The territory ruled by an archduke or archduchess was called anarchduchy. All remaining archduchies ceased to exist in 1918. The current head of theHouse of Habsburg isKarl Habsburg.
The English word is first recorded in 1530, derived fromMiddle Frencharcheduc, a 15th-century derivation fromMedieval Latinarchidux, from Latinarchi- (Greekἀρχι-) meaning "authority" or "primary" (seearch-) anddux "duke" (literally "leader").[2]
"Archduke" (German:Erzherzog;Dutch:Aartshertog) is a title distinct from "Grand Duke" (French:Grand-Duc;Luxembourgish:Groussherzog;German:Großherzog;Dutch:Groothertog), a later monarchic title borne by the rulers of other European countries (for instance,Luxembourg).
The Latin titlearchidux is first attested in reference toBruno the Great, who ruled simultaneously asArchbishop of Cologne andDuke of Lotharingia in the 10th century, in the work of his biographerRuotger of Cologne. In Ruotger, the title served as an honorific denoting Bruno's unusual position rather than a formal office.[3]
The title was not used systematically until the 14th century, when the title "Archduke of Austria" was invented in the forgedPrivilegium Maius (1358–1359) by DukeRudolf IV of Austria, called Rudolf the Founder (German: Rudolf der Stifter). Rudolf originally claimed the title in the formpalatinus archidux ("palatine archduke").[4] The title was intended to emphasize the claimed precedence (thus "Arch-") of theDuchy of Austria, in an effort to put the Habsburgs on an even level with thePrince-Electors of the Holy Roman Empire, as Austria had been passed over when theGolden Bull of 1356 assigned that dignity to the four highest-ranking secularImperial princes and three Archbishops.Holy Roman Emperor Charles IV refused to recognise the title, as did all the other ruling dynasties of the member countries of the Empire. But DukeErnest the Iron and his descendants unilaterally assumed the title ofArchduke.
The archducal title was only officially recognized in 1453 byEmperor Frederick III, when the Habsburgs had solidified their grip on the throne of thede jure electedHoly Roman Emperor, making itde facto hereditary.[5][6] Despite that imperial authorization of the title, which showed a Holy Roman Emperor from the Habsburg dynasty deciding over a title claim of the Habsburg dynasty, many ruling dynasties of the countries which formed the Empire refused to recognize the title "Archduke".Ladislaus the Posthumous, Duke of Austria, who died in 1457, never got in his lifetime the imperial authorization to use it, and accordingly, neither he nor anyone in his branch of the dynasty ever used the title. Emperor Frederick III himself simply used the title "Duke of Austria", neverArchduke, until his death in 1493. The title was first granted to Frederick's younger brother,Albert VI of Austria (d. 1463), who used it at least from 1458.
In 1477, Frederick III also granted the title ofArchduke to his first cousin,Sigismund of Austria, ruler ofFurther Austria (German:Vorderösterreich). Frederick's son and heir, the futureEmperor Maximilian I, started to use the title, but apparently only after the death of his wifeMary of Burgundy (d. 1482), asArchduke never appears in documents issued jointly by Maximilian and Mary as rulers in theLow Countries (where Maximilian is still titled "Duke of Austria"). The title appears first in documents issued under the joint rule of Maximilian and his sonPhilip in the Low Countries.
Archduke was initially borne by those dynasts who ruled aHabsburg territory—i.e., only by males and their consorts,appanages being commonly distributed tocadets. But these "junior"archdukes did not thereby become sovereign hereditary rulers, since all territories remained vested in the Austrian crown. Occasionally a territory might be combined with a separate gubernatorial mandate ruled by an archducal cadet.
The official use of titles of nobility and of all other hereditary titles, includingArchduke, has been illegal in the Republic of Austria for Austrian citizens since the Law on the Abolition of Nobility (Gesetz vom 3. April 1919 über die Aufhebung des Adels, der weltlichen Ritter- und Damenorden und gewisser Titel und Würden). Thus those members of the Habsburg family who are residents of theRepublic of Austria are simply known by their first name(s) and their surnameHabsburg-Lothringen. However, members of the family who reside in other countries may or may not use the title, in accordance with laws and customs in those nations.
For example,Otto Habsburg-Lothringen (1912–2011), the eldest son of the last Habsburg Emperor, was an Austrian, Hungarian and German citizen. As he lived in Germany, where it is permitted to use hereditary titles as part of the civil surname (including indications of origin, such asvon orzu), his official civil name was Otto von Habsburg (literally: Ottoof Habsburg), whereas in Austria he was registered as Otto Habsburg.[5]
TheKing of Spain also bears the nominal title of Archduke of Austria as part of his full list of titles, as the Bourbon dynasty adopted all the titles previously held by the Spanish Habsburgs when they took over the Spanish throne. However, "Archduke" was never considered by the Spanish Bourbons as a substantial dignity of their own dynasty, but rather as a traditional supplementary title of the Spanish Kings since the days of the Habsburg dynasty on the royal throne (1516–1700). Hence, no member of the royal family other than the King bears the (additional) title of "Archduke".
The heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne,Archduke Franz Ferdinand (right) with his family. Ferdinand, along with his wife, was assassinated at Sarajevo in 1914, which sparked World War I
^Schwenk, Peter.Brun von Köln (925–965). Sein Leben, sein Werk und seine Bedeutung (in German). Espelkamp: M. Leidorf. p. 41.... man davon ausgehen muß, daß dieser Titel kein Amtstitel war. Dagegen sprit auch, daß außer Bruns Biograph Ruotger, Sigebert und Reiner keine andere Quelle den archidux-Titel erwähnt.
^Grzęda, Mateusz (2016). "»Das älteste selbstständige Bildnis der deutschen Kunst«: A Reconsideration of the Portrait of Rudolf IV". In Fleckner, Uwe; Hensel, Titia (eds.).Hermeneutik des Gesichts. Das Bildnis im Blick aktueller Forschung. Berlin: De Gruyter. p. 132.
^abcGenealogisches Hanbduch des Adels, Furstliche Hauser Band XIV. Limburg ad der Lahn, Germany: C. A. Starke Verlag. 1991. pp. 91–93.ISBN3-7980-0700-4.
Generations are numbered by male-line descent from the first archdukes. Later generations are included although Austrian titles of nobility were abolished in 1919.
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