Royal Profile: Archduke Karl von Habsburg, Crown Prince of Austria, Hungary, and Bohemia

Archduke Karl Thomas Robert Maria Franziskus Georg von Habsburg, Crown Prince of Austria, Hungary, and Bohemia was born 11 January 1961 as the son of Otto von Habsburg and Archduchess Regina, Crown Princess of Austria, Hungary, and Bohemia, Princess of Saxe-Meiningen{Source}. He has four older sisters and a younger brother, and their families{Source}:

1. Andrea Maria von Habsburg, Archduchess of Austria, Hereditary Countess of Neipperg (1953)
1. Hereditary Count Karl Eugen von Neipperg (1951, m. 1977)
1. Count Philipp of Neipperg (1978)
1. Paula Wolff (1981, m. 2008)
   1. Countess Johanna of Neipperg (2009)
   2. Count Stephan Benedikt of Neipperg (2010)
   3. Count Emanuel of Neipperg (2014)
   4. Countess Alexandra of Neipperg (2015)
2. Count Benedikt of Neipperg (1980)
3. Count Dominik of Neipperg (1981)
1. Princess Marie-Anna of Salm-Salm (1986, m. 2012)
   1. Countess Florentina of Neipperg (2015)
   2. Countess Xenia of Neipperg (2016)
4. Countess Maria Hemma of Neipperg (1983)
1.  Keno Specht (1980, m. 2012)
   1. Annunziata Specht (2013)
   2. Olympia Specht (2016)
   3. Beatrice Specht (2017)
5. Countess Katharina of Neipperg, Princess of Lobkowicz (1986)
1.  Prince Wenzel of Lobkowicz (1986, m. 2012)
1. Prince Valerian of Lobkowicz (born 2014)
2. Prince Camillo of Lobkowicz (born 2016)
2. Archduchess Monika von Habsburg,The Duchess de Santangelo (1954)
1. Don Luis María Gonzaga de Casanova-Cárdenas y Barón, The Duke de Santangelo (1950, m. 1980)
1. Baltasar Carlos de Casanova y Habsburgo-Lorena, 23rd Marqués de Elche (1981)
2. Gabriel Maria de Casanova y Habsburgo-Lorena (1983)
3. Rafael Maria de Casanova y Habsburgo-Lorena (1986)
4. Santiago de Casanova y Habsburgo-Lorena (1993)
3. Archduchess Michaela von Habsburg (1954)
1. Eric Alba-Teran de'Antin (1920-2004, m. 1984-1994. div)
1. Marc Juan Alba-Teran d'Antin (1984)
1. Tricia Johnston(m. 2012)
2. Carla Regina Alba-Teran d'Antin (1987)
3. Justin Christopher Alba-Teran d'Antin (1989)
1. Miss Salander (first name, years of marriage and birth are unknown)
2. Count Hubertus von Kagegneck (1940, m. 1994-1998,div)
4. Archduchess Gabriela von Habsburg (1956)
1. Christian Meister (1954, m. 1978-1997, div, annulled)
1. Severin Meister (1981)
2. Lioba Meister (1983)
3. Alene Meister (1986)
5. Archduchess Walbuga von Habsburg (1958)
1.  Count Archibald Douglas (1949, m. 1992)
1. Count Moritz Otto Wenzel Douglas (1994)
6. Archduke Georg von Habsburg (1964)
1. Duchess Eilika of Oldenburg (1972, m. 1997)
1. Archduchess Zsófia Mária Tatjána Mónika Erzsébet Katalin von Habsburg (Sophie Maria Tatiana Monica Elisabeth Catherine, 2001)
2. Archduchess Ildikó Mária Walburga von Habsburg (Hilda Maria Walburga, 2002)
3. Archduke Károly-Konstantin Mihály István Mária von Habsburg (Karl-Konstantin Michael Stephan Maria, 2004)

He was baptized in Pöcking, Bavaria, as Archduke Karl of Austria, with his name entered in the baptismal records {Source}. At the time of his birth, his father was de facto stateless and possessed a Spanish diplomatic passport (he had grown up in Spain), while his mother was a German citizen. Like his father and siblings, he was banished from Austria for the first years of his life. However, the administrative court of Austria later ruled that applying to return to the country was legal, and his family was granted visa entrance in June 1966{Source}.

As the eldest grandson of the last Austrian emperor, Charles I and Zita of Bourbon-Parma, he was born into the house of Habsburg-Lorriane, but does not regularly use his ancestral titles since the use of such titles is now illegal in both Hungary and Austria {Source}.

He is the oldest grandson of the last Austrian emperor and empress, Charles I and Zita of Bourbon-Parma. Born a member of the House of Habsburg-Lorraine, he does not use his ancestral titles, since the use of such titles is now illegal in both Hungary and Austria {Source}.

In 1961,  his father made the necessary move to renounce his claims to the Austrian throne in order to return to Austria. In 2000, Archduke Otto transferred his potions of head and sovereign Grand Maters of the Order of the Golden Fleece (Austrian branch).  In 2005, Karl von Habsburg filed an unsuccessful lawsuit before Austria's constitutional court after a failed attempt to have former properties of the Habsburg family returned. On 1 January 2007, his father relinquished his position as the head of the House of Habsburg-Lorraine, a status which then devolved on Karl {Source}. In 2008, he became the Grand Master of the Order of St. George {Source}.

In 1986, he became president of the Austrian branch of the Paneuropean Union, a potion previously held by Otto von Habsburg. 

He studied law for 12 years. In the early 1990s, he changed directions-becoming a game show host fpr Austrian public television, hosting Who is Who? {Source}. In late 1996, he became a politician, for The  Austrian People's Party for the European Parliament. In 1998, it was revealed that  the ÖVP's election campaign had benefitted from at least 30,000 Mark of World Vision donation money via Paneurope Austria while Karl von Habsburg sat on the board of World Vision Austria, apparently without noticing the director's dubiously legal activities{Source}. His father was no help in the matter, making it worse with an outcry that his son was being attacked for unfairly and drew a parallel between the name "Habsburg" and a yellow badge {Source}. Karl was not nominated by his party for the 1999 elections {Source}. In 2004, he made restitution to the new World Vision Austria branch with a donation of 37, 0000 euros ($464,239.0000 in January 2004, $632,112.15 in 2020).

In additon to his political controversies, he has also had a legal contorversy. In July 1998 an Austrian court fined Karl von Habsburg 180,000 schillings ($14,300); he had failed to declare immediately to customs officials that he had an antique diadem in his luggage when he crossed the border from Switzerland in July 1996 {Source}.

In January 2002, he switch careers again, this time becoming appointed as Director-General of the Unpresented Nations and Peoples Organization by the UNPOO Steering Committee {Source}. Since late 2008, he has been President of the Association of National Committees of The Blue Shield{Source}. A year later, Karl became a shareholder in a media group in The Netherlands, which contains radio stations, a magazine and a music television channel. He is a co-founder of BG Privatinvest, which was  principal owner in two Bulgarian newspapers for a year prior to their sale in 2011. 

He has been a resident of Austria since the early 1980s. He married Baroness Francesca Anne Dolores Freiin Thyssen-Bornemisza de Kászon et Impérfalva in January 1993, separating in 2003. Together they have three children:

1. Archduchess Elenore of Austria, Royal Princess of Hungary, Bohemia and Croatia(1994)
1. Jérôme d'Ambrosio (1985, engaged since 2017)
2. Archduke Ferdinand  of Austria, Royal Prince of Hungary, Bohemia and Croatia (1997)
3. Archduchess Gloria of Austria, Royal Princess of Hungary, Bohemia and Croatia(1999)

Random fact: I actually received an email from one of the children of Archduke Otto's brother Felix after his death in 2011...Felix was the uncle of Archduke Karl....if you're still reading this (Carlos was it?) Hello! :)