Franz Joseph II (Franz Josef Maria Aloys Alfred Karl Johannes Heinrich Michael Georg Ignaz Benediktus Gerhardus Majella; 16 August 1906 – 13 November 1989) was the reigning

Prince of Liechtenstein The prince regnant of Liechtenstein (german: Fürst von und zu Liechtenstein) is the monarch and head of state of Liechtenstein.Principality of Liechtenstein Family - Die fürstliche Familie (in German) The Liechtenstein family, after which t ...

from 25 July 1938 until his death. Franz Joseph was the son of Prince Aloys of Liechtenstein and Archduchess Elisabeth Amalie of Austria. He succeeded his childless grand-uncle, Prince Franz I, after his father renounced his right of succession in his favour in 1923. During his reign, women received voting rights for the first time, following a referendum on the topic (among men only) in 1984. Franz Joseph was an extremely popular sovereign in

Liechtenstein Liechtenstein (), officially the Principality of Liechtenstein (german: link=no, Fürstentum Liechtenstein), is a German language, German-speaking microstate located in the Alps between Austria and Switzerland. Liechtenstein is a semi-constit ...

. He was the first ruling prince to live full-time in the principality. He also oversaw the economic development of Liechtenstein from a poor agricultural backwater into one of the richest countries (per capita) in the world.

World War II

remained neutral throughout

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

, and its neutrality was not violated by any of the combatants. Just before the end of the war, the Prince granted political asylum to 494 First Russian National Army pro-Axis pro-emperor Vladimir White emigres led by General Boris Smyslovsky.

Marriage and children

On 7 March 1943, at St. Florin's in

Vaduz Vaduz ( or , High Alemannic pronunciation: [])Hans Stricker, Toni Banzer, Herbert Hilbe: ''Liechtensteiner Namenbuch. Die Orts- und Flurnamen des Fürstentums Liechtenstein.'' Band 2: ''Die Namen der Gemeinden Triesenberg, Vaduz, Schaan.'' Hrsg. ...

, Franz Joseph II married Countess Georgina of Wilczek (24 October 1921 – 18 October 1989). They had five children, twelve grandchildren and nineteen great-grandchildren: *

Hans-Adam II, Prince of Liechtenstein Hans-Adam II (Johannes Adam Ferdinand Alois Josef Maria Marco d'Aviano Pius; born 14 February 1945) is the reigning Prince of Liechtenstein, since 1989. He is the son of Prince Franz Joseph II and his wife, Countess Georgina von Wilczek. He ...

(14 February 1945,

Zürich , neighboring_municipalities = Adliswil, Dübendorf, Fällanden, Kilchberg, Maur, Oberengstringen, Opfikon, Regensdorf, Rümlang, Schlieren, Stallikon, Uitikon, Urdorf, Wallisellen, Zollikon , twintowns = Kunming, San Francisco Zürich () i ...

) he married Countess Marie Aglaë of Wchinitz and Tettau on 30 July 1967. They have four children and fifteen grandchildren. *

Prince Philipp of Liechtenstein Prince Philipp of Liechtenstein (Philipp Erasmus Alois Ferdinand Maria Sebaldus; born 19 August 1946) is a member of the princely family of Liechtenstein. He is a son of the former reigning prince Franz Joseph II and the younger brother of curr ...

(19 August 1946,

) he married Isabelle de l'Arbre de Malander on 11 September 1971. They have three sons and four grandchildren. * Prince Nikolaus of Liechtenstein (24 October 1947,

) he married Princess Margaretha of Luxembourg on 20 March 1982. They have four children. * Princess Norberta of Liechtenstein (31 October 1950,

) she married Don Vicente Sartorius y Cabeza de Vaca, 3rd Marqués de Mariño on 11 June 1988. They have one daughter. * Prince Franz Josef Wenceslaus of Liechtenstein (

, 19 November 1962 –

, 28 February 1991). Died unmarried and without issue, at the age of twenty-eight.

Final years

Franz Joseph handed over most of his powers to his son, Hans-Adam, on 26 August 1984. Franz Joseph II died on 13 November 1989, a mere twenty-six days after his wife. Ruling

for 51 years, he was among the longest-ruling sovereigns in

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a subcontinent of Eurasia and it is located enti ...

and the longest-serving national leader in the world at the time of his death.

Honours

* Austria ** Austrian Imperial and Royal family: Knight with Collar of the

Order of the Golden Fleece The Distinguished Order of the Golden Fleece ( es, Insigne Orden del Toisón de Oro, german: Orden vom Goldenen Vlies) is a Catholic order of chivalry founded in Bruges by Philip the Good, Duke of Burgundy, in 1430, to celebrate his marriag ...

** : Grand Cross of the Decoration of Honour for Services to the Republic of Austria, Grand Star *

Greek Royal Family The Greek royal family (Greek: Ελληνική Βασιλική Οικογένεια) is a branch of the Danish royal family, itself a branch of the House of Glücksburg, that reigned in Greece from 1863 to 1924 and again from 1935 to 1973. Its ...

: Knight Grand Cross of the Royal Order of the Redeemer * Iranian Imperial Family: Recipient of the Commemorative Medal of the 2,500-year Celebration of the Persian EmpireIran Collection
/ref> *: Knight Grand Cross with Collar of the

Order of the Holy Sepulchre The Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem ( la, Ordo Equestris Sancti Sepulcri Hierosolymitani, links=yes, OESSH), also called Order of the Holy Sepulchre or Knights of the Holy Sepulchre, is a Catholic order of knighthood under ...

** : Knight Grand Cross with Collar of the Order of Pope Pius IX

References

External links