Netflix’s hit period drama, The Empress, featured an authentic portrayal of the Austrian royal family, which has led to questions about whether the series was based on real people. The series follows Elisabeth von Wittelsback and her fairy tale romance with the emperor of Austria, Franz Joseph I. When the series premiered on the streaming platform, The Empress became one of the best non-English language shows on Netflix.

Like many other period dramas, The Empress includes elements that have a basis in reality. However, that doesn’t necessarily mean that everything that is included in the series is historically accurate. The creators of the show had creative freedom when bringing Franz and Elizabeth’s story to life. With The Empress season 2 on the horizon, it will be interesting to see what historical events will be featured in the show.

The Empress Was Based On Empress Elisabeth Of Austria

The Empress Is About Elizabeth’s Life At The Viennese Court

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Devrim Lingnau’s character in The Empress, Elisabeth von Wittelsbach, was based on Empress Elisabeth of Austria. Empress Elisabeth of Austria married Franz Joseph I in 1854 when she was just 16 years old. According to historical reports, Elisabeth was willful, stubborn, and free-spirited, which is something that is depicted in the Netflix miniseries. Elisabeth was beloved by her people because of how she sympathized with the hardships they were facing and her effort to make their lives better (via History).

Following her marriage to Franz and her move to the Viennese Court, Elisabeth began to feel stifled by her life there. According to historical reports, the empress’ relationship with her husband began falling apart a few months into their marriage. Despite not having the fairytale love story depicted in the series, Franz and Elisabeth ended up having four children before she was assassinated in 1898.

Is The Empress Historically Accurate?

The Empress Uses Its Own Versions Of Historical Events

The Empress isn’t an accurate portrayal of Elisabeth’s life, but it is a mixture of history and fiction. Although the show took some creative liberties to tell Elisabeth’s story, there are certain things that are factual. For instance, Franz choosing Elisabeth over Helene is true to history. The show’s timeline also tallies with how long it took for Franz and Elisabeth to get married after they got engaged.

However, historical accounts claim that Elisabeth didn’t initially take a liking to Franz but instead grew to love him after they spent more time together.

That being said, there are several things that are included in The Empress that are altered in order to fit into the series’ narrative. A good example of this is how Elisabeth felt about Franz. In the series, Elisabeth and Franz were shown to have fallen in love at first sight. However, historical accounts claim that Elisabeth didn’t initially take a liking to Franz but instead grew to love him after they spent more time together (via The World of Hadsburgs).