Habsburg, Georg von

Born December 16, 1964 in Starnberg ( Bavaria , Germany ). The seventh child and second son of Archduke Otto von Habsburg (1912–2011), Crown Prince of Austria-Hungary (1916–1918) and the head of the Habsburg-Lorraine House (1922–2007), and Princess Regina of Saxe-Meiningen (1925–2010). The elder brother is Archduke Karl von Habsburg (born 1961 ), the head of the Habsburg-Lorraine House since 2007 .

Archduke Georg was brought up by his parents in exile, at Villa Ostria in Pöcking ( Bavaria ). After graduating from high school in 1984 in Tutzing (Bavaria), he studied law, political science, history and Islam at the universities of Innsbruck , Madrid and Munich in 1984-1993.

Archduke George is the grandson of the last Austrian emperor Charles I. However, he does not use his titles as a member of the Habsburg house, since the use of these titles is illegal in Hungary and Austria ^[2] . In 1991, Georg von Habsburg received Hungarian citizenship.

In February 1997, George announced his engagement to Duchess Eilika of Oldenburg . On October 18 of the same 1997, Archduke Georg von Habsburg married in Budapest ( St. Stephen's Basilica ) Eilika of Oldenburg (born August 22, 1972 ), the eldest daughter of Duke Johann Adolf Friedrich of Oldenburg (born 1940) and Countess Ilka von Ortenburg. Johann of Oldenburg is the youngest son of Nikolaus, heir to the Grand Duke of Oldenburg (1897-1970), and Princess Helena von Waldeck and Pyrmont (1899-1948). The ceremony was attended by Hungarian President Arpad Gentz and Prime Minister Gyula Horn , heir to the Spanish throne, Felipe of Asturias , Prince of Monaco Alber , King of Hassan II of Morocco , as well as ambassadors of many countries. Pope John Paul II sent his newlyweds their congratulations. About 2,000 Hungarians and tourists from other countries gathered in front of the temple to see the wedding. The ceremony was also broadcast on Hungarian television. This marriage was the first union between the Habsburg Catholic family and the Lutherans of Oldenburg . After the wedding, the bride retained her religion ^[1] .

The spouses have three children:

• Archduke Sofia Maria Tatyana Madai Erzhebet Katalin (Sophia Maria Tatyana Monika Elizabeth Katherine) (born January 12, 2001, Budapest )
• Archduke Ildiko Maria Walburga (Hilda Maria Walburga) (born June 6, 2002, Budapest )
• Archduke Karol-Konstantin Mihai Istvan Maria (Karl-Konstantin Mikhel Stefan Maria) (born July 20, 2004, Budapest ).

Georg and his family live in the village of Soskut , in the Pest County in Hungary.

In 1987 - 1988, Georg von Habsburg was an employee of the German television channel ZDF . In 1989, he worked for a short time on television in Oman . In 1990, he founded his own television company, which was engaged in the production of documentary television films. In the early 1990s, he adopted Hungarian citizenship and moved to the Pest County . In 1995, Georg von Habsburg became director of the German-Hungarian-Scandinavian television company MTM . In 1996 - 2002 - Member of the Board of the Hungarian TV channel 2 MTM-SBS. December 16, 1996 was appointed authorized ambassador of Hungary to the EU ^[1] . The Archduke was an active supporter of the enlargement of the European Union.

From 2004 to 2012, Georg von Habsburg was president of the Red Cross in Hungary. In 2009, he ran for the European Parliament from the Hungarian Democratic Forum . However, according to the election results, MDF received only one mandate .

•   Cavalier of the Order of the Golden Fleece ^{[3] [4] [5] [6] [7]}
•   Cavalier of the Order of Leopold ^{[8] [9] [10]}
•   Cavalier of the Order of the Iron Crown ^{[11] [12] [13]}
•   Cavalier of the Order of St. George ^{[11] [12] [13] [14]}

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