Archduke Wilhelm Franz of Austria

Archduke Wilhelm Franz Karl of Austria-Teschen (German: Erzherzog Wilhelm Franz Karl von Habsburg-Lothringen, 21 April 1827 – 29 April 1894) was an Archduke of Austria from the House of Habsburg.

He was born in Vienna as the son of Archduke Charles, Duke of Teschen (1771–1847) and Princess Henrietta of Nassau-Weilburg (1797–1829). He was a grandson of Leopold II (1747–1792) and nephew of Franz II (1768–1835), the last two Holy Roman Emperors.

He studied political sciences at the University of Vienna and he was a student of Joseph von Kudler.

He held the office of Grand Master of the Teutonic Knights from 1863 until his death in 1894. He gained the rank of Feldzeugmeister in the service of the Austrian Army in January 1867, after commanding the artillery and being wounded at the Battle of Königgrätz (1866). He was Governor of the Federal Fortress of Mainz.

Archduke Wilhelm of Austria, as a professed Catholic Religious Brother, died unmarried and without issue on 29 July 1894 in Weikersdorf after falling from a horse. His horse was startled by an electric tram while riding in Baden. He died without regaining consciousness. His death was attributed to a concussion on the brain. The archduke was 67 years old.

Ancestry