The Habsburg Empire: A Historical Overview of the House of Habsburg - Essay Sample

Introduction

In history, the Habsburg Empire is utilized as an unofficial term used to refer to a wide range of territories controlled by the members of the House of Habsburg which was divided in the year 1556 between the German or Austrian Habsburg and the Spanish Habsburg (Berenger & Simpson, 2014). The division of the Habsburg Empire took place after the incumbent leader Holy Roman Emperor Charles V abdicated the throne. However, before the House of Habsburg become a monarchy, the family initially originated from what is commonly known as Switzerland in the contemporary world whereby they controlled lands in the northwestern region of the country as well as in Alsace (Berenger & Simpson, 2014). Their family name "Habsburg" was derived from a castle located within the environs of Aargau in Switzerland by an individual called Otto who was also the designated count during that particular period (Berenger & Simpson, 2014). By the year 1279, during the Renaissance, the House of Habsburg had risen to become the most dominant family regarding political matters within the European continent (Berenger & Simpson, 2014).

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The family's political domination in the European continent was made possible through a series of well-planned marriages with people from different backgrounds (Berenger & Simpson, 2014). Such intermarriages made it possible for the House of Habsburg to overcome different territorial as well as language barriers, consequently facilitating the family's control over a significant portion of the European continent as well as the Americas (Berenger & Simpson, 2014). Nonetheless, as it is the case with every other aspect of life, "what goes up must come down." Therefore, after a long period as the dominant family in European politics, the Habsburg Empire began to experience a gradual decline, which ultimately led to the fall of the empire. The decline and ultimate demise of the empire are attributed to a wide range of issues which tend to incorporate internal disputes within the House of Habsburg for control of the vast empire.

The Rise of the Habsburg Empire

The Habsburg Ascent

Rudolf I and Albert II

The emergence and rise of the Habsburg empire can be traced back to the year 1246 when the family first took over the control of Austria (Judson, 2016). Like any other family which rose to become a monarchy during this particular period, the House of Habsburg was no different as it was an ambitious family who sought to expand its territory by either waging war on it enemies or creating alliances with their rivals through intermarriages (Judson, 2016). However, unlike the others, the House of Habsburg was highly successful as it was able to win over the control of the Holy Roman Empire which they controlled for several decades through Rudolf I and his successor Albert I who was also Rudolf's son (Judson, 2016). After ruling for several decades through Rudolf and his son Albert, the House of Habsburg lost its grip over the imperial throne as a consequence of internal family rivalries, ambitions from other rival families as well as political instability within the European continent (Judson, 2016). Nonetheless, the inability to control the imperial throne was short-lived as in the year 1438, Albert II of the House of Habsburg seized power, consequently ruling for a year (Judson, 2016).

Frederick III

At the end of his reign in 1439, Albert II was succeeded by his cousin Frederick, the Duke of Styria who ruled as Frederick III for more than 50 years (Kann, 1974). During his reign as the emperor, Frederick carried out various steps that were geared towards solidifying the House of Habsburg's grip on power. For instance, he began by marrying Eleanor of Portugal, a marriage which in the long run facilitated the Habsburg's control over the Portuguese kingdom in the late 1500s (Kann, 1974). Moreover, Frederick also agreed with Pope Nicholas V. The agreement with the Roman Catholic leader allowed the Holy Emperor to acquire authority over the process of appointing church leaders within the Habsburg Empire (Kann, 1974). Furthermore, Frederick's son Maximilian was also involved in another marriage of convenience as became the husband to Mary of Burgundy, who was the daughter to the highly successful duke of Burgundy (Kann, 1974).

The Peak of the Habsburg Empire

Maximilian I

At the time of his death in 1493, Frederick was succeeded by his son Maximilian I becoming the emperor (Kann, 1974). A well-educated individual in different matters such as astrology, weaponry, and music, Maximilian was well effective in ruling the empire as he had previously assisted his father to manage the Holy Roman Empire by serving as the Roman King after defeating two French kings in battlefields (Kann, 1974). Regardless of being well suited for the job, Maximilian experienced a wide range of problems in his quest to rule. For instance, Maximilian had to deal with a fierce dispute over Italy with their French neighbors. Also, he had to handle constant threats to his empire from the Ottoman Turks (Kann, 1974).

Moreover, he also struggled to contain reformers who were seeking alterations to the political landscape (Kann, 1974). Furthermore, there were arguments over issues of taxation (Kann, 1974). However, similar to his father's antics, in the year 1494, Maximilian married Bianca Maria Sforza, the daughter to the Duke of Milan as a way of advancing his interests in Italy in the face of a dispute with France (Kann, 1974). Also, he successfully secured control over Austria after defeating the Hungarians of Vienna origin (Kann, 1974). He was also successful in persuading the incumbent Bohemian King to pass the crown to the House of Habsburg in case he failed to sire and male heirs, an aspect which significantly increased the Habsburg prospects of territory expansion (Kann, 1974).

The Global Habsburg Empire

Charles V

The end of Maximilian's reign was marked by his son Charles V ascending to power (Berenger & Simpson, 2014). An emperor who was bestowed with many titles, Charles V inherited a wide range of issues from his father reign. For instance, the empire was facing a religious crisis propagated by an individual called Martin Luther, who was tirelessly advocating for reforms within the church (Berenger & Simpson, 2014). Therefore, as a staunch Roman Catholic, Charles persistently tried to suppress Martin and his calls for church reforms to no success. However, he was able to defeat military advances from the Ottoman Turks as well as the French (Berenger & Simpson, 2014). In addition to mitigating external military threats, Charles further increased the size of the Habsburg Empire by successfully capturing Tunis in Africa, conquering the Aztecs in Mexico through Hernan and the Inca in Peru through Francisco Pizarro (Berenger & Simpson, 2014).

Dividing the Habsburg Empire

In the year 1550, Charles announced that he would abdicate the throne in favor of his son Philip as a way of ensuring that power was still confined within the House of Habsburg (Berenger & Simpson, 2014). His desire was nonetheless unpopular within the empire. Therefore, to avoid the emergence of civil conflict, Charles agreed with his brother Ferdinand I. In their agreement, the two concluded that Charles would be succeeded by his brother who later on would be replaced by Charles's son Philip II followed by Ferdinand's child Maximilian II (Berenger & Simpson, 2014). However, the agreement was still unpleasant to their subjects as it created suspicions of an inner motive to change the elective post of an emperor into a hereditary monarchy. In the year 1555, worn out by endless wars and persistent illnesses, Charles delegated his imperial duties to his brother while his son Philip took control of the lands in Spain, Italy, and the Netherlands (Berenger & Simpson, 2014).

When Ferdinand I was crowned emperor in 1558 after the death of Charles, he spent a big part of his reign waging religious wars against the Germans and Ottoman Turks (Berenger & Simpson, 2014). Although highly open-minded, Ferdinand was extremely intolerant of diversity as he forced his son to denounce his religion in favor of another one. After ruling for less than a decade, Ferdinand died in the year 1564 (Berenger & Simpson, 2014). However, unlike in previous decades, upon his death, the Habsburg Empire was divided among his three sons. Succeeding his father as the Holy Roman Emperor, Maximilian II gained control over Bohemia, specific parts of Hungary as well as Austria while his brothers Charles and Ferdinand controlled the central part of Austria and Germany respectively (Berenger & Simpson, 2014). For their cousin Philip II, he remained in charge of Spain in addition to being named as the head of the Habsburg family and leader of the most significant military force at that particular time (Berenger & Simpson, 2014).

A Divided Habsburg Empire

After the empire was divided between different members of the Habsburg family, the men in charge of different parts of the vast territories upheld the traditional antics used by the forefathers to maintain a grip of power. Therefore, they highly intermarried with individuals from different backgrounds for politically strategic reasons (Kann, 1974). Nonetheless, such intermarriages did not result in the empire becoming reunited. Hence, in Spain, Phillip II was succeeded by his son Philip III while Rudolf II replaced Maximilian II as the Holy Roman Emperor followed by his brother Matthias (Kann, 1974). However, due to his lazy character, Mathias left the imperial affairs of the empire under the management of Melchoir Klesl, a Vienna bishop before being succeeded by his cousin Ferdinand in the year 1619 (Kann, 1974). Nonetheless, by the time Ferdinand was ascending to power, the Habsburg empire had already plunged itself into the Thirty Years War which lasted from 1618-1648 (Kann, 1974). Although the two branches of the Habsburg family from Austria and Spain collaborated in fighting this particular war, the Habsburg Empire had already begun experiencing a decline which would ultimately lead to its fall.

The Decline and Fall of the Habsburg Empire

During the 1500s to the 1600s, the empire was involved in different wars all aimed at securing an expansion (Kann, 1974). Moreover, the empire was also ravaged with internal political disagreements as well as a Bubonic plague that was mainly prevalent within Vienna (Kann, 1974). As a result of such factors, the Habsburg Empire remained divided until the 1700s when the incumbent Holy Roman Emperor Charles VI made attempts to unify and consolidate the rule of the Habsburg family within the empire (Kann, 1974). However, while attempting to unify the empire, Charles had no son who would become his automatic heir. Therefore, he made arrangements that ensured his daughter was married off to Francis I of Lorraine (Kann, 1974). Similar to the antics of his forefathers, the marriage of his daughter would work towards propagating the family's political ambitions as it would extend the Habsburg lineage into France (Kann, 1974). Nonetheless, upon being succeeded by his daughter, Maria experienced resistance from various European countries which she however successfully managed to suppress and regain control.

During Maria's reign, the empire experienced what historians define as the "Golden Age," as there were developments in various areas such as art and culture in addition to the creation of new policies (Kann, 1974). For instance, Maria ensured that there was a public education system in existence within the empire (Kann, 1974). As she became old and thus incompetent to rule, Maria was replaced by her son Joseph II as the emperor of the Habsburg Empire, which thus gave birth t...