The insults inflicted on Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette, however, at the time of their attempted flight to Varennes in June, stirred his indignation, and he made a general appeal in the Padua Circular to the sovereigns of Europe to take common measures in view of events which "immediately compromised the honour of all sovereigns, and the security of all governments." The historian Paul W. Schroeder called him "one of the most shrewd and sensible monarchs ever to wear a crown".[4]. Determined to carry out my duty in regard to these considerations, both as head of the Germanic body and its assembly, and as sovereign of the Austrian dominions, I propose to the Kings of Spain, England, Prussia, Naples and Sardinia, as well as to the Empress of Russia, that they should join together with myself in advising, co-ordinating and taking measures aimed at restoring the liberty and honour of the Most Christian King and his family, and to set limits to the dangerous excesses of the French Revolution. When these failed to restore order, he marched troops into the country and re-established his own authority, and at the same time the historic franchises of the Flemings. He knew that he had to succeed his childless eldest brother in Austria, and he was unwilling to inherit his unpopularity. Leopold II was the Holy Roman Emperor from 1790 to 1792. He continued, for instance, to insist that no papal bull could be published in his dominions without his consent (placetum regium). The declaration was a mere formality, for, as Leopold knew, neither Russia nor Britain was prepared to act, and he endeavored to guard against the use which he foresaw the émigrés would try to make of it. The British monarch, Queen Victoria, was Leopold II's first cousin, as Leopold's father and Victoria's mother were siblings. The reformation was carried out by the removal of the ruinous restrictions on industry and personal freedom imposed by his predecessors of the house of Medici and left untouched during his father's life, by the introduction of a rational system of taxation (reducing the rates of taxation), and by the execution of profitable public works, such as the drainage of the Val di Chiana. Initially selected for a clerical career, he received education with focus on theology. [3] He granted the Academy of Georgofili his protection. Leopold II (Peter Leopold Joseph Anton Joachim Pius Gotthard; 5 May 1747 – 1 March 1792) was Holy Roman Emperor, King of Hungary and Bohemia, and Archduke of Austria from 1790 to 1792, and Grand Duke of Tuscany from 1765 to 1790. Watch later. At first Leopold reacted cautiously to the explosive situation created in Europe by the French Revolution. Within six weeks of his accession, he displayed his contempt for France's weakness by practically tearing up the treaty of alliance made by Maria Theresa in 1756 and opening negotiations with Great Britain to impose a check on Russia and Prussia. The pacification of his eastern dominions left Leopold free to re-establish order in Belgium and to confirm friendly relations with Britain and the Netherlands. The most urgent task seems to me to be that we should all join in conveying immediately, through our ministers in France, a common declaration, or similar simultaneous declarations, such as may bring the heads of the violent party to their senses and prevent any desperate decisions, while leaving them the way open to an honourable retreat and to the peaceful establishment of a state of affairs in France which should at least preserve the dignity of the crown and the conditions essential for general tranquillity.”. Check out this biography to know about his birthday, childhood, family life, achievements and fun facts about him. Leopold's concept of this was based on respect for the political rights of citizens and on a harmony of power between the executive and the legislative. Black, ‘Mozart and the Practice of … The émigrés who followed him pertinaciously were refused audience, or when they forced themselves on him, were peremptorily denied all help. For five years, Leopold exercised little more than nominal authority, under the supervision of counselors appointed by his mother. In July 1791 Emperor Leopold II of Austria wrote to Catherine the Great of Russia and the rulers of England, Spain and Prussia, following the flight to Varennes and the detention of the French royal family: “I am sure that Your Majesty will have learned of the unheard of attempt to arrest the King of France, the Queen, my sister, and the royal family, with as much surprise and indignation as myself; and that your feelings cannot differ from mine about an event which gives rise to fears of consequences still more atrocious, fixes the seal of illegality to the excesses which had already been perpetrated in France, and compromises the honour of all sovereigns and the security of all governments. French Revolution French Revolution (part 2) Google Classroom Facebook Twitter The growing revolutionary disorders in France endangered the life of his sister Marie Antoinette, the queen of Louis XVI, and also threatened his own dominions with the spread of subversive agitation. 1791, Leopold II and the king of Prussia jointly declared that the revolutionary situation in France was a common concern of all sovereigns. Liberty, equality, fraternity : these were among the potent revolutionary symbols and ideas for which people were willing to die – and to kill. The French Revolution of 1848 forced his maternal grandfather Louis Philippe to flee to the United Kingdom. Upon the death of his father, Francis I on 18 August 1765, he became Grand Duke of Tuscany. Leopold died suddenly in Vienna, in March 1792, although some said he was poisoned or secretly murdered.[12]. On 27 August 1791, Leopold and King Frederick William II of Prussia, in consultation with emigrant French nobles, issued the Declaration of Pillnitz, which declared the interest of the monarchs of Europe in the well-being of Louis [1] Unusually for his time, he opposed capital punishment and abolished it in Tuscany in 1786 during his rule there, making it the first nation in modern history to do so. His son Francis II succeeds him.,” His son Francis II succeeds him.,” LIBERTY, EQUALITY, FRATERNITY: EXPLORING THE FRENCH REVOUTION , accessed April 12, 2021, https://revolution.chnm.org/d/923 . The November event is also commemorated by 300 cities around the world as, A complete discussion of Leopold's involvement with the coronation and its musical performances is found in, Maria Theresa, Queen of Hungary and Bohemia, Learn how and when to remove this template message, Princess Maria Teresa of Naples and Sicily, Archduchess Maria Ludovika of Austria-Este, Grand Duchess Alexandra Pavlovna of Russia, Princess Hermine of Anhalt-Bernburg-Schaumburg-Hoym, Louis Rudolph, Duke of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel, "Ohne Todesstrafe: die fortschrittliche Toskana von 1786", "Why these anatomical models are not disgusting", Vincenzo Chiarugi (1759–1820) and his psychiatric reform in Florence in the late 18th century (on the occasion of the bi-centenary of his birth), https://web.archive.org/web/20120323065327/http://www.yazaroku.com/fguncel/taha-kivanc/26-04-2011/rtib-efendi-gunumuzu-yorumluyor/338445/.aspx, Works by and about Leopold II, Holy Roman Emperor, Frederick I, Duke of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel, Maximilian Franz, Archbishop-Elector of Cologne, Prince Filippo "Filippino", Grand Prince of Tuscany, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Leopold_II,_Holy_Roman_Emperor&oldid=1019126741, Grand Masters of the Order of the Golden Fleece, Grand Crosses of the Military Order of Maria Theresa, Grand Crosses of the Order of Saint Stephen of Hungary, 18th century in the Grand Duchy of Tuscany, Short description is different from Wikidata, Articles containing explicitly cited English-language text, Articles with unsourced statements from August 2016, Articles needing additional references from November 2019, All articles needing additional references, Wikipedia articles incorporating a citation from the 1911 Encyclopaedia Britannica with Wikisource reference, Wikipedia articles incorporating text from the 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica, Wikipedia articles with CINII identifiers, Wikipedia articles with PLWABN identifiers, Wikipedia articles with SELIBR identifiers, Wikipedia articles with SNAC-ID identifiers, Wikipedia articles with SUDOC identifiers, Wikipedia articles with Trove identifiers, Wikipedia articles with WORLDCATID identifiers, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. In face of the reaction in France to the Declaration of Pillnitz, the intrigues of the émigrés, and attacks made by the French revolutionists on the rights of the German princes in Alsace, Leopold continued to hope that intervention might not be required. On 30 November 1786, after having de facto blocked capital executions (the last was in 1769), Leopold promulgated the reform of the penal code that abolished the death penalty and ordered the destruction of all the instruments for capital execution in his land. Catherine would have been delighted to see Austria and Prussia embark on a crusade in the cause of kings against the French Revolution. Accidentally burned to death from a mishap while conducting a, Married the Hereditary Prince of Naples, later King, Never married; became Grand Master of the, This page was last edited on 21 April 2021, at 17:26. His father was the first king of Belgium. Later generations are included although Austrian titles of nobility were abolished in 1919. Upon the early death of his older brother Archduke Charles in 1761, the family decided that Leopold was going to succeed his father as Duke of Tuscany. Leopold was born in Brussels on 9 April 1835. Leopold II (Peter Leopold Josef Anton Joachim Pius Gotthard; 5 May 1747 – 1 March 1792) was Holy Roman Emperor and King of Hungary and Bohemia from 1790 to 1792, Archduke of Austria and Grand Duke of Tuscany from At this time Marie-Antoinette’s brother, was Leopold II, the Holy Roman Emperor. The Holy Roman Emperor Leopold II, brother to the French Queen Marie Antoinette, initially looked on the Revolution calmly, but he and other European monarchs soon feared that the revolutionary spirit might expand across the He used his skill at choosing collaborators to put a young physician, Vincenzo Chiarugi, at its head. He recognized the Estates of his different dominions as "the pillars of the monarchy", pacified the Hungarians and Bohemians, and divided the insurgents in the Austrian Netherlands (now Belgium) by means of concessions. [11], Leopold developed and supported many social and economic reforms. … A personal appeal to Frederick William II led to a conference between them at Reichenbach in July 1790, and to an arrangement which was in fact a defeat for Prussia: Leopold's coronation as king of Hungary on 11 November 1790, preceded by a settlement with the Diet in which he recognized the dominant position of the Magyars. [citation needed][7], But his steady, consistent, and intelligent administration, which advanced step by step, brought the grand duchy to a high level of material prosperity. Leopold lived for barely two years after his accession as Holy Roman Emperor, and during that period he was hard pressed by peril from west and east alike. The French Revolution was a revolution in France from 1789 to 1799. French philosopher Voltaire was also in favor of enlightened absolutism over democracy. It contains 231,429 words in 354 pages and was updated on January 31st 2021. They’re a good bit scarcer than French 20 Francs from the same era, but today we’re selling them for an even lower Leopold, along with King Friedrich-Wilhelm III of Prussia and French Émigrés issued the Declaration of … While they were busy beyond the Rhine, she would have annexed what remained of Poland and made conquests against the Ottoman Empire. His sister sent him passionate appeals for help, and he was pestered by the royalist émigrés, who were intriguing to bring about armed intervention in France. During the French Revolution, European monarchs watched the developments in France and considered whether they should intervene in support of Louis XVI or to take advantage of the chaos in France. Then, when sure of British support, he was in a position to baffle the intrigues of Prussia. Other people who supported enlightened absolutism include Catherine the Great of Russia, Joseph II of Austria, Leopold II of Tuscany, Denis [6], As Leopold had no army to maintain, and as he suppressed the small naval force kept up by the Medici, the whole of his revenue was left free for the improvement of his state. On 5 August 1765 Leopold married the Infanta Maria Luisa of Spain, daughter of Charles III of Spain and Maria Amalia of Saxony. Leopold, during his government in Tuscany, had shown a speculative tendency to grant his subjects a constitution. During the last few years of his rule in Tuscany, Leopold had begun to be frightened by the increasing disorders in the German and Hungarian dominions of his family, which were the direct result of his brother's strict methods. Leopold was never popular with his Italian subjects. However, he could not interfere in the internal affairs of a foreign country. Copy link. European Wars of the French Revolution, 1792 The 1789 overthrow of the French monarchy and the arrest of the King and his family sent ripples of apprehension throughout the monarchs of Europe. Never married. The attacks on the rights of the German princes on the left bank of the Rhine, and the increasing violence of the parties in Paris which were agitating to bring about war, soon showed, however, that this hope was vain. [2] He was a son of Empress Maria Theresa and her husband, Emperor Francis I, and the brother of Marie Antoinette, Queen of France, Maria Carolina of Austria and Joseph II, Holy Roman Emperor. Yet he did not surrender any part that could be retained of what Maria Theresa and Joseph had done to strengthen the hands of the state. When he succeeded to the Austrian lands, he began by making large concessions to the interests offended by his brother's innovations. When, therefore, in 1789 Joseph, who knew himself to be dying, asked him to come to Vienna and become co-regent, Leopold evaded the request. From the east he was threatened by the aggressive ambition of Catherine II of Russia and by the unscrupulous policy of Prussia. However, the … Leopold also introduced radical reforms to the system of neglect and inhumane treatment of those deemed mentally ill. On 23 January 1774, the "legge sui pazzi" (law on the insane) was established, the first of its kind to be introduced in all Europe, allowing steps to be taken to hospitalize individuals deemed insane. Black has suggested that Salieri composed the Te Deum for Joseph II's return to Vienna in 1788 and recast it for Leopold II's coronation two years later. Counterrevolution that happened in the period of the French Revolution. Share. A result of the French Revolution was the end of the French monarchy. 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