In an interview with an international group of newspapers, Karl Habsburg-Lothringen, the grandson of the last emperor of Austria-Hungary, Karl I, has said there is no need for his family to show remorse for the First World War “because that would mean we had been guilty in the first place, and that we would have to redeem ourselves for something”.
Mr. Habsburg-Lothringen defended his grandfather who “inherited” the conflict and “had nothing to do with it”, while praising his “attempts to pacify the situation”. He continued that “it would be wrong to point the finger at one state… Many were already in the starting blocks, waiting for the great conflict. If you had to blame someone, then the greatest blame would lie with nationalism itself”.
To read the full interview, visit The Guardian website here.
Date of article publication: 16/01/2014
Posted by: Daniel Barry, Centenary News