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Lot Essay
Elisabeth Amalie Eugenie, Duchess in Bavaria and Princess of Bavaria (1837-1898) was the Empress consort of Austria and Queen consort of Hungary due to her marriage to Emperor Franz Joseph I of Austria (1830-1916). From an early age, she was called Sisi (or Sissi in films and novels) by family and friends.
In the summer of 1853, Elisabeth, aged 15, accompanied her mother and her older sister Helene on a trip to the resort of Bad Ischl, Upper Austria, where they hoped Helene would attract the attention of their cousin, 23-year-old Franz Joseph, then Emperor of Austria. Instead, Franz Joseph chose Elisabeth, and the couple were married in Vienna on 24 April 1854. Just before the wedding it is said that Dowager Empress Caroline Augusta, aunt to both bride and groom, came to see the wedding presents stored in the Imperial treasury. When leaning forward to examine a star-studded tiara, the present of the Emperor, her lace mantilla caught in one of the diamond stars and to the surprise and horror of all, the jewel went crashing to the ground. Even though the tiara was repaired without Elisabeth ever knowing of the incident it was regarded as a very bad omen for the marriage.
Like others before and after her, Elsabeth had difficulty adapting to the strict etiquette practiced at the Habsburg court. She was denied any major influence on the upbringing of her three children Sophie, Gisele, Crown Prince Rudolf and, a decade later, Marie Valerie. Instead, they were raised by Elisabeth's mother-in-law Sophie. This may be the principal reason for Elisabeth's increasingly erratic behaviour which has been blamed for the deterioration of her marriage shortly after the birth of Prince Rudolf in 1858.
She embarked on a life of travel, seeing very little of her children, visiting places such as Madeira, Hungary, England, and Corfu, where she commissioned the building of a castle which she called Achilleion. She also became famed for her influential fashion sense and her beauty, diet, and exercise regimens, which reduced her to near-emaciation; her feverish passion for sports, particularly riding, and a series of reputed lovers.
National unrest within the Habsburg monarchy caused by the rebellious Hungarians led, in 1867, to the foundation of the Austro-Hungarian double monarchy, making Elisabeth Empress of Austria and Queen of Hungary. Elisabeth had always sympathized with the Hungarian cause and, reconciled and reunited with her alienated husband, she joined Franz Joseph in Budapest, where their coronation took place. However, after the birth of their fourth and last child shortly afterwards, Elisabeth again took up her former life of restless travel through Europe.
When her only son, Crown Prince Rudolf, was reportedly murdered in 1889, Elisabeth's life became gloomier than ever. On 10 September 1898, Elisabeth, aged 60, was stabbed to death in Geneva with a file in an arbitrary act. Reportedly, her assassin, a young man called Luigi Lucheni, had hoped to kill a prince from the House of Orlèans and, failing to find him, turned on Elisabeth instead as she was walking along the promenade of Lake Geneva about to board a steamship for Montreux. As Lucheni afterward said, 'I wanted to kill a royalty. It did not matter which one.'
Elisabeth has undoubtedly become a 20th century icon, often compared to Diana, Princess of Wales. A free yet tragic spirit who abhorred conventional court protocol, she has inspired filmmakers and theatre people alike.
Elisabeth Maria Henriette Stephanie Gisela, Archduchess of Austria (1883-1963) was the only child of Crown Prince Rudolf of Austria and Princess Stéphanie of Belgium. She was the favourate grandchild of her paternal grandfather Emperor Franz Joseph I of Austria. In 1925 Elisabeth Marie joined the Social Democratic Party in Vienna. Devorcing her princely husband in early 1948 and marrying instead the Socialist Leopold Petznek (1881-1956), she became known as The Red Archduchess for her political associations.
Owned and worn by Empress Elisabeth, the diamond earrrings of lot 353 are, in their elegant simplicity, not only suitable for an Empress but are also very wearable to this day. Upon her death, they passed on to her husband who bequeathed them to his granddaughter Elisabeth Marie.
In the summer of 1853, Elisabeth, aged 15, accompanied her mother and her older sister Helene on a trip to the resort of Bad Ischl, Upper Austria, where they hoped Helene would attract the attention of their cousin, 23-year-old Franz Joseph, then Emperor of Austria. Instead, Franz Joseph chose Elisabeth, and the couple were married in Vienna on 24 April 1854. Just before the wedding it is said that Dowager Empress Caroline Augusta, aunt to both bride and groom, came to see the wedding presents stored in the Imperial treasury. When leaning forward to examine a star-studded tiara, the present of the Emperor, her lace mantilla caught in one of the diamond stars and to the surprise and horror of all, the jewel went crashing to the ground. Even though the tiara was repaired without Elisabeth ever knowing of the incident it was regarded as a very bad omen for the marriage.
Like others before and after her, Elsabeth had difficulty adapting to the strict etiquette practiced at the Habsburg court. She was denied any major influence on the upbringing of her three children Sophie, Gisele, Crown Prince Rudolf and, a decade later, Marie Valerie. Instead, they were raised by Elisabeth's mother-in-law Sophie. This may be the principal reason for Elisabeth's increasingly erratic behaviour which has been blamed for the deterioration of her marriage shortly after the birth of Prince Rudolf in 1858.
She embarked on a life of travel, seeing very little of her children, visiting places such as Madeira, Hungary, England, and Corfu, where she commissioned the building of a castle which she called Achilleion. She also became famed for her influential fashion sense and her beauty, diet, and exercise regimens, which reduced her to near-emaciation; her feverish passion for sports, particularly riding, and a series of reputed lovers.
National unrest within the Habsburg monarchy caused by the rebellious Hungarians led, in 1867, to the foundation of the Austro-Hungarian double monarchy, making Elisabeth Empress of Austria and Queen of Hungary. Elisabeth had always sympathized with the Hungarian cause and, reconciled and reunited with her alienated husband, she joined Franz Joseph in Budapest, where their coronation took place. However, after the birth of their fourth and last child shortly afterwards, Elisabeth again took up her former life of restless travel through Europe.
When her only son, Crown Prince Rudolf, was reportedly murdered in 1889, Elisabeth's life became gloomier than ever. On 10 September 1898, Elisabeth, aged 60, was stabbed to death in Geneva with a file in an arbitrary act. Reportedly, her assassin, a young man called Luigi Lucheni, had hoped to kill a prince from the House of Orlèans and, failing to find him, turned on Elisabeth instead as she was walking along the promenade of Lake Geneva about to board a steamship for Montreux. As Lucheni afterward said, 'I wanted to kill a royalty. It did not matter which one.'
Elisabeth has undoubtedly become a 20th century icon, often compared to Diana, Princess of Wales. A free yet tragic spirit who abhorred conventional court protocol, she has inspired filmmakers and theatre people alike.
Elisabeth Maria Henriette Stephanie Gisela, Archduchess of Austria (1883-1963) was the only child of Crown Prince Rudolf of Austria and Princess Stéphanie of Belgium. She was the favourate grandchild of her paternal grandfather Emperor Franz Joseph I of Austria. In 1925 Elisabeth Marie joined the Social Democratic Party in Vienna. Devorcing her princely husband in early 1948 and marrying instead the Socialist Leopold Petznek (1881-1956), she became known as The Red Archduchess for her political associations.
Owned and worn by Empress Elisabeth, the diamond earrrings of lot 353 are, in their elegant simplicity, not only suitable for an Empress but are also very wearable to this day. Upon her death, they passed on to her husband who bequeathed them to his granddaughter Elisabeth Marie.