Archduke Charles Joseph, by Johann Christoph von Reinsperger.
Charles Joseph was the favourite son of Maria Theresa and Francis. He is known to have hated his older brother, the future Holy Roman Emperor Joseph II. He ridiculed him for his haughtiness and thought himself to be more deserving of the Crown of the Holy Roman Empire because he was the first son born to Francis during his reign as emperor. Charles Joseph often said that he meant to contend with his brother for the imperial crown.[1]
The rivalry between the brothers was ended by Charles Joseph's death from smallpox, two weeks before his sixteenth birthday. While his mother was sitting by his bed in tears, Charles Joseph told her:
You should not weep for me, dear mother, for had I lived, I would have brought you many more tears![2]
Charles Joseph is buried in the Imperial Crypt in Vienna. His heart was buried separately in the Habsburg Crypt in the Loreto chapel of the Augustinian Church in Vienna.
Notes and references
^In fact, Charles Joseph was mistaken. Francis was elected emperor in September, which means that Charles wasn't born to an emperor either. Mahan, 270.
Generations are numbered by male-line descent from the first archdukes. Later generations are included although Austrian titles of nobility were abolished in 1919.
Generations are numbered from the children of Francesco de' Medici, first Grand Duke of Tuscany. Later generations are included but the grand duchy was abolished in 1860.
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