Hapsburg, Otto von

Hapsburg, Otto von, 1912–2011, Austrian archduke and former pretender to the Austro-Hungarian throne, son of Emperor Charles I and Empress Zita. After World War II began, he went to the United States and made an unsuccessful attempt to form an Austrian legion to fight Germany. Returning to Europe in 1946, he remained in exile. In 1961, he relinquished his claims to the throne and subsequently was allowed to visit Austria. He was elected to the European Parliament from Bavaria (1979 and 1989), and championed European unification. An author and lecturer, he wrote The Social Order of Tomorrow (1957, tr. 1959) and a biography of the emperor Charles V (tr. 1970).

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