Francis I of Austria

Reign: 1804 – 1835
Life: 1768–1835

Last Holy Roman Emperor (as Francis II) and first Emperor of Austria (as Francis I).

Leopold became Holy Roman Emperor in 1790 but died two years later, and Francis succeeded him. His empire immediately became embroiled in the French Revolutionary Wars, the first of which ended in Austrian defeat and the loss of the left bank of the Rhine to France. After another French victory in the War of the Second Coalition, Napoleon crowned himself Emperor of the French. He continued his leading role as Napoleon adversary in the Napoleonic Wars, and suffered successive defeats that greatly weakened Austria as a European power. In 1806, after Napoleon created the Confederation of the Rhine, Francis abdicated as Holy Roman Emperor, which in effect marked the dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire. Following the defeat of the Fifth Coalition, Francis ceded more territory to France and was forced to wed his daughter Marie Louise to Napoleon.

During Francis I of Austria's reign, Frederick William III of Prussia ruled Prussia, Alexander I of Russia ruled Russia, and William I of the Netherlands ruled Netherlands.

Further reading: Metternich: The First European by Alan Palmer

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