Franz Joseph was the last of the Habsburg emperors, the oldest dynasty in Europe. Succeeding to the imperial throne in the wake of the 1848 Revolution, he ruled over Europe's largest empire for the next 68 years until the First World War brought about the dissolution of Austro-Hungary. Professor Bled begins with an account of Franz Joseph's privileged childhood as a member of the imperial family. He then examines the state of the Austro-Hungarian empire on the eve of the 1848 Revolution, and of Franz Joseph's succession at the age of eighteen. Jean-Paul Bled examines not only the key political events of the period but also daily life under Franz Joseph and life at court. This story is set against the turmoil of late 19th century Europe and the conflict between two ideals and two cultures, that of the multinational stae and that of the nation state.
