His Imperial Majesty Ferdinand I Karl Leopold Joseph Franz Marchlin Emperor of Austria King of Hungary and Bohemia (April 19, 1793 – June 29, 1875) succeeded his father (Franz II Holy Roman Emperor/Franz I of Austria) as Emperor and King in 1835 and was forced to abdicate in 1848. He was also King of Lombardy-Venetia.

He was feeble-minded and epileptic. He was placed on the throne by Metternich as a puppet for Metternich's own purposes. His marriage to Princess Maria Anna of Sardinia (1803-1884) was probably never consummated, nor is he believed to have had any other liaisons. He is famous for his one coherent command: when someone tried to keep him from eating dumplings because his digestive system could not stand them, he said "I'm the Emperor, and I want dumplings!" (German: Ich bin der Kaiser und will Knödel.)

With the brealout of revolution in Vienna in 1848, Metternich fled the country. As the revolutionaries were marching on the palace, he was attributed to saying, "But, are they allowed to do that?"(German: "Aber, werden sie das tun gelassen?.") He was convinced to abdicate by Felix zu Schwarzenberg , and his nephew, Franz Joseph, would be on the Austrian throne for the next sixty-eight years.

He was the last king of Bohemia to be crowned as such. Due to his sympathy to Bohemia (where he spent the rest of his life), he is, in Czech nicknamed :"Ferdinand V, the Good". In Austria, Ferdinand was in a similar way nicknamed "der Gütige" (the Benignant).

Preceded by: Francis

Emperor of Austria

Succeeded by: Franz Joseph

External link

• "Biography of Emperor Ferdinand"