Elizabeth of Austria, as the full name of Empress Sisi is, is bold, beautiful, emancipated, but also unhappy and brutally murdered. The beautiful flower of the Austrian royal court, whose life, because of its origin, seems destined to be wonderful, withers and dies tragically, but leaves its bright mark in the history of great personalities.
Elizabeth is born with blue blood in her veins. Her father was Duke Maximilian Joseph, and her mother was Louis of Bavaria, daughter of King Maximilian I Joseph of Bavaria.
Sisi, as she is affectionately called in the family, was born on Christmas Eve in 1837. As a child, Sisi is not very beautiful. Her mother, Duchess Louis, has high hopes for a good marriage for Sisi’s sister, the beautiful and refined Helena. But when the Archduchess Sophia, the mother of the Emperor of the Austrian Empire Franz Joseph, looked for a wife for her son and settled on Helena, her son completely confused her plans, falling in love at first sight with Sisi.
The Duchess of Sofia is known to be a woman of hard and difficult character, often unyielding and powerful. However, Franz is subdued by the young girl and is adamant: “Sisi or no one else.” The two lovers married in the spring of 1854. At her wedding, Sisi is dressed in a gorgeous dress and has a diamond tiara in her hair, a gift from her mother-in-law. Sisi is happy and adored by her husband, but also a little scared of the unknown. Franz Joseph is too busy to introduce his wife to her royal duties and palace etiquette, so his mother Sofia takes on this role. Then the hell for the young girl begins. Sofia quickly lets Sisi know that she is in command at the royal court. The domineering mother-in-law constantly harasses Sisi with reproaches and scandals. When Sisi and Franz Joseph’s first child, little Sofia, was born, her grandmother almost immediately took her under her care. The young mother suffers from the inability to be close to her child, and this increases her hatred for her mother-in-law. Sisi gives birth to a second daughter, Gisela, whom her grandmother Sofia tries to take from her in the same way. Fortunately, this time the emperor forbade his mother to interfere in his family relations. Sofia puts all her malice on the young mother’s shoulders. For a short time, the war between the two was interrupted by two life events. Sisi’s eldest daughter dies and the long-awaited heir to the throne, Rudolf, is born. At that time, the king fought in Italy with Napoleon’s troops, but the two did not stop writing tender love letters. When she is at the limit of her strength, unable to fight her mother-in-law any more, Sisi embarks on a journey outside the empire. A journey to help her recover mentally. He first visited the green island of Madeira, then the island of Corfu, France and England and conquered all of Europe with its beauty and sophisticated appearance. Sisi falls in love with the island of Corfu and orders a palace to be built there. Her husband, Franz Josef, mourns for his beloved, but does not stop her from traveling, feeling guilty about what his mother is doing to her.
In 1872, the Duchess of Sofia died. By this time, Sisi was already deeply depressed and unhappy, but she kept her spirits up by traveling. Sisi gave birth to a fourth child, Maria Valeria, who became her favorite and accompanied her mother on all her travels. In 1889, Sisi suffered another blow from fate – her only son Rudolf died. The Empress is devastated. Years of long absences from the royal court followed, in an attempt to heal his broken heart.
In 1898, Elizabeth visited Geneva. Although 60 years old, she still looks sophisticated and beautiful. One day, while walking down the rue Mont Blanc, Sisi fell to the ground. Pierced in the heart with a file, she died on the spot. Her killer is the anarchist Luigi Luceni, who wanted to kill a prominent person. Sisi unfortunately turns out to be his victim. Luigi told the court that he was satisfied with her murder, although he did not know who his victim was.
Franz Joseph is overwhelmed. After the death of his beloved, he did not speak for months. Stops attending cultural events. Sisi is in his thoughts until his last breath at the age of 98 – she looks at him from the portrait in his office and reminds him how strong his love for her is.
