Rudolf, Crown Prince of Austria marries Infanta Maria Antonia of Portugal

VVD0D95

Banned
Germania09 said:
I think he’d do alright, though it’s going to get messy with the idealism he has. In this scenario he already has a growing family to lean on for support so his mental stability should be better which is a plus.

At this time the liberals had merged into the various nationalist political groups due to a financial crisis a decade before which caused the liberal parties to lose steam. However with Rudolf as Emperor they could could rally around the royalist cause instead.

His ultimate idealistic liberal image was of a Habsburg empire united through pluralism. Which is probably not going to survive unscathed once he realizes how complicated it all really is (hard to have overt disdain against the aristocracy and oligarchs when they’re the only real reason Liberalism exists and thrives in places like Galicia, Hungary, etc). It’ll be hard to think that those liberal magnates are squeezing the small holder farmers and landless workers. Those people who ultimately see the monarchy as a illiberal protector against magyarization, polanization, etc.
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So a possible federalisation? Or something else
 

Kellan Sullivan

Germania09 said:
He may have gave it a thought but Franz always sternly kept imperial authority close at hand. In fact he was notorious for it even till his death when it was obvious he should have been delegating authority over to Karl to give him experience and exposure, he only grudgingly did so and sparingly.

That was after all one of the main issues Rudolf had with his father was that he was never given much of anything that signified real power in the Empire and given his liberalism and more than low key sympathies for the Magyar magnates, it’s a not small wonder Franz that didn’t give him anything other than his patience. Which often than not was quite short.
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To be fair, Friedrich III of Prussia was in a similar position - father who lived too long, who didn't always trust him (or his wife), and who was too authoritarian to allow him to do much - as Rudi. IIRC the main thing Fritz was "allowed" to do was social representation stuff. I'm not sure Rudi was allowed to even do that
 
Germania09

Germania09

VVD0D95 said:
So a possible federalisation? Or something else
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Federalism definitely, but I’m suspecting it would be of a asymmetrical design in order to handle the various different demands of language, ethnicity, etc.

Kellan Sullivan said:
To be fair, Friedrich III of Prussia was in a similar position - father who lived too long, who didn't always trust him (or his wife), and who was too authoritarian to allow him to do much - as Rudi. IIRC the main thing Fritz was "allowed" to do was social representation stuff. I'm not sure Rudi was allowed to even do that
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Yeah the whole situation was bound for trouble. Franz sincerely loved his son it just was that as an absolute monarch of a dynasty as old as the Habsburg's, he expected to obeyed completely and without criticism. He couldn’t separate that fact from his dual role as a father to spirited Rudolf.

It’s pretty telling that when he was building up his power base Franz Ferdinand did so away from Vienna in order not to clash with Franz-Joseph. And Karl during the war (alongside the imperial ministers) had to subtlety prod Franz into conceding anything to him even permission for government training under those ministers had to be slowly teased out.
 
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Kellan Sullivan

Germania09 said:
Yeah the whole situation was bound for trouble. Franz sincerely loved his son it just was that as an absolute monarch of a dynasty as old as the Habsburg's, he expected to obeyed completely and without criticism. He couldn’t separate that fact from his dual role as a father to spirited Rudolf.
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So maybe have FJ agree - once it becomes clear that Sissi is too "unreliable" to be counted on for making public appearances - to "sign over" the lesser representational/social duties to Rudolf and his wife. It would at least give Rudolf an outlet. I know it was pointed out that even when he was dying, FJ wouldn't give over to Karl I, but since Maria Antonia's sister, Archduchess Karl Ludwig #3 was essentially Sissi's (social) replacement at this time, it might work that FJ could be convinced to give his son an outlet.
 
Germania09

Germania09

Kellan Sullivan said:
So maybe have FJ agree - once it becomes clear that Sissi is too "unreliable" to be counted on for making public appearances - to "sign over" the lesser representational/social duties to Rudolf and his wife. It would at least give Rudolf an outlet. I know it was pointed out that even when he was dying, FJ wouldn't give over to Karl I, but since Maria Antonia's sister, Archduchess Karl Ludwig #3 was essentially Sissi's (social) replacement at this time, it might work that FJ could be convinced to give his son an outlet.
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Yeah that would be doable, it also helps that in this scenario he has already delivered a son or more so Franz-Joseph could be inclined to loosen up a tad
 
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