The funeral of the last heir to the Austro-Hungarian Empire, Otto von Habsburg, has taken place in the Austrian capital Vienna. (Watch BBC Report Here)
Often described as a champion of European unity, Otto Habsburg-Lothringen, the eldest son of the last Austrian emperor, has died at the age of 98. He lived in southern Germany during a life spent mostly in exile. The Habsburgs were the ruling family of the Austro-Hungarian empire, which collapsed at the end of World War One. Austria abolished the monarchy and the man also known as Otto von Habsburg gave up his claim to the throne in 1961.
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Euronews Otto von Habsburg dies at the age of 98 :
Funeral Highlights:
Archduke Otto von Hapsburg :
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FUNERAL CEREMONY
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Opening of Funeral Ceremony:
Cardinal’s Speech:
Requiem – Otto von Habsburg – Requiem und Kyrie (Michael Haydn):
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OTTO VON HABSBURG
A GREAT ADVOCATE OF EUROPEAN PEACE AND UNITY
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A Brief History of the European Unity with an Interview of Otto Von Habsburg:
On the meaning of Europe :
The European Constitution and Christianity :
On Europe and centralisation:
On Religion, Politics and Education :
On Muslims and Christians in Europe :
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NATIONAL ANTHEME
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National Anthem of the Austro Hungarian Empire:
Habsburg: Funeral held for last Austro-Hungarian heir (bbc)
The funeral of the last heir to the Austro-Hungarian Empire, Otto von Habsburg, has taken place in the Austrian capital Vienna.
European royals and political leaders, many from nations that his family ruled over, attended the service.
The body of the last crown prince was buried in the Imperial crypt at a private ceremony. His wife, who died last year, was buried alongside him.
Mr Habsburg, a former MEP, died earlier this month at the age of 98 in Germany.
Thousands of Austrians and tourists lined the streets of Vienna’s city centre ahead of a procession into St Stephen’s Cathedral, where about 1,000 mourners had gathered.
Vienna’s Cardinal Christoph Schoen born presided over a funeral mass, attended by European royals including Sweden’s King Carl Gustaf and Queen Silvia, Grand Duke Henri of Luxembourg and Prince Hans-Adam II of Liechtenstein.
Among the political figures at the ceremony were Austrian President Heinz Fischer, and the prime ministers of Croatia and Macedonia.
Members of historical societies wearing traditional uniforms mingled with mourners outside the cathedral watching the service on large screens.
Mr Habsburg’s body was buried shortly afterwards in the Imperial crypt where his ancestors lie. However, his heart will be taken to Hungary for burial at an abbey west of Budapest on Sunday, in accordance with a Habsburg tradition.
A passionate advocate of European unity, Mr Habsburg served as a member of the European parliament for two decades.
His son Karl Habsburg said his father witnessed huge changes in Europe during his life.
“It would always be wrong to only remember him in the context of the old monarchy or only remember him in the context of the European Union. I think he should be remembered in the whole arch that his life has been creating over the whole changes that happened to Europe in his lifetime,” he said.
The BBC’s Bethany Bell in Vienna says that there have been some complaints that the pomp surrounding the funeral is out of place in a republic.
‘Life in exile’
Mr Habsburg was born in 1912, six years before the collapse of the empire at the end of the First World War.
He spent many decades exiled from Austria after his family fled in 1919, but relinquished his own claim to inherit the empire in 1961. Five years later he was allowed to return to Austria.
He was an opponent of the Nazis and spoke out against Germany’s annexation of Austria in1938.
In 1989 he helped organise the Pan-European Picnic demonstration on the border of Austria and Hungary.
The border was briefly opened, an event credited with helping usher in the fall of the Berlin Wall months later.
Mr Habsburg then dedicated himself to having the former communist-ruled states of eastern Europe brought into the EU.
European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso paid tribute to him as “a great European who gave an important impetus to the European project throughout his rich life”.
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