In a special audience yesterday (November 5th) with three hundred members of the Imperial House of Austria, including his majesty Karl (the current Head of the Imperial House), on the occasion of the Jubilee Year of Mercy, his Holiness Pope Francis spoke to the family about the last reigning Emperor Blessed Karl of Austria;
In this happy circumstance, you also remember in a special way Blessed Karl of Austria, who precisely one hundred years ago acceded to the throne. His spiritual presence in your midst ensures that the Habsburg family today does not turn to the past in a nostalgic manner but, on the contrary, is actively present in the current moment, with its challenges and its needs. Indeed, some of you hold prominent roles in organisations of solidarity and human and cultural development; as well as in support of the project of Europe as a common home founded on human and Christian values.
The War for Christendom 