Page "Francis I of Austria" Paragraph 0

Francis II () ( 12 February 1768 – 2 March 1835 ) was the last Holy Roman Emperor, ruling from 1792 until 6 August 1806, when he dissolved the Holy Roman Empire after the disastrous defeat of the Third Coalition by Napoleon at the Battle of Austerlitz.

In 1804, he had founded the Austrian Empire and became Francis I ( Franz I.

), the first Emperor of Austria ( Kaiser von Österreich ), ruling from 1804 to 1835, so later he was named the one and only Doppelkaiser ( double emperor ) in history.

For the two years between 1804 and 1806, Francis used the title and style by the grace of God elected Roman Emperor, always August, hereditary Emperor of Austria and he was called the Emperor of both Germany and Austria.

He was also Apostolic King of Hungary, Croatia and Bohemia as Francis I.

He also served as the first president of the German Confederation following its establishment in 1815.