The Genius Archduke of the Gunpowder Empire — Part 4
(A Humble Beginning)
In 1896, when I turned nine, many changes took place.
Our family grew by one member. My younger brother Maximilian, eight years my junior, was born.
Despite their terrible relationship, it seemed my parents still wished to uphold the duties of the imperial family, so they eventually produced another child.
Children were considered very important to the imperial family, so it seemed Father couldn't simply ignore the matter either.
If there is good, there is also bad. Father had also been making children outside.
He was off gallivanting out there, and sure enough, he ended up causing an accident.
Mother only sighed as if to say, “Just as I expected,” but it didn't escalate into a major fight.
For wealthy men with time on their hands in this era, having an illegitimate child or two was truly a common occurrence.
And when my grandfather, Archduke Karl Ludwig, died of typhus, the succession rights passed to my uncle, Archduke Franz Ferdinand, and our father became next in line.
This shift in succession must have filled the Emperor and the imperial court with a profound sense of crisis and tension.
And no wonder. The Crown Prince had committed suicide, the current Emperor’s (Franz Joseph I’s) younger brother Maximilian I (Emperor of Mexico) had died earlier, and the second younger brother, Archduke Karl Ludwig, had also died of illness.
With the heirs dropping like flies, there was no way they could remain unconcerned.
Naturally, Father’s and my value shot up tremendously, and the Emperor summoned our family to Vienna, the capital of Austria.
The forest castle with its clean air and water was deeply satisfying, but in the end, one must head for the capital.
Because, generally speaking, everything in the nation converges upon the capital.
“This will be our home from today.”
What greeted our family upon arriving in Vienna, Austria, was an imposing castle.
If our previous home had been a fairy-tale forest castle, the one before our eyes now displayed the majestic authority of the House of Habsburg.
The palace, with an elegant exterior featuring a central dome, was called Augarten. Nearby stretched a French-style garden, seemingly drawn with authority and strict control.
It was said that Emperor Franz Joseph I had gifted it to our family and had it extensively remodeled.
Truly generous, befitting an Emperor.
“What do you think?”
Father picked me up with a flourish and said proudly. Anyone watching would think he had purchased the palace through his own efforts.
But I grinned and gave him a thumbs-up.
How many people in the empire’s capital could live in such a grand place?
Knowing you're more special than anyone else always fills your heart to the brim.
It's not for nothing that I'm trying to save this precarious empire.
How could I not when the payoff is this sweet? The moment I give up, even this palace before my eyes will vanish.
If I become Emperor, Schönbrunn, Hofburg, and countless other buildings and assets will fall into my hands.
Ahem. I absolutely can't give up.
And I must admit what needs admitting: Father's ability to receive gifts from others is a skill in itself.
He may look like a good-for-nothing in my eyes, but he still enjoyed the Emperor’s affection. From a young age, his handsome appearance and mischievous demeanor had drawn the imperial family’s attention.
That is why such a grand palace came to our family.
I heard it's even larger than the residence of Franz Ferdinand, the first in the line of succession.
“Karl, you'll be attending school this year as well, won't you?”
While Father and I laughed, looking at the grand palace, my mother, passionate about education, spoke as if she were greatly looking forward to me attending school in Vienna.
Of course Mother would be excited. How fun it must be for her to watch her son, praised as a genius by private tutors, going off to school to beat up other children.
And it's no ordinary place, but a high-level hunting ground.
How could the school I attend be ordinary? There is an educational institution befitting imperial royalty.
There too, I must trample young sprouts for the sake of filial piety.
I'm more confident than anyone at trampling newbies. Korea was an incredible high-level hunting ground, after all.
Wait, young sprouts! I, who not only survived but devoured the insane educational fervor toxic enough to eat away at a nation, am coming!
“Yes. I'll work hard at school as well.”
Since I was a good son, I gave Mother the answer she wanted.
“As expected of my son.”
Mother showed me that smile of boundless trust, just like before.
Since I listened well and studied hard, she showed no trace of doubt toward me.
What I'd learn at school would merely be an extension of what I'd already learned from private tutors, wouldn't it?
My goal was to skip grades quickly and graduate.
Don't I know how this peaceful era called the Belle Époque will end?
I could no longer loaf around while studying. A great war that would set the world ablaze and change it completely was going to break out.
How much I could gain in Vienna, the capital, would determine my future and the empire’s.
This country simply won't make it without me.
***
Originally a summer residence of the Habsburg family, the Theresianum was established as an educational institution—through the patronage of Empress Maria Theresa—to train young people entering public service.
Presently, it was naturally an elite school attended by the imperial family, nobility, and wealthy upper class, wielding formidable influence even among educational institutions.
Since many who held public office in Austria and Hungary had graduated from the Theresianum, who could deny it?
And there was one being who received the most attention at the Theresianum.
“How is he so composed at such a young age?”
“We greatly anticipate what kind of figure he will show when he becomes an adult.”
“Wouldn't he make a good monarch?”
“Hush. Why bring up such a sensitive topic?”
Even the teachers and staff of the Theresianum whispered when they saw him.
Archduke Karl, or Karl von Habsburg-Lothringen.
An imperial family member bearing the name Habsburg would naturally draw attention, and his courteous attitude and dignified bearing that anyone could see made him stand out.
Not just his appearance, but having entered the Theresianum at a young age and skipping grades with excellent marks, his prominence rose even higher.
He was from a collateral line, but as third in the line of succession (1st Franz Ferdinand, 2nd his father Archduke Otto), he was a royal with not entirely zero possibility.
Currently, rumors circulated in Vienna that Archduke Franz Ferdinand might marry someone not of noble blood.
If Archduke Franz Ferdinand were to make a morganatic marriage as rumored, Karl would highly likely ascend to the throne, so the attention on him was on a different level from ordinary royalty.
That was the current story about me at the Theresianum.
Hmm. Honestly, it hadn't been entirely easy. The world was wide, and there were many geniuses, after all.
Vienna, Austria at this time was by no means an inconspicuous city. For hundreds of years it had been an important imperial city, filled with famous artists, writers, musicians, and thinkers.
The empire's capital couldn't possibly be mediocre.
It was such a city with an excellent environment that a few years later, famous figures like Hitler, Trotsky, and Stalin would reside there at one point or another.
Hitler and Stalin. At this point, one might think all the terrible history that followed was Austria's fault.
Strange fellows passed through here.
Anyway, it was natural for talent to emerge from such a city, and there were many children who showed promise from a young age.
There were children with talents that defied my common sense, but in the end, I maintained my standing as the top student.
Originally, education at this age allowed trained monsters like me to run rampant far more than mere prodigies with natural gifts.
The Theresianum's curriculum itself wasn't designed to target geniuses, was it?
It was an educational institution for the noble imperial family, aristocracy, and wealthy class.
Even a genius like Einstein had apparently received poor marks in some subjects as a child; catching up to me would be difficult.
Einstein? Isn't this gentleman currently failing his university entrance exams? Once I settle in more, I'll have to kidnap him or something.
Anyway, even if a few smart geniuses received better grades and evaluations than me in some subjects, I overwhelmed them in the overall picture, so within two years of moving to Vienna, I had built the top image.
And where there are achievements, fitting rewards must follow.
I pestered Father and Mother for money.
Give me money!
“You want to buy paintings?”
Art-related consumption had always cost quite a bit of money, then as now.
I wasn't an unfilial son crazy for luxury brands, bleeding my parents dry, nor was I interested in such things.
Would our household be shaken just by buying a few things?
Anyway, I needed money.
Still, my body was that of an eleven-year-old child. No matter how much I had earned my parents' trust as a child, money was another matter entirely.
I had to persuade my parents about how I would use the money. Wouldn't any parent worry, no matter how excellent the child?
When handing over money, parents can't help but have all sorts of near-delusional thoughts about how it will be used or what the child might do intoxicated by that money.
That's just how all parents are.
That's why the first step is so important. The first time is difficult, but the second is easy.
For the first time, I argued for something simple to persuade my parents.
If this worked, the next steps would proceed smoothly.
“Patronage for artists?”
“Yes, Mother. I believe it is only natural for us to patronize them as members of the imperial family.”
Most creators of this era were starving. How many artists received high acclaim during their lifetimes?
Most artists only gained recognition after undergoing reinterpretation and rediscovery following their deaths.
Artists didn't favor nobles for nothing. Nobles recognized their work and even gave them money.
For members of the House of Habsburg, patronizing artists was nothing unfamiliar. Rather, it was something to be done as noble blood.
Wasn't Vienna, Austria, the city of art? It was where the greatest artists like Beethoven, Mozart, and Schubert had been active.
Even in 21st-century Korea, those who had received compulsory education would have heard their names, even if they didn't know them in detail.
The House of Habsburg had patronized artists since ancient times; what would be strange about me doing the same?
Anyway, I didn't plan to patronize many artists. It was merely an excuse to spend the family's money.
Finding a target to patronize while thinking this way was fortunate.
“Are the preparations proceeding well?”
“Yes, Your Highness. I have prepared so as not to blemish your consideration.”
A middle-aged woman bowed her head in a very polite greeting.
Her eyes were slightly moist; she seemed deeply moved.
Her name was Johanna.
Currently she bore a different surname due to remarriage, but before remarrying, her name had been Johanna van Gogh.
Doesn't the surname naturally bring someone to mind? Vincent van Gogh.
She was precisely the sister-in-law of van Gogh.
Discovering her had truly been a coincidence. As a member of the House of Habsburg, language study was mandatory.
Needless to say, German, the empire's official language; French was essential internationally; and due to the multi-ethnic nation's characteristics, I had to be able to speak various languages such as Hungarian and Czech.
And my study method was reading newspapers.
Developing an interest in studying was very important, and it was also excellent for grasping the era and situation.
What I discovered then was an article about her. It wasn't very long, just a brief piece, but the moment I read about her situation, I cried out, “Eureka!”
At this time, van Gogh was deceased, and as an artist he was virtually unknown.
His sister-in-law Johanna was working tirelessly to spread his works, but it was no easy task.
Van Gogh's critical acclaim would only skyrocket much later, after great effort, so she would have to suffer even more.
I didn't hesitate because I knew how highly van Gogh would be evaluated later.
That was all money!
Johanna had been holding exhibitions near the suburbs of the Netherlands to promote his works when she received my contact and immediately came to Austria.
To raise an artist's standing, one must ultimately capture the upper class first, mustn't one?
If the one offering patronage was royalty of the House of Habsburg, it would be a story of an entirely different dimension. It was on a different level from nobles or the middle class.
I told her that I would purchase as many of van Gogh's works as possible, and that I would hold an exhibition at Augarten Palace, where our family lived, to promote van Gogh.
At the time, I hadn't received my parents' permission, but because of the trust I had built up until now, they readily gave it later.
It wasn't something embarrassing to do as royalty, and who would oppose patronizing artists?
Anyway, Johanna didn't refuse my proposal. Who could refuse an exhibition at the historic palace of the House of Habsburg, located in Vienna, the city of culture?
It was not a bad thing at all for her or for me. If van Gogh's evaluation rose, she would achieve her goal, and if the works' value increased, my assets would grow.
Of course, that would be a bit later.
Anyway, van Gogh's works were pennies compared to their future value. Since they might be recognized even faster with my appearance, who wouldn't invest?
Naturally, Johanna immediately brought hundreds of works, along with letters and drawings van Gogh had made during his lifetime.
And today, an exhibition for van Gogh was being held.
How could she not be moved when her goal had drawn so near?
I was also in a very good mood. Because this patronage, aimed not at financial profit but at breaking down my parents' psychological barriers, would bring great profit later.
Anyway, spending money for the first time was deeply satisfying, and I started a few more things afterward.
Even if they were meager now.
I shall make the ending magnificent.
That was what I resolved.