Empress Sisi
In the footsteps of Austria’s free-spirited empress
Sisi's presence can still be felt in many places throughout Austria, especially in the original living rooms of numerous palaces and villas. As Empress, Sisi avoided public life, preferring to travel rather than participate in public ceremonies.
It's no surprise that Sisi often commuted between the Hofburg and Schönbrunn Palace in Vienna, Innsbruck’s Hofburg, Leopoldskron Palace in Salzburg, Laxenburg Palace, and the imperial villa in Ischl—or made stops on her way to far-off destinations.
In these places, Sisi not only found a sense of the freedom she longed for, but they also reminded her of times past: meeting her future husband, Franz Joseph I, in Bad Ischl; the lavish engagement party at Schloss Leopoldskron, hosted by King Ludwig II for Sisi and Franz Joseph; her honeymoon and the birth of two of her daughters in Laxenburg; or her refuge, the Hermes Villa, built by her husband Emperor Franz Joseph to encourage her to stay longer in Vienna.
Anyone looking to follow in Sisi's footsteps can do so at Schloss Fuschl in SalzburgerLand, which served as the perfect filming location for the romantic love story of the imperial couple that made Romy Schneider and Karl Heinz Böhm superstars.
To remain unrecognised when travelling, Sisi used pseudonyms such as "Countess of Hohenems."
Empress Sisi in all perspectives
Auf Elisabeths Spuren
A fateful moment in history
Duchess Ludovika of Bavaria was meant to present her 17-year-old daughter Helene to His Majesty. Emperor Franz Joseph I greeted them — but as he spoke to Helene, his gaze drifted to the young girl beside her. It was 15-year-old Elisabeth, who had simply accompanied her mother and sister on the journey. The Emperor fell in love at first sight.
Just two days after their first meeting, Franz Joseph asked for Elisabeth’s hand. Eight months later, their wedding took place in Vienna. If it’s true that life can change in a single moment — that beggars can become kings, strangers become heroes, or a girl from a small Bavarian town can become Empress — then their encounter in Bad Ischl was exactly such a moment.
Her years at the Viennese court
From the very first day, the young Empress felt suffocated by the rigid rituals of the Viennese court. The honeymoon at Schloss Laxenburg turned into a disaster. While the Emperor remained at his desk in the Hofburg, his wife became deeply unhappy.
A life of duty and ceremony followed. Sisi moved between court residences in Vienna, Innsbruck, Salzburg, and Bad Ischl. The promise of imperial splendour faded into a monotonous routine. Her joy was further overshadowed by the loss of her first daughter, Sophie. Three followed, but she remained distant from her children, stifled by the constraints of her role and the court’s control.
Over time, Elisabeth began to resist the ever-present expectations and asserted her independence. She refused to play the role of obedient wife, doting mother, or decorative figurehead. Emperor Franz Joseph I tried to accommodate his unorthodox and freedom-loving wife, as much as his position allowed. But Sisi felt trapped in a gilded cage and gradually fell ill. Eventually, she broke free and began embarking on long journeys.
Restless travels
Her hasty departure from Vienna to Corfu marked the beginning of a lifelong odyssey. Elisabeth would remain on the move for the rest of her life. She wandered restlessly from spa town to spa town, never staying more than a few weeks. Sisi had a deep love for the sea, sailed through the worst storms, and even had an anchor tattooed on her shoulder.
During the day, she followed a strict fitness routine (her maids often had to be picked up by carriage because they could no longer keep pace with the empress) — she was regarded as the finest horsewoman in the world.
She eventually stopped allowing portraits of herself: the last photograph shows her at 30, and the last painting at 40. Later in life, no one but her chambermaids saw her face, which she always kept hidden behind a veil, fan, or umbrella.
Elisabeth's tragic death
The empress's death in 1898 was as unusual as her life. Sisi did not notice her injury at first. On the banks of Lake Geneva, an assassin thrust a sharpened file into her heart. Elisabeth thought the man had merely knocked her over, and she straightened up, apologised to passers-by for her mishap, and hurried with her chambermaid to the ship in which she was about to sail across the lake. It was only on board that the empress collapsed.
"What actually happened?" were her last words. Minutes later, the woman who was to become the most famous of all Habsburgs died at the age of 60. Only a single drop of blood stained her dress. It was black, just like the one she had worn on that fateful day in Bad Ischl.
5 secrets of Empress Sisi
Romy Schneider as "Sisi"
The romance, in the beginning, her desire for self-determination and independence, the eccentricities of her later life, as well as her tragic love for Franz Joseph made Elisabeth of Austria a Habsburg celebrity.
In the 1950s, the trilogy with Romy Schneider made Sisi world famous. Television films and a musical followed.
In 2022, Netflix launched a new series about Austria's most famous empress: 'The Empress,' taking us to the early years of Sisi's and Emperor Franz Joseph's marriage.
In May of 2022, the movie drama 'Corsage' premiered at the Cannes Film Festival and has since then collected international awards in several categories, foremost for the performance of Vicky Krieps as the ageing empress.
K&K court purveyors and Sisi's favorite dishes
Sisi had 27 hair stars made from diamonds and pearls by jeweller A.E. Köchert. She gifted some to her ladies-in-waiting, while others were passed down within the family.
The hair ornaments are immortalized in Franz Xaver Winterhalter's famous portrait of the empress. Her granddaughter, Archduchess Elisabeth, wore the stars at her wedding in 1902.