Imperial Crypt Vaults - Franz's Vault

Franz's Vault

In 1824 the four vaults of the Imperial Crypt held 78 bodies and urns containing the hearts of three other persons. In that year Emperor Franz II₅₇ built the octagonal Franzensgruft, attaching it to the right wing of Maria Theresa’s Vault. It is in the Biedermeier style, as are the five tombs within it.

In the center:

• Emperor Franz II (Florence 12 February 1768 – Vienna 2 March 1835) Eldest son of Emperor Leopold II.₁₁₃ He was emperor during the times of Napoleon Bonaparte and Ludwig van Beethoven. He changed crowns from Franz II of the Holy Roman Empire to Franz I of the Austrian Empire in mid-reign, and thus is often denoted as Franz II/I. The full-size crown atop his tomb is that of the Austrian Empire. He died at age 67 after a reign of 43 years. His heart is buried in the Herzgruft in the Augustinerkirche. His statue, dressed as a Roman emperor, stands in the main courtyard of the Hofburg palace.

In the corners, clockwise starting from the near left (south west) corner:

• Archduchess Elisabeth Wilhelmine von Württemberg-Mömpelgard (Treptow 21 April 1767 – Vienna 18 February 1790) First wife (1788) of Emperor Franz II.₅₇ She died at age 22 a day after giving birth to Ludovika Elisabeth Franziska.₆₆

• Empress Maria Theresa of Naples and Sicily (Naples 6 June 1772 – Vienna 13 April 1807) Second wife (1790) at age 18 of Emperor Franz II.₅₇ Mother of Empress Maria Louise₁₂₇ (second wife of Napoleon), Emperor Ferdinand,₆₂ and all subsequent children of her husband. Because her mother₁₀₇ was a sister of her husband's father₁₁₃ the couple were first cousins. She died at age 34 of tuburcular pleurisy just days after giving premature birth to Amalia Therese.₉₆ Her heart is buried in the Herzgruft in the Augustinerkirche.

• Empress Caroline Augusta of Bavaria (Mannheim 8 February 1792 – Vienna 9 February 1873) Fourth wife (1816) of Emperor Franz II.₅₇ Died the day after her 81st birthday, having survived her husband by 38 years and two reigns.

• Empress Maria Ludovika of Austria-Este (Monza 14 December 1787 – Verona 7 April 1816) Third wife (1808) at age 20 of 40-year old cousin Emperor Franz II,₅₇ she contracted tuberculosis shortly after their wedding, suffering from it for the eight years of marriage before dying at age 28. Her heart is buried in the Herzgruft in the Augustinerkirche.

Until 1940, this vault also held the body of a grandson of Emperor Franz II,₅₇ Franz Joseph Karl, Duke of Reichstadt_x811 (1811–1832). Adolf Hitler ordered that the body be sent to France where it now rests in Les Invalides in Paris near the body of his father, Napoléon Bonaparte. His heart is still buried in the Herzgruft in the Augustinerkirche.

Through the doorway in the west wall to the left is the south part of the Tuscan Vault. In the east wall is the west entrance to the Crypt Chapel. The north wall opens into Ferdinand’s Vault.