media_content.tooltip.skipped
Please find information on holidays in Austria in your local language by selecting it here.
Sisi - Austria’s free-spirited Empress
Emperor Franz Joseph’s gaze wandered to the young, unaffected girl. The 15-year-old Elisabeth, or ‘Sisi,’ was a stunning beauty, radiating a youthful spirit. The Kaiser fell in love with her at first sight, and Sisi’s life changed forever. Who could have known that trying to defend her spirit and independence became her destiny?
media_content.tooltip.skipped
A fateful moment in history
What exactly happened to the ladies' luggage that day will forever remain a mystery. Whatever the case, the suitcases containing their colourful summer wardrobe could not be found. Duchess Ludovika of Bavaria and her daughters Helene and Elisabeth were in mourning because of a recently deceased aunt. Now they had to appear before the emperor in black for their meeting on that fateful August 16, 1853. In Bad Ischl, a lovely town in Austria's Salzburg Lake District, Helene was to be presented to His Majesty Franz Joseph, ruler of the Habsburg Empire. She was a serious 17-year-old who appeared austere and ascetic in her dark clothing. Franz Joseph greeted her, but his gaze wandered to the young, lively girl next to her. The 15-year-old Elisabeth, or 'Sisi,' kept her mother and sister company on the journey, and as fate would have it, the emperor fell in love with her at first sight.
Every now and then, a single fateful moment in history turned beggars into kings, outlaws into heroes and … a girl from a small Bavarian town into a legendary empress. The event in Bad Ischl was one such moment. Two days after their first meeting, Franz Joseph asked Elisabeth to marry him. Eight months later, the wedding took place in Vienna. Of all the Habsburgs, Austria's longest-reigning dynasty, no one has retained as much fame as Elisabeth of Austria. Even 125 years after her death, the empress outshines all. Yet, it is still difficult for historians to determine Sisi's true personality behind all the hype.
-
"The family of Austria's Emperor." Xylography by Vinzenz Katzler, about 1880 media_content.tooltip.skipped
An ill-fated marriage
From the very first day, the young and spirited empress felt caged by the rigid rituals of the Viennese court. The honeymoon at Laxenburg Palace turned into a disaster; the young emperor spent his days at his desk while his wife cried her heart out in the park. A life with strict duties and ceremonies at the court lay in front of her. Over the following years, the couple travelled between various courts and homes: from the Imperial Palace to Schönbrunn Palace in Vienna, between the Imperial Palace Innsbruck and Leopoldskron Castle Salzburg, and between Hof Palace and the Imperial Villa in Bad Ischl. But for Sisi, weeks of monotonous protocol and constraints turned into months, months into years, and the joy of an adventurous, gilded life never reached her. She only saw restrictions and suffered under the control the imperial court had over her. Even the birth of their first daughter Sophie Friederike couldn’t change that: Sophie died at the tender age of two. Shortly after Sophie came Gisela. Then, people cheered the birth of Rudolf, heir to the throne. At the age of 21, Sisi was a mother of three. But her children grew up lonely and practically without a mother.
Guided by her independent spirit, she began to rebel against the omnipresent expectations of the court and yearned to emancipate herself. She neither strived to be a devoted, quiet wife nor a doting mother, and she certainly did not want to be a representative figure of the vast empire. Franz Joseph accommodated his unorthodox and freedom-loving wife as far as his position and sense of tradition would allow. It was not far enough. Sisi fell ill and felt trapped in a golden cage. At one point, she broke out.
-
Sisi Museum Vienna media_content.tooltip.skipped -
Sisi Museum Vienna media_content.tooltip.skipped -
Sisi Museum Vienna media_content.tooltip.skipped -
Sisi Museum Vienna media_content.tooltip.skipped -
Sisi Museum - Vienna Hofburg media_content.tooltip.skipped
Capuchins' Crypt
media_content.tooltip.skipped
The Last Chapter
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.
Hofmobiliendepot (Imperial Furniture Museum)
media_content.tooltip.skipped
A Movie Star
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. The movie will premiere in the US on the 23rd of December and in the UK on the 30th of December 2022.
5 Secrets of Empress Sisi
-
Sisi Museum Vienna media_content.tooltip.skippedSisi was tattooed
While travelling in Greece she had an anchor tattooed on her shoulder when she was 51 years old. To the emperor, this was quite a surprise.
-
Sisi Museum Vienna, writing and drawing utensils media_content.tooltip.skippedEmpress Sisi the author
Sisi loved literature and poetry and enjoyed writing poems herself.
-
Sisi Museum Vienna media_content.tooltip.skippedSize matters
Sisi was taller than Emperor Franz Joseph: at 172 cm (5,64 ft) she towered over her 168 cm (5,51 ft) husband.
-
Sisi Museum Vienna, Doctor's Case media_content.tooltip.skippedThe dose makes the poison
Every once in a while, the empress used cocaine, which was used as medication at the time. However, she was not considered a drug addict.
-
Sisi Museum Vienna media_content.tooltip.skippedSmoking Empress
Not deterred by the strict ban on smoking for ladies, Sisi is reported to have frequently been seen smoking. News of the smoking empress even spread beyond the country's borders to the English court, where Queen Victoria was outraged by Sisi's secret vice.
Sisi's favourite dishes
-
Candied Violets in the Demel Shop Café Demelmedia_content.tooltip.skippedViolet Ice Cream from Demel
Have a taste...Sisi was a sweet tooth, with violet ice cream being one of her favourites. She used to order this sorbet delicacy from the K&K Hofzuckerbäckerei Demel in Vienna, where violet ice cream can still be tried today.
-
media_content.tooltip.skipped
Sachertorte from Hotel Sacher
Have a taste...Sisi loved Sachertorte. She once personally visited Café Sacher to have a piece of the famous cake, causing a big stir. An original bill still bears witness to the high visit.
-
Zauner Café and Cake Shop media_content.tooltip.skippedViolet Pastries from Café Zauner
Have a taste...Located in Bad Ischl, the former K&K court purveyor Café Zauner created the most delicious violet pastries with chocolate icing. Café Zauner still produces Sisi's favourite treat today, using the same recipe as they did during the imperial era.
