The Rise of the Habsburg Dynasty to power through marriage

Habsburg Dynasty : Marriage as the Means towards European Supremacy

Others make War , but you O Happy Austria , Marry ' Throughout world history , there are kingdoms or nations which sought power and prestige through warfare . In war , the victor would gain the authority and territories previously possessed by the defeated party . While warfare seemed to be a popular means in gaining political power , one particular family chose to deviate from the norm and utilized the institution of marriage to achieve the same goal . The aforementioned motto best described the Habsburg Dynasty from Austria , as

marriage was extremely instrumental in their domination of Europe . Instead of warfare , the Habsburg Dynasty used marriage to gain political power and prestige throughout Europe

The Habsburg Dynasty , or the Habsburgs , is well-known in history as the ruling house of Austria (Koenigsberger , 1992 . They were a family recognized to be included among the oldest and most famous dynasties in Europe . They have numerous European territories under their control . In fact , the House of Habsburg was the most powerful dynasty in the 16th and 17th century Europe , because it had both Austrian and Spanish connections (Dvornik , 1992 . The family was said to have had political power as early as the 10th century , when they possessed lands in both Switzerland and Alsace (Koenigsberger , 1992 . The Habsburgs remained in power until the 20th century . The rise of the Habsburg Dynasty to European domination was attributed to marriages . The Habsburgs were involved with several prominent European families through arranged marriages (Perry , 1989...