Count Alexander Konstantin Albrecht von Mensdorff-Pouilly, 1st Prince von Dietrichstein zu Nikolsburg (; 4 August 1813 in

Coburg Coburg ( , ) is a Town#Germany, town located on the Itz (river), Itz river in the Upper Franconia region of Bavaria, Germany. Long part of one of the Thuringian states of the Ernestine duchies, Wettin line, it joined Bavaria by popular vote only ...

– 14 February 1871) was an Austrian general, diplomat and politician, including two years as Minister of Foreign Affairs (1864–66) and one month's service as Minister-President of Austria. He was a cousin of

Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until Death and state funeral of Queen Victoria, her death in January 1901. Her reign of 63 year ...

of the

United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland was the union of the Kingdom of Great Britain and the Kingdom of Ireland into one sovereign state, established by the Acts of Union 1800, Acts of Union in 1801. It continued in this form until ...

and a favorite cousin and childhood playmate of her husband

Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (Franz August Karl Albert Emanuel; 26 August 1819 – 14 December 1861) was the husband of Queen Victoria. As such, he was consort of the British monarch from Wedding of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert, th ...

Life and career

He was born as a son of Princess Sophie of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld and Count

Emmanuel von Mensdorff-Pouilly Emmanuel Graf von Mensdorff-Pouilly (24 January 1777 – 28 June 1852) was an army officer in the Imperial and Royal Army during the Napoleonic Wars, Imperial-Royal Army of the Austrian Empire, and vice-governor of Mainz. He was the uncle of Q ...

, an army officer who served in the Imperial-Royal Army of the Austrian Empire and held the post of Vice-governor of the Fortress of Mainz. By birth, he was member of the House of Mensdorff-Pouilly, an old Lotharingian

noble family Nobility is a social class found in many societies that have an aristocracy (class), aristocracy. It is normally appointed by and ranked immediately below Royal family, royalty. Nobility has often been an Estates of the realm, estate of the rea ...

, domiciled in

Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...

since the second half of the 18th century. His maternal grandparents were Francis, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld and his second wife,

Countess Augusta Reuss of Ebersdorf Augusta of Reuss-Ebersdorf (; 19 January 1757 – 16 November 1831), was by marriage the Duchess of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld. She was the grandmother and godmother of both Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom and her husband and cousin, Prince Albert ...

. He entered the Austrian army in 1829, and he was promoted to captain in 1836 and major in 1844. In 1848–49, he fought in the

First Italian War of Independence The First Italian War of Independence (), part of the ''Risorgimento'' or unification of Italy, was fought by the Kingdom of Sardinia (1720–1861), Kingdom of Sardinia (Piedmont) and Italian volunteers against the Austrian Empire and other conse ...

and against the

Hungarian Revolution of 1848 The Hungarian Revolution of 1848, also known in Hungary as Hungarian Revolution and War of Independence of 1848–1849 () was one of many Revolutions of 1848, European Revolutions of 1848 and was closely linked to other revolutions of 1848 in ...

. In 1849, he was promoted to colonel and the following year to major general. In 1851, Mensdorff-Pouilly was appointed as the Austrian commissioner to

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. In 1852, he became the Austrian ambassador to the

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire that spanned most of northern Eurasia from its establishment in November 1721 until the proclamation of the Russian Republic in September 1917. At its height in the late 19th century, it covered about , roughl ...

. He was promoted to ''Feldmarschallleutnant'' in 1858. During the Polish Uprising of 1863, he served as the governor of the

Kingdom of Galicia and Lodomeria The Kingdom of Galicia and Lodomeria, also known as Austrian Galicia or colloquially Austrian Poland, was a constituent possession of the Habsburg monarchy in the historical region of Galicia (Eastern Europe), Galicia in Eastern Europe. The Cr ...

Foreign minister

Mensdorff-Pouilly was appointed as Foreign Minister of the Austrian Empire on 27 October 1864. Mensdorff-Pouilly's policies during his tenure as Foreign Minister for Emperor Franz Joseph were often largely a continuation of the conservative traditionalism of Count Johann von Rechberg und Rothenlöwen, his predecessor. Mensdorff-Pouilly, like Rechberg, sought to maintain conservative dominance of the

German Confederation The German Confederation ( ) was an association of 39 predominantly German-speaking sovereign states in Central Europe. It was created by the Congress of Vienna in 1815 as a replacement of the former Holy Roman Empire, which had been dissolved ...

through an alliance between an

Austrian Empire The Austrian Empire, officially known as the Empire of Austria, was a Multinational state, multinational European Great Powers, great power from 1804 to 1867, created by proclamation out of the Habsburg monarchy, realms of the Habsburgs. Duri ...

and the

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(in which

Prussia Prussia (; ; Old Prussian: ''Prūsija'') was a Germans, German state centred on the North European Plain that originated from the 1525 secularization of the Prussia (region), Prussian part of the State of the Teutonic Order. For centuries, ...

was the junior partner), and he steadfastly refused to consider

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...

suggestions that Austria surrender

Kingdom of Lombardy–Venetia The Kingdom of Lombardy–Venetia (), commonly called the "Lombardo-Venetian Kingdom" (; ), was a constituent land (crown land) of the Austrian Empire from 1815 to 1866. It was created in 1815 by resolution of the Congress of Vienna in recogniti ...

to the newly created

Kingdom of Italy The Kingdom of Italy (, ) was a unitary state that existed from 17 March 1861, when Victor Emmanuel II of Kingdom of Sardinia, Sardinia was proclamation of the Kingdom of Italy, proclaimed King of Italy, until 10 June 1946, when the monarchy wa ...

.F. R. Bridge, ''The Habsburg Monarchy Among the Great Powers, 1815-1918.'' After Austria's defeat in the

Austro-Prussian War The Austro-Prussian War (German: ''Preußisch-Österreichischer Krieg''), also known by many other names,Seven Weeks' War, German Civil War, Second War of Unification, Brothers War or Fraternal War, known in Germany as ("German War"), ''Deutsc ...

of 1866, Mensdorff-Pouilly resigned his functions in November of that year. After his resignation, he was appointed commanding general in

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and

Prague Prague ( ; ) is the capital and List of cities and towns in the Czech Republic, largest city of the Czech Republic and the historical capital of Bohemia. Prague, located on the Vltava River, has a population of about 1.4 million, while its P ...

Marriage and children

He married Countess Alexandrine Marie ''Aline'' von Dietrichstein-Proskau-Leslie (1824–1906), second daughter of Joseph, 9th Prince of Dietrichstein (1798–1858) and his wife, Countess Gabriele Wratislav von Mitrowitz (1804-1880). Together, they had four children, two girls and two boys: * Marie Gabriele von Mensdorff-Pouilly-Dietrichstein (1858–1889); married in 1887 to Count Hugo Leopold Kálnoky von Köröspatak (1844-1928) * Hugo, 2nd Prince von Dietrichstein zu Nikolsburg (1858–1920); married in 1892 to Princess Olga Alexandrovna Dolgorukova (1873-1946) * Count Albert von Mensdorff-Pouilly-Dietrichstein; unmarried * Clotilde von Mensdorff-Pouilly-Dietrichstein; married in 1897 to Count Albert Apponyi de Nagyappony

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mensdorff-Pouilly, Alexander von, Prince von Dietrichstein zu Nikolsburg 1813 births 1871 deaths 19th-century minister-presidents of Austria 19th-century Czech people Politicians from Austria-Hungary Politicians from the Austrian Empire Ministers of foreign affairs of the Austrian Empire Counts in Germany Counts of Austria

Alexander Alexander () is a male name of Greek origin. The most prominent bearer of the name is Alexander the Great, the king of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia who created one of the largest empires in ancient history. Variants listed here ar ...

Austrian people of German descent People from Coburg Politicians from Prague

Governors of the Kingdom of Galicia and Lodomeria Knights Cross of the Military Order of Maria Theresa Grand Crosses of the Order of Saint Stephen of Hungary Grand Crosses of the Order of the Dannebrog