🔴 La scomparsa dell'arciduchessa Sárolta d'Austria (1940-2020), figlia dell'ultimo duca di Teschen

Sárolta Wutholen nel 2015.

Il 2 novembre 2020 è morta in Svizzera all'età di ottant'anni Sárolta d'Asburgo-Lorena Wutholen.

L'arciduca Alberto d'Austria e Katalin Bocskay de Felsö-Bánya il giorno del loro matrimonio.

Nata a Budapest il 3 marzo 1940, Sárolta (Charlotte) Isabella Mária Krisztine Eszter Katalin Pia von Habsburg, era la prima figlia dell'arciduca Albrecht d'Austria (1897-1955), duca di Teschen, e della sua seconda moglie Katalin Bocskay de Felsö-Bánya (1909-2000). Albrecht e Katalin si sposarono nel 1938 ed ebbero due figlie: Sárolta e Ildikó (n. 1942). La Seconda Guerra Mondiale e le sue conseguenze furono devastanti per la famiglia. Poiché l'Ungheria era dietro la cortina di ferro, Albrecht perse la maggior parte delle sue proprietà, proprietà che a un certo punto avevano reso suo padre uno degli Asburgo più ricchi. Il suo matrimonio, ormai, era finito in tutto tranne che nel nome. Quindi, la famiglia ha dovuto cercare nuovi posti dove ricostruire le proprie vite devastate. Come sfollata, Katalin si trasferì negli Stati Uniti con le sue figlie nel 1949. L'arciduca Alberto ottenne il divorzio messicano dalla moglie nel 1951. 

Katalin con le figlie Sárolta e Kathy, 1949.

After their move to the United States, Katalin gave several interviews to the press in the summer of 1949. “‘Tis is a wonderful feeling, the freedom of America. No furtive looks for ever-present harassing officials. We even can go from one city to another without registering and rigamarole. Fear has almost left our hearts.” About the fate of her husband Albrecht, who had ostensibly been captured by the Soviets, Katalin mused: “It seems almost hopeless. He vanished on a business trip between Hungary and Austria, in both of which he had properties, now confiscated.” By 1955, Katalin and her daughters had settled in San Francisco. Shortly after learning of the death of her former husband following a heart attack in Buenos Aires, Katalin again spoke to the press: “I am not divorced from him. We are just legally separated. I never filed a divorce; I never received notice of one. In fact, I have heard nothing from my husband in all these years.” She continued, elaborating on her concern for her daughters Sárolta and Kathy: “You must promise, please, to not mention my age. This is not just because of the vanity, you understand, but it might make a difference in my future. I am no longer teenaged, and I must think of my girls’ future. I am their sole support and have only what I earn. This expression, ‘middle-aged,’ I would not object to that.” Katalin and her younger daughter eventually became US citizens. Katalin von Habsburg first worked in a department store before becoming an office employee at the University of California. 

Katalin with her daughter Kathy, who holds a picture of her father Archduke Albrecht, 1958.

Sárolta von Habsburg in 1958.

Countess Sárolta von Habsburg, Princess of Hungary, attended San Diego College for Women. While she was a freshman at university in 1958, she and her mother and sister learned that a Vienna court ruled that Katalin was the legal widow of Archduke Albrecht, which entitled the family to substantial compensation. Sárolta commented on the development in the amelioration of her family’s financial situation: “Well, I’m going to continue attending classes here. This won’t change my plans. And, when I graduate, I still want to enter the foreign service.“

In 1967, Sárolta von Habsburg married Ferdinand Joseph Wutholen (1927-2018). The couple had four children: Isabella (b.1968), Alessandra (b.1970), Marina (b.1973), and Misha (b.1981). While entitled to use the title of Archduchess of Austria, Princess of Hungary (due to titulature changes proclaimed by the Head of the House), Sárolta chose not use them. She and her family always sought to be private people and never sought public exposure. Sárolta is survived by her children, their partners, and her four grandchildren, as well as by her sister Ildikó Kathy Fortier. 

Poiché l'arciduca Ottone e l'arciduca Carlo, i defunti e attuali capi della famiglia imperiale austriaca, riconobbero retroattivamente come dinastici i matrimoni degli arciduchi che avevano sposato spose cristiane (che erano considerate disuguali al momento delle loro unioni), Sárolta aveva diritto al titolo e stile Sua Altezza Imperiale e Reale l'Arciduchessa Sárolta d'Austria, Principessa d'Ungheria. Tuttavia, la sua famiglia ha confermato che non ha mai rivendicato né utilizzato alcun titolo.

Che Sárolta riposi in pace.

Vedi anche:

Per ulteriori notizie e articoli sulle famiglie imperiali, reali e nobili d'Europa, unisciti a Eurohistory:

Iscriviti al  giornale di storia reale europea !