15th March, Revolution and War of Independence of 1848-49 Bernd 03/15/2024 (Fri) 14:37 No.51786 del
During our discussion of this national holiday, the name Metternich came up a couple of times. What do we know?
Apparently Metternich is an Austrian rock band formed in 2016.
https://invidious.protokolla.fi/watch?v=mPAREt9aMUg
https://youtube.com/watch?v=mPAREt9aMUg [Embed]
https://invidious.protokolla.fi/watch?v=h_4RUPlwOJc
https://youtube.com/watch?v=h_4RUPlwOJc [Embed]

Okay, this probably not it.
We are, of course, talking about Prince Klemens von Metternich, Chancellor and Foreign Minister of the Austrian Empire, the great opposer of revolutionary movements, and the counterweight in the Habsburg Court that prevented any meaningful change from feudalistic order, whose actions to keep the lid forcibly on the pot of boiling water just hastened the emergence of a new revolutionary wave. Some might call him close-minded, some clear-sighted. He was one of the most influential person of his day and age, probably his greatest work was the redrawn Europe after the Napoleonic Wars, although he wasn't the sole author of it.
I don't want to present a biography, read Wikipedia for that. I just want to acknowledge his work that led to the Revolution (and War of Independence) which he was not part of since he was forced by the Viennese to resign two days prior to the events on Hungary. But again while it wasn't entirely his own construct, he made a great pair for Emperor and King Francis in his absolutist politics. And then he became one party in another duo - with Franz Anton von Kolowrat - which replaced the weak Ferdinand to hold the reigns when it came to real governing.