Archduke Stephen Francis Victor (; ; 14 September 1817 – 19 February 1867) was a member of the
House of Habsburg-Lorraine
The House of Habsburg-Lorraine () originated from the marriage in 1736 of Francis I, Holy Roman Emperor, Francis III, Duke of Lorraine and Bar, and Maria Theresa of Habsburg monarchy, Austria, later successively List of Bohemian monarchs, Queen ...
and the last
Palatine of Hungary, serving from 1847 to 1848.
Biography
He was the son of
Archduke Joseph, Palatine of Hungary and
Hermine of Anhalt-Bernburg-Schaumburg-Hoym. His
mother died shortly after giving birth to him and his twin sister,
Archduchess Hermine of Austria.
He was brought up by his stepmother,
Maria Dorothea of Württemberg.
He spent much of his childhood in
Buda
Buda (, ) is the part of Budapest, the capital city of Hungary, that lies on the western bank of the Danube. Historically, “Buda” referred only to the royal walled city on Castle Hill (), which was constructed by Béla IV between 1247 and ...
and at the family estate in
Alcsút and received an excellent education. He was mainly interested in
political science
Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and Power (social and political), power, and the analysis of political activities, political philosophy, political thought, polit ...
, which he also studied later in
Vienna
Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...
.
Career
From 1839 until 1841, he was a member of the imperial court in Vienna. In 1841, he travelled through the different countries of the monarchy, the
Kingdom of Bohemia
The Kingdom of Bohemia (), sometimes referenced in English literature as the Czech Kingdom, was a History of the Czech lands in the High Middle Ages, medieval and History of the Czech lands, early modern monarchy in Central Europe. It was the pr ...
, the
Kingdom of Lombardy–Venetia, the
Tyrol, the
Kingdom of Piedmont-Sardinia, the
Papal States
The Papal States ( ; ; ), officially the State of the Church, were a conglomeration of territories on the Italian peninsula under the direct sovereign rule of the pope from 756 to 1870. They were among the major states of Italy from the 8th c ...
,
Modena
Modena (, ; ; ; ; ) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) on the south side of the Po Valley, in the Province of Modena, in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern Italy. It has 184,739 inhabitants as of 2025.
A town, and seat of an archbis ...
and
Tuscany
Tuscany ( ; ) is a Regions of Italy, region in central Italy with an area of about and a population of 3,660,834 inhabitants as of 2025. The capital city is Florence.
Tuscany is known for its landscapes, history, artistic legacy, and its in ...
. In 1843, he gained the rank of
lieutenant field marshal in the service of the
Austrian Army and Emperor
Ferdinand I of Austria
Ferdinand I ( 19 April 1793 – 29 June 1875) was Emperor of Austria from March 1835 until his abdication in December 1848. He was also King of Hungary, King of Croatia, Croatia and King of Bohemia, Bohemia (as Ferdinand V), King of Lombardy– ...
appointed him governor of Bohemia. He stayed in that capacity until, in January 1847, his father died. Stephen succeeded him as
Palatine of Hungary on 12 November 1847 but resigned in September 1848 as a result of the
Hungarian Revolution.
Archduke Stephen died in 1867, unmarried and without issue.
Honours
He received the following orders and decorations:
[''Hof- und Staatshandbuch der Österreichisch-Ungarischen Monarchie'' (1866), Genealogy p]
6
/ref>
Ancestry
References
* Roberts, Gary Boyd, ''Notable Kin Volume Two'', published in cooperation with the New England Historic and Genealogical Society, Boston, Massachusetts, by Carl Boyer, 3rd, Santa Clarita, California, 1999, volume 2, p. 220.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Stephen Of Hungary, Palatine
House of Habsburg-Lorraine
Austrian princes
Hungarian people of Austrian descent
People from Buda
1817 births
1867 deaths
Burials at Palatinal Crypt
Palatines of Hungary
Knights of the Golden Fleece of Austria
Grand Crosses of the Order of Saint Stephen of Hungary
Recipients of the Order of St. Anna, 1st class
Recipients of the Order of the White Eagle (Russia)
Hungarian twins