View source for Maximilian I of Mexico

{{Short description|Emperor of Mexico from 1864 to 1867}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2022}}
{{Infobox royalty
| name         = Maximilian I
| image        = Maximilian of Mexico bw.jpg
| image_size   = 230px
| caption      = Formal portrait {{circa|1864}}
| reign        = 10 April 1864 – {{nowrap|19 June 1867}}<ref>{{Britannica|id=370459}}</ref>
| succession   = [[Emperor of Mexico]]
| predecessor  = ''Monarchy established''<br />([[Benito Juárez]], as President of the Republic)
| successor    = ''Monarchy abolished''<br />(Benito Juárez, as President of the Republic)
| reg-type     = {{nowrap|[[President of the Council of Ministers of the Mexican Empire|Prime ministers]]}}
| regent       = {{Collapsible list|title={{nobold|''See list''}}|[[José María Lacunza|José Lacunza]]|[[Teodosio Lares]]|[[Santiago Vidaurri]]}}
| succession1  = Viceroy of [[Kingdom of Lombardy-Venetia|Lombardy-Venetia]]
{{labeldata|In office|28 February 1857 – {{nowrap|10 April 1859}}}}
{{labeldata|Monarch| [[Franz Joseph I]]}}
| predecessor1 = [[Joseph Radetzky]]<br />(Governor-General)
| successor1   = Position abolished
| spouse       = {{marriage|[[Charlotte of Belgium]]|27 July 1857}}
| full name    = Ferdinand Maximilian Josef Maria
| house        = [[Habsburg-Lorraine]]
| father       = [[Archduke Franz Karl of Austria]]
| mother       = [[Princess Sophie of Bavaria]]
| birth_name   = Archduke Maximilian of Austria
| birth_date   = {{Birth date|1832|7|6|df=y}}
| birth_place  = [[Schönbrunn Palace]], Vienna, [[Austrian Empire]]
| death_date   = {{death date and age|1867|6|19|1832|7|6|df=y}}
| death_place  = [[Cerro de las Campanas]], [[Querétaro City|Santiago de Querétaro]], [[Restored Republic (Mexico)|Mexican Republic]]
| death_cause  = [[Maximilian I of Mexico#Execution|Execution by firing squad]]
| burial_date  = 18 January 1868
| burial_place = [[Imperial Crypt]], Vienna, Austria
| signature    = Maximilian signature BW.png
| signature_alt = Cursive signature in ink
| religion     = [[Catholicism]]
}}

'''Maximilian I''' ({{langx|es|Fernando Maximiliano José María de Habsburgo-Lorena|link=yes}}; {{langx|de|Ferdinand Maximilian Josef Maria von Habsburg-Lothringen|link=yes}}; 6 July 1832 – 19 June 1867) was an [[Austrian Empire|Austrian]] [[archduke]] who became [[Emperor of Mexico|emperor]] of the [[Second Mexican Empire]] from 10 April 1864 until his execution by the [[Restored Republic (Mexico)|Mexican Republic]] on 19 June 1867.

A member of the [[House of Habsburg-Lorraine]], Maximilian was the younger brother of Emperor [[Franz Joseph I of Austria]]. Before becoming Emperor of Mexico, he was commander-in-chief of the small [[Imperial Austrian Navy]] and briefly the Austrian viceroy of [[Kingdom of Lombardy–Venetia|Lombardy–Venetia]], but was removed by the emperor. Two years before his dismissal, he briefly met with French emperor [[Napoleon III]] in Paris, where he was approached by [[Conservative Party (Mexico)|conservative]] [[Monarchism in Mexico|Mexican monarchists]] seeking a European royal to rule Mexico.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=TB9cX4siACAC&dq=maximilian+was+first+approached&pg=PA924 | title=The Encyclopaedia Britannica: A Dictionary of Arts, Sciences, Literature and General Information | last1=Chisholm | first1=Hugh | year=1911 }}</ref> Initially Maximilian was not interested, but following his dismissal as viceroy, the Mexican monarchists' plan was far more appealing to him.

Since Maximilian was a descendant of [[Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor]], King of Spain when the [[Spanish conquest of the Aztec Empire|Spaniards conquered the Aztecs]] (1519–21) and first brought [[New Spain|Mexico]] into the [[Spanish Empire]], a status it held until the [[Mexican War of Independence|Mexican independence]] in 1821, Maximilian seemed a perfect candidate for the conservatives' plans for monarchy in Mexico.<ref>Kemper, J. ''Maximilian in Mexico''. Chicago: A.C. McClurg & Company 1911, 17</ref> Maximilian was interested in assuming the throne, but only with guarantees of French support. Mexican conservatives did not take sufficient account of Maximilian's embrace of liberalism, and Maximilian failed to understand he would be viewed as a foreign outsider.<ref>Krauze, ''Mexico: Biography of Power'', pp. 172-73</ref> When Maximilian was first mentioned as a possible emperor of Mexico, the idea seemed farfetched, but circumstances changed and made it viable. His tenure as emperor was just three years, ending with his [[execution by firing squad]] by forces of the [[Restored Republic (Mexico)|Restored Republic]] on 19 June 1867. 

Political conflicts in Mexico in the 1850s between conservative and liberal factions were domestic disputes initially, but the conservatives' loss on the battlefield to the liberal regime during a [[Reform War|three-year civil war]] (1858–61) meant conservatives sought ways to return to power with outside allies, opening a path for [[Second French Empire|France]] under Napoleon III to intervene in Mexico and set up a puppet regime with conservative Mexican support. When the liberal government of Mexican President [[Benito Juárez]] suspended payment on foreign debts in 1861, there was an opening for European powers to intervene militarily in Mexico. The intention of the French and Mexican conservatives was for [[regime change]] to oust the liberals, backed by the power of the French army. Mexican monarchists sought a European head of state and, with the brokering of Napoleon III, Maximilian was invited to establish what would come to be known as the [[Second Mexican Empire]]. With a pledge of French military support and at the formal invitation of a Mexican delegation, Maximilian accepted the [[Imperial Crown of Mexico|crown of Mexico]] on 10 April 1864 following a bogus referendum in Mexico that purportedly showed the Mexican people backed him.<ref>{{cite book|first=M.M.|last=McAllen|page=124|title=Maximilian and Carlota: Europe's Last Empire in Mexico.|date=2014|publisher=Trinity University Press |isbn=978-1-59534-183-9}}</ref>

Maximilian's hold on power in Mexico was shaky from the beginning. Rather than enacting policies that would return power to Mexican conservatives, Maximilian instead sought to implement liberal policies, losing him his domestic conservative backers. Internationally, his legitimacy as ruler was in doubt since the United States continued to recognize Benito Juárez as the legal head of state rather than Emperor Maximilian. The U.S. saw the French invasion as a violation of the [[Monroe Doctrine]], but the U.S. was unable to intervene politically due to the [[American Civil War]] (1861–1865). With the end of the American Civil War in 1865, the United States began providing material aid to Juárez's republican forces. In the face of a renewed U.S. interest in enforcing the Monroe Doctrine, under orders by Napoleon III, the French armies that had propped up Maximilian's regime began withdrawing from Mexico in 1866. With no popular support and republican forces in the ascendant, Maximilian's monarchy collapsed. Maximilian was captured in [[Querétaro City|Querétaro]]. He was tried and executed by the restored Republican government alongside his generals [[Miguel Miramón]], a former [[president of Mexico]], and [[Tomás Mejía Camacho]] in June 1867.<ref>{{Cite news|title=Emperor of Mexico executed|url=https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/emperor-of-mexico-executed|access-date=2021-04-17|website=HISTORY|language=en}}</ref> His death marked the end of monarchism as a major force in Mexico. In reassessments of his brief rule, he is portrayed in Mexican history less as the villain of nationalist, republican history and more as a liberal in Mexico, along with Presidents of the Republic Juárez, [[Sebastián Lerdo de Tejada]], and [[Porfirio Díaz]].<ref>Pani, Erika. ''El Segundo Imperio''. Mexico: Fondo de Cultura Económica 2004, 121-24</ref>

==Early life==
Maximilian was born on 6 July 1832 in the [[Schönbrunn Palace]] in Vienna, capital of the [[Austrian Empire]].{{sfn|Haslip|1972|p=6}}{{sfn|Hyde|1946|p=4}} He was baptized the following day as ''Ferdinand Maximilian Josef Maria''. The first name honored his godfather and paternal uncle, the future Emperor [[Ferdinand I of Austria|Ferdinand I]], and the second honored his late maternal grandfather, [[Maximilian I Joseph of Bavaria|Maximilian I Joseph]], King of [[Kingdom of Bavaria|Bavaria]].{{sfn|Haslip|1972|pp=6–7}}{{sfn|Hyde|1946|p=5}} His father was Archduke [[Archduke Franz Karl of Austria|Franz Karl]], the second surviving son of [[Francis II, Holy Roman Emperor|Emperor Francis I]], during whose reign he was born. Maximilian was thus a member of the [[House of Habsburg-Lorraine]].{{sfn|Palmer|1994|pp=3, 5}} His mother was [[Princess Sophie of Bavaria]], a member of the [[House of Wittelsbach]].{{sfn|Palmer|1994|p=3}} Intelligent, ambitious and strong-willed, Sophie had little in common with her husband, whom historian Richard O'Conner characterized as "an amiably dim fellow whose main interest in life was consuming bowls of dumplings drenched in gravy".{{sfn|O'Connor|1971|p=29}} Despite their different personalities, the marriage was fruitful, and after four miscarriages, four sons – including Maximilian – would reach adulthood.{{sfn|Haslip|1972|p=7}} Rumors at the court alleged that Maximilian was the product of an extramarital affair between his mother and [[Napoleon II]], Duke of Reichstadt.{{sfn|Ridley|1993|p=44}} The existence of an illicit affair between Sophie and the duke, and any possibility that Maximilian was conceived from such a union, are dubious.{{ref label|specialnotes1|A|none}}

[[File:Emperor Maximilian of Mexico as a boy.jpg|thumb|upright|175px|Maximilian as a boy, 1847, by [[Joseph Karl Stieler]]]]
Maximilian's upbringing was closely supervised. Until his sixth birthday, he was cared for by Baroness [[Louise von Sturmfeder|Louise von Sturmfeder-Oppenweiler]], who was his ''aja'' (then rendered "nurse", now [[nanny]]). His education was then entrusted to a tutor.{{sfn|Hyde|1946|pp=6–7}} Most of Maximilian's day was spent in study. The hours per week of classes steadily increased from 32 at age seven to 55 by the time he was 17.{{sfn|Hyde|1946|p=7}} The disciplines were diverse, ranging from history, geography, law and technology, to languages, military studies, fencing and diplomacy.{{sfn|Hyde|1946|p=7}} From an early age, Maximilian tried to surpass his older brother Franz Joseph in everything, attempting to prove to all that he was the better qualified of the two and thus deserving of more than second-place status,{{sfn|Haslip|1972|p=17}} but with primogeniture, Maximilian was destined for secondary status.

The highly restrictive environment of the Austrian court was not enough to repress Maximilian's natural openness. He was joyful, highly charismatic, and able to captivate those around him with ease. Although he was a charming boy, he was also undisciplined.{{sfn|Haslip|1972|p=11}} He mocked his teachers and was often the instigator of pranks – including even his uncle, the emperor, among his victims.{{sfn|Haslip|1972|pp=14–15}} His attempts to outshine his older brother and his ability to charm opened a rift between himself and the aloof and self-contained Franz Joseph that widened as years passed, and their close relationship in childhood would be all but forgotten.{{sfn|Haslip|1972|p=17}}

[[File:ViktoriaKeshko.png|thumb|175px|Maximilian's first love: Viktoria [[Keșco]] (1835-1856), aunt of [[Natalie of Serbia|Queen Natalie of Serbia]]]]
During [[Revolutions of 1848|revolutionary unrest in Europe]] in 1848, Emperor Ferdinand abdicated in favor of Maximilian's older brother Franz Joseph.{{sfn|Haslip|1972|p=29}}{{sfn|Hyde|1946|p=13}} Maximilian accompanied his brother on campaigns to put down rebellions throughout the empire.{{sfn|Haslip|1972|p=31}}{{sfn|Hyde|1946|p=13}} Only in 1849 would the revolution be stamped out in Austria, with hundreds of rebels executed and thousands imprisoned. Maximilian was horrified at what he regarded as senseless brutality and openly complained about it. He would later remark, "We call our age the [[Age of Enlightenment]], but there are cities in Europe where, in the future, men will look back in horror and amazement at the injustice of tribunals, which in a spirit of vengeance condemned to death those whose only crime lay in wanting something different to the arbitrary rule of governments which placed themselves above the law."{{sfn|Haslip|1972|p=34}}{{sfn|Hyde|1946|p=14}}

At a court ball in Vienna, Maximilian met and fell in love with Viktoria Keșco (1835–1856), a young [[Boyars of Moldavia and Wallachia|Moldovan noblewoman]] who sang beautifully, paternal aunt of the future [[Natalie of Serbia|Queen of Serbia]]. But the match was impossible for Archduke Maximilian as her family belonged to an [[Eastern Orthodox Church|Orthodox Church]], and, although the [[Keșco|House of Keșco]] belonged to an ancient nobility descended from the [[Rurikids]], they did not belong to the list of families of [[sovereign|reigning]] or [[Mediatized houses|former reigning]] monarchs. When their romance was discovered, her father Ioan Keșco (1809–1863), who served as [[Russian Empire|Russian]] [[Marshal of Nobility (Russia)|Marshal of Nobility]] in [[Bessarabia]], quickly sent her back home and forcibly married her off to her longtime admirer, a rich nobleman of Greek descent, Alexander Dimitrievich [[:File:AIRM - Urban mansion of Inglezi - 1970-ies.jpg|Inglezi]] (1826–1903), son of Dimitri Spiridonovich Inglezi (1771–1846). Soon, out of sorrow, she deliberately caught a cold and died in April 1856, less than a year after her wedding day.<ref>{{cite book|last=Sainciuc |first=Lică|date=December 2014|url=https://chisineu.files.wordpress.com/2014/12/lica-sainciuc_chisinaul-ascuns.pdf<!--https://books.google.com/books/about/Chi%C5%9Fin%C4%83ul_ascuns.html?id=wjuKzgEACAAJ&redir_esc=y-->|title=Chişinăul ascuns: sau o încercare de resuscitare a memoriei unui oraş|language=ro|publisher=Editura Lumina|isbn=978-9975-65-364-0|access-date=15 May 2023}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url=https://chisinaucapitala-wordpress-com.translate.goog/2020/02/19/evocarile-de-miercuri-mitul-iubirii-sau-ingerul-cu-aripi-demontate/?_x_tr_sl=ro&_x_tr_tl=en&_x_tr_hl=en&_x_tr_pto=sc | title=Evocările de Miercuri: Mitul iubirii sau Îngerul cu aripi demontate | date=19 February 2020 | access-date = 15 May 2023 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web | url=https://hapes.hasdeu.md/bitstream/handle/123456789/275/P.%20510-600.pdf?sequence=5&isAllowed=y | title=O româncă – comisar în rassm | language=ro | trans-title=A Romanian woman – a commissioner in racism | website=hapes.hasdeu.md}}</ref>

==Years in the Imperial Austrian Navy==
[[File:Maximilian around 1850.jpg|thumb|upright|200px|Maximilian in uniform, painted in 1853]]
Not destined to rule, Maximilian entered military service, training in the small [[Austro-Hungarian Navy|Imperial Austrian Navy]]. He displayed zeal in his naval career and his direct link with Emperor Franz Joseph enabled the diversion of resources to what had previously been a neglected service.<ref>Antonio Schmidt-Brentano'' The Austrian admirals'' Volume I, 1808–1895, Library Verlag, Osnabrück 1997, pp. 93–104.</ref>

Maximilian embarked on the [[corvette]] ''[[SMS Vulcano|Vulkan]]'', for a brief cruise through Greece. In October 1850, he became a navy lieutenant. At the beginning of 1851, he embarked on another much more distant cruise on board the [[SMS Novara (1850)|SMS ''Novara'']]. He enjoyed that voyage so much that he anticipated in his diary "I shall fulfill one of my most beloved dreams, a voyage by sea. I depart with my memories of my beloved Austrian homeland in a very emotional moment for me."{{sfn|Habsburg|1868|p=291}}

[[File:Maria Amelia of Braganza.jpg|thumb|200px|Maria Amélia of Brazil by [[Friedrich Dürck]], painted between 1837 and 1839]]

This voyage took him to [[Lisbon]], where he met the princess [[Princess Maria Amélia of Brazil|Maria Amélia of Braganza]], daughter of the late Brazilian Emperor [[Pedro I of Brazil|Pedro I]]. She was described as beautiful, pious, clever, and of a refined education.{{Sfn|Almeida|1973|p=58}} The pair fell in love. His brother Franz Joseph and his mother approved of a prospective marriage between them. Unfortunately, in February 1852, Maria Amélia contracted [[scarlet fever]]. Her health worsened over the months, developing tuberculosis. Her doctors advised her to leave Lisbon and go to [[Madeira]], where she arrived in August 1852. At the end of November, she had lost hope of ever recovering her health.{{Sfn|Almeida|1973|p=78}} Maria Amélia died on February 4, 1853, which deeply shocked Maximilian.{{Sfn|Defrance|2004|p=263}}{{sfn|Kramar|1999}}

Other travels in this era included Italy, Spain, Madeira, [[Tangiers]], and Algeria.  He visited [[Beirut]], [[Damascus Eyalet|Palestine]], and [[Egypt Eyalet|Egypt]].{{sfn|Duncan|2020|pp=37–64}} During his visit to Spain in 1854, he visited the [[Royal Chapel of Granada|tombs]] of his ancestors [[Ferdinand II of Aragon]] and [[Isabel I of Castile]] in [[Granada]].<ref>Krauze, ''Mexico: Biography of Power'' 172.</ref> Later travels took him to the [[Empire of Brazil]]. In an 1859 letter to his father-in-law King [[Leopold I of Belgium]] he wrote "It seems to me like a legend that I am the first descendant of Ferdinand and Isabela who since early childhood has thought it his mission to tread on the continent that has attained such gigantic importance for the fortunes of humanity."<ref>quoted in Krauze, ''Mexico: Biography of Power'', p. 173, and fn. 56</ref>
[[File:Miramare1880.JPG|thumb|200px|Miramare Castle, [[Trieste]], ca. 1880]]
Maximilian learned to command sailors and received a solid education regarding the technical aspects of navigation. On 10 September 1854, he was named Commander-in-Chief of the Austrian Navy and was granted the rank of [[counter admiral]]. As commander-in-chief, Maximilian carried out several reforms to modernize the naval forces. He was instrumental in creating the naval ports at [[Trieste]] and Pola (now [[Pula]]), as well as the battle fleet with which Admiral [[Wilhelm von Tegetthoff]] would later secure his victories. He was however criticized for diverting massive funds to ship building from the training, sea going experience, and morale of sailors.<ref>{{cite book|first=Maximilian|last=Rottauscher|page=Footnote 7|title=With Tegetthoff at Lissa. The Memoirs of an Austrian Naval Officer 1861-66|isbn=978-1-908916-36-5}}</ref> He also initiated a large-scale [[SMS Novara (1850)#Novara Expedition|scientific expedition (1857–1859)]].

At the end of 1855, he sought refuge for his ship in the [[Gulf of Trieste]] during poor sailing weather. He was impressed enough to immediately consider building a residence there, a goal which he actually carried out in March 1856, when he began construction of what would later be called [[Miramare Castle]], located near the city of Trieste.

At end of the [[Crimean War]] in March 1856 that brought a period of peace to Europe, Maximilian traveled to Paris to meet Emperor of the French, [[Napoleon III]] and his wife the Empress [[Eugénie de Montijo|Eugénie]].{{sfn|Castelot|2002|pp=53–57}} There he also met Mexican conservatives, who would later prove to be decisive in Maximilian's life. The Archduke would write about this initial meeting in his diary "although the emperor lacks the genius of his [[Napoleon|famous uncle]], he retains fortunately for France, a grand personality. He stands tall over the century and shall surely leave his mark on it."{{sfn|Kerckvoorde|1981|p=35}}

==Marriage to Charlotte of Belgium, personal life, and family remnants==
[[File:Maximilian and Charlotte.jpg|thumb|282x282px|''Charlotte and her fiancé Maximilian'' by Louis-Joseph Ghémar (1857).]]

In May 1856, Franz Joseph asked Maximilian to return from Paris to Vienna, stopping on the way at [[Brussels]], in order to visit the King of the Belgians, [[Leopold I of Belgium|Leopold I]]. On 30 May 1856, he arrived in [[Belgium]] where he was received by Prince [[Prince Philippe, Count of Flanders|Philippe]], younger son of King Leopold. He was accompanied by the Belgian princes, visiting the cities of [[Tournai]], [[Kortrijk]], [[Bruges]], [[Ghent]], Antwerp, and [[Charleroi]].{{Sfn|Kerckvoorde|1981|p=36|pp=}} In Brussels, Maximilian met the only daughter of the king and the late queen [[Louise of Orleans]], [[Charlotte of Belgium]], and romance blossomed.{{Sfn|Bilteryst|2014|p=70}} Leopold I, upon becoming aware of the couple's feelings advised Maximilian to propose. From the Belgian viewpoint, the marriage was highly advantageous, since the nation was newly established and could benefit from ties to the [[Great Powers]]. Having been unlucky in love twice before, Maximilian's marriage to the daughter of a reigning European monarch was suitable and would seem to be a happy conclusion to his bachelorhood. Maximilian proposed and was welcomed into the Belgian Court. He later remarked on the contrast of the Belgian [[Palace of Laeken]] to the splendor of the Imperial Viennese royal residences,{{sfn|Kerckvoorde|1981|p=36}} not surprising since Belgium was but a small and new kingdom.

Prince [[George, King of Saxony|George of Saxony]], who previously had been rejected by Charlotte, warned Leopold I of the "calculating character of the Viennese archduke."{{Sfn|Kerckvoorde|1981|p=40|pp=}} The son of Leopold I, the Duke of Brabant, and future [[Leopold II of Belgium|Leopold II]], in contrast, wrote to [[Queen Victoria]], who was Charlotte's cousin, "Max is a youth filled with ingenuity, knowledge, talent and kindness."

The engagement was formally concluded on 23 December 1856. On 27 July 1857 Maximilian and Charlotte were married in the [[Royal Palace of Brussels]]. Distinguished European royals attended the ceremony, including the first cousin of Charlotte and husband of Queen Victoria, [[Albert, Prince Consort|Prince Albert]]. The marriage also enhanced the prestige of the newly established Belgian dynasty as the [[House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha]] once more found itself allied with the powerful [[House of Habsburg]].{{Sfn|Bilteryst|2014|p=71}}

The marriage was not fruitful, producing no children. However, when they were Emperor and Empress of Mexico, they adopted on 9 September 1865 [[Agustín de Iturbide y Green]] and his cousin [[Salvador de Iturbide y Marzán]], both grandsons of [[Agustín de Iturbide]], who had briefly reigned as emperor of the [[First Mexican Empire]]. Agustin's mother, Alicia Iturbide, an American who was born Alice Green, agreed to give up her child. Soon after, she changed her mind and sent messages to Maximilian to renounce the adoption contract, but she was simply deported from Mexico without her child.<ref>Shawcross, Edward, ''The Last Emperor of Mexico'', pp. 164–165.</ref> Agustín and his cousin were granted the title Prince de Iturbide and the style of Highness by an imperial decree of 16 September 1865, and were ranked next in line after the reigning family.<ref>{{cite wikisource |title=Decreto Imperial del 16 de Septiembre de 1865 |wslanguage=es}}</ref> In October 1866, as the Empire began to falter, Maximilian wrote to Alice Iturbide that he was returning her son, Agustín, to her care."<ref>Shawcross, Edward, ''The Last Emperor of Mexico'', p. 216.</ref>

One biographer claims that Maximilian took a mistress in Mexico.<ref name="auto">{{cite book |last=McAllen |first=M.M |date=8 Jan 2014 |title=Maximilian and Carlota: Europe's Last Empire in Mexico |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=CkvpCAAAQBAJ |publisher=Trinity University Press |page=222 |isbn= 9781595341853}}</ref> Historian [[Enrique Krauze]] suggests that Maximilian was rendered sterile due to venereal disease contracted from a Brazilian woman when he spent time in the country following his dismissal as viceroy.<ref>Krauze, Enrique, ''Mexico: Biography of Power''. New York: HarperCollins 1997, 173</ref> However, another biographer contends that not only did Maximilian have a secret entry way in his [[Palace of Cortés, Cuernavaca|Cuernavaca residence]], allowing him to discreetly have encounters with women, but that Maximilian fathered a child by a Mexican woman in [[Cuernavaca]], Concepción Sedano y Leguizano, who died shortly after Maximilian's execution. Unacknowledged as the emperor's offspring, the boy was allegedly taken to Paris and educated with funds by a Mexican ex-patriate there. During [[World War I]], he was living in Spain, where he was recruited by German intelligence. He was arrested as a traitor by the French and executed by firing squad in 1917. According to the biographer's account, citing no sources in his publication, the charge read out at his execution began "Sedano, son of Emperor Maximilian of Mexico."<ref>O'Connor, ''The Cactus Throne'', 261, 338-39</ref>

Since Maximilian and [[Charlotte of Belgium|Carlota]] had no offspring, there are no direct descendants. However, today members of the House of Habsburg consider Maximilian an important ancestor.{{citation needed|date=September 2024}} But in terms of the Mexican political reality, they are not in the spotlight. The nearest living [[agnatic]] relative to Maximilian is the head of the Habsburg family, [[Karl von Habsburg]],<ref>{{Cite web |title=Otto's path from 'last crown prince' to European politician |url=https://www.habsburger.net/en/chapter/ottos-path-last-crown-prince-european-politician |access-date=2022-07-29 |website=Die Welt der Habsburger |language=en}}</ref> and members of the [[House of Habsburg-Lorraine]] still reside in Mexico, among them Carlos Felipe de Habsburgo, the first male of the former ruling house to be born in the country.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://upaep.mx/globalinnovation | title=UPAEP &#124; Global Innovation }}</ref> Carlos Felipe is an academic who has given many interviews, conferences, and presentations regarding his family's history, Maximilian and Carlota, and the Second Mexican Empire.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.ifgworldwide.org/ifg-afternoon-presentation-6-12-19|title=IFG Afternoon Presentation (6/12/19)|website=IFG Annual Conference|language=en-US|access-date=2020-02-01}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.munal.mx/en/evento/mil-libros-de-historia|title=Museo Nacional de Arte|website=munal.mx|access-date=2020-02-02}}</ref>

==Viceroy of Lombardy-Venetia, 1857–59==
[[File:Palazzo Reale. Milano.jpg|thumb|250px|Royal Palace of Milan]]
On 28 February 1857, Franz Joseph named Maximilian as [[viceroy]] of [[Kingdom of Lombardy–Venetia|Lombardy-Venetia]], an Italian-speaking region of the empire.{{sfn|Defrance|2004|p=267}} On 6 September 1857, Maximilian and Charlotte made their entrance to the capital [[Milan]]. During their stay there the couple lived at the [[Royal Palace of Milan]] and occasionally resided at the [[Royal Villa of Monza]].{{sfn|Defrance|2004|pp=6–7}} As viceroy, Maximilian lived as a sovereign surrounded by an imposing court of chamberlains and servants.{{sfn|Kerckvoorde|1981|p=62}} During his two years as viceroy, Maximilian continued the construction of Miramar Castle, which would not be finished until three years later. Charlotte's royal dowry aided in the construction. Her brother Leopold would remark in his diary that "the construction of that palace amounts to endless madness."{{sfn|Capron|1986}}

Maximilian worked on developing the imperial navy, and he organized the expedition of the ship ''Novara'', which would turn out to be the first circumnavigation of the globe conducted by the Austrian Empire, a scientific expedition, which lasted more than two years from 1857 to 1859, and which involved the participation of many Viennese intellectuals.{{Sfn|Günter|1973|p=224}} Politically, the Archduke was strongly influenced by nineteenth-century liberalism, generally not a political position that those of royal blood adhered to. The appointment of the young progressive Maximilian to the office of viceroy was made in response to the growing discontent of the Italian population with the rule of the older [[Joseph Radetzky von Radetz]]. The appointment of an Archduke, indeed the Emperor's own brother, was also intended to encourage the local population's personal loyalty to the House of Habsburg.<ref>{{cite book|first=M. M.|last=McAllen|pages=30–31|title=Maximilian and Carlota: Europe's Last Empire in Mexico|isbn=978-1-59534-263-8|date=April 2015|publisher=Trinity University Press }}</ref>

Charlotte made efforts to win over her subjects, speaking Italian, visiting charitable institutions, inaugurating schools, and dressing in native Lombard dress.{{Sfn|Castelot|2002|p=84}} On Easter 1858, Maximilian and Charlotte sailed down the [[Grand Canal (Venice)|Grand Canal of Venice]] in ceremonial dress.{{Sfn|Castelot|2002|pp=85–86}} Despite their efforts, anti-Austrian sentiment continued to spread rapidly throughout the Italian population.{{Sfn|Defrance|2004|p=267}}

Maximilian's efforts in administering the province included a revision of the tax registry, a more equitable distribution of tax revenue, the establishment of medical districts, dredging the Venetian canals, expanding the port of Cuomo, draining swamps to put a stop to malaria, fertilization projects and the irrigation of the plains of [[Friuli]]. There was also a series of urban development projects. The [[Riva degli Schiavoni]] was extended to the [[:it:Giardini Reali di Venezia|royal gardens of Venice]], while in Milan, the avenues gained priority, the [[Piazza del Duomo, Milan|Piazza del Duomo]] was widened, and a new [[Piazza della Scala|piazza]] was built between the [[La Scala|Teatro alla Scala]] and the [[Palazzo Marino]]. The [[Biblioteca Ambrosiana]] library was also restored.{{Sfn|Castelot|2002|p=87}}

The British minister of foreign relations wrote in 1859 that "the administration of the provinces of Lombardy-Venetia were directed by the Archduke Maximilian with great talent, and both a liberal and conciliatory spirit."{{Sfn|Castelot|2002|p=89}}

===Dismissal as viceroy===
[[File:Völkerkarte von Mittel- und Südosteuropa. Italien 1815 bis zur Gegenwart (1905)-es.svg|thumb|200px|Map of the Italian peninsula in the context of Italian Unification; Lombardy-Venetia in green]]
Maximilian's tenure as viceroy was short-lived, lasting only two years during a period of rising local tensions. Although holding title of viceroy, his jurisdiction did not fully extend over the Austrian garrison, which was opposed to any sort of liberal reforms. Maximilian went to Vienna in April 1858 to ask his brother the emperor to grant him both military and administrative jurisdiction, while continuing a policy of concessions. Franz Joseph rejected the appeal.{{Sfn|Defrance|2004|p=267}} That left Maximilian with only the limited role of prefect of police while tensions with [[Kingdom of Sardinia (1720-1861)|Piedmont]] were rising. On 3 January 1859, for security reasons, Carlota was asked to return to Miramar, and she sent her valuables out of Lombardy-Venetia. Only while safe in the royal Palace of Milan did she share her concerns with her mother-in-law Sophie.{{Sfn|Castelot|2002|p=96}}

In February 1859, the Austrian military cracked down, making numerous arrests in Milan and Venice. The prisoners came from the upper classes and were transported to [[Mantua]] and various prisons throughout the realm. The city of [[Brescia]] was occupied by militia, while several battalions were camped in [[Piacenza]], and on the shores of the [[River Po]]. Maximilian hoped to moderate the severe dispositions of General [[Ferenc Gyulay]]. Maximilian had just received permission from his brother to open the private law schools in [[Pavia]] and [[Padua]]. In March 1859, there were incidents between the Milanese police and the [[Verona|Veronese]] public. In Pavia, one of the cities governed by Maximilian, Austria created a veritable state of military occupation. The Italian situation was becoming critical, and order could no longer be maintained without troops.<ref>{{cite book|first=M. M.|last=McAllen|page=32|title=Maximilian and Carlota: Europe's Last Empire in Mexico|isbn=978-1-59534-263-8|date=April 2015|publisher=Trinity University Press }}</ref>

The Austrian archduke's conciliatory efforts ultimately fell apart when his various projects for improving the wellbeing of the Italian public were shut down. Franz Joseph was intent on preventing any concessions to the populace. The emperor considered Maximilian too liberal and generous with the rebellious Italian population.{{Sfn|Kerckvoorde|1981|p=64|}} Franz Joseph relieved his brother of his post as viceroy on 10 April 1859.{{Sfn|Defrance|2004|p=6}}

In Italy, news of Maximilian's dismissal was received with sarcastic enthusiasm by statesmen there. A pivotal figure in the movement for [[Italian unification]], the [[Camillo Benso, Count of Cavour|Count of Cavour]], declared that {{blockquote|In Lombardy, our worst enemy&nbsp;... was the Archduke Maximilian; young, active, enterprising, who dedicated himself completely to the difficult task of winning over the Milanese, and who was about to triumph in it. The Lombardian provinces had never been so prosperous or well administered. Thank God that the good government of Vienna intervened, and as usual, took advantage of the opportunity to commit a blunder, an impudent act, one most fatal to Austria, but most advantageous to Piedmont&nbsp;... Lombardy shall now fall into our grasp.{{sfn|Castelot|2002|p=99}}}}

==Emperor of Mexico==
{{Main article|Second Mexican Empire}}

===Background to Accession===
{{See also|Monarchism in Mexico}}
[[File:Dell'Acqua Ernennung Maximilians zum Kaiser Mexikos.jpg|thumb|300px|At [[Miramare Castle]], the Mexican Delegation appoints Ferdinand Maximilian of Habsburg as Emperor of Mexico by [[Cesare Dell'Acqua]] (1864)]]

After gaining independence in 1821, Mexico had soon divided itself into [[Liberal Party (Mexico)|liberal]] and [[Conservative Party (Mexico)|conservative]] parties, the latter of which had a [[Monarchism in Mexico|monarchist]] faction. The failed monarchy of [[Agustín I]] that saw him forced to abdicate, swearing to remain in exile, met its final demise when he returned to Mexico and was shot in 1824. Nonetheless, Conservatives continued to see monarchy as a viable option. Monarchist plans had most clearly been laid out in an 1840 essay by the statesman [[José María Gutiérrez de Estrada]], which argued that after two decades of chaos, the republic had failed, and that a European prince ought to be invited to establish a Mexican throne. Such ideas received official interest during the presidency of [[Mariano Paredes (President of Mexico)|Mariano Paredes]] and during the last presidency of [[Antonio López de Santa Anna|Santa Anna]], but by the late 1850s the liberals had appeared to have achieved a decisive victory through the promulgation of the [[Constitution of 1857]], which constrained the powers of the [[Catholic Church in Mexico|Mexican Catholic Church]] and the [[Mexican Army]], two traditional bastions of conservativism. Conservatives declared the Constitution null and void and formed a rival conservative government. The [[Reform War|three-year civil war]] (1858–61) between liberals and conservatives was won by liberals on the battlefield. Conservatives regrouped after the defeat and sought external allies for their monarchist cause.

Mexican diplomat [[José Manuel Hidalgo y Esnaurrízar|José Hidalgo]] had been officially tasked by the Santa Anna administration to sound European courts for interest in establishing a Mexican monarchy, but after the fall of Santa Anna in 1853 with the successful liberal [[Revolution of Ayutla]], Hidalgo had lost his official accreditation and continued his efforts independently. Hidalgo's childhood friend, the Spanish noblewoman [[Eugénie de Montijo]], was now wife of [[Napoleon III|Emperor Napoleon III of the French]], and it was through her that Hidalgo managed to gain the attention of the French ruler.

The name of Maximilian came up swiftly in discussions among the Mexican monarchists on potential candidates for a Mexican throne. It was perceived as impolitic to propose a noble from one of the nations involved in the expedition and Maximilian already had a reputation as a capable administrator from his time spent as Viceroy of Lombardy-Venetia. In 1859, Maximilian was first approached by Mexican monarchists—members of the [[Mexican nobility]], led by José Pablo [[Martínez del Río]]—with a proposal to make him the emperor of Mexico.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/277015783|title=Emperador Maximiliano – A Habsburg on the Mexican Throne}}</ref> The Habsburg family had ruled the [[Viceroyalty of New Spain]] from its establishment until the [[War of Spanish Succession|Spanish throne was inherited by the Bourbons]]. As a member of the House of Habsburg, Maximilian was considered to have more potential legitimacy than other royal figures. He was unlikely to ever rule in Europe because of his elder brother's position as [[Emperor of Austria|emperor]] of [[Austrian Empire|Austria]] and disapproval of his younger brother's liberalism.<ref name="maxinmexico">{{Cite web|url=https://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/10/04/maximilian-in-mexico/|title=Maximilian in Mexico|first=Phil|last=Leigh|date=4 October 2013}}</ref> In that year, Maximilian declined the offer, but several attempts were made by the Mexican royalists. Later it was decided to again to make the offer to Maximilian, and that [[José María Gutiérrez de Estrada]], because of his pivotal role in the history of Mexican monarchism, was to be given the role of again inviting Maximilian to assume a Mexican throne.<ref>{{cite book |last=Hidalgo|first=Jose Maria |date=1904|title=Proyectos de Monarquia en Mexico|location= |publisher=F. Vazquez|pages=88}}</ref>

In early 1861, the United States was embroiled in its Civil War between the southern states that had seceded and formed the [[Confederate States of America]] and the northern states that fought their efforts to secede. In these circumstances, the U.S. government could not enforce the [[Monroe Doctrine]], which asserted U.S. pre-eminence in the hemisphere and excluded foreign intervention. In July 1861, Mexican President [[Benito Juárez]] had suspended the payment of foreign debts that had been incurred by the defeated conservative government, providing a pretext for foreign intervention. Juárez's government could ill-afford and had no desire to pay off the debts contracted by those that had challenged its legitimacy to rule. The suspension gave Napoleon III an opportunity to establish a French client state which could also serve as a buffer to the expansion of the United States. France gained the aid of [[United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland|Britain]] and [[History of Spain (1808–1874)|Spain]], which also had loaned money to the defeated conservatives, under the pretext of arranging an expedition simply to renegotiate Mexico's debt agreements. Plans for such an expedition were formalized at the [[Convention of London (1861)|Convention of London]] on 31 October 1861.<ref>{{cite book|first=M. M.|last=McAllen|page=60|title=Maximilian and Carlota: Europe's Last Empire in Mexico|isbn=978-1-59534-263-8|date=April 2015|publisher=Trinity University Press }}</ref>

Gutiérrez de Estrada received Maximilian's answer at the beginning of October. The Archduke would accept the throne on two conditions: first, the Mexican people themselves should spontaneously ask for him; and second, that he should also be assured of the support of France and Great Britain.<ref>{{cite book |last=Hidalgo|first=Jose Maria |date=1904|title=Proyectos de Monarquia en Mexico|location= |publisher=F. Vázquez|pages=101}}</ref> Maximilian's older brother, Emperor Franz Joseph of Austria, now sent [[Count Johann Bernhard von Rechberg und Rothenlöwen|Count von Rechberg]], the Austrian minister of foreign affairs, to brief Maximilian on what lay in store in the event that France did militarily intervene in Mexico, and a Mexican plebiscite approved of Maximilian.<ref>{{cite book |last=Bancroft|first=Hubert Howe|title=History of Mexico VI:1861–1887|location=New York|publisher=The Bancroft Company|pages=98}}</ref>

===French invasion, Mexican conservatives, and Maximilian's agreement===
{{main|Second French intervention in Mexico}}

In the interim, the agreement among France, the United Kingdom, and Spain broke down as it became increasingly clear that France intended to overthrow Juárez's liberal government of Mexico. France began military operations in April 1862. They were eventually joined by conservative Mexican generals who were not reconciled to their loss to the liberals in the War of Reform.<ref>{{cite book |last=Bancroft |first=Hubert Howe |date=1887 |title=History of Mexico Volume VI 1861–1887|location=San Francisco |publisher=The History Company |page=[https://archive.org/details/worksofhuberthow14bancrich/page/51 51]|url=https://archive.org/details/worksofhuberthow14bancrich}}</ref>

After [[Charles de Lorencez]]'s expeditionary force was repulsed at the [[Battle of Puebla]] on [[Cinco de Mayo|5 May 1862]], [[Napoleon III]] sent reinforcements, ultimately numbering about 38,900, and placed them under the command of General [[Élie Frédéric Forey|Élie Forey]]. Even so, it took the French a year to take [[Puebla (city)|Puebla]], and then the capital in June 1863. The French now sought to establish a friendly Mexican provisional government. Forey appointed a committee of thirty-five Mexicans, the ''Junta Superior'' who then elected three Mexican citizens to serve as the government's executive. In turn this triumvirate then selected 215 Mexicans to form together with the ''Junta Superior'', an Assembly of Notables.<ref>{{cite book |last=Bancroft |first=Hubert Howe |date=1887 |title=History of Mexico Volume VI 1861–1887|location=San Francisco |publisher=The History Company |pages=[https://archive.org/details/worksofhuberthow14bancrich/page/77 77]–78|url=https://archive.org/details/worksofhuberthow14bancrich}}</ref>

The Assembly met in July 1863 and resolved to invite Maximilian to be Emperor of Mexico. The executive triumvirate was formally changed into the Regency of the Mexican Empire. An official delegation left Mexico, arriving in Europe in October. Upon meeting the delegation, Maximilian set forth the condition that he would only accept the throne if a national plebiscite approved of it.<ref>{{cite book |last=Bancroft|first=Hubert Howe|title=History of Mexico VI:1861–1887|location=New York|publisher=The Bancroft Company|pages=104}}</ref> By February 1864 French forces controlled territory comprising the majority of Mexico's population. The [[1863 Mexican emperor referendum|Mexican plebiscite]] duly held in occupied territory "was a farce", but Maximilian accepted the proclamation that a majority of Mexicans voted in favor of him as emperor.<ref>Meyer, Michael C., et al. ''The Course of Mexican History''. Tenth Edition. New York: Oxford University Press 2014, 293</ref>

The crown of Mexico came at a high cost to Maximilian. Although he had extracted promises from Napoleon III to militarily support the regime, he was to be entirely dependent on him. Emperor Franz Joseph isolated his younger brother Maximilian by forcing him to renounce any rights to the Austrian throne or as an archduke of Austria. On 9 April 1864 Maximilian reluctantly agreed to the "Family Pact".<ref>{{cite book|first=Gene|last=Smith|pages=147–151|title=Maximilian and Carlotta|year=1973|publisher=Morrow |isbn=0-688-00173-4}}</ref> Maximilian formally accepted the crown of Mexico at Miramar on 10 April 1864.

===Arrival in Mexico===
[[File:Llegada del Emperador Maximiliano y la Emperatriz Carlota al puerto de Veracru, México.jpg|thumb|The arrival of the Emperor and Empress of Mexico at Vera Cruz]]
In April 1864, Maximilian stepped down from his duties as Chief of Naval Section of the Austrian Navy. He traveled from Trieste aboard SMS ''Novara'', escorted by the frigates {{SMS|Bellona}} (Austrian) and [[French frigate Thémis (1862)|''Thémis'']] (French), and the Imperial yacht ''Fantasie'' led the warship procession from his residence, [[Miramare Castle]], out to sea.<ref>Haslip, Joan, ''Imperial Adventurer: Emperor Maximilian of Mexico'', London, 1971, {{ISBN|0-297-00363-1}}</ref> They received a blessing from [[Pope Pius IX]], and [[Queen Victoria]] ordered the Gibraltar garrison to fire a salute for Maximilian's passing ship.<ref>{{cite book|first=M.M.|last=McAllen|page=129|title=Maximilian and Carlota: Europe's Last Empire in Mexico|date=April 2015|publisher=Trinity University Press |isbn=978-1-59534-263-8}}</ref>

The widespread doubts amongst informed persons concerning the wisdom of Maximilian's venture were reflected by the French colonel [[François Claude du Barail]], who while returning from arduous service in Mexico sighted the ''Novara'' during its Atlantic crossing.<ref>{{cite book|first=M.M.|last=McAllen|page=126|title=Maximilian and Carlota: Europe's Last Empire in Mexico|date=April 2015|publisher=Trinity University Press |isbn=978-1-59534-263-8}}</ref> Wrote du Barail: "If you succeed in bringing order out of this chaos, fortune into this misery, union into these hearts you will be the greatest sovereign of modern times. Go poor fool! You may regret your beautiful castle of Miramar!"<ref>{{cite book|first=Gene|last=Smith|page=157|title=Maximilian and Carlota: A Tale of Romance and Tragedy|date=1973|publisher=Morrow |isbn=0-688-00173-4}}</ref>

The new emperor of Mexico landed at [[Veracruz (city)|Veracruz]] on 29 May 1864,<ref>{{cite book|first=Gene|last=Smith|page=[https://archive.org/details/maximiliancarlot00smit/page/159 159]|title=Maximilian and Carlotta|isbn=0-688-00173-4|year=1973|publisher=Morrow |url=https://archive.org/details/maximiliancarlot00smit/page/159}}</ref> and received a sparse reception from the townspeople due to a [[yellow fever]] outbreak.<ref>[https://www.anmm.org.mx/GMM/2018/n1/GMM_154_1_111-117.pdf El tifo, la fiebre amarilla y la medicina en México durante la intervención francesa]</ref> The Imperial couple's arrival at the capital was more celebrated, with fireworks and hundreds of triumphant arches.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Cy0q2DvJ10AC&dq=maximilian+arrival+mexico+city+warm&pg=PR14 | title=The Fall of Maximilian, Late Emperor of Mexico: With an Historical Introduction, the Events Immediately Preceding His Acceptance of the Crown | last1=Harris Chynoweth | first1=W. | year=1872 }}</ref> Maximilian and Carlota were crowned at the [[Mexico City Metropolitan Cathedral]].<ref>Butler, John Wesley (1918). History of the Methodist Episcopal Church in Mexico. University of Texas.</ref><ref>Campbell, Reau (1907). Campbell's New Revised Complete Guide and Descriptive Book of Mexico. Rogers & Smith Company. Pg.38 .</ref><ref>Putman, William Lowell (2001) Arctic Superstars. Light Technology Publishing, LLC. Pg.XVII.</ref> He had the backing of Mexican conservatives, nobility, clergy, some Native American populations, and numerous European monarchs, but from the very outset he found himself involved in serious difficulties, since the Liberal forces led by President Benito Juárez refused to recognize his rule. There was continuous fighting between the French expeditionary forces (who were supplemented by Maximilian's locally recruited Imperial Mexican troops) on one side and the Mexican Republicans on the other.<ref>{{cite book|first=Rene|last=Chartrand|pages=[https://archive.org/details/mexicanadventure00char/page/n18 18]–23|title=The Mexican Adventure 1861–67|url=https://archive.org/details/mexicanadventure00char|url-access=limited|isbn=1-85532-430-X|date=28 July 1994|publisher=Bloomsbury USA }}</ref>

After a brief stay at the [[National Palace (Mexico)|National Palace]], the emperor and empress decided to set up their residence at [[Chapultepec Castle]], located on the top of a hill formerly on the outskirts of Mexico City that had been a retreat of [[Aztec]] emperors and Spanish viceroys. Maximilian ordered a wide avenue cut through the city from [[Chapultepec]] to the city center and named it the Paseo de la Emperatriz, the project would survive him and the Empire and is today one of the central avenues of Mexico City, the [[Paseo de la Reforma]].<ref>{{cite book|first=M. M.|last=McAllen|page=165|title=Maximilian and Carlota: Europe's Last Empire in Mexico|isbn=978-1-59534-263-8|date=April 2015|publisher=Trinity University Press }}</ref> Maximilian also acquired a country retreat at [[Cuernavaca]], a villa known as the {{ill|Jardín Borda|es}}.{{citation needed|date = October 2023}}

===Rule===
{{See also|Cabinet of Maximilian I of Mexico}}

[[File: Emperador Maximiliano I de Mexico.jpg|thumb| Portrait as emperor of Mexico by [[Albert Gräfle]], 1865]]

Although Maximilian had been brought to power with the support of Mexican conservatives expecting he would reverse the reforms of Mexican liberals, codified in the [[Constitution of 1857]], Maximilian and Napoleon III did not want hardline Mexicans to control the regime. Napoleon III had a confidential policy known to his military commander [[François Achille Bazaine]] to marginalize the conservatives and create a moderate monarchy with wide support.<ref>Hamnett, '' A Concise History of Mexico'', 221</ref> Maximilian was in agreement and sought to establish a regime that included liberals. In the summer of 1864 Maximilian declared a political amnesty for all liberals wishing to join the Empire. His conciliatory efforts eventually won over some moderate liberals such as [[José Fernando Ramírez]], [[José María Lacunza]], [[Manuel Orozco y Berra]], and northern strongman [[Santiago Vidaurri]], a former ally of Juárez.<ref>{{cite book |last=Bancroft|first=Hubert Howe |date=1888|title=History of Mexico Volume VI 1861–1887|publisher=The Bancroft Company |pages=150}}</ref>

Maximilian's lack of understanding of the political situation on the ground in Mexico is seen in his offer to Juárez of amnesty and the post of prime minister.<ref>{{cite book|first=M. M.|last=McAllen|page=116|title=Maximilian and Carlota: Europe's Last Empire in Mexico|isbn=978-1-59534-263-8|date=April 2015|publisher=Trinity University Press }}</ref> Juárez refused and continued to assert his role as the legitimate head of the Mexican state, despite being forced to decamp from the capital to Mexico's north. He never left Mexico's national territory, continuing to be recognized by the U.S. government. Juárez had appointed [[Matías Romero]] as minister plenipotentiary to the U.S. government, an effective advocate for the Mexican republic even as the U.S. was embroiled in its civil war.<ref>O'Connor, ''Cactus Throne'' 187</ref> Juárez's continued presence in Mexico denied Maximilian assertion of legitimacy as ruler.{{citation needed|date = October 2023}}

A major aspect of liberalism in Mexico was the curtailment of the power and privileges of the ideologically conservative Catholic Church, including the forced sale of Church-owned property and freedom of religion, removing Catholicism as the sole religion of the nation. The papal nuncio, [[Pier Francesco Meglia]], arrived in Mexico in December 1864, and informed Maximilian that the liberal laws were to be reversed, Church property was to be returned and religious toleration rescinded and Catholicism as the sole religion reinstated.  Maximilian refused, decreeing freedom of worship and confirmed the sale of Church property, as well as other liberal reforms.  The pope's representative wrote to Maximilian, saying that the Church had supported the establishment of the empire, but now threatened that it would no longer do so if the regime were "ungodly."<ref>Shawcross, ''The Last Emperor'', 141-44</ref> Maximilian's alienation of the high clergy was in line with his liberal views, but it removed a major pillar of conservative support for the empire.{{citation needed|date = October 2023}}

Maximilian had other priorities as well, including reorganizing his ministries and reforming the Imperial Mexican Army. Having the Imperial Mexican Army under his control would have given him as monarch an armed force and allow him to draw on its traditional base of support, but Bazaine impeded that in order to consolidate French control.<ref>{{cite book |last=Bancroft|first=Hubert Howe |date=1888|title=History of Mexico Volume VI 1861–1887 |publisher=The Bancroft Company |pages=152}}</ref>

During his short reign, Maximilian issued eight volumes of laws covering all aspects of government, including forest management, railroads, roads, canals, postal services, telegraphs, mining, and immigration, most of which were never implemented.<ref>{{cite book |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |title=La legislación del Segundo Imperio |url=https://inehrm.gob.mx/work/models/inehrm/Resource/440/1/images/La-legislacion-del-Segundo-Imperio.pdf |language=es|page=9 }}
</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=McAllen |first=M.M |date=8 Jan 2014 |title=Maximilian and Carlota: Europe's Last Empire in Mexico |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=CkvpCAAAQBAJ |publisher=Trinity University Press |page=143 |isbn= 9781595341853}}</ref>
The emperor issued laws guaranteeing Mexicans' equality before the law and freedom of speech, and laws meant to defend the rights of laborers, especially that of the Natives. Maximilian attempted to implement a law guaranteeing the natives a living wage and outlawing corporal punishment for them, along with limiting their inheritance of debts. The measures faced backlash from the cabinet, but were ultimately issued during one of Carlota's regencies.<ref>{{cite book |last=McAllen |first=M.M |date=8 Jan 2014 |title=Maximilian and Carlota: Europe's Last Empire in Mexico |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=CkvpCAAAQBAJ |publisher=Trinity University Press |page=182 |isbn= 9781595341853}}</ref> Labor laws in [[Yucatán]] actually became harsher on workers after the fall of the Empire.<ref>{{cite book |last=Richmond|first=Douglas W. |date=15 April 2015 |title=Conflict and Carnage in Yucatán: Liberals, the Second Empire, and Maya Revolutionaries, 1855–1876
 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5KLLBgAAQBAJ |publisher=University of Alabama Press |page=70 |isbn= 9780817318703}}</ref> A national system of free schools was also planned based on the German gymnasia, and the emperor founded an academy of sciences and literature.<ref>{{cite book |last=Zamacois|first=Niceto|date=1882|title=Historia de Mexico: Tomo XVIII|publisher=J.F. Parres|pages=6|language=es}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Bancroft |first=Hubert Howe |date=1887 |title=History of Mexico Volume VI 1861–1887|location=San Francisco |publisher=The History Company |page=[https://archive.org/details/worksofhuberthow14bancrich/page/173 173]|url=https://archive.org/details/worksofhuberthow14bancrich}}</ref> Laws were published in Spanish and in [[Nahuatl]], the Aztec language, which had the largest number of indigenous speakers. Maximilian appointed the Indigenous scholar [[Faustino Galicia]] as an advisor to his government.<ref>{{cite book |last=McAllen |first=M.M. |date= 8 January 2014|title=Maximilian and Carlota: Europe's Last Empire in Mexico |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=CkvpCAAAQBAJ |publisher=Trinity University Press |page=142 |isbn=9781595341853 }}</ref> Galicia would also be named president of the Council for the Protection of the Impoverished.<ref>{{cite book |last=McDonough|first=Kelly S.|title=The Learned Ones: Nahua Intellectuals in Postconquest Mexico|publisher=University of Arizona Press|year=2014|pages=97}}</ref>

The regime established an immigration agency to promote immigration from the United States, including former Confederates, such as those who immigrated to [[Empire of Brazil|Brazil]]; as well as from Europe and Asia. Colonists were to be granted citizenship at once, and gained exemption from taxes for the first year, and an exemption from military services for five years. Two of the most prominent migrant communities built during this era were the [[New Virginia Colony]] and the "Carlota Colony."<ref>{{cite book |last=Bancroft |first=Hubert Howe |date=1887 |title=History of Mexico Volume VI 1861–1887|location=San Francisco |publisher=The History Company |page=[https://archive.org/details/worksofhuberthow14bancrich/page/174 174]|url=https://archive.org/details/worksofhuberthow14bancrich}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Rolle |first=Andrew F. |title=The Lost Cause: The Confederate Exodus to Mexico |publisher=University of Oklahoma Press |year=1992 |isbn=0-8061-1961-6 }}</ref>

Many of Maximilian's reforms were simply revivals of previous Mexican legislation.<ref>{{cite book |last=Arrangoiz|first= Francisco de Paula |date=1872|title=Méjico desde 1808 hasta 1867|volume=3|language=es|pages=[https://archive.org/details/mejicodesde1808h34arra/page/n339/mode/1up 340]|publisher= Madrid, Impr. á cargo de A. Perez Dubrull |url=https://archive.org/details/mejicodesde1808h34arra/page/n339/mode/1up}}</ref> Franciso Arrangoiz who had been Maximilian's minister to Britain, Holland, and Belgium,<ref>{{cite web| url = https://www.apartados.hacienda.gob.mx/galeria_secretarios/html/quince.html| title = Galeria de Secretários| last = | first = | date = | website = Secretarios de Hacienda y Crédito Público| publisher = Gobierno de México| access-date = | quote = }}</ref> later accused Maximilian of passing such reforms to gain favorable public opinion in Europe, and to give the impression that he had a 'creative genius' and was 'lifting Mexico out of barbarism.'<ref>{{cite book |last=Bancroft |first=Hubert Howe |date=1887 |title=History of Mexico Volume VI 1861–1887|location=San Francisco |publisher=The History Company |page=[https://archive.org/details/worksofhuberthow14bancrich/page/173/mode/1up 173]|url=https://archive.org/details/worksofhuberthow14bancrich/page/173/mode/1up}}</ref>

In August 1864 Maximilian took a state trip through the nation while Empress Carlota reigned as regent, going to [[Querétaro]], [[Guanajuato]], and [[Michoacan]], giving public audiences and visiting officials. He celebrated Mexican independence by commemorating the [[Cry of Dolores]], in the actual town where it took place.<ref>{{cite book |last=Bancroft|first=Hubert Howe |date=1888|title=History of Mexico Volume VI 1861–1887 |publisher=The Bancroft Company |pages=154–155}}</ref> In November, and December 1865, Carlota took a similar trip to Yucatán.<ref>{{cite book |last=Bancroft|first=Hubert Howe |date=1888|title=History of Mexico Volume VI 1861–1887 |publisher=The Bancroft Company |pages=180}}</ref>

===Court life===
[[File:Kickapoo Visit to Maximilian.jpg|250px|thumb|Emperor Maximilian and Empress Carlota receiving a [[Kickapoo people|Kickapoo]] delegation at [[Chapultepec Castle]]]]
Maximilian lived for the most part at Chapultepec Castle, making occasional retreats to his villa at Cuernavaca, where he had also taken a mistress named Concepción Sedano.<ref name="auto"/> He preferred to dress plainly and also enjoyed wearing traditional Mexican clothing.<ref>{{cite book |last=Bancroft|first=Hubert Howe |date=1888|title=History of Mexico Volume VI 1861-1887 |publisher=The Bancroft Company |pages=221–222}}</ref> He enjoyed the Mexican countryside and would often go horse-riding, walking, and swimming.<ref>{{cite book |last=Bancroft|first=Hubert Howe |date=1888|title=History of Mexico Volume VI 1861–1887 |publisher=The Bancroft Company |pages=222}}</ref> On Sundays at Chapultepec Palace, Maximilian and Carlota frequently held audiences with people from all social and economic segments, including Mexico's [[Indigenous peoples of Mexico|Indigenous peoples]].<ref>{{cite book |last=McAllen |first=M.M |date=8 Jan 2014 |title=Maximilian and Carlota: Europe's Last Empire in Mexico |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=CkvpCAAAQBAJ |publisher=Trinity University Press |page=169 |isbn= 9781595341853}}</ref> The royal couple also hosted multiple balls for Mexican high society.<ref>{{cite book |last=Blasio|first=Jose Luis |date=1905|title=Maximiliano Intimo: El Emperador Maximiliano y su Corte |publisher=C. Bouret |pages=96}}</ref>

===Deteriorating military situation===
In April 1865, the [[American Civil War]] ended, and while the American government was reluctant to enter upon a conflict with France to enforce the Monroe Doctrine, official American sympathy remained with president Benito Juárez. The U.S. government refused to recognize the Empire and also ignored Maximilian's correspondence.<ref>{{cite book |last=Bancroft|first=Hubert Howe |date=1888|title=History of Mexico Volume VI 1861–1887|publisher=The Bancroft Company |pages=181}}</ref> In December, a  private American loan worth $30 million was approved for Juárez, and American volunteers kept joining the Mexican republican troops.<ref>{{cite book |last=Bancroft|first=Hubert Howe |date=1888|title=History of Mexico Volume VI 1861–1887|publisher=The Bancroft Company |pages=206–207}}</ref> An unofficial American raid occurred near [[Brownsville, Texas|Brownsville]], and Juárez's minister to the United States, [[Matías Romero]], proposed that General [[Ulysses S. Grant]] or General [[William Tecumseh Sherman]] intervene in Mexico to help the liberals.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Wooster |first1=Robert |date= 2006|title=John M. Schofield and the 'Multipurpose' Army |journal=American Nineteenth Century History |volume= 7|issue=2 |pages=173–191 |doi=10.1080/14664650600809305 |s2cid=143091703 }}</ref> The prospect of an American invasion to reinstate Juárez caused a number of Maximilian's loyal adherents to abandon his cause and leave the capital.<ref>{{cite journal |first=Paul H. |last=Reuter |title=United States-French Relations Regarding French Intervention in Mexico: From the Tripartite Treaty to Querétaro |journal=Southern Quarterly |year=1965 |volume=6 |issue=4 |pages=469–489 }}</ref> The United States refrained from direct military intervention, but continued to put diplomatic pressure on France to leave Mexico.<ref>{{cite book |last=Richter |first=William |date=2012 |title=Historical Dictionary of the Civil War and Reconstruction|publisher=The Bancroft Company |pages=429}}</ref>

A concentration of French troops in the northern republican strongholds of Mexico only led to a surge of republican guerrilla activity in the south. While French troops controlled major cities, guerrillas continued to be a major military threat in the countryside. In an effort to combat the increasing violence and in a belief that Juárez had left Mexico, Maximilian in October signed a decree authorizing the court martial and execution of anyone found either aiding or participating with the guerrillas. The harsh measure resembled the 1862 measure by Juárez,<ref>{{cite book |last=Mayer|first=Brantz|date=1906|title=México, Central America and West Indies|publisher=John D. Morris and Company |pages=391}}</ref> but it proved to be widely reviled, being branded the Black Decree. It contributed to the growing unpopularity of the Empire.<ref>{{cite book |last=Bancroft|first=Hubert Howe |date=1888|title=History of Mexico Volume VI 1861–1887 |publisher=The Bancroft Company |pages=183–184}}</ref> It is calculated that more than 11,000 Juárez supporters were executed as a result of the decree.<ref name=Milles>{{citation |title= Cinco de Mayo: What is Everybody Celebrating? : the Story Behind Mexico's Battle of Puebla |author= Donald W. Miles |publisher= iUniverse |year= 2006 |isbn= 9780595392414 |page=196 |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=ek-vNWcSt44C&q=black+decree }}</ref>{{sfn|Ridley|1993|p=229}}<ref>Shawcross, Edward, ''The Last Emperor of Mexico'', p. 163.</ref>

In January 1866, seeing the war as unwinnable and the cost of keeping troops there a financial drain, Napoleon III declared to the French [[Corps législatif]] that he intended to withdraw the French military from Mexico. Maximilian's request for more aid or at least a delay in troop withdrawals was declined. Carlota arrived in Europe in an attempt to plead for the Empire's cause but was unable to gain more support. After the failure of her mission Carlota became increasingly mentally unstable. She spent the rest of her life in seclusion in Belgium, living until 1927.<ref>{{cite book|first=M. M.|last=McAllen|page=408|title=Maximilian and Carlota: Europe's Last Empire in Mexico|isbn=978-1-59534-263-8|date=April 2015|publisher=Trinity University Press }}</ref>

===Fall of the Empire===
[[File:The Last moments of Maximilian.jpg|thumb|Last moments of Emperor Maximilian I of Mexico, by [[Jean-Paul Laurens]].]]
In October 1866 Maximilian moved his cabinet to [[Orizaba]] and was widely rumored to be leaving the nation. He contemplated abdication, and on 25 November held a council of his ministers to address the crisis faced by his government. They narrowly voted against abdication and Maximilian headed back towards the capital.<ref>{{cite book |last=Bancroft|first=Hubert Howe |date=1888|title=History of Mexico Volume VI 1861–1887|publisher=The Bancroft Company |pages=241}}</ref> He intended to appeal to the nation in order to hold a national assembly which would then decide what form of government the Mexican nation was to take.<ref>{{cite book|first=M. M.|last=McAllen|pages=307|title=Maximilian and Carlota: Europe's Last Empire in Mexico|isbn=978-1-59534-263-8|date=April 2015|publisher=Trinity University Press }}</ref> Such a measure would require a ceasefire from Juárez, who had no intention of conceding to someone whom he viewed as the puppet of the French invaders.

As the national assembly project fell through, Maximilian decided to focus on military operations, and in February 1867, as the last of the French troops were leaving, the Emperor headed for the city of [[Querétaro City|Querétaro]] to join the bulk of his Mexican troops, numbering about 10,000 men. The liberal generals [[Mariano Escobedo]] and [[Ramón Corona]] converged on Querétaro, [[Siege of Querétaro|besieging it]] with 40,000 men, and yet the city held out. In the face of an increasing number of Republican troops, however, on 11 May, Maximilian resolved to attempt an escape through the enemy lines and make a break for the coast. This plan was sabotaged by Colonel Miguel López who had come to an agreement with Republican General Escobedo to open the gate to the Republican forces. López appears to have assumed that Maximilian would be allowed to escape.<ref>{{cite book|first=M. M.|last=McAllen|pages=354–355|title=Maximilian and Carlota: Europe's Last Empire in Mexico|isbn=978-1-59534-263-8|date=April 2015|publisher=Trinity University Press }}</ref>

The city fell on 15 May 1867, and Maximilian was captured the next morning after a failed attempt to escape through Republican lines by a loyal [[hussar]] cavalry brigade led by [[Felix Salm-Salm]]. Maximilian was captured along with his generals [[Tomás Mejía Camacho]] and [[Miguel Miramón]].<ref>{{cite book|first=M. M.|last=McAllen|pages=356–357|title=Maximilian and Carlota: Europe's Last Empire in Mexico|isbn=978-1-59534-263-8|date=April 2015|publisher=Trinity University Press }}</ref>

===Execution===
[[File:Execution of maximillian mejia miramon.png|thumb|Print of the execution of Maximilian in Santiago de Querétaro, Mexico]]
Maximilian's trial began on 13 June, Col. [[Rafael Platón Sánchez]] presiding, in the [[Teatro de la República|Teatro Iturbide]] of Querétaro, and he was charged with conspiring to overthrow the Mexican government and with carrying out the Black Decree. Maximilian's lawyers, which included the conservative statesmen [[Mariano Riva Palacio]] and {{ill|Rafael Martínez de la Torre|es}}, attempted to defend the legitimacy of the Empire and Maximilian's benevolent rule.<ref>{{cite web |title=Papers Relating to Foreign Affairs, Accompanying the Annual Message of the President to the Second Session of the Fortieth Congress, document 407 |url=https://history.state.gov/historicaldocuments/frus1867p2/d407 |website=Office of the Historian |publisher=U.S. Department of State |date=12 July 1867}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Bancroft |first=Hubert Howe |date=1887 |title=History of Mexico Volume VI 1861–1887|location=San Francisco |publisher=The History Company |pages=309–312}}</ref> After only one day the court returned a verdict of guilty and sentenced Maximilian to death.<ref>{{cite book |last=Bancroft |first=Hubert Howe |date=1887 |title=History of Mexico Volume VI 1861–1887|location=San Francisco |publisher=The History Company |pages=313–314}}</ref>

A number of the crowned heads of Europe and other prominent figures (including the eminent liberals [[Victor Hugo]] and [[Giuseppe Garibaldi]]) sent telegrams and letters to Mexico requesting that the Emperor's life be spared.<ref>{{cite book|first=M. M.|last=McAllen|page=380|title=Maximilian and Carlota: Europe's Last Empire in Mexico|isbn=978-1-59534-263-8|date=April 2015|publisher=Trinity University Press }}</ref>

Although he respected Maximilian on a personal level,<ref name="Maximilian_and_Carlota">''Maximilian and Carlota'' by Gene Smith, {{ISBN|0-245-52418-5}}, {{ISBN|978-0-245-52418-9}}</ref> Juárez refused to commute the sentence because he believed it was necessary to send a message that Mexico would not tolerate any more foreign invasions.<ref>{{cite book|first=M. M.|last=McAllen|pages=382|title=Maximilian and Carlota: Europe's Last Empire in Mexico|isbn=978-1-59534-263-8|date=April 2015|publisher=Trinity University Press }}</ref>

Felix Salm-Salm and his wife devised a plan to allow Maximilian to escape execution by bribing his jailors. However, Maximilian would not go through with the plan unless Generals Miramón and Mejía could accompany him and because he felt that shaving his beard to avoid recognition would undermine his dignity if he were to be recaptured.{{sfn|Parkes|1960|p=273}}[[File:Francois Aubert 2.jpg|thumb|''Emperor Maximilian I in His Coffin'', photographed by [[François Aubert]]]]The sentence was carried out in the ''[[Cerro de las Campanas]]'' at 6:40&nbsp;a.m. on the morning of 19 June 1867, when Maximilian, along with Generals Miramón and Mejía, was executed by a Republican firing squad. He spoke only in Spanish and gave each of his executioners a gold coin in traditional European aristocratic fashion. His last words were, "I forgive everyone, and I ask everyone to forgive me. May my blood which is about to be spilled end the bloodshed which has been experienced in my new motherland. Long live Mexico! Long live its independence!" A photo of Maximilian's firing squad is owned by the [[Metropolitan Museum of Art]], Gilman Collection.<ref name="auto1">Shawcross, ''The Last Emperor of Mexico'', photo section</ref>
After Maximilian's execution, his body was embalmed and displayed in Mexico, and not repatriated to Austria until six months after his death. Photos of his corpse were taken.<ref name="auto1"/> The Austrian admiral [[Wilhelm von Tegetthoff]] was sent to Mexico aboard SMS ''Novara'' to take the late emperor's body back to Austria. After arriving in Trieste, the coffin was taken to Vienna and placed in the [[Imperial Crypt]] on 18 January 1868.<ref>{{cite book|first=M. M.|last=McAllen|pages=403|title=Maximilian and Carlota: Europe's Last Empire in Mexico|isbn=978-1-59534-263-8|date=April 2015|publisher=Trinity University Press }}</ref>

The [[Emperor Maximilian Memorial Chapel]] was constructed on the hill where his execution took place.<ref>{{cite book|url=http://www.diputados.gob.mx/sedia/biblio/virtual/bicentena/fusil_max/03_fusil_maxi1.pdf|title=Manifiesto justificativo de los castigos nacionales en Querétaro|author=Benito Juárez|date=2010|publisher=Chamber of Deputies, [[LXI Legislature of the Mexican Congress|LXI Legislature]]|contribution=Preface: "El fusilamiento de Maximiliano de Habsburgo"|contributor1=Isaí Hidekel Tejada Vallejo}}</ref>

==Cultural portrayals==
[[File:Edouard Manet 022.jpg|thumb|''The Execution of Emperor Maximilian'' (last version, 1868–69), oil on canvas, 252 × 305 cm. [[Kunsthalle Mannheim]]]]
[[The Execution of Emperor Maximilian|Maximilian's execution]] was portrayed in a series of three paintings by French painter [[Édouard Manet]], who had Republican sympathies. His third depiction of the execution shows the Mexican soldiers wearing "uniforms almost identical to French troops, and the man preparing for the [[coup de grâce]] shares the conspicuous features of Napoleon III. The implication was clear: Napoleon III had blood on his hands. Unsurprisingly, the painting was banned from public display in Paris".<ref>Shawcross, Edward, ''The Last Emperor of Mexico'', New York: Basic Books, 2021, p. 282.</ref>

In the wake of his death, [[carte-de-visite]] cards with photographs commemorating his execution circulated both among his followers and among those who wished to celebrate his death. One such card featured a photograph of the shirt he wore to his execution, riddled with bullet holes.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://mavcor.yale.edu/conversations/object-narratives/carte-de-visite-photograph-maximilian-von-habsburg-s-execution-shirt|title=Carte-de-visite Photograph of Maximilian von Habsburg's Execution Shirt|first=Emily|last=Floyd|date=25 December 2015|website=mavcor.yale.edu}}</ref>

Composer [[Franz Liszt]] included a "Marche funèbre, en mémoire de Maximilian I, empereur de Mexique" (a funeral march, in memory of Maximilian I, Emperor of Mexico) among the pieces in his famous collection of piano pieces entitled ''[[Années de pèlerinage]]''.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.hyperion-records.co.uk/dw.asp?dc=W7877_GBAJY9941410|title=En mémoire de Maximilien I – Marche funèbre, S162d (Liszt) – from CDA67414/7 – Hyperion Records – MP3 and Lossless downloads|website=www.hyperion-records.co.uk}}</ref>

In Vienna, mementos of Emperor Maximilian I of Mexico and of the Second Mexican Empire are on display at the [[Imperial Treasury, Vienna|Schatzkammer Museum]] in the [[Hofburg Palace]],<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.khm.at/objektdb/detail/100556/|title=Szepter; Erinnerungsstück an Kaiser Maximilian I. von Mexiko|website=www.khm.at}}</ref> at [[Museum of Military History, Vienna|Heeresgeschichtliches Museum]] and at the [[Imperial Furniture Collection]]. A statue of Maximilian stands today in the 13th district of Vienna in front of the entrance to the Schönbrunn Palace Park. In [[Bad Ischl]], the Maximilian fountain on the Traun, built in 1868, is a reminder of him.{{citation needed|date = October 2023}}

In Italy, there is a statue of Maximilian in Trieste, brought back to its original place, [[Piazza Venezia (Trieste)|Piazza Venezia]], from the park of the [[Miramare Castle]] in 2009. Maximilian now "overlooks" part of the port of Trieste again. The Rostrata Columna, dedicated to him in 1876 in Maximilian Park in [[Pula]], a work by [[Heinrich von Ferstel]], was brought to [[Venice]] in 1919 as Italian spoils of war and is now, rededicated, on the edge of the [[Giardini della Biennale]].{{citation needed|date = October 2023}}

There are portrayals of Maximilian on stage, in film and television. In theater, the play by [[Franz Werfel]] ''Juarez and Maximilian'' focuses on the two historical figures; it was performed in [[Berlin]] in 1924, directed by [[Max Reinhardt]]. In cinema, the 1934 Mexican film ''[[Juárez y Maximiliano]]'' he is played by [[Enrique Herrera (actor)|Enrique Herrera]]; in the 1939 American film ''[[Juarez (film)|Juarez]]'' by [[Brian Aherne]]. In the 1939 film ''[[The Mad Empress]]'', about his wife, Maximilian was played by [[Conrad Nagel]]. Maximilian is portrayed in one scene in the 1954 American film ''[[Vera Cruz (film)|Vera Cruz]]'', played by [[George Macready]]. In the Mexican [[telenovela]] ''[[El vuelo del águila]]'', Maximilian was portrayed by Mexican actor [[Mario Iván Martínez]].{{citation needed|date=June 2020}} The German-produced [[Netflix]] historical drama [[The Empress (TV series)|''The Empress'']], premiering in 2022, centers on the life of [[Empress Elisabeth of Austria]], Maximilian's sister-in-law. Maximilian, played by actor Johannes Nussbaum, is portrayed in an unfavorable light.{{citation needed|date = October 2023}}

In literary fiction, [[Harry Turtledove]]'s 1997 alternative history novel ''[[How Few Remain]]'' where the [[Confederate States of America]] won the [[American Civil War]], Maximilian is still Emperor in 1881 and sells the provinces of [[Sonora]] and [[Chihuahua (state)|Chihuahua]] to the Confederacy for CS $3,000,000 because his country is financially strapped.{{citation needed|date = October 2023}}

Conspiracy theorists writing in German allege Maximilian was not executed and that, having entered a secret agreement with Juárez, lived in exile in [[El Salvador]] as Justo Armas until 1936.<ref>Sandra Weiss: Zweifel an Erschießung des Kaisers von Mexiko. In: Der Standard vom 24. March 2001.</ref><ref>Johann Lughofer: Des Kaisers neues Leben. Der Fall Maximilian von Mexiko. Vienna 2002.</ref><ref>Stefan Müller "Die Akte Maximilian" In. Die Zeit, 2 January 2014.</ref>

==Legacy==
[[File:HGM Totenmaske Maximilian von Mexiko.jpg|thumb|right|Maximilian's death mask]]
[[File:The Shirt of the Emperor, Worn during His Execution MET DP139576.jpg|thumb|right|Maximilian's shirt that he wore on his execution]]With Maximilian's execution in 1867 by a firing squad of the restored republic, schemes and dreams of a royal head of state came to an end in Mexico. Historians are still assessing the period in Mexican history and Maximilian's role as well as that of the man he unsuccessfully aimed to depose, the liberal president of the Mexican Republic, Benito Juárez. With Maximilian's execution, the second emperor of Mexico to have met that fate following that of [[Agustín I of Mexico]], monarchism in Mexico ceased to be a goal of Mexican conservatives.{{citation needed|date = October 2023}}

Maximilian saw himself as a liberal, aligned with the ideas of Mexican liberalism, but he lacked the understanding that his position was tenuous. Liberalism implemented in Mexico by a European royal propped up by the power of Napoleon III to guarantee the repayment of a fraudulent loan was not a strong basis for enduring rule. Maximilian was initially supported by Mexican conservatives, who failed to realize Maximilian's political outlook. Far from repudiating laws of the [[La Reforma|Liberal Reform]] removing the privileged status of the Catholic Church in Mexico, Maximilian supported them, thereby losing support from Mexico's conservatives who had given his regime a veil of legitimacy as a Mexican project. Mexican historian [[Erika Pani]] sees Maximilian in the tradition of Mexican liberals Juárez, [[Sebastián Lerdo de Tejada]], and [[Porfirio Díaz]] advocating the disentailment and nationalization of ecclesiastical properties, the dismantling of private courts for [[fueros|privileged corporate entities]] of the Catholic Church and the Mexican Army, and major infrastructure project of the building of railways in Mexico.<ref>Pani, Erika. ''El Segundo Imperio''. Mexico: Fondo de Cultura Económica 2004, 121-22</ref> Mexican conservativism survived the execution of Maximilian, to fight the increased anticlericalism in the wake of the [[Mexican Revolution]] (1910-1920), but Mexican monarchism did not. Starting at the end of the twentieth century, the [[historiography]], the writing of history, increasingly seeks not to denigrate Maximilian and the Second Mexican Empire, but to understand it.<ref>Pani, ''El Segundo Imperio'', 124</ref>

One biographer in 1971, calls Maximilian and Carlotta "tragic figures". He compares the era to that of "grand opera", with "actors on that stage [who] appear as posturing anachronisms rather than great personages ... only in terms of nineteenth-century melodrama ... does the whole affair assume the credibility of something more than a [[harlequinade]]. The blood, after all, was real. The tragedy of Maximilian and Carlotta, and that of the thousands who died or were bereft as a result of their venture in the New World, could have been the product only of a period phosphorescent with decay and delusion."<ref>O'Connor, ''The Cactus Throne'', 7-8</ref>

Maximilian has been praised by some historians for his liberal reforms, genuine desire to help the people of Mexico, refusal to desert his loyal followers, and personal bravery during the siege of Querétaro. Other researchers consider him short-sighted in political and military affairs, and unwilling to restore republican ideals in Mexico even during the imminent collapse of the [[Second Mexican Empire]].{{citation needed|date = October 2023}}

One of the lesser-known but wide reaching influences of Maximilian's reign in Mexico involved music—Maximilian brought Central European marching bands and folk musicians with him to Mexico, and after his execution, those musicians fled to northern Mexico and the southwestern United States. There they continued playing their European-based music such as [[polka]]s and [[waltz]]es, featuring European instruments such as the [[accordion]], but blending with local Spanish and indigenous Mexican influences. This led to the development of musical genres such as [[Norteño (music)|''norteño'']] and [[Tejano music|''tejano'']], which have been and still are extremely influential in Mexican and Mexican-American music as a whole.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2023-03-30 |title=Polka Influence on Mexican Music |url=https://www.expatinsurance.com/articles/polka-influence-on-mexican-music |access-date=2024-10-23 |website=www.expatinsurance.com |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=2015-03-11 |title=How Mexico Learned To Polka |url=https://www.npr.org/2015/03/11/392141073/how-mexico-learned-to-polka |access-date=2024-10-23 |work=[[National Public Radio]]}}</ref>

In Mexico, there are no statues to Maximilian, but during the regime of [[Porfirio Díaz]], a liberal army general who fought against the French, the [[Emperor Maximilian Memorial Chapel]] was built on the site of his and his generals' execution on the [[Cerro de las Campanas]] in Querétaro. Reportedly anti-republican and anti-liberal political groups who advocate the Second Mexican Empire, such as the far-right [[Nationalist Front of Mexico]], founded in 2006, gather yearly in Querétaro to commemorate the deaths of Maximilian and his followers as martyrs.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nacionalistas.org/2012/06/homenaje-los-martires-del-segundo.html |title=Homage to the Martyrs of the Second Mexican Empire |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140503115911/http://www.nacionalistas.org/2012/06/homenaje-los-martires-del-segundo.html |archive-date=3 May 2014 }}</ref> Mexican flags and national symbols have been left at the foot of Maximilian's sarcophagus in the Imperial Crypt in Vienna. Maximilian's place in Mexican history is being reassessed by scholars seeking to understand the man and the period that brought him to his brief rule as emperor of Mexico.{{citation needed|date = October 2023}}

==Honours==
* {{Flagicon image|Imperial Standard of Mexico (1864-1867).svg}} [[Second Mexican Empire|Mexican Empire]]:
** [[File:Imperial Order of the Mexican Eagle - ribbon bar.gif|50px]] Sovereign of the [[Imperial Order of the Mexican Eagle]], ''1865''
** [[File:Imperial Order of Our Lady of Guadalupe (Mexico) - ribbon bar.gif|50px]] Sovereign of the [[Mexican Imperial Orders#Imperial Order of Guadalupe|Imperial Order of Guadalupe]]
;Foreign<ref name = "HofUndStaat">[http://alex.onb.ac.at/cgi-content/alex?aid=shb&datum=1866&page=8&size=45  Hof- und Staats-Handbuch der Österreichisch-Ungarischen Monarchie] (1866), Genealogy p. 2</ref>
{{columns-list|colwidth=25em|
* {{flag|Austrian Empire}}:
** [[Order of the Golden Fleece#Austrian Order|Knight of the Golden Fleece]], ''1852''<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.antiquesatoz.com/sgfleece/knights5.htm |title=Chevaliers de la Toisón d'Or – Knights of the Golden Fleece |last= Boettger|first=T. F.|website=La Confrérie Amicale|access-date=25 June 2019}}</ref>
** Grand Cross of the Royal Hungarian [[Order of St. Stephen of Hungary|Order of St. Stephen]], ''1856''<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://tornai.com/rendtagok.htm|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20101222022855/http://tornai.com/rendtagok.htm|url-status=dead|title="A Szent István Rend tagjai"|archivedate=22 December 2010}}</ref>
* {{flag|Baden}}:<ref>''Hof- und Staats-Handbuch des Großherzogtum Baden'' (1858), "Großherzogliche Orden" [https://digital.blb-karlsruhe.de/blbihd/periodical/pageview/1871745 pp. 34], [https://digital.blb-karlsruhe.de/blbihd/periodical/pageview/1871759 48]</ref>
** Knight of the [[House Order of Fidelity]], ''1856''
** [[Order of the Zähringer Lion|Grand Cross of the Zähringer Lion]], ''1856''
* {{flag|Kingdom of Bavaria}}: [[Order of St. Hubert|Knight of St. Hubert]], ''1849''<ref name="Bayern1858">{{cite book|author=Bayern|title=Hof- und Staatshandbuch des Königreichs Bayern: 1858|url=https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_OdtAAAAAcAAJ|year=1858|publisher=Landesamt|page=[https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_OdtAAAAAcAAJ/page/n34 9]}}</ref>
* {{flag|Belgium}}: Grand Cordon of the [[Order of Leopold (Belgium)|Order of Leopold]], ''20 May 1853''<ref>{{cite book|title=Almanach royal officiel, publié, exécution d'un arrête du roi|volume=1|author=H. Tarlier|year=1854|page=[https://books.google.com/books?id=p35NAAAAcAAJ&pg=PA37 37]|language=fr}}</ref>
* {{flag|Empire of Brazil}}: [[Order of the Southern Cross|Grand Cross of the Southern Cross]]
* {{flag|Brunswick}}: Grand Cross of the [[Order of Henry the Lion]]
* {{flag|Denmark}}: [[Order of the Elephant|Knight of the Elephant]], ''11 January 1866''<ref>{{cite book|author=Jørgen Pedersen|title=Riddere af Elefantordenen, 1559–2009|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=glw-AQAAIAAJ|year=2009|publisher=Syddansk Universitetsforlag|language=da|isbn=978-87-7674-434-2|page=273}}</ref>
* {{flagicon image|Flag of France (1794–1815, 1830–1958).svg}} [[Second French Empire|French Empire]]: Grand Cross of the [[Legion of Honour]]
* {{flagicon|Greece|royal}} [[Kingdom of Greece]]: [[Order of the Redeemer|Grand Cross of the Redeemer]]
* {{flag|Kingdom of Hanover}}:
** [[Order of St. George (Hanover)|Knight of St. George]], ''1856''<ref>''Hof- und Staats-Handbuch des Königreich Hannover'' (1865), "Königliche Orden und Ehrenzeichen" p. 38</ref>
** Grand Cross of the [[Royal Guelphic Order]], ''1856''
* {{flag|Grand Duchy of Hesse}}:
** Grand Cross of the [[Ludwig Order]], ''11 May 1856''<ref>''Hof- und Staats-Handbuch des Großherzogtum Hessen'' (1865), "Großherzogliche Orden und Ehrenzeichen" p. 10</ref>
** Grand Cross of the Merit [[Order of Philip the Magnanimous]], ''1856''
* {{flagicon image|Flag of the Papal States (1825-1870).svg}} [[Holy See]]:
** Grand Cross of the [[Order of Pope Pius IX]]
** [[Order of the Holy Sepulchre (Catholic)|Knight of the Collar of the Holy Sepulchre]]
* {{flag|Kingdom of Italy}}: [[Supreme Order of the Most Holy Annunciation|Knight of the Annunciation]], ''29 March 1865''<ref>{{Cite book|title=Notizia storica del nobilissimo ordine supremo della santissima Annunziata. Sunto degli statuti, catalogo dei cavalieri|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Q2aP6enNFoYC&q=Ordine%20supremo%20della%20Santissima%20Annunziata&pg=PA120|publisher=Eredi Botta|date=1869|access-date=4 March 2019|language=it|first=Luigi|surname=Cibrario|page=120}}</ref>
* {{flag|Sovereign Military Order of Malta}}: Bailiff Grand Cross of Honour and Devotion
* {{flag|Netherlands}}: [[Order of the Netherlands Lion|Grand Cross of the Netherlands Lion]], ''8 June 1856''
* {{flag|Kingdom of Portugal}}: [[Order of the Tower and Sword|Grand Cross of the Tower and Sword]], ''14 June 1852''
* {{flagicon image|Flag of the Kingdom of Prussia (1803-1892).svg}} [[Kingdom of Prussia]]:
** [[Order of the Black Eagle|Knight of the Black Eagle]], ''21 December 1852''; with Collar, ''13 January 1866''
** [[Order of the Red Eagle|Grand Cross of the Red Eagle]], ''21 December 1852''
* {{flag|Russian Empire}}:
** [[Order of St. Andrew|Knight of St. Andrew]]
** [[Order of St. Alexander Nevsky|Knight of St. Alexander Nevsky]]
** [[Order of the White Eagle (Russia)|Knight of the White Eagle]]
** [[Order of St. Anna|Knight of St. Anna]], 1st Class
** [[Order of Saint Stanislaus (House of Romanov)|Knight of St. Stanislaus]], 1st Class
* {{flag|Kingdom of Saxony}}: [[Order of the Rue Crown|Knight of the Rue Crown]], ''1852''<ref>''Staatshandbuch für den Freistaat Sachsen (1867)'' (in German), "Königliche Ritter-Orden", p. 4</ref>
* {{flagicon|Sweden|1844}} {{flagicon|Norway|1844}} [[Sweden-Norway]]: [[Order of the Seraphim|Knight of the Seraphim]], with Collar, ''21 April 1865''<ref>{{citation|title=Sveriges och Norges statskalender|year=1866|page=435|url=https://runeberg.org/sonkal/1866/0471.html|via=runeberg.org|access-date=2021-04-04|language=sv}}</ref>
* {{flagicon|Tuscany|habsburg}} [[Grand Duchy of Tuscany]]: [[Order of Saint Joseph|Grand Cross of St. Joseph]]
* {{flag|Two Sicilies}}
** [[Order of Saint Ferdinand and of Merit|Grand Cross of St. Ferdinand and Merit]]
** [[Order of Saint Januarius|Knight of St. Januarius]]
}}

==Arms==
<gallery class="center" widths="250">
File:Coat of Arms Second Mexican Empire.svg|Coat of arms as Emperor Maximilian I of Mexico
File:Imperial Monogram of Emperor Maximilian I of Mexico.svg|Imperial Monogram
File:Dual Cypher of Emperor Maximilian and Empress Carlotta of Mexico, Variant.svg|Dual Cypher of Emperor Maximilian and Empress Carlota of Mexico
</gallery>

==See also==
* [[List of heads of state of Mexico]]
* [[Acapantzingo, Cuernavaca]]

==Notes==
{{refbegin}}
{{Ordered list|type=upper-alpha|
{{note label|specialnotes1|A|none}} "Such an easy assumption of an improbable sexual relationship", said Alan Palmer, "fails to understand the nature of the attachment binding" Sophie and Reichstadt, who saw themselves as alien misfits stranded in a foreign court.{{sfn|Palmer|1994|p=3}} To Palmer, their "confidences were those of a brother and elder sister rather than of lovers".{{sfn|Palmer|1994|p=3}} "There is no documentary evidence to suggest that she and the Duke of Reichstadt were ever lovers", according to Joan Haslip.{{sfn|Haslip|1972|p=4}} "Whether the young Napoleon was actually the father of Maximilian could only be the subject of fascinating conjecture, something for courtiers and servants to gossip about on the long winter nights in the [[Hofburg Palace|Hofburg]] [Palace]", said Richard O'Connor.{{sfn|O'Connor|1971|p=31}} "There is not a shred of evidence to support the rumors", affirmed Jasper Ridley.{{sfn|Ridley|1993|p=44}} "It was said that Sophie confessed", continued Ridley, "in a letter to her father confessor, that Maximilian was the son of Napoleon, and that the letter was found and destroyed in 1859, but there is no reason to believe this story ... would she have had a sexual relationship with a boy whom she regarded as a child and a younger brother?"{{sfn|Ridley|1993|p=45}} The birth of two more sons after the death of Reichstadt in 1832 lessened even more the credibility of these claims.{{sfn|Ridley|1993|p=45}}
}}
{{refend}}

==References==
{{Reflist|colwidth=30em}}

==Further reading==
{{refbegin}}

===In English===
* Corti, Egon. ''Maximilian and Charlotte of Mexico''. 2 vols. New York: Knopf 1928.
* Cunningham, Michele. ''Mexico and the Foreign Policy of Napoleon III'' (2001) 251 pp. [https://digital.library.adelaide.edu.au/dspace/bitstream/2440/21617/2/02whole.pdf  online PhD version]
* Duncan, Robert H. "Political Legitimization and Maximilian's Second Empire in Mexico, 1864–1867." [[Mexican Studies|Mexican Studies/Estudios Mexicanos]] 12 (1996) 273–300.
* Duncan, Robert H. "Embracing a Suitable Past: Independence Celebrations under Mexico's Second Empire, 1864–6." ''[[Journal of Latin American Studies]]'' 30.2 (1998): 249–277.
* {{cite journal |last=Duncan |first=Robert H. |title="Beneath a Rich Blaze of Golden Sunlight": The Travels of Archduke Maximilian through Brazil, 1860 |url=https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/00822884.2020.1726025 |year=2020 |journal=Terrae Incognitae |volume=52 |number=1 |pages=37–64 |issn=0082-2884 |doi=10.1080/00822884.2020.1726025 |s2cid=213261011 |language=en |url-access=subscription}}
* Frazer, Robert W. (1944). "Maximilian's Propaganda Activities in the United States, 1865-1866". ''The Hispanic American Historical Review''. 24 (1): 4–29.
* Hanna, Alfred Jackson and Kathryn Abbey Hanna. ''Napoleon III and Mexico: American Triumph over Monarchy'' (1971).
* {{cite book |last=Harding |first=Bertita |title=Phantom Crown: The Story of Maximilian & Carlota of Mexico |year=1934 |publisher=Blue Ribbon Books |location=New York |isbn=1434468925}}
* {{cite book |last=Haslip |first=Joan |author-link=Joan Haslip |title=The Crown of Mexico: Maximilian and His Empress Carlota |year=1972 |publisher=Holt, Rinehart and Winston |location=New York |isbn=0-03-086572-7 |url=https://archive.org/details/crownofmexicomax00hasl}}
* {{cite book |last=Habsburg |first=Maximilian |title=Recollections of My Life |url=http://archive.org/details/recollectionsofm01maxiuoft |publisher=London R. Bentley |year=1868}}
* {{cite book |last=Hyde |first=H. Montgomery |title=Mexican Empire: The History of Maximilian and Carlota of Mexico |year=1946 |publisher=Macmillan & Co. |location=London}}
* {{cite book |last=Ibsen |first=Kristine |year=2010 |title=Maximilian, Mexico, and the Invention of Empire |location=Nashville |publisher=Vanderbilt University Press |isbn=978-0-8265-1688-6}}
* Jonas, Raymond (2024). ''Habsburgs on the Rio Grande: The Rise and Fall of the Second Mexican Empire''. Harvard University Press.
* [[Enrique Krauze|Krauze, Enrique]] (1997). ''Mexico: Biography of Power: A History of Modern Mexico, 1810–1996''. New York: HarperCollins. {{ISBN|0-06-016325-9}}
* Mayo, C. M. ''The Last Prince of the Mexican Empire''. Cave Creek, AZ: Unbridled Books 2009.
* {{cite book |last=McAllen |first=M. M. |year=2015 |title=Maximilian and Carlota: Europe's Last Empire in Mexico |location=San Antonio |publisher=Trinity University Press |isbn=978-1-59534-183-9}} [https://www.amazon.com/Maximilian-Carlota-Europes-Empire-Mexico/dp/159534263X/  excerpt]
* {{cite book |last=O'Connor |first=Richard |title=The Cactus Throne: The Tragedy of Maximilian and Carlotta |year=1971 |publisher=G. P. Putnam's Sons |location=New York |isbn=0-04-972005-8}}
* {{cite book |last=Palmer |first=Alan |author-link=Alan Palmer |title=Twilight of the Habsburgs: The Life and Times of Emperor Francis Joseph |year=1994 |publisher=Atlantic Monthly Press |location=New York |isbn=0-87113-665-1}}
* {{cite book |last=Parkes |first=Henry |title=A History of Mexico |year=1960 |publisher=Houghton Mifflin |location=Boston |isbn=0-395-08410-5 |page=273 |url=https://archive.org/details/historyofmexico00park}}
* {{cite book |last=Ridley |first=Jasper Godwin |author-link=Jasper Ridley (historian) |title=Maximilian and Juárez |publisher=Constable & Robinson |date=1993 |isbn=0-09-472070-3 |url=https://archive.org/details/maximilianjuarez0000ridl |url-access=registration}}
* [[Shawcross, Edward]] (2021). ''The Last Emperor of Mexico: The Dramatic Story of the Habsburg Archduke Who Created a Kingdom in the New World''. New York: Basic Books. {{ISBN|978-1541-674196}}. Also titled ''The Last Emperor of Mexico: A Disaster in the New World''. London: Faber & Faber, 2022.

===In other languages===
* {{cite book |last=Almeida |first=Sylvia Lacerda Martins de |title=Uma filha de D. Pedro I: Dona Maria Amélia |year=1973 |language=pt}}
* {{cite book |language=fr |last=Bilteryst |first=Damien |title=Philippe comte de Flandre – Frère de Léopold II |publisher=Éditions Racine |location=Bruxelles |year=2014 |isbn=978-2-87386-894-9 |url=https://www.racine.be/sites/default/files/books/issuu/9782873868949.pdf}}
* {{cite book |language=fr |first=Victor |last=Capron |title=Le Mariage de Maximilien et Charlotte. Journal du duc de Brabant. 1856–1857 |location=Brussels |year=1986}}
* {{cite book |last=Castelot |first=André |title=Maximilien et Charlotte: La tragédie de l'ambition |year=2002 |language=fr}}
* {{cite book |last=Defrance |first=Olivier |title=Léopold Ier et le clan Cobourg |year=2004}}
* {{cite book |language=fr |first=Dominique |last=Paoli |title=L'Impératrice Charlotte – Le soleil noir de la mélancolie |publisher=Perrin |location=Paris |year=2008 |isbn=978-2-262-02131-3}}
* {{cite book |last=Günter |first=Treffer |title=Die Weltumsegelung der Novara, 1857–1859 |year=1973 |editor=Molden |location=Viena |language=de}}
* {{cite book |last=Kerckvoorde |first=Mia |title=Charlotte : la passion et la fatalité |year=1981}}
* {{cite book |last=Kramar |first=Konrad |title=Die schrulligen Habsburger: Marotten und Allüren eines Kaiserhauses |year=1999 |publisher=Ueberreuter |isbn=3-8000-3742-4 |oclc=46473818 |language=de}}
* Pani, Erika. ''El Segundo Imperio: Pasados de usos múltiples''. Mexico: Fondo de Cultura Económica  2004. {{ISBN|968-16-7259-3}}

{{refend}}

==External links==
* [https://archive.org/details/recollectionsofm01maxiuoft ''Recollections of my life'' by Maximilian I of Mexico Vol. I at archive.org]
* [https://archive.org/details/recollectionsofm02maxiuoft ''Recollections of my life'' by Maximilian I of Mexico Vol. II at archive.org]
* [https://archive.org/details/recollectionsofm03maxiuoft ''Recollections of my life'' by Maximilian I of Mexico Vol. III at archive.org]
* [https://archive.org/details/cu31924020431734/page/n9 Maximilian in Mexico] at archive.org
* [https://www.ourdocuments.gov/doc.php?flash=false&doc=23 Monroe Doctrine (1823)] at ourdocuments.gov
* [https://archive.org/details/cu31924020440008 The Present Condition of Mexico: Message from the President of the United States in Answer to Resolution of the House of the 3d of March Last, Transmitting Report from the Department of State Regarding the Present Condition of Mexico] (1862) at Google Books
* Song: [https://imslp.org/wiki/Get_Out_of_Mexico!_(Webster%2C_Joseph_Philbrick) "Get Out of Mexico!"] on IMSLP
* Song: [https://imslp.org/wiki/How_Are_You_Maximillian%3F_(Winner%2C_Joseph_Eastburn) "How Are You Maximillian?"] on IMSLP
* {{IMDb title}}
* {{Rotten Tomatoes|qid=Q105686533}}

{{Navboxes
|title=Offices and distinctions
|list1=
{{s-start}}
{{s-hou|[[House of Habsburg-Lorraine]]|6 July|1832|19 June|1867|[[House of Lorraine]]}}
{{s-reg}}
{{s-break}}
{{s-vac|reason=Regency of:<br />[[Juan Nepomuceno Almonte]]<br />[[Pelagio Antonio de Labastida y Dávalos]]<br />[[José Mariano Salas]]|last=[[Agustín I of Mexico|Agustín I]]}}
{{s-ttl|title=[[Emperor of Mexico]]|years=10 April 1864 – 15 May 1867}}
{{s-non|reason=Monarchy abolished|reason2=Restoration of republic under [[Benito Juárez]]}}
{{S-mil}}
{{succession box
|before=[[Franz Graf von Wimpffen]]
|title=[[Austro-Hungarian Navy|Commander-in-Chief of the Austro-Hungarian Naval Fleet]]
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{{Subject bar|portal1=Austria|portal2=Biography|portal3=History|portal4=France|portal5=Mexico|portal6=Royalty|commons=y|s=y|s-search=1911 Encyclopædia Britannica/Maximilian, emperor of Mexico|d=y|d-search=Q84192}}<!-- DO NOT CHANGE OR ADD links without prior consensus, see [[Talk:Maximilian I of Mexico]]. -->
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Maximilian 01 Of Mexico}}
[[Category:Maximilian I of Mexico| ]] <!--please leave the empty space as standard-->
[[Category:Emperors of Mexico]]
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[[Category:Members of the Order of the Holy Sepulchre]]
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