The House of Windischgrätz, also spelled Windischgraetz, is a Slovenian-Austrian aristocratic family, descending from Windischgrätz in Lower Styria. The noble dynasty serving the House of Habsburg achieved the rank of Freiherren in 1551, of Imperial Counts in 1682 and of Princes of the Holy Roman Empire in 1804. The family belongs to high nobility.
Princely arms of Windischgrätz
Windischgrätz in Slovene Styria (1681)
Tachov Palace, Western Bohemia
Štěkeň Castle
The Austrian nobility is a status group that was officially abolished in 1919 after the fall of Austria-Hungary. The nobles are still part of Austrian society today, but they no longer retain any specific privileges. Austria's system of nobility was very similar to that of Germany, as both countries were previously part of the Holy Roman Empire (962–1806).
The imperial court of Maria Theresa at the Hofburg in Vienna
During the baroque era, the nobility started to move into the cities and built themselves lavish residences called Palais. The Palais Kinsky in Vienna, belonging to the princely Kinsky family, is one of the most outstanding pieces.
Aristocrats gathering around Emperor Franz Joseph at a ball in the Hofburg Imperial Palace, painting by Wilhelm Gause (1900).
Ludwig Edler von Mises
