habsburgs. It is more a description in all the various ways the Habsburgs tried to legitimize their rule over their vast territories and their claim to the title as Emperors of the Holy Roman Empire. The Habsburgs are usually seen as being conservative, aloof rulers that gained power over almost the whole of Europe by marriage, and then losing it by being inept military leaders and poor organizers. In many ways this description is correct, although somewhat exaggerated (especially when it comes to being catastrophic military leaders, since Austria fought of the Ottomans in numerous wars). But what we tend to miss is that this not so flattering image, was deliberate, and part of a successful propaganda on their part. By ridiculous claims of being the heirs to Charlemagne, Frederick Barbarossa, Roman emperors and various Biblical personalities, the Habsburgs created a notion that they had always ruled, even though their roots were more as middle rank nobles. This propaganda was certainly reinforced by their sanguine and cool appearance to the masses that they are known for. Further, by building churches, cathedrals and monasteries for their dead, they created an image as the protectors of (catholic) Christianity, which was reinforced by fighting off heresy with the Inquisition and as being the bulwarks against the Islamic Turks. But in what way would that be different of any other king or emperor? Well the Habsburgs ruled as a collective. Most kings tried to legitimize themselves and their rule, but the Habsburg propaganda didn’t stop there. They wanted to legitimize their whole lineage, their whole family. They also reinforced this by a kind of morbid tendency of marrying relatives. In the long run this created problems in finding healthy male successors to the throne. I think every aristocrat in Europe must be somehow related to this family. The inbreeding was nuts!! No wonder quite a few of them were either mad, retarded, ugly and sickly. Puts a whole knew spin on inbreds! Glad I'm not one of them. I enjoyed it. 3.5 stars.
February 10, 2020
The tale of a family that spent their resources not on armies or palaces (although they did) but upon image, history, and narrative--taking over central Europe in the process, for better or worse.
This book has an interesting premise, that you can learn a lot about politics based on the art that is commissioned by an empire. I felt like what I walked away with was a sense of being able to read portraits: who is shown, what's in the background, proportions, accoutrements. It all has very specific, very political meaning. But I also felt the author was far more interested in the beginnings of the Habsburgs than anything after the year 1700 or so. After that, the narrative starts to feel rushed and far drier than it was in the beginning of the book. Five stars for the first half, three stars for the second.
In general, if you're interested in the history of chaotic political systems--or if you like writing high fantasy--go for the Habsburgs. Once you start reading up on them, you'll see them everywhere. I burst out laughing when I realized how Lord Farquaad from Shrek got his chin :)
Recommended for history lovers and high-fantasy writers.
This book has an interesting premise, that you can learn a lot about politics based on the art that is commissioned by an empire. I felt like what I walked away with was a sense of being able to read portraits: who is shown, what's in the background, proportions, accoutrements. It all has very specific, very political meaning. But I also felt the author was far more interested in the beginnings of the Habsburgs than anything after the year 1700 or so. After that, the narrative starts to feel rushed and far drier than it was in the beginning of the book. Five stars for the first half, three stars for the second.
In general, if you're interested in the history of chaotic political systems--or if you like writing high fantasy--go for the Habsburgs. Once you start reading up on them, you'll see them everywhere. I burst out laughing when I realized how Lord Farquaad from Shrek got his chin :)
Recommended for history lovers and high-fantasy writers.
May 11, 2025
An odd history, in the end rather unsatisfactory. I don't dispute professor Wheatcroft's great learning but in the end like with his 'Enemy at the Gate' the years of research have overwhelmed a clear narrative because there is a lack of clarity in his arguments about the way the Habsburg's (interesting he uses this old fashioned spelling) ruled their domains. Maybe he is too concise, only 350 odd pages on a family that at one time ruled such a dazzlingly complex assortment of territories in both Europe and the Americas. It is not surprising that events like the war of the Spanish succession, never mind the wars of Marie Teresa, get no explication.
This is not a bad book, just not a good one. I can't see why anyone would read this in place of the 2021 'The Habsburgs: The Rise and Fall of a World Power' by Martyn Rady. For an even better introduction to both the Hapsburg's and their lands see 'Danubia: A Personal History of Hapsburg Europe' by Simon Winder. They are a good starting point and there are many others out there on individual Hapsburg rulers. I just don't think this book has worn well, or if it ever was good.
This is not a bad book, just not a good one. I can't see why anyone would read this in place of the 2021 'The Habsburgs: The Rise and Fall of a World Power' by Martyn Rady. For an even better introduction to both the Hapsburg's and their lands see 'Danubia: A Personal History of Hapsburg Europe' by Simon Winder. They are a good starting point and there are many others out there on individual Hapsburg rulers. I just don't think this book has worn well, or if it ever was good.
August 5, 2017
Non aspettatevi una dettagliata biografia dei numerosi sovrani della Casa d'Asburgo, nè la pedissequa storia dei loro altrettanto numerosi domini; sarebbe impossibile per chiunque, infatti, condensare in poco più di duecentocinquanta pagine effettive (le restanti sono costituite da note bibliografie, mappe e alberi genealogici) quasi dieci secoli di Storia. Non è questa la sede per farlo. L'intento di Wheatcroft è un altro, come ben si evince dal titolo della sua opera che costituisce esso stesso una sorta di dichiarazione di intenti. Qui gli eventi storici sono solo accennati, per lo più limitati agli episodi più significativi ed adatti a supportare il discorso, e le vite di arciduchi, re e imperatori sono tratteggiate in maniera breve seppur puntuale e precisa, con un solo scopo: mostrare l'inscalfibile senso dell'Impero di cui la grande casata austriaca era (ed è tutt'ora stando a quanto affermato da Wheatcroft) pervasa sin dagli albori.
Gli Asburgo di Wheatcroft non sono semplicemente i detentori del trono imperiale, i sovrani dell'Impero, essi stessi sono l'Impero. Il loro codice morale, le loro logiche dinastiche, hanno guidato ogni loro azione; sono mutati nei secoli eppure sono rimasti sempre uguali a sé stessi, sentendosi mai davvero padroni del proprio destino ma devoti all'alta missione divina e imperiale. Nati per essere imperatori, educati a vivere da imperatori e - perfino - a morire da imperatori. Proprio per questo senso di missione divina quasi sacerdotale (al pari dei re-sacerdoti degli albori della civiltà) gli Asburgo mai poterono davvero comprendere le ragioni ed il senso della fine di un ordine sociale, culturale e politico che sembrava immutabile ed eterno, apparendo - loro malgrado - retrogradi al meglio, tiranni al peggio, agli occhi dei loro contemporanei e dei posteri.
Che tutto ciò sia condivisibile o meno, Wheatcroft è riuscito a mostrarlo e a raccontarlo, con freschezza e leggerezza senza scadere nella pedanteria (solo i molti nomi di luoghi e persone possono disorientare un po') o nel pettegolezzo restando sempre imparziale (ad eccezione dei passi dedicati a Filippo II di Spagna, presentato - come naturale aspettarsi, dato che tutti gli storici britannici sono tendenzialmente anglocentrici - in modo negativo solo perchè grande nemico dell'Inghilterra).
Qualche difetto? Il focalizzarsi solo su di un unico argomento talmente vasto offre facili spunti all'accusa di superficialità quando si è costretti a sorvolare su guerre, eventi storici ed episodi biografici che meriterebbero maggior spazio. Inoltre il numero di pagine dell'opera può effettivamente apparire eccessivamente riduttivo; considerando la grande quantità di personaggi, un'altra cinquantina di pagine sarebbe stata l'ideale per dare più completezza e ampiezza alla trattazione.
Sarebbero tre stellette e 3/4 ma approssimo per eccesso a quattro in modo positivo.
Gli Asburgo di Wheatcroft non sono semplicemente i detentori del trono imperiale, i sovrani dell'Impero, essi stessi sono l'Impero. Il loro codice morale, le loro logiche dinastiche, hanno guidato ogni loro azione; sono mutati nei secoli eppure sono rimasti sempre uguali a sé stessi, sentendosi mai davvero padroni del proprio destino ma devoti all'alta missione divina e imperiale. Nati per essere imperatori, educati a vivere da imperatori e - perfino - a morire da imperatori. Proprio per questo senso di missione divina quasi sacerdotale (al pari dei re-sacerdoti degli albori della civiltà) gli Asburgo mai poterono davvero comprendere le ragioni ed il senso della fine di un ordine sociale, culturale e politico che sembrava immutabile ed eterno, apparendo - loro malgrado - retrogradi al meglio, tiranni al peggio, agli occhi dei loro contemporanei e dei posteri.
Che tutto ciò sia condivisibile o meno, Wheatcroft è riuscito a mostrarlo e a raccontarlo, con freschezza e leggerezza senza scadere nella pedanteria (solo i molti nomi di luoghi e persone possono disorientare un po') o nel pettegolezzo restando sempre imparziale (ad eccezione dei passi dedicati a Filippo II di Spagna, presentato - come naturale aspettarsi, dato che tutti gli storici britannici sono tendenzialmente anglocentrici - in modo negativo solo perchè grande nemico dell'Inghilterra).
Qualche difetto? Il focalizzarsi solo su di un unico argomento talmente vasto offre facili spunti all'accusa di superficialità quando si è costretti a sorvolare su guerre, eventi storici ed episodi biografici che meriterebbero maggior spazio. Inoltre il numero di pagine dell'opera può effettivamente apparire eccessivamente riduttivo; considerando la grande quantità di personaggi, un'altra cinquantina di pagine sarebbe stata l'ideale per dare più completezza e ampiezza alla trattazione.
Sarebbero tre stellette e 3/4 ma approssimo per eccesso a quattro in modo positivo.
July 13, 2022
哈布斯堡家族从鹰堡出发，走进大欧洲，700年间在欧洲留下了辉煌的历史。一个家族成就如此大的事业，其背后的原因究竟是什么呢？本书可能给出了较好的答案。
哈布斯堡家族有记载的祖先起自鹰堡，由于他们家贸易做得好，又通过早期的明智联姻，还通过修建和庇护修道院等扩大领地和势力范围，由此将利益越做越大，获得皇帝认可，并被授予封号。他们持续对皇帝忠诚奉献，家族成员鲁道夫最后被选为神圣罗马皇帝（实际为罗马人民的国王），即鲁道夫一世。这时的整个家族依然不华丽、不显赫，但他们的野心已经开始凝聚，只是隐藏了自己的权力欲望。在随后又失去世俗帝国统治权的100多年里，他们则在另一个层面上精心塑造自己的正面形象，在图像里，在建筑里，在彩色玻璃窗上，在符号和意象中，并渲染出他们家族的权力来自古罗马祖先尤利乌斯 · 恺撒和尼禄的赋予。到利奥波徳三世，他为了家族的土地战死沙场，被家族奉为圣人。在埋葬圣人的教堂里，哈布斯堡家族的一个持久观念开始形成：同基督、圣徒及殉道者一样，不幸使他们变得神圣。他们取胜，可以依靠信仰，这种内在的韧性是家族在接下来的几个世纪里得以存续的关键。
14、15世纪的欧洲出现的黑死病，大量民众的死亡直接挑战教皇的地位，宗教内部的争斗更加促进了俗世皇权地位的提升，进而各大贵族集团也开始想方设法提高自身的实力，到15世纪末，哈布斯堡家族出了马克西米利安，从而将整个格局打开。
马克西米利安之前，他的父亲腓特烈三世在位58年，尽管在各方面都很失败，但他却从未向敌人让步，这正体现了哈布斯堡家族的精神实质：“谁在谈论胜利，最重要的是活下去。”他坚信只有忠诚、坚定地服事上帝才可能取得成功。他着重于象征性力量的培养，虽然脱离了时代的现实和急需解决的一系列问题，但是这恰恰是哈布斯堡家族的传统。在树立哈布斯堡家族权威方面，腓特烈三世贡献卓著。
马克西米利安站在父亲的肩膀上，开始实施对帝国的变革，其手段极其简单，通过富有远见的联姻使帝国统治的土地不断扩大，他用少的可怜的钱财，完成了很多事情。最大的一笔交易就是西班牙的统治权于1500年落入哈布斯堡家族手里。可以说哈布斯堡家族是靠一路联姻达到了权力和荣耀的顶峰。
接续马克西米利安神圣罗马皇帝位的是其孙子查理五世，这一时期的统治面对的外部敌人是法国和奥斯曼土耳其，而更严重的冲突是路徳提出的宗教改革，即新教的崛起。哈布斯堡家族是坚定的天主教捍卫者，为此，他们不惜动用战争来挽救基督教世界，但最后他们并没有取胜。事实上，天主教与新教的争议并非关乎教义，而是关乎权威和权力。
在哈布斯堡帝国最鼎盛的时候，查理五世选择了退位，他把帝国授予自己的弟弟斐迪南一世，将西班牙王冠授予儿子腓力二世。从此，哈布斯堡家族分开两支，一支奥地利为中心，一支占据着西班牙，他们之间一直存在对立，但是共同的利益使的他们团结一心。最大的团结恐怕要数相互之间的通婚，由此保持血统的纯正，但也造就了一场巨大的遗传灾难，他们的后代不仅出现了身体上的缺陷，在精神上也出现了不正常的现象。而且婴儿死亡率居高不下，女孩要比男孩多得多，这彻底改变了哈布斯堡家族的未来。腓力二世这支虽然获得了最大的财富，但是也面临的巨大的挑战。有来自地中海土耳其的，由来自尼德兰新教异端的，有西班牙格拉纳达伊斯兰教的，还有在新大陆与异教徒和无信仰的人争战的，对腓力来说，这些都不能容忍，于是征战不断，不仅给后世留下残酷的印记，也耗尽了国家的财力。不过必须承认在腓力二世接下来的150年中，哈布斯堡家族打造全西班牙黄金时代是有目共睹的。稍后奥地利也由于治理有方，成为了一个幸福的国度，而且持续更久。
进入17世纪后半叶的欧洲，除了东边的奥斯曼土耳其扩张和匈牙利的独立诉求外，哈布斯堡家族最大的挑战来自西边的法兰西。当时的法兰西皇帝路易十四，是一个精力充沛的霸权主义者，其作派引起整个欧洲的恐慌，虽和神圣罗马帝国皇帝利奥波徳是表兄弟关系，但是双方关系并不好。正好这时西班牙的哈布斯堡家族绝嗣，继承权转向法兰西的波旁家族，使得双方矛盾激化。面对如此状况，看似赢弱的利奥波德皇帝利用自己的广博知识，和对天主教的虔诚取得了最后胜利。奥地利与法兰西在持续较量的同时，也走出各自不同的道路，路易十四重视个人光辉形象的塑造，哈布斯堡家族则注重整个家族传统形象的塑造；法国的宫廷礼仪轻松，奥地利宫廷的宗教礼仪则虔诚，等等。
到18世纪20年代，哈布斯堡家族没有了男性继承人，于是迎来了来了第一位女皇：玛丽亚·特雷莎。面对外界的奇异目光，女皇一往无前，进行了一系列的变革，还生育了一大群孩子，并精心养大他们，她的慈母形象广受赞誉。随后她的子孙延续了她的做法，儿子约瑟夫二世为子民谋福，废除了农奴制、简化了审查制度，限制了贵族权力、实行宗教自由、创立官僚体制。正逢启蒙运动时期，他是实实在在的践行者，给后人留下了一个幸福的奥地利。
由于行动的早，法国大革命并未对奥地利形成巨大的冲击。而且这时的皇帝利奥波德极为重视孩子的现实教育，他鼓励孩子们有自己的看法，而且告诉孩子们，他们的地位只能取决于其他人的认可，他们自身必须履行所有应尽的责任和义务，其他人也必须有权得到他们应得的利益。这些教诲被弗朗茨二世谨记在心。面对法国大革命的威胁，奥地利实行了压制政策，但执行的比较人性化，极少有人因为政治原因而被捕或遭到监禁。与此同时，弗朗茨二世开始有意识的通过新的手段展示领导人与子民亲近的关系，以及皇帝与家人享受天伦之乐的普通人形象。弗朗茨留给他儿子斐迪南最重要的政治遗嘱就是要保证家庭环境，并将此作为最高目标。但是弗朗茨的行为没有一丁点儿立宪思想，他依然坚持彻底的君主专制思想，在当时的欧洲，要坚守这一体制并不易。
1848年在帝国面临第三次重大危机时，家族集体商议将弗兰茨·约瑟夫推上了皇位。面对前所未有的变革，整个欧洲的统治集团都不知道该如何应对。上任伊始，弗兰茨·约瑟夫展现出家族特有的执着性格，先是成功地镇压了匈牙利的独立运动。同时，他开始把自己树立为人民第一公仆的形象。他崇尚秩序、形式和制度，以保证混乱的局面的有效地治理。但在情感上与茜茜公主的一段浪漫爱情为世人所瞩目。20世纪初的世界，新思潮不断涌现，但弗兰茨·约瑟夫老了，或更明确的说，哈布斯堡家族老了，难以适应新世纪的变化 。到1914年6月28日，皇子弗朗茨·斐迪南��萨拉热窝被杀，导致一战爆发，哈布斯堡家族开始真正走向衰败。
过去几百年间的世界重大事件中，这个家族不可或缺，这虽不是本书的重点，但并不会被人忘却。今天的哈布斯堡家族依然存在，似乎对世界的影响已经越来越小。但存在本身就说明，未来可期。
哈布斯堡家族有记载的祖先起自鹰堡，由于他们家贸易做得好，又通过早期的明智联姻，还通过修建和庇护修道院等扩大领地和势力范围，由此将利益越做越大，获得皇帝认可，并被授予封号。他们持续对皇帝忠诚奉献，家族成员鲁道夫最后被选为神圣罗马皇帝（实际为罗马人民的国王），即鲁道夫一世。这时的整个家族依然不华丽、不显赫，但他们的野心已经开始凝聚，只是隐藏了自己的权力欲望。在随后又失去世俗帝国统治权的100多年里，他们则在另一个层面上精心塑造自己的正面形象，在图像里，在建筑里，在彩色玻璃窗上，在符号和意象中，并渲染出他们家族的权力来自古罗马祖先尤利乌斯 · 恺撒和尼禄的赋予。到利奥波徳三世，他为了家族的土地战死沙场，被家族奉为圣人。在埋葬圣人的教堂里，哈布斯堡家族的一个持久观念开始形成：同基督、圣徒及殉道者一样，不幸使他们变得神圣。他们取胜，可以依靠信仰，这种内在的韧性是家族在接下来的几个世纪里得以存续的关键。
14、15世纪的欧洲出现的黑死病，大量民众的死亡直接挑战教皇的地位，宗教内部的争斗更加促进了俗世皇权地位的提升，进而各大贵族集团也开始想方设法提高自身的实力，到15世纪末，哈布斯堡家族出了马克西米利安，从而将整个格局打开。
马克西米利安之前，他的父亲腓特烈三世在位58年，尽管在各方面都很失败，但他却从未向敌人让步，这正体现了哈布斯堡家族的精神实质：“谁在谈论胜利，最重要的是活下去。”他坚信只有忠诚、坚定地服事上帝才可能取得成功。他着重于象征性力量的培养，虽然脱离了时代的现实和急需解决的一系列问题，但是这恰恰是哈布斯堡家族的传统。在树立哈布斯堡家族权威方面，腓特烈三世贡献卓著。
马克西米利安站在父亲的肩膀上，开始实施对帝国的变革，其手段极其简单，通过富有远见的联姻使帝国统治的土地不断扩大，他用少的可怜的钱财，完成了很多事情。最大的一笔交易就是西班牙的统治权于1500年落入哈布斯堡家族手里。可以说哈布斯堡家族是靠一路联姻达到了权力和荣耀的顶峰。
接续马克西米利安神圣罗马皇帝位的是其孙子查理五世，这一时期的统治面对的外部敌人是法国和奥斯曼土耳其，而更严重的冲突是路徳提出的宗教改革，即新教的崛起。哈布斯堡家族是坚定的天主教捍卫者，为此，他们不惜动用战争来挽救基督教世界，但最后他们并没有取胜。事实上，天主教与新教的争议并非关乎教义，而是关乎权威和权力。
在哈布斯堡帝国最鼎盛的时候，查理五世选择了退位，他把帝国授予自己的弟弟斐迪南一世，将西班牙王冠授予儿子腓力二世。从此，哈布斯堡家族分开两支，一支奥地利为中心，一支占据着西班牙，他们之间一直存在对立，但是共同的利益使的他们团结一心。最大的团结恐怕要数相互之间的通婚，由此保持血统的纯正，但也造就了一场巨大的遗传灾难，他们的后代不仅出现了身体上的缺陷，在精神上也出现了不正常的现象。而且婴儿死亡率居高不下，女孩要比男孩多得多，这彻底改变了哈布斯堡家族的未来。腓力二世这支虽然获得了最大的财富，但是也面临的巨大的挑战。有来自地中海土耳其的，由来自尼德兰新教异端的，有西班牙格拉纳达伊斯兰教的，还有在新大陆与异教徒和无信仰的人争战的，对腓力来说，这些都不能容忍，于是征战不断，不仅给后世留下残酷的印记，也耗尽了国家的财力。不过必须承认在腓力二世接下来的150年中，哈布斯堡家族打造全西班牙黄金时代是有目共睹的。稍后奥地利也由于治理有方，成为了一个幸福的国度，而且持续更久。
进入17世纪后半叶的欧洲，除了东边的奥斯曼土耳其扩张和匈牙利的独立诉求外，哈布斯堡家族最大的挑战来自西边的法兰西。当时的法兰西皇帝路易十四，是一个精力充沛的霸权主义者，其作派引起整个欧洲的恐慌，虽和神圣罗马帝国皇帝利奥波徳是表兄弟关系，但是双方关系并不好。正好这时西班牙的哈布斯堡家族绝嗣，继承权转向法兰西的波旁家族，使得双方矛盾激化。面对如此状况，看似赢弱的利奥波德皇帝利用自己的广博知识，和对天主教的虔诚取得了最后胜利。奥地利与法兰西在持续较量的同时，也走出各自不同的道路，路易十四重视个人光辉形象的塑造，哈布斯堡家族则注重整个家族传统形象的塑造；法国的宫廷礼仪轻松，奥地利宫廷的宗教礼仪则虔诚，等等。
到18世纪20年代，哈布斯堡家族没有了男性继承人，于是迎来了来了第一位女皇：玛丽亚·特雷莎。面对外界的奇异目光，女皇一往无前，进行了一系列的变革，还生育了一大群孩子，并精心养大他们，她的慈母形象广受赞誉。随后她的子孙延续了她的做法，儿子约瑟夫二世为子民谋福，废除了农奴制、简化了审查制度，限制了贵族权力、实行宗教自由、创立官僚体制。正逢启蒙运动时期，他是实实在在的践行者，给后人留下了一个幸福的奥地利。
由于行动的早，法国大革命并未对奥地利形成巨大的冲击。而且这时的皇帝利奥波德极为重视孩子的现实教育，他鼓励孩子们有自己的看法，而且告诉孩子们，他们的地位只能取决于其他人的认可，他们自身必须履行所有应尽的责任和义务，其他人也必须有权得到他们应得的利益。这些教诲被弗朗茨二世谨记在心。面对法国大革命的威胁，奥地利实行了压制政策，但执行的比较人性化，极少有人因为政治原因而被捕或遭到监禁。与此同时，弗朗茨二世开始有意识的通过新的手段展示领导人与子民亲近的关系，以及皇帝与家人享受天伦之乐的普通人形象。弗朗茨留给他儿子斐迪南最重要的政治遗嘱就是要保证家庭环境，并将此作为最高目标。但是弗朗茨的行为没有一丁点儿立宪思想，他依然坚持彻底的君主专制思想，在当时的欧洲，要坚守这一体制并不易。
1848年在帝国面临第三次重大危机时，家族集体商议将弗兰茨·约瑟夫推上了皇位。面对前所未有的变革，整个欧洲的统治集团都不知道该如何应对。上任伊始，弗兰茨·约瑟夫展现出家族特有的执着性格，先是成功地镇压了匈牙利的独立运动。同时，他开始把自己树立为人民第一公仆的形象。他崇尚秩序、形式和制度，以保证混乱的局面的有效地治理。但在情感上与茜茜公主的一段浪漫爱情为世人所瞩目。20世纪初的世界，新思潮不断涌现，但弗兰茨·约瑟夫老了，或更明确的说，哈布斯堡家族老了，难以适应新世纪的变化 。到1914年6月28日，皇子弗朗茨·斐迪南��萨拉热窝被杀，导致一战爆发，哈布斯堡家族开始真正走向衰败。
过去几百年间的世界重大事件中，这个家族不可或缺，这虽不是本书的重点，但并不会被人忘却。今天的哈布斯堡家族依然存在，似乎对世界的影响已经越来越小。但存在本身就说明，未来可期。
February 8, 2018
One reviewer wrote that this book "is essential for understanding modern Europe." I echo that sentiment. The author, Andrew Wheatcroft, wisely chose to confine this history to the nature of the Habsburg dynasty rather than to fritter away the reader's time in a rehashing of well-known seminal events such as the Thirty Years War or the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand in Sarajevo. For those interested in those isolated topics, there are thousands of well-written histories in many languages that can be sought. This book keeps its focus as narrow as possible, and in so doing has provided us with a unique study of a unique family.
European history seems to have many unconnected strands. Where did Metternich come from? Where was Austria in 1800? What became of 1848's peasant uprisings? Why is it only the Habsburg dynasty that made its mark for 500 years all across Europe? This book has insights into all these questions, and will cause you to consider many more. Should you be the type of reader who likes an intellectually challenging, thought-provoking history, this is a book you should seriously consider reading.
European history seems to have many unconnected strands. Where did Metternich come from? Where was Austria in 1800? What became of 1848's peasant uprisings? Why is it only the Habsburg dynasty that made its mark for 500 years all across Europe? This book has insights into all these questions, and will cause you to consider many more. Should you be the type of reader who likes an intellectually challenging, thought-provoking history, this is a book you should seriously consider reading.
Read
March 16, 2013I suspect that this book is probably best read by people already very familiar with the history of the Habsburgs. While there were a few new facts for me, most of what Wheatcroft had to tell so engagingly was familiar. The thing that kept me reading was his take on how they saw themselves. I had seen signs of this when I was in Austria four decades ago, delving in the library at the University of Vienna, and in my single trip into the Habsburg archives. (Gosh I wish I hadn't been a twenty-year-old ignoramus, I missed so much!)
Anyway, Wheatcroft, instead of shoving the imperial personalities into this or that box, as adjudged by nineteenth or twentieth century standards, sifted their memoirs, and the contemporary writings about them, to illustrate how they saw themselves--how they made the idea of the empire work as long as it did in the minds of client nations. Which is surprising, given the far-flung nature of the empire, and its multitude of languages.
Anyway, Wheatcroft, instead of shoving the imperial personalities into this or that box, as adjudged by nineteenth or twentieth century standards, sifted their memoirs, and the contemporary writings about them, to illustrate how they saw themselves--how they made the idea of the empire work as long as it did in the minds of client nations. Which is surprising, given the far-flung nature of the empire, and its multitude of languages.
April 11, 2022
A very readable and well structured history of an extraordinary family that’s tentacles stretch into almost all areas of european history. Most people know bits and pieces of their history but the author ties it all together in a really wonderful fashion across many centuries. The 30 years war, war of the spanish succesiom, war of the austrin succesiom, bohemia, hungary, the sieges of vienna and pf course the holy roman empire - so much of it is here.
January 22, 2018
A quick history of the thousand year reign of the Habsburgs. HIghlighting Maximilian, the combo Pope and emperor;Franz Joseph, Ferdinand Maximilian, the one who tried to control Mexico; Rudolf, and the women like Maria Theresa, who had lots of kids and named all the girls Maria, as in Marie Antoinette.
August 22, 2021
It takes enough courage to write a biography for the Habsburg dynasty. It requires not only to overcome numerous difficulties, but also to choose in its complex history, but also to have a unique insight in the mist of true and false, and strive to innovate. Unlike the Dutch writer Peter Judson’s book of the same name, which focuses on the empire and the people as the center of discussion and focuses on the reforms of the late empire, the British historical writer Wei Kean’s "The Habsbu Dynasty" pushes the Habsburg family from behind the scenes. To the front desk, with a unique and brand-new perspective, tell the story from its rise to its retreat from the stage of history, and strive to restore the original appearance of this famous and mysterious family in European history.
The impression that the Habsburg family left to the world is complex. It not only makes people look at their brutal rule, but also can't extricate themselves from indulging in the past. Leaving aside the vast territory of the Hehe Dynasty and its numerous ethnic groups and populations, its numerous family members alone are dazzling, as can be seen from the family tree attached to the book. In order to ensure the purity of the blood, European royal families often marry close relatives. The evil consequences caused by this are well known, but the Habsburg royal family is in vain and insists on going its own way. It's so pitiful to be so stubborn. Stubborn and honorable, is this wonderful flower in the eyes of the world really obsessed with the glorious years of the past and appreciates itself, ignoring the complexity and change of the real world?
Speaking of the Habsburg dynasty, we all love to see its famous double-headed eagle clan emblem. This two-headed eagle has soared over the European continent for 700 years. Isn't it an accident that can be summed up? Weikean bypassed the step-by-step narrative perspective and wedge into the early history of the Habsburg family with a war. The defeat and death of Leopold III at the Battle of Sempach is undoubtedly a breathtaking tragedy, but he is here. The courage and determination shown in the war is still commendable. "In a world ruled by honor, actions or events can be modified; failure can be transformed into victory, and facts can be transformed into legends or mysteries." Wei Ke'an concluded. Leopold III faced the challenge of the Swiss, tried to maintain the family honor and the inviolability of the territory, and punish the Swiss for betrayal, which can be described as active use of the world. Therefore, Leopold III, who became known as the Saint, became a model of the family and was followed by future generations. Leopold III said "I will conquer or die" on the battlefield. It is exciting to read, although it is doubtful whether it is true or not.
If a family’s early pioneering and high-spirited ambitions are justified, then the rulers of the late Habsburg dynasty were determined to forge ahead in the face of new international and domestic situations, and tried to revitalize the family’s glory through reforms. People are in awe. This family has always obtained many powers and traditions of other families through marriage, inheritance, land rights and even seizure. The territory continues to expand, and the prestige is growing. In addition, this family is not idler because of the skill of shifting flowers and trees, seeking power, and assimilation. In the later period, the territory shrank, the glory was no longer, and the disease became more and more serious. Maria Theresa and her son Joseph II devoted themselves to reforms, trying to build a refreshing empire, actively participating in the complex and changing world. No matter what the result is, this action alone will be a vulgar generation.
Attentive readers may have noticed the motto that pops up from time to time in the book. Frederick III's "happiness is irretrievable from forgetting" and his son Maximilian I's "hold the measure and wait and see" can be described as a vivid portrayal of the fate of the two. . After reading the chapter "Universal Empire", readers will naturally smile. In the late dynasty, Franz II's motto was "justice is the foundation of a country", and the idea of governing the country is impressive. Through these concise and powerful mottos, we can roughly understand the specific and subtle history of the Habsburg dynasty.
Existence is truth. It is no accident that the Habsburg dynasty came to the fore. There were complicated reasons for its birth, growth and decline. With just a book, you can only get a glimpse of the leopard. Wei Ke’an’s cleverness lies in the fact that what he tried to describe was the Habsburg family, the helm of the dynasty. Through the analysis of the main characters of this family, he puts people first, uses dots and lines, and leaves the readers with great attention. Imagine space. The history of the Habsburg dynasty is complex and indistinguishable, and the long past is often annihilated. Isn't it possible to restore history? History is created by man, and trying to restore a living man makes the impossible possible. Not believing in the history of youth is in ash, Wei Ke'an's hard work is worthy of the reader's in-depth experience.
The impression that the Habsburg family left to the world is complex. It not only makes people look at their brutal rule, but also can't extricate themselves from indulging in the past. Leaving aside the vast territory of the Hehe Dynasty and its numerous ethnic groups and populations, its numerous family members alone are dazzling, as can be seen from the family tree attached to the book. In order to ensure the purity of the blood, European royal families often marry close relatives. The evil consequences caused by this are well known, but the Habsburg royal family is in vain and insists on going its own way. It's so pitiful to be so stubborn. Stubborn and honorable, is this wonderful flower in the eyes of the world really obsessed with the glorious years of the past and appreciates itself, ignoring the complexity and change of the real world?
Speaking of the Habsburg dynasty, we all love to see its famous double-headed eagle clan emblem. This two-headed eagle has soared over the European continent for 700 years. Isn't it an accident that can be summed up? Weikean bypassed the step-by-step narrative perspective and wedge into the early history of the Habsburg family with a war. The defeat and death of Leopold III at the Battle of Sempach is undoubtedly a breathtaking tragedy, but he is here. The courage and determination shown in the war is still commendable. "In a world ruled by honor, actions or events can be modified; failure can be transformed into victory, and facts can be transformed into legends or mysteries." Wei Ke'an concluded. Leopold III faced the challenge of the Swiss, tried to maintain the family honor and the inviolability of the territory, and punish the Swiss for betrayal, which can be described as active use of the world. Therefore, Leopold III, who became known as the Saint, became a model of the family and was followed by future generations. Leopold III said "I will conquer or die" on the battlefield. It is exciting to read, although it is doubtful whether it is true or not.
If a family’s early pioneering and high-spirited ambitions are justified, then the rulers of the late Habsburg dynasty were determined to forge ahead in the face of new international and domestic situations, and tried to revitalize the family’s glory through reforms. People are in awe. This family has always obtained many powers and traditions of other families through marriage, inheritance, land rights and even seizure. The territory continues to expand, and the prestige is growing. In addition, this family is not idler because of the skill of shifting flowers and trees, seeking power, and assimilation. In the later period, the territory shrank, the glory was no longer, and the disease became more and more serious. Maria Theresa and her son Joseph II devoted themselves to reforms, trying to build a refreshing empire, actively participating in the complex and changing world. No matter what the result is, this action alone will be a vulgar generation.
Attentive readers may have noticed the motto that pops up from time to time in the book. Frederick III's "happiness is irretrievable from forgetting" and his son Maximilian I's "hold the measure and wait and see" can be described as a vivid portrayal of the fate of the two. . After reading the chapter "Universal Empire", readers will naturally smile. In the late dynasty, Franz II's motto was "justice is the foundation of a country", and the idea of governing the country is impressive. Through these concise and powerful mottos, we can roughly understand the specific and subtle history of the Habsburg dynasty.
Existence is truth. It is no accident that the Habsburg dynasty came to the fore. There were complicated reasons for its birth, growth and decline. With just a book, you can only get a glimpse of the leopard. Wei Ke’an’s cleverness lies in the fact that what he tried to describe was the Habsburg family, the helm of the dynasty. Through the analysis of the main characters of this family, he puts people first, uses dots and lines, and leaves the readers with great attention. Imagine space. The history of the Habsburg dynasty is complex and indistinguishable, and the long past is often annihilated. Isn't it possible to restore history? History is created by man, and trying to restore a living man makes the impossible possible. Not believing in the history of youth is in ash, Wei Ke'an's hard work is worthy of the reader's in-depth experience.
August 7, 2021
I am very disappointed as I expected a history book and rather found a poor attempt to storify the lives of Habsburgs. If you are interested in a history book that respects chronological order, this is not it.
November 26, 2013
Surprisingly readable, finished in a little over two days. Glosses over some of the more important historical events but gives excellent portraits of the most important Habsburgs.
August 17, 2025
Wheatcroft argues that the Habsburg aspirations to universal rule were present from the early days of the dynasty; that its members singled themselves out for greatness, even before they could be considered as such. He traces this through the art, ceremonies, celebrations, customs, beliefs, and architecture of the Habsburg realms, with special attention to medieval Spain. You could consider this book as akin in spirit to Johann Huizinga's The Autumn of the Middle Ages -- a book which Wheatcroft quotes several times -- in its attempt to build a cultural portrait of an emotionally distant past.
This all seems promising, but I found The Habsburgs an extremely dry read. There's a bit too much research -- some of it stretching back thirty years before the book's publication -- with not enough narrative to hold it all together. Though its format is chronological, Wheatcroft tends to jump back-and-forth in time with very little exposition. I was pretty lost in the medieval German and Spanish bits; from Maria Theresa onwards I began to get my bearings. In any case, this is a book which presumes a high-level of background knowledge: the reforms of Maria Theresa and Joseph II only receive about a page between them, most of it a reflection on their personal attitudes. I actually think this book to short for what it attempts. Though it contains a lot of nuanced argument, the analysis is too dense to be generally accessible. I can't help but feel that this book is largely superseded by Martyn Rady's The Habsburgs (2020), which more stylishly and cohesively tackles the exact same themes of Habsburg self-image.
I did learn some surprising things. Wheatcroft contends that the regime of censorship and espionage, usually attributed to Metternich, was really the brainchild of Emperor Francis. He patterned it on the style of rule that had already been happening in the Grand Duchy of Tuscany. The extent of his repression was quite limited and ineffectual; he mostly used it as a way to track public opinion and keep the wider family in line. His bureaucracy applied the rules rather haphazardly and half-heartedly, to the extent that nobody really seemed to know what would actually disqualify a work from publication. Punishments were not usually severe. Yes, the Habsburgs were deeply conservative and slow to change; but they were equally pragmatic and willing to concede a great deal when push came to shove. As far as despotisms, theirs was of an enlightened and relatively liberal, humane sort.
The Habsburgs were quick to take up new media and technologies. They used the printing press to publish biographies and family histories. A Habsburg-sponsored encyclopaedia of the Austro-Hungarian realms prompted an enormous collation of scientific, historical, and cultural knowledge; so that ordinary people might have the chance to read it, it was serialised in the newspapers for the next 26 years. They made use of photography and mass-media, circulating photographs of the royal family in intimate moments -- coronations, births, marriages -- via postcards and stamps. Franz Joseph himself would attend the opening ceremonies of hospitals and schools in faraway towns. All of this resulted in a cult of personality surrounding the Habsburg family. This cult of personality was the only meaningful hope for a non-ethnic "Austrian nationalism" in the late 19th and early 20th centuries; it died with Franz Joseph I during the Great War, and the subsequent disintegration of the Habsburg realms.
This all seems promising, but I found The Habsburgs an extremely dry read. There's a bit too much research -- some of it stretching back thirty years before the book's publication -- with not enough narrative to hold it all together. Though its format is chronological, Wheatcroft tends to jump back-and-forth in time with very little exposition. I was pretty lost in the medieval German and Spanish bits; from Maria Theresa onwards I began to get my bearings. In any case, this is a book which presumes a high-level of background knowledge: the reforms of Maria Theresa and Joseph II only receive about a page between them, most of it a reflection on their personal attitudes. I actually think this book to short for what it attempts. Though it contains a lot of nuanced argument, the analysis is too dense to be generally accessible. I can't help but feel that this book is largely superseded by Martyn Rady's The Habsburgs (2020), which more stylishly and cohesively tackles the exact same themes of Habsburg self-image.
I did learn some surprising things. Wheatcroft contends that the regime of censorship and espionage, usually attributed to Metternich, was really the brainchild of Emperor Francis. He patterned it on the style of rule that had already been happening in the Grand Duchy of Tuscany. The extent of his repression was quite limited and ineffectual; he mostly used it as a way to track public opinion and keep the wider family in line. His bureaucracy applied the rules rather haphazardly and half-heartedly, to the extent that nobody really seemed to know what would actually disqualify a work from publication. Punishments were not usually severe. Yes, the Habsburgs were deeply conservative and slow to change; but they were equally pragmatic and willing to concede a great deal when push came to shove. As far as despotisms, theirs was of an enlightened and relatively liberal, humane sort.
The Habsburgs were quick to take up new media and technologies. They used the printing press to publish biographies and family histories. A Habsburg-sponsored encyclopaedia of the Austro-Hungarian realms prompted an enormous collation of scientific, historical, and cultural knowledge; so that ordinary people might have the chance to read it, it was serialised in the newspapers for the next 26 years. They made use of photography and mass-media, circulating photographs of the royal family in intimate moments -- coronations, births, marriages -- via postcards and stamps. Franz Joseph himself would attend the opening ceremonies of hospitals and schools in faraway towns. All of this resulted in a cult of personality surrounding the Habsburg family. This cult of personality was the only meaningful hope for a non-ethnic "Austrian nationalism" in the late 19th and early 20th centuries; it died with Franz Joseph I during the Great War, and the subsequent disintegration of the Habsburg realms.
July 4, 2020
Following a trip to Austria last year, I fancied learning more about the Habsburg family, as I was only really aware of Marie Antoinette. Whilst there, 'Sisi' was everywhere and on our guided tour it was explained that the Habsburg family still exists, but they live more anonymous life. Once back home, we visited a local bookshop and I saw this book on the shelf and no others on the subject of this Austrian dynasty.
If you want a detailed explanation of the actions of the rulers, you won't get much out of this book. Crucial events are glossed over, such as the Spanish Armada. At times major battles that helped cement the iconography the author loves to gush over regarding these Emperors; are summed up in mere sentences. Stating who won and those involved but not much detail on the context behind them. Naming some key players in events and then not explaining who they are. There is also the assumption that you know the names of Historians and who there are as well. One repercussion of this is that a written account may be given either by someone who lived at the time, or a Historian from a more recent era. He also has an obsession with repeating certain things, such as that the Emperors where given a broach or necklace of the 'Order of the Golden Fleece'. Since most of these kept this feature when crowned, it would have been less tedious to just list the ones that had it or didn't.
All in all, its a book about how the Habsburg propaganda helped them keep the public supposedly happy and how they thought they were God's representative on Earth; (a notion other royal families had, so I'm unsure why this is considered so special). Since these factors and opinions of themselves seldom changed, the repetition gets a bit too much. The paintings shown are also placed in a peculiar order throughout the book. We'll see portraits of Emperors and relatives that haven't come into the frame yet so to speak. Leading you to have to go back when he gets around to describing them for you. The author also mentions artwork that isn't shown on these pages either on one occasion. My copy had some newspaper clippings form 1997 regarding this royal family and annotations of some incorrect statements. Such as the age of Elizabeth 'Sisi' when she got engaged to Franz Joseph. If you already have an in depth understanding of the whole family, then maybe you'd get more out of this book. If like me, you wanted to learn more about the individual rulers, I'd look for an alternative.
If you want a detailed explanation of the actions of the rulers, you won't get much out of this book. Crucial events are glossed over, such as the Spanish Armada. At times major battles that helped cement the iconography the author loves to gush over regarding these Emperors; are summed up in mere sentences. Stating who won and those involved but not much detail on the context behind them. Naming some key players in events and then not explaining who they are. There is also the assumption that you know the names of Historians and who there are as well. One repercussion of this is that a written account may be given either by someone who lived at the time, or a Historian from a more recent era. He also has an obsession with repeating certain things, such as that the Emperors where given a broach or necklace of the 'Order of the Golden Fleece'. Since most of these kept this feature when crowned, it would have been less tedious to just list the ones that had it or didn't.
All in all, its a book about how the Habsburg propaganda helped them keep the public supposedly happy and how they thought they were God's representative on Earth; (a notion other royal families had, so I'm unsure why this is considered so special). Since these factors and opinions of themselves seldom changed, the repetition gets a bit too much. The paintings shown are also placed in a peculiar order throughout the book. We'll see portraits of Emperors and relatives that haven't come into the frame yet so to speak. Leading you to have to go back when he gets around to describing them for you. The author also mentions artwork that isn't shown on these pages either on one occasion. My copy had some newspaper clippings form 1997 regarding this royal family and annotations of some incorrect statements. Such as the age of Elizabeth 'Sisi' when she got engaged to Franz Joseph. If you already have an in depth understanding of the whole family, then maybe you'd get more out of this book. If like me, you wanted to learn more about the individual rulers, I'd look for an alternative.
November 14, 2024
A book about the Habsburgs is certainly going to be a thick one. A family with a long history and part of the European history for over 1000 years. In spite of this, Wheatcroft has been able to give an account of the family in just under 300 pages (not including footnotes and timelines). Considering the number of Habsburgs that have passed by during this time span, it is a thorough historical account of their lives and deeds. Some gets a little bit more space and some less, and rightly so. It starts with the first Dukes of Austria, originating from, what is today, south of Switzerland, in 1020 and continues to the last emperor, Karl I who was dethroned in 1919.
I will not even try to make a summary of this interesting family and its input on the history of Europe. As with most ruling dynasties, it is a matter of wars, conquering of land, survival through intrigues, influence as well as personal lives through marriage, children and the fight for survival of the dynasty. As regards the latter part there were both good and bad sides of the motto of Austria: Felix Austria Nube.
"The impact of this Spanish fixation with blood and race on the Habsburgs remains conjectural. But their marriage patterns in the century and a half of the 'Madrid-Vienna axis' are unique in the history of Western Europe. 'Happy Austria marries': and it is a matter of record that the Habsburgs had gained their patchwork of lands by marriage alliances underestimates the intense military activity undertaken, especially in Italy to sustain and consolidate their holdings. It also, wrongly, suggests that other families did not use marriage in the same way to cement of consolidate political alliances. But what distinguished the Habsburgs' marriage strategy especially after the death of Charles V, was its inventiveness and capacity to adapt to new circumstances. No other royal house had developed so coherent a notion of 'the power of the blood'."
Royal marriages have always been a political game, and did most of the time, but not always, lead to unhappy marriages. However, many of the Habsburgs seemed to have loved their spouse and their children, in a way which was not common at the time.
"Many Habsburg marriages seemed despite their political origins to have turned into genuine love-matches, and the anguish that Habsburg parents felt at the death of their children, even as tine infants, also seems unfeigned, even if expressed in terms of a dutiful resignation to the divine will."
One of the most famous of the emperors, and the man who consolidated and extended the then rather small empire of the Habsburgs, Maximilian I, was very much in love with his first wife, He married Mary of Burgundy, a request by his father, Frederick III. The union turned out to be a union of love from both sides. They were married in 1477 and Maximilian was devastated when she died in a riding accident in 1482. Fate does not always turn out that good. In 1493 he married Bianca Maria Sforza who brought a rich dowry and rights as imperial overlord of Milan. It was an unhappy marriage and they had no children. It generated a huge number of bastards though, and he seemed to have been very fond of them and provided for them.
Maximilian died on 12 January, 1519, and is buried under the altar steps of the church of St George at Wiener Neustadt. "Where he was buried, he said, he would feel the priest stand on his chest when he raised the host during the mass. But his chest was an empty cavity, for his last command had been that his heart be embalmed, carried to Bruges, and reunited with the body of his first wife, Mary of Burgundy." I find this terribly romantic, and not typical for the time.
The other face, and not such a nice one, of the Habsburg's marriage policy was the inbreeding.
"Ferdinand III dutifully produced a total of eleven children, but only two sons who survived infancy. The death of his elder son, Ferdinand, from the universal scourge of smallpox in 1654 brought the younger brother Leopold to the fore, as the senior surviving male in the Austrian branch of the house of Habsburg. After 1665, he was the only surviving male member of his immediate lineage. Thus despite all this prodigious begetting, the twin Habsburg thrones (in the male line) depended on two sickly cousins, Leopold and Carlos. Although much has been made of the dire genetic effects of inbreeding, much more dangerous for the Habsburgs was the devastating rate of infant mortality, and the prevalence of epidemic disease in the close confines of the courts, in Madrid and in Vienna, Graz and Innsbruck. Numerically, the Habsburgs seemed to produce a great many more daughters than sons, and these daughters tended to survive longer than their seemingly more vulnerable brothers. Of course, the life expectancy of Habsburg women was drastically reduced by early marriage, repeated pregnancies, and death in childbirth or from puerperal fevers."
The inbreeding (in the Spanish line) came to and end with Charles II of Spain. He suffered from ill health all his life, but did survive until the age of 39. His disabilities were more physical with the famous Habsburg jaw, where the lower jaw outgrows the upper one. The English ambassador, Stanhope, reported in 1697:
"His constitution is so very weak and broken much beyond his age that it is generally feared what may be the success of such another attack. They cut his hair off in his sickness, which the decay of nature had almost done before, all his crown being bald. He has a ravenous stomach, and swallow all he eats whole, for his nether jaw stands so much out, that his two rows of teeth cannot meet; to compensate which, he has a prodigious wide throat, so that a gizzard or liver of a hen passes down whole, and his weak stomach not being able to digest it, he voids in the same manner."
The last in the Spanish line of the Habsburgs, he died in 1700 without an heir, and chose Louis XIV's grandson Philip of Anjou as successor. France was no friend of the Habsburgs, during most of their history, and it did not go down well in Vienna. It led to the War of the Spanish Succession.
I have chosen to mention a few notes dealing with the more personal side of the Habsburgs. The Habsburgs is so much more. It is a well researched and easy accessible biography over a family that fought for political control of their dominions for more or less a thousand years. Through the book we get to know the great and not so great achievements, their struggle for power and glory, for family and legacies. It is a tour through European history. Andrew Wheatcroft writes with knowledge and compassion and presents a fascinating story of a family's rise and decline.
I will not even try to make a summary of this interesting family and its input on the history of Europe. As with most ruling dynasties, it is a matter of wars, conquering of land, survival through intrigues, influence as well as personal lives through marriage, children and the fight for survival of the dynasty. As regards the latter part there were both good and bad sides of the motto of Austria: Felix Austria Nube.
"The impact of this Spanish fixation with blood and race on the Habsburgs remains conjectural. But their marriage patterns in the century and a half of the 'Madrid-Vienna axis' are unique in the history of Western Europe. 'Happy Austria marries': and it is a matter of record that the Habsburgs had gained their patchwork of lands by marriage alliances underestimates the intense military activity undertaken, especially in Italy to sustain and consolidate their holdings. It also, wrongly, suggests that other families did not use marriage in the same way to cement of consolidate political alliances. But what distinguished the Habsburgs' marriage strategy especially after the death of Charles V, was its inventiveness and capacity to adapt to new circumstances. No other royal house had developed so coherent a notion of 'the power of the blood'."
Royal marriages have always been a political game, and did most of the time, but not always, lead to unhappy marriages. However, many of the Habsburgs seemed to have loved their spouse and their children, in a way which was not common at the time.
"Many Habsburg marriages seemed despite their political origins to have turned into genuine love-matches, and the anguish that Habsburg parents felt at the death of their children, even as tine infants, also seems unfeigned, even if expressed in terms of a dutiful resignation to the divine will."
One of the most famous of the emperors, and the man who consolidated and extended the then rather small empire of the Habsburgs, Maximilian I, was very much in love with his first wife, He married Mary of Burgundy, a request by his father, Frederick III. The union turned out to be a union of love from both sides. They were married in 1477 and Maximilian was devastated when she died in a riding accident in 1482. Fate does not always turn out that good. In 1493 he married Bianca Maria Sforza who brought a rich dowry and rights as imperial overlord of Milan. It was an unhappy marriage and they had no children. It generated a huge number of bastards though, and he seemed to have been very fond of them and provided for them.
Maximilian died on 12 January, 1519, and is buried under the altar steps of the church of St George at Wiener Neustadt. "Where he was buried, he said, he would feel the priest stand on his chest when he raised the host during the mass. But his chest was an empty cavity, for his last command had been that his heart be embalmed, carried to Bruges, and reunited with the body of his first wife, Mary of Burgundy." I find this terribly romantic, and not typical for the time.
The other face, and not such a nice one, of the Habsburg's marriage policy was the inbreeding.
"Ferdinand III dutifully produced a total of eleven children, but only two sons who survived infancy. The death of his elder son, Ferdinand, from the universal scourge of smallpox in 1654 brought the younger brother Leopold to the fore, as the senior surviving male in the Austrian branch of the house of Habsburg. After 1665, he was the only surviving male member of his immediate lineage. Thus despite all this prodigious begetting, the twin Habsburg thrones (in the male line) depended on two sickly cousins, Leopold and Carlos. Although much has been made of the dire genetic effects of inbreeding, much more dangerous for the Habsburgs was the devastating rate of infant mortality, and the prevalence of epidemic disease in the close confines of the courts, in Madrid and in Vienna, Graz and Innsbruck. Numerically, the Habsburgs seemed to produce a great many more daughters than sons, and these daughters tended to survive longer than their seemingly more vulnerable brothers. Of course, the life expectancy of Habsburg women was drastically reduced by early marriage, repeated pregnancies, and death in childbirth or from puerperal fevers."
The inbreeding (in the Spanish line) came to and end with Charles II of Spain. He suffered from ill health all his life, but did survive until the age of 39. His disabilities were more physical with the famous Habsburg jaw, where the lower jaw outgrows the upper one. The English ambassador, Stanhope, reported in 1697:
"His constitution is so very weak and broken much beyond his age that it is generally feared what may be the success of such another attack. They cut his hair off in his sickness, which the decay of nature had almost done before, all his crown being bald. He has a ravenous stomach, and swallow all he eats whole, for his nether jaw stands so much out, that his two rows of teeth cannot meet; to compensate which, he has a prodigious wide throat, so that a gizzard or liver of a hen passes down whole, and his weak stomach not being able to digest it, he voids in the same manner."
The last in the Spanish line of the Habsburgs, he died in 1700 without an heir, and chose Louis XIV's grandson Philip of Anjou as successor. France was no friend of the Habsburgs, during most of their history, and it did not go down well in Vienna. It led to the War of the Spanish Succession.
I have chosen to mention a few notes dealing with the more personal side of the Habsburgs. The Habsburgs is so much more. It is a well researched and easy accessible biography over a family that fought for political control of their dominions for more or less a thousand years. Through the book we get to know the great and not so great achievements, their struggle for power and glory, for family and legacies. It is a tour through European history. Andrew Wheatcroft writes with knowledge and compassion and presents a fascinating story of a family's rise and decline.
March 12, 2018
This book has sat on my shelf for 15 years unread, most likely because I feared it would be boring...
Apparently, the author took 30 years to get around to completing it. It shows - both in a good
and a bad way. There is clearly a huge amount of research and thought that went into the foundations of this book - but the net result is, for my taste, over-ripe. I'd rather he'd put out a fresher version, a decade or two earlier.
Or actually, what I was hoping for was a more coherent history of the Habsburgs. There is at times infuriating repetition in the text here (particularly if you count postscripts as text) and, worst of all, we are led all over the place, geographically and time-wise (forwards and backwards, without any warning) - hell on earth for uninitiated readers like myself, given the Habsburgs' complete lack of imagination when it came to naming their children (at some point, I just gave up trying working out which damn Theodore or Otto he was talking about...)
Major events are ignored or glossed over.
So, be warned, this is neither linear nor a self-contained history of the Habsburgs.
If you've already read 5-10 books which cover the historical events of the period(s) in reasonable detail, then the value added by this book is that it approaches the "essence of the Habsburgs" - as the author states in the closing chapter, "I have turned away from the events that I have been trained to consider important, to those other issues that loomed large in the minds of my subjects."
Apparently, the author took 30 years to get around to completing it. It shows - both in a good
and a bad way. There is clearly a huge amount of research and thought that went into the foundations of this book - but the net result is, for my taste, over-ripe. I'd rather he'd put out a fresher version, a decade or two earlier.
Or actually, what I was hoping for was a more coherent history of the Habsburgs. There is at times infuriating repetition in the text here (particularly if you count postscripts as text) and, worst of all, we are led all over the place, geographically and time-wise (forwards and backwards, without any warning) - hell on earth for uninitiated readers like myself, given the Habsburgs' complete lack of imagination when it came to naming their children (at some point, I just gave up trying working out which damn Theodore or Otto he was talking about...)
Major events are ignored or glossed over.
So, be warned, this is neither linear nor a self-contained history of the Habsburgs.
If you've already read 5-10 books which cover the historical events of the period(s) in reasonable detail, then the value added by this book is that it approaches the "essence of the Habsburgs" - as the author states in the closing chapter, "I have turned away from the events that I have been trained to consider important, to those other issues that loomed large in the minds of my subjects."
May 23, 2023
Wheatcroft doesn’t seem to like them
He’s acquired the unfortunate trait of some English academics gone 'native' in Scotland, of disliking anything bigger, and more historically important than Scotland, viz. the Habsburgs and the British Empire. Whilst the Habsburg's were at times tyrannically religious, their ranks containing the occasional imperial zealot, some of them do deserve a generosity of spirit that I thought was just lacking in his interpretation of their imperial rule.
His, I thought superflous mention of a Scottish large sword, when there must have been any number of similar death-dealing sword examples in the vast European hinterland, was incongruous and not relevant to the subject matter, the Habsburg empire. I was born in Scotland, but consider myself first and foremost British, with none of today's nationalist 'more Scottish than thee' baggage, so mentioning this more obscure example seemingly for the sake of it I found irksome.
The work seems to have taken him decades to complete, notes in 1967, finally published in 1995, and this shows in the sometimes juddering ebb and flow of the detail, which at times can be torturous, when you're trying to keep up with the Habsburg's historical narrative in something like a time linear fashion.
When I was reading this, I often wondered how the Habsburgs ever managed to have such a large and long lasting empire at all, if Wheatcroft's interpretation of them is to be accepted? It seems therefore as previous historians have said of the British Empire, that it ‘happened by accident’.
He’s acquired the unfortunate trait of some English academics gone 'native' in Scotland, of disliking anything bigger, and more historically important than Scotland, viz. the Habsburgs and the British Empire. Whilst the Habsburg's were at times tyrannically religious, their ranks containing the occasional imperial zealot, some of them do deserve a generosity of spirit that I thought was just lacking in his interpretation of their imperial rule.
His, I thought superflous mention of a Scottish large sword, when there must have been any number of similar death-dealing sword examples in the vast European hinterland, was incongruous and not relevant to the subject matter, the Habsburg empire. I was born in Scotland, but consider myself first and foremost British, with none of today's nationalist 'more Scottish than thee' baggage, so mentioning this more obscure example seemingly for the sake of it I found irksome.
The work seems to have taken him decades to complete, notes in 1967, finally published in 1995, and this shows in the sometimes juddering ebb and flow of the detail, which at times can be torturous, when you're trying to keep up with the Habsburg's historical narrative in something like a time linear fashion.
When I was reading this, I often wondered how the Habsburgs ever managed to have such a large and long lasting empire at all, if Wheatcroft's interpretation of them is to be accepted? It seems therefore as previous historians have said of the British Empire, that it ‘happened by accident’.
April 20, 2025
Imagine you have had a bad week at work. You are looking forward to going to the game on Saturday and getting a pie and bovril. By halftime your team are 4 nil down and your pie tastes like a lump of clay and your bovril is lukewarm brown water. This book was a similar experience to what that would be like. I was expecting a vivid, in depth portrait of the Habsburg’s, full of blood, war, scandal and death. What I actually got was a 337 page university thesis on the Habsburg’s use of art and literature in order to promote themselves and their family business. Not really the same thing. There are innumerable lengthy passages on models being built, pictures being painted and books being written. Occasionally the author gives us something interesting, but those passages are few and far between. Instead you’re more likely to get 3 pages on a glorified Lego model or a painting showing an angel shining a light from her boob on to the top of some Emperors head while he sits on a throne surrounded by lots of crowns. All very interesting visually I’m sure, but duller than dish water to read about. There are so many interesting characters that run through the Habsburg’s history but you will read and learn almost nothing about them. You will however, learn lots about propaganda and how the Habsburg’s used it. He could have covered that in 20 pages and saved me and my poor brain a lot of time. Time I could have spent reading something better.
April 18, 2022
"The Habsburgs: Embodying Empire" is a very interesting -- if albeit slow due to the immense amount of information and detail Andrew Wheatcroft stuffed into it -- book about the way the Habsburg's went about myth-making their way into creating an empire. This is not a history of the Habsburgs; though Wheatcroft mentions basically every Habsburg ruler after a certain point, and goes through them chronologically, an exhaustive retelling of the family tree is not the point of this book. Instead, Wheatcroft focuses on the ways many Habsburg rulers actively engaged in creating an image of themselves that the public could hold onto. Whether they did this by exaggerating their lineage, generating connections to saints and historical leaders out of thin air, publishing books that exulted them, and so many palaces and art, this is a fascinating look at the way ruler's used the best PR available to them at the time to make their (often very tenuous) positions more secure.
October 17, 2023
Author, Andrew Wheatcroft, should be expert on the subject; thickness of the references pages at the end of the book is proof of it.
But unfortunately, I can't get this expertise because of two things; first is written in an entertaining narrative way with the assumption that
reader has quiet wide knowledge on the subject. Secondly British writing style; I don't know how to describe it,
I am used to American structured way of composing sentences.
Sentences are long, and difficult to trace the meaning until reaching end of the sentence.
Obviously it is fun for author to write in this fashion, I am nor sure if it is same for the reader;
may be it is me, I am not a native, British, American reader.
Saying all this, I still liked the novel way of narrating this subject.
Also I liked giving emphasis on the personalities of the members of Habsburgs.
It is fun to read if you love the subject, and know general frame of the subject and be patient with long sentences.
But unfortunately, I can't get this expertise because of two things; first is written in an entertaining narrative way with the assumption that
reader has quiet wide knowledge on the subject. Secondly British writing style; I don't know how to describe it,
I am used to American structured way of composing sentences.
Sentences are long, and difficult to trace the meaning until reaching end of the sentence.
Obviously it is fun for author to write in this fashion, I am nor sure if it is same for the reader;
may be it is me, I am not a native, British, American reader.
Saying all this, I still liked the novel way of narrating this subject.
Also I liked giving emphasis on the personalities of the members of Habsburgs.
It is fun to read if you love the subject, and know general frame of the subject and be patient with long sentences.
March 12, 2025
If you're into history and this particular time period, this is a very detailed and very dry, book for you! As always, Folio did a very good job of jazzing up the subject with stunningly rich colour reproductions of artwork, detailed maps, and some very complex family tree diagrams that will make your head spin.
Not a light read by any means (I tend to read this stuff only when the mood suits, and space it out over many months, sometimes years) it was still fascinating, even if somewhat overwhelming. Any dynasty that manages to last that long is bound to be richly complex. The author did a pretty good job in a near impossible task of condensing an unimaginable amount of information into readable bits, interspersed with fascinating, and oftentimes humorous, anecdotal glimpses into an historically rich family.
Not a light read by any means (I tend to read this stuff only when the mood suits, and space it out over many months, sometimes years) it was still fascinating, even if somewhat overwhelming. Any dynasty that manages to last that long is bound to be richly complex. The author did a pretty good job in a near impossible task of condensing an unimaginable amount of information into readable bits, interspersed with fascinating, and oftentimes humorous, anecdotal glimpses into an historically rich family.
October 25, 2022
Awful, gave up after 100 pages (my absolute upper limit when I detest what I am reading).
I have read dozens upon dozens of history books and this is right at the bottom of the lot.
It jumps around chronologically so it is almost impossible to follow the chain of events. It focuses in minute detail on the regalia, legend and mythmaking, pomp and ceremony surrounding the Habsburgs. This makes the book incredibly detail rich but also completely unable to convey infromation effectively because it is out of chronological order and gives little regard to the surrounding political and economic situation surrounding the lives of the main characters.
For the most part, significant historical events are a mere side note.
Absolute garbage, avoid.
I have read dozens upon dozens of history books and this is right at the bottom of the lot.
It jumps around chronologically so it is almost impossible to follow the chain of events. It focuses in minute detail on the regalia, legend and mythmaking, pomp and ceremony surrounding the Habsburgs. This makes the book incredibly detail rich but also completely unable to convey infromation effectively because it is out of chronological order and gives little regard to the surrounding political and economic situation surrounding the lives of the main characters.
For the most part, significant historical events are a mere side note.
Absolute garbage, avoid.
November 22, 2024
The author himself notes the Habsburgs’ complete lack of creativity in naming which, combined with their habit of marrying each other, complicates tracking which particular Habsburg one is referring to in the moment. So one wonders why the author didn’t do more to simplify matters for the reader, perhaps with the use of regnal numbers, dynastic or territorial identifiers for those outside the clan, or even parenthetical birth and death years just to give an idea of which generation he was talking about.
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