December 2023

Schwarzenberg was “a convinced democrat and ardent European earlier than many others,” the Federal President recalled. In his speech at the end of the celebration, he also emphasized the “deep traces” and the “big gap” that Schwarzenberg left behind. “Karel Schwarzenberg will always be a great role model for us. Someone who put the well-being of everyone before personal advantage. Peace, the European thing before the national interest,” said the head of state.

As someone “who saw his responsibility, was completely incorruptible, and made himself available for the greater good,” Schwarzenberg represented the “ideal type of a statesman.” At the same time he was a “citoyen in the best sense of the word”. “Someone who is committed to the community, always committed, but not for the sake of their own career and benefits, but to serve an idea.”

The history of Europe is reflected in the life story of the deceased, Van der Bellen continued. Schwarzenberg today also represents the many people who have their roots in different countries. “The multilingual Europe. The multi-layered Europe. A Europe that has been given a face and a future through him,” said the Federal President.

Van der Bellen also recalled that Schwarzenberg also had that of the well-known “bridge saint” Johannes Nepomuk as one of his first names. Like his namesake, Schwarzenberg was “indomitable”, “filled with the greatest sense of justice” and yet at the same time a “bridge builder” between, among other things, Austria and the Czech Republic or for reconciliation between Czechs and Germans.

The Federal President expressly praised Schwarzenberg’s ability to engage in dialogue, who was “just as at home in castles as he was in coffee shops and inns” and “always remained approachable and human despite his aristocratic background.” Van der Bellen: “He was someone who always sought contact and exchange with those who disagreed with him; who gathered people of all generations and opinions and looked together for solutions for a good future; someone who understood politics in the same way That’s what people in elected positions can only wish for today.”

“We say goodbye to a great person, a great Christian and a great public man,” said Schönborn at the requiem in the presence of Schwarzenberg’s family and numerous companions. In his sermon, Schönborn emphasized how Schwarzenberg combined tradition with vigilance and openness to the new in his life, which was supported by a natural and deep Christian faith.

Among many others, former Federal President Heinz Fischer, Foreign Minister Alexander Schallenberg (ÖVP), former Foreign Minister Ursula Plassnik as well as NEOS party leader Beate Meinl-Reisinger and European Parliament Vice President Otmar Karas (ÖVP) took part in the requiem. Representatives of several European noble houses also came to St. Stephen’s Cathedral. The service was musically provided by the Vienna Cathedral Music with the Requiem in D minor by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.

Karel Schwarzenberg, who was one of the most important political figures in the Czech Republic in the decades following the “Velvet Revolution” of 1989, died on November 12th in a Vienna hospital at the age of 85. The official funeral service in Prague took place on December 9th. The occupation took place in the Schwarzenberg family crypt at Orlík Castle in southern Bohemia. Karel Schwarzenberg spent his childhood there before the family had to leave Czechoslovakia following the communists came to power in 1948.

In the decades that followed, Schwarzenberg also spent a large part of his life in Vienna. After the fall of communism in Czechoslovakia in 1989, he was head of the presidential office of Vaclav Havel (1936 to 2011) in Prague Castle. From 2007 to 2009 and once more from 2010 to 2013 he served as Czech Foreign Minister. Until his death, he was honorary chairman of the right-wing liberal party TOP 09, which he co-founded in 2009. In 2013, he ran for the office of president, but was defeated by Milos Zeman in the runoff election.