Skip to content
VitrineRoyal Houses of Europe
Sign in

Leopold V, Archduke of Austria

1586–1632

Born
9 Oct 1586, Graz
Country of birth
Habsburg monarchy, today Austria
Died
17 Sep 1632, Schwaz
facts
13
sources
1
images and files
0

Facts and their sources

Tap a fact to see where it comes from.

  • Birth9 Oct 1586, GrazProbable1 source
  • TitleRoman Catholic Bishop of Passau, 1605–1625Confirmed3 competing claims1 source
  • TitleRoman Catholic Bishop of Strasbourg, 1607–1625Confirmed3 competing claims1 source
  • TitleAbbot of Murbach Abbey, 1614Confirmed3 competing claims1 source
  • Titlecount of Tyrol, 1619Confirmed3 competing claims1 source
  • Death17 Sep 1632, SchwazProbableDisputed1 competing claim1 source
  • ParentMaria Anna of BavariaConfirmed1 source
  • ParentCharles II, Archduke of AustriaConfirmed1 source
  • UnionClaudia de' MediciConfirmed1 source

A life in time

  1. Born · Graz

    Birth, Graz

  2. Event · Roman Catholic Bishop of Passau

    Event

  3. Event · Roman Catholic Bishop of Strasbourg

    Event

  4. Event · Abbot of Murbach Abbey

    Event

  5. Event · count of Tyrol

    Event

  6. Child born: Ferdinand Charles, Archduke of Austria

    Birth, Innsbruck

  7. Died · Schwaz

    Death, Schwaz

  8. Child born: Maria Leopoldine of Austria

    Birth, Innsbruck

What was it like?

The world around Graz, 1586: who ruled, who else was alive, how people lived. This is general history, not a record about the family, and every item shows where it comes from.

Leopold was Roman Catholic Bishop of Passau from 1605 to 1625.

Known for

Titles held

  • Roman Catholic Bishop of Passau1605–1625
  • Roman Catholic Bishop of Strasbourg1607–1625
  • Abbot of Murbach Abbey1614
  • count of Tyrol1619
Fashion

Common citizens limited to serviceable fabrics

Under the 1530 Augsburg dress code, which influenced regional standards, common citizens were forbidden from using costly materials like gold, silver, pearls, velvet, or silk.

Jewish population faced discriminatory dress regulations

Discriminatory laws compelled Jewish men to wear specific identifying markers on their clothes, such as beards or stigmatizing symbols.

Music

Instruments used in 16th-century Austrian music

In the late 16th century, musicians in Austrian regions played instruments such as recorders, trombones, cornetti, lutes, harps, and viols, as seen in period iconography and monastery artifacts.

Boisterous folk-style dancing at festivals

During feast days and festivals, dances often included boisterous styles like the branle, which involved circles or lines of people jumping and kicking until the musician was exhausted.

Getting around

Couriers covered up to 150 kilometers daily

Professional couriers could cover up to 150 kilometers a day using a relay system of horses and riders established by the Taxis Post.

Most people traveled primarily on foot

For the majority of people, traveling was primarily done on foot, with most individuals covering 20 to 35 kilometers per day depending on the terrain.

Daily life

Long school days and set schedule

In 1586, school days lasted seven hours, starting at 6:00 a.m. in summer and 7:00 a.m. in winter, with subjects including religion, reading, writing, and singing.

Strict rules for school discipline

Teachers were strictly forbidden from hitting students with their fists, pulling hair, or striking heads, though the rod remained an approved disciplinary tool.

Food

Beverages and Fasting Rules

Commoners frequently drank beer, which was often brewed locally by inns or breweries and was typically darker and lower in alcohol than modern beer. During fast days, which could number up to 150 annually, consumption of meat was restricted, leading to a reliance on fish, vegetables like cabbage and turnips, and legumes.

Common Staples: Porridge and Bread

The daily diet of ordinary families centered on cereal-based porridges made of oats, millet, or barley, often prepared with water, milk, or lard. Bread, typically made from rye or oats, was another primary staple, sometimes baked into durable flatbreads that could be softened with water.

Prices and wages

Cost of beef and bread

In 1575, the price of beef in Vienna was approximately 3.14 kreuzer per kilogram, increasing to 5.14 kreuzer by 1599. During the same period, bread prices rose from about 0.86 to 1.47 kreuzer per kilogram.

Daily worker wages in Vienna

Between 1575 and 1599, a daily wage for a worker in Vienna typically ranged from 7 to 10 kreuzer.

Work

Moonlighting militia in the cities

City militia members, whose military pay was meagre, often supplemented their income by working as bakers, cobblers, or innkeepers.

Wages and employment for rural servants

Rural workers included farm-hands and maids who worked for wages, food, and lodging. If these servants left their employment before the end of their customary one-year term without a valid reason, they forfeited all their wages.

News and letters

Postal travel times for couriers

Standard travel times for professional couriers were approximately 12 to 15 days from Rome to Vienna, and 20 to 25 days from Rome to Paris.

Secret Black Chambers for surveillance

At individual postal stations, authorities operated secret Black Chambers where suspicious letters were opened to monitor communication and gather intelligence.

During their lifetime

  1. 1595

    Peasant revolts in Upper and Lower Austria

    A major peasant revolt occurred in Upper and Lower Austria between 1595 and 1597, driven by exploitation within the feudal system.

  2. 1626

    Peasant Rebellion of 1626

    In 1626, peasants revolted against re-Catholicization and heavy taxation, laying siege to the city of Linz for nine weeks.

  3. 1631

    Massive abandonment of farmsteads in 1631

    A 1631 survey of the Archduchy of Austria below the Enns found 8,980 farmsteads abandoned due to war and religious pressures.

Family

Parents

Spouses

Children

Ancestors and children

Open the full tree

Four generations back to the right, the children to the left. The number beside a child counts the generations of descendants known after them.