Royal Heirs: Succession and the Future of Monarchy in Nineteenth-Century Europe

During the 19th century, monarchies were bountiful in Europe, and there were more than a dozen different dynasties that ruled the continent between the French Revolution and the end of World War I. Müller’s (history, Univ. of St. Andrews; Our Fritz) book is the result of a major research project on the royal heirs of this era. It examines their roles as sons and husbands, their education, their positions in politics, and the militarization of the monarchy. Prince Albert Edward of England (later Edward VII); Rudolf, Crown Prince of Austria; Crown Prince Umberto of Savoy; Prince Frederick of Prussia; and more are profiled. Royal marriages were considered “sovereign acts” because they created dynastic connections; some of the book’s notable royal weddings and relationships include that between Princess Victoria and Prince Frederick of Prussia, who were reported to be happy together, and Princess Stéphanie and Crown Prince Rudolf of Austria, who married in 1902 and officially separated in 1918.