Franz Sacher (16 December 1816 – 11 March 1907) was an

Austrian Austrian may refer to: * Austrians, someone from Austria or of Austrian descent ** Someone who is considered an Austrian citizen * Austrian German dialect * Something associated with the country Austria, for example: ** Austria-Hungary ** Austria ...

confectioner Confectionery is the art of making confections, or sweet foods. Confections are items that are rich in sugar and carbohydrates, although exact definitions are difficult. In general, however, confections are divided into two broad and somewh ...

, best known as the inventor of the

Sachertorte Sachertorte ( , ; ) is a chocolate sponge cake covered with chocolate glaze, with an interior layer of apricot jam either under the glaze or in the middle of two sponge layers. The cake was invented by Franz Sacher, either in 1832 for Aus ...

Biography

According to Sacher's son Eduard, in 1832

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, Prince Metternich, ordered his court's kitchen to create a special

dessert Dessert is a course (food), course that concludes a meal; the course consists of sweet foods, such as cake, biscuit, ice cream, and possibly a beverage, such as dessert wine or liqueur. Some cultures sweeten foods that are more commonly umami, ...

for a dinner to be attended by high-ranking guests. ''Dass er mir aber keine Schand' macht, heut' Abend!'' ("Let there be no shame on me tonight!"), he is reported to have declared. On the day of the dinner the chief cook of Metternich's household was taken ill, and the task of preparing the dessert had to be passed to Franz Sacher, then in his second year of

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at the palace. The result would be the chocolate cake devised on the spot by the 16-year-old trainee. The story was probably invented by Eduard many years later, to appeal to "Viennese nostalgic for their imperial past".Michael Krondl, ''Sweet Invention: A History of Dessert'', , 2011, p. 290-291: "my best guess is that the Metternich creation story originates with Eduard Sacher" Sacher was born in

Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...

to Anton Sacher and Anna Löw and died in

Baden bei Wien Baden (Central Bavarian: ''Bodn''), unofficially distinguished from Baden (disambiguation), other Badens as Baden bei Wien (Baden near Vienna), is a spa town in Austria. It serves as the capital of Baden (district of Austria), Baden District in t ...

, where he was buried in the (Saint Helena Cemetery). Eduard opened the

Hotel Sacher Hotel Sacher is a five-star luxury hotel in Vienna, Austria, facing the Vienna State Opera in the city's central Innere Stadt district. It is famous for the specialty of the house, the Sachertorte, a chocolate cake with apricot filling. There is ...

in 1876, near the State Opera House in

. The Sachertorte is said to be instrumental in spreading the fame of the hotel; or perhaps the other way around. The exact recipe as created by Sacher himself is a closely guarded secret.

Personal life

Franz Sacher and his wife Rosa b. Wieninger had three sons. * Franz († 1889; Age: 48/49) took over the business of his father in the 1860s, and later became the restaurateur and hotelier in

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, then Head of Marine Casinos in

Pula Pula, also known as Pola, is the largest city in Istria County, west Croatia, and the List of cities and towns in Croatia, seventh-largest city in the country, situated at the southern tip of the Istria, Istrian peninsula in western Croatia, wi ...

; * Eduard (1843–1892) founded the

in Vienna in 1876; * Carl (1849–1929) founded Sacher's Hotel & Curanstalt in Helenental in 1881.

Tribute

On 19 December 2016,

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celebrated Sacher's 200th birthday with a

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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sacher, Franz 1816 births 1907 deaths People from Austria-Hungary Austrian confectioners Confectioners Businesspeople from Vienna People from Levice District People from Baden bei Wien