Charles I (of Austria)

Charles I (of Austria) (1887-1922), emperor of Austria (1916-1918) and, as Charles IV, king of Hungary, born in Persenbeug, Austria. He was the eldest son of Archduke Otto and grandnephew of Emperor Francis Joseph I. Following the assassination of his uncle, Archduke Francis Ferdinand, and the death of Francis Joseph, Charles succeeded as emperor of Austria and king of Hungary. During World War I, in a secret letter, he supported the claims of France against those of the Austrian ally Germany in Alsace-Lorraine and proposed that Germany withdraw from Belgium. Charles disavowed the letter when it was published in April 1918, but it had a disheartening effect on the Central Powers. Upon the collapse of the Austro-Hungarian Empire on November 11, 1918, Charles abdicated the throne of Hungary. In March 1919 he left Austria, and in April the Austrian parliament formally deposed him. Twice in 1921 Charles launched unsuccessful attempts to regain the Hungarian throne. Banished from Hungary, he went into exile on the island of Madeira, where he died. He was the last of the Habsburg rulers. In October 2004, Charles I was beatified by Pope John Paul II. Charles was credited with the miraculous healing of a Polish nun.