A young minor duke with no regnal lineage for over a century, who apparently set out to conquer the world by sitting in a chair, and almost succeeded, by weaving marital alliances across generations.
Story in the evening ...
Story in the evening ...
https://twitter.com/Arby_K/status/1322008943498067968
Friedrich von Habsburg was born in 1415 to Ernst von Habsburg, Duke of Inner Austria. The enlarged Duchy of Austria had been divided amongst the different Habsburg family members. The realm Friedrich and his brother Albrecht inherited included Styria, Carinthia and Carniola. 1/10 
Coming from the younger line of Habsburgs, Friedrich was not in line for greater responsibilities. But life had other plans. The death of Emperor Sigmund in 1437 brought the German crown to the Habsburg family. His son-in-law Albrecht was the head of the Habsburg house. 2/10
Albrecht's death in 1439 brought Friedrich, the next senior Habsburg by age, as regent for Albrecht's son, Ladislaus. This unique position would have gone a long way in Friedrich's election as the new King of Germany in 1440. 3/10
Ladislaus died in 1457, making Friedrich the senior Habsburg and the Archduke of Austria. But he would lose the Bohemian and Hungarian (and Croatian) crowns, since they would elect new kings to succeed Ladislaus; Jiři von Podiebrad in Bohemia and Mátyás Hunyadi in Hungary. 4/10
An attempt to conquer those kingdoms would end disastrously for Friedrich. Mátyás Hunyadi would seize Vienna and make it the capital of Hungary. But Friedrich would regain the lost territory after his rival's death in 1490. 5/10
His attempt to enlarge Habsburg domain by marriage would however be more successful, setting the tone for further expansions in the next century. Friedrich's son, Maximilian, married the heiress of Burgundy, who would control substantial territory in the Low Countries. 6/10
Though he would not be able to retain all the territory, Maximilian would defeat in battle the French king, who attempted to seize his wife's inheritance. It was Maximilian who would lead the peaceful recapture of Vienna as well. 7/10
Over the next century, through marital alliances, the Habsburg family would add the crowns of Spain, Hungary, Bohemia, Croatia, Portugal, Naples and Sicily. 8/10
It is said that Friedrich von Habsburg had set out to conquer the world, signing AEIOU from his younger days, signifying his global ambition. Though he failed to do so militarily, his descendants ruled over multiple continents with the Spanish and Portuguese colonies. 9/10
When Friedrich died in 1493, he had reunited all the Habsburg domains in Austria under his son. Ironically though, all the Habsburg domains in present day Switzerland from where they had originated had also been lost. 10/10
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