Austria-Hungary

The Austro-Hungarian Empire is a dual monarchy located in Central Europe.

History
The House of Habsburg's roots reach back to Count Guntram the Rich, the progenitor of the House. He was a count in the area of Breisgau, and related to the powerful Etichonid family. He gained a great deal of land near the Rhine, but lost much of it after being found guilty of treason by Emperor Otto the Great. The family's fortune were restored by Count Radbot von Habsburg, the grandson of Guntram, who built Habsburg Castle and married the daughter of the Duke of Lorraine. The House of Habsburg gradually increased it's power though marriage and diplomacy, eventually becoming one of the most powerful families in Germany, gaining their Austrian Lands in 1282. Although there had been some Habsburg Holy Roman Emperors prior to 1440, following the election of Frederick III, they held the title nearly continuously until the dissolution of the Empire in 1806. The House of Habsburg gained the Kingdoms of Bohemia and Hungary in 1526, gained the Kingdom of Spain in 1516, and gained the throne of Portugal in 1581. The Habsburg Holdings were divided between the Spanish and Austrian Branches in 1556. The Spanish Habsburgs died out in 1700, which prompted the War of Spanish Succession, between the Bourbons in France and the Habsbugs in Austria, over who would rule Spain. The Austrian Habsburgs went extinct in the male line in 1740, but were continued by the House of Habsburg-Lorraine, founded the the marriage of Empress Maria Theresa to Francis of Lorraine. The Habsburgs faught against Napoleon during the 1800s, and it was their defeat at Austerlitz that caused them to lose their title as Holy Roman Emperors. However, thanks to the skillful diplomacy of Prince Klemens von Metternich, Austria gained a number of territories following the Congress of Vienna in 1815, most notably Venetia and Lombardy. Austria suffered a number of setbacks in the next century, facing a revolution in 1848, a string of defeats at the hands of Prussia and Piedmont, which forced Austria out of Southern Germany and Italy, respectively. Following the Hungarian Revolution, Emperor Franz Josef created the Dual Monarchy of Austria-Hungary. Austria and Hungary would be seperate nations with a personal union with each other through the Emperor. They would have a unified Military, foreign affairs office, monetary system, but other governmental responsibility were held by the respective states.