Nikolaus III, Prince Esterházy (, (

Regensburg Regensburg (historically known in English as Ratisbon) is a city in eastern Bavaria, at the confluence of the rivers Danube, Naab and Regen (river), Regen, Danube's northernmost point. It is the capital of the Upper Palatinate subregion of the ...

, 25 June 1817 -

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. ...

, 28 January 1894) was the ninth prince of the Hungarian

House of Esterházy A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air c ...

Life

Unlike his ancestors, Nikolaus did not spend his youth in the Schloss Esterháza in Hungary, but in England, where his father,

Paul III Anton, Prince Esterházy Paul III Anton, Prince Esterházy (German language, German: ''Paul Anton Esterházy von Galantha''; 11 March 178621 May 1866) was a Hungary, Hungarian prince, a member of the famous House of Esterházy, Esterházy family. He was the son of Niko ...

, was Ambassador for the Austrian Emperor. Nikolaus married Lady Sarah Frederica Caroline Child-Villiers (1822–1853), a daughter of

George Child Villiers, 5th Earl of Jersey George Child Villiers, 5th Earl of Jersey, GCH, PC (19 August 1773 – 3 October 1859), previously George Villiers and styled Viscount Villiers until 1805, was a British courtier and Conservative politician from the Villiers family. He adde ...

, and his wife the former Lady Sarah Sophia Fane. Lady Jersey was a close friend of his mother Princess Maria Theresia of Thurn and Taxis, who served with her for many years as a patroness of

Almack's Almack's was the name of a number of establishments and social clubs in London between the 18th and 20th centuries. Two of the social clubs would go on to fame as Brooks's and Boodle's. Almack's most famous establishment was based in assembly ...

, the centre of London's social scene. They had three sons, Paul IV, Prince Esterházy (born 1843), Aloys (1844), and Anton (1851). His wife died in 1853. Sarah Child-Villiers

After his return from England, Nikolaus entered into the service of the new Emperor

Franz Joseph I of Austria Franz Joseph I or Francis Joseph I ( ; ; 18 August 1830 – 21 November 1916) was Emperor of Austria, King of Hungary, and the ruler of the Grand title of the emperor of Austria, other states of the Habsburg monarchy from 1848 until his death ...

, and accompanied him on his travels through Hungary and Transylvania. Like most of his ancestors, in 1862 he received the

Order of the Golden Fleece The Distinguished Order of the Golden Fleece (, ) is a Catholic order of chivalry founded in 1430 in Brugge by Philip the Good, Duke of Burgundy, to celebrate his marriage to Isabella of Portugal, Duchess of Burgundy, Isabella of Portugal. T ...

. In 1866, he succeeded his father, but under very difficult circumstances. In 1865 the Esterházy estates had been placed in the hands of curators until 1898, because of the enormous debts caused by his father's and grandfather's extravagance. Nikolaus was forced to sell the family's collection of paintings to the

Kingdom of Hungary The Kingdom of Hungary was a monarchy in Central Europe that existed for nearly a millennium, from 1000 to 1946 and was a key part of the Habsburg monarchy from 1526-1918. The Principality of Hungary emerged as a Christian kingdom upon the Coro ...

, and it still constitutes the core of the collection of the present-day Museum of Fine Arts in

Budapest Budapest is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns of Hungary, most populous city of Hungary. It is the List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, tenth-largest city in the European Union by popul ...

. When he died in 1894 he was succeeded by his eldest son, Paul.

Ancestry

Sources

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Hungarian nobility The Kingdom of Hungary held a Nobility, noble class of individuals, most of whom owned landed property, from the 11th century until the mid-20th century. Initially, a diverse body of people were described as noblemen, but from the lat ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nikolaus III, Prince Esterhazy Esterházy family Princes Esterházy of Galántha 1817 births 1894 deaths Knights of the Golden Fleece of Austria People from Austria-Hungary