End of a royal dynasty as Otto von Habsburg is laid to rest... with his heart buried in a crypt 85 miles away (via Taras Polataiko) As a tradition usually reserved for royals and religious leaders, it was certainly a fitting way to mark the end of a 640-year European dynasty. The heart of the last heir to the Austro-Hungarian Empire was buried in a Hungarian crypt yesterday - a day after a magnificent Austrian ceremony where his body was laid to rest. Surrounded by a wreath of flowers and leaves in the colours of the Hungarian flag, a silver urn containing the heart of Otto von Habsburg, who died at the age of 98, was interred after a private mass. It followed Saturdays pomp and ceremony where thousands of Austrians, European royalty and politicians lined Viennas streets to pay respects as he was buried at the citys Imperial Crypt. And it came just hours after a second funeral service at St Stephen Basilica in the Hungarian capital of Budapest, which was attended by the countrys President and Prime Minister. Von Habsburgs request to have his heart encrypted separately at the Benedictine Abbey in Pannonhalma, central Hungary, reflected the affection he held for the country - Austrias 19th century empirical partner. His decision was a break from family tradition as many Habsburgs have their hearts kept in copper urns in Viennas Augustiner Church, a few streets away from the imperial crypt in the Cappuchin Church. The heart burial marked an end to a week of ceremonies honouring Habsburg - the son of the last Austro-Hungarian emperor and scion of the oldest noble family in Europe. After officially renouncing all claims to the Austrian crown in 1961 it meant that Habsburg, despite having children, was the last of his family to officially be deemed royal. President Pal Schmitt and Prime Minister Viktor Orban attended Sundays smaller mass ceremony. But just a day before, political leaders and European royalty, including Prince and Princess Michael of Kent, visited the Austrian capital for the funeral. They witnessed Lederhosen-clad Tyrollean guardsmen hoisting the coffin onto their shoulders as they carried him to rest in a pomp-filled ceremony evocative of the countrys past grandeur as a ruler of much of Europe. Austria shed its imperial past after it lost World War I. But for six hours, the pageantry, colour and ceremony accompanying the Habsburg burial turned Vienna into the imperial city that was once the hub of the Austro-Hungarian empire. Habsburg, the Crown Prince, was banished with the rest of his family after the collapse of the empire following World War I. The family then scattered across Europe. Following his abdication, his father Charles I died in 1922, and so, at the age of nine, Otto became the head of the House of Habsburg. On Saturday Habsburg gained entry into Viennas Imperial Crypt, the final resting place of his dynasty, not as emperor but as a mortal stripped of all honours and titles. Three times the master of ceremonies knocked on the crypts doors and twice the coffin was denied entry - first when Habsburg was named as emperor and holder of dozens of other royal titles, then when his academic and political achievements and other accomplishments were listed. We do not know him, was the response from the Capuchin friars within. The doors only opened onto the sun-filled afternoon and into the gloomy half-light of the chapel above the crypt after Habsburg was described as Otto - a mortal and a sinner. The crypt was the final destination for the crowd of mourners, which stretched back 0.75 miles, who had packed the 1.5 mile procession route from the Gothic cathedral where Habsburg had been eulogised earlier in the day. Police estimated 10,000 spectators lined the route. Please find out more at: dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2015994/End-Royal-dynasty-Otto-von-Habsburg-laid-rest--heart-buried-crypt-85-miles-away-different-country.html
Posted on: Mon, 29 Sep 2014 19:59:55 +0000
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