September 12, 1949
Archduchess Elisabeth of Austria married Prince Heinrich Karl of Liechtenstein ceremonies today, reports the Associated Press.
The 27-year-old Archduchess is the eighth and youngest child of the late Austrian Emperor Karl and his wife, Empress Zita. Elisabeth was born nearly two months after the death of her father on April 1, 1922, from pneumonia. Prince Heinrich, 33 is the son of Prince Alfred of Liechtenstein and Princess Theresa of Oettingen-Oettingen und Oettingen-Wallerstein
The couple had three separate ceremonies. The first ceremony took place last night at the Chateau Lignieres. This was the family statue ceremony that members of the Austrian imperial family take part in to show that their marriage is "within their rank.
Before the fall of the Hapsburg empire, the ceremony was directed by the Grand Marshal at the palace in Vienna. Last night's ceremony was performed by Count Karl Esterhazy, who acted as the grand marshal. The bride's oldest brother, Archduke Otto, who is the head of the imperial family, signed for the Habsburgs, and Prince Josef, the sovereign Prince of Liechtenstein, signed on behalf of Liechtenstein.
The mayor of Lignieres, who is also the town's pharmacist, presided at the civil ceremony which would place this morning.
The Roman Catholic service was held at the church at the Château de Lignières, The religious ceremony "revived for the moment the formal protocol and glory of the ancient court of the Habsburgs.
The Château de Lignières is owned by the bride's maternal uncle, Prince Xavier of Bourbon-Parma.
For most of the second world war, Elisabeth and her family lived for a few months in New York State before settling in Quebec. She was born at El Pardo in Madrid after King Alfonso XIII invited the newly widowed Zita and her children to live in Spain.
The newlyweds will live at Schloss Waldstein in Steiermark.
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