Karel Schwarzenberg

Karel Schwarzenberg
Schwarzenberg as Minister of Foreign Affairs in 2007
6th & 8th Minister of Foreign Affairs
In office
13 July 2010 – 10 July 2013
Prime MinisterPetr Nečas
Preceded byJan Kohout
Succeeded byJan Kohout
In office
9 January 2007 – 8 May 2009
Prime MinisterMirek Topolánek
Preceded byAlexandr Vondra
Succeeded byJan Kohout
First Deputy Prime Minister of the Czech Republic
In office
13 July 2010 – 10 July 2013
Prime MinisterPetr Nečas
Preceded byVlasta Parkanová
Succeeded byJan Fischer
Leader of TOP 09
In office
28 November 2009 – 29 November 2015
Preceded byInaugural holder
Succeeded byMiroslav Kalousek
Senator from Prague 6
In office
13 November 2004 – 29 May 2010
Preceded byJan Ruml
Succeeded byPetr Bratský
Member of the Chamber of Deputies
In office
29 May 2010 – 21 October 2021
Personal details
Born(1937-12-10)10 December 1937
Prague, Czechoslovakia
(now Czech Republic)
Died12 November 2023(2023-11-12) (aged 85)
Vienna, Austria
Resting placeOrlík Castle, Orlík nad Vltavou, Czech Republic
49°30′20″N 14°10′02″E / 49.50556°N 14.16722°E / 49.50556; 14.16722
CitizenshipCzech Republic, Switzerland
Political partyODA (1996–2007)
TOP 09 (2009–2023)
SpouseTherese Hardegg
Children3
Alma materUniversity of Vienna
University of Graz
University of Munich (all left prior Graduation[1][2])
Signature

Karel Schwarzenberg (Czech pronunciation: [ˈʃvartsn̩bɛrk], 10 December 1937 – 12 November 2023) was a Czech politician, diplomat and statesman who served as the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic from 2007 to 2009 and then again between 2010 and 2013. Schwarzenberg was leader and co-founder of the TOP 09 party and its candidate for president of the Czech Republic in the 2013 election. He served as a member of the Chamber of Deputies (MP) from 2010 to 2021 and in the Senate from 2004 until 2010.

From July 1990 to July 1992 Schwarzenberg served as the chancellor (director of the presidential office) to Václav Havel, while he was president. He went on to be elected as Senator for the municipal district Prague 6 from 2004 to 2010 and to serve as Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic from 2007 to 2009 and again from 2010 to 2013, originally as a non-partisan minister nominated by the Green Party. In May 2010, he was elected as a Member of Parliament for the newly founded pro-European centre-right party TOP 09, gaining the largest number of preference votes. He was candidate for President of the Czech Republic in the 2013 presidential election, and qualified for the second round, finishing as runner-up, with 45.19% of the votes.[3][4] Schwarzenberg was noted for his pro-European views.[5]

Schwarzenberg was the head of the House of Schwarzenberg, a formerly leading family of the Habsburg empire, from 1979 until his death. He was related to Prince Felix of Schwarzenberg, a statesman of the Austrian Empire.[6] From 1948 to 1990, he lived in Austria, where he was known as Karl Schwarzenberg, and was involved in politics for the Austrian People's Party and became a noted critic of human-rights violations in the Eastern Bloc, chairing the International Helsinki Federation for Human Rights. Following the fall of communism, he became a close adviser to Václav Havel and relocated to Prague.

Schwarzenberg was married to Countess Therese von Hardegg (Therese Gräfin zu Hardegg auf Glatz und im Machlande) and they had three children, all of whom live in Austria.

  1. ^ Kubát, Čestmír (8 January 2013). "Dvojí občanství kandidátů na prezidenta ČR". britské listy (in Czech). Retrieved 14 November 2016.
  2. ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 5 February 2015. Retrieved 4 February 2015.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  3. ^ Willoughby, Ian (13 December 2012). "Karel Schwarzenberg – a prince with his eye on the Castle". Radio Prague. Retrieved 14 November 2014.
  4. ^ "Milos Zeman scores Czech presidency". The Australian. 27 January 2013.
  5. ^ Bilefsky, Dan (24 January 2013). "Czech Prince, Schwarzenberg, Runs a Punk Campaign". The New York Times.
  6. ^ Schwarzenberg talks election. The Prague Post (10 December 1937). Retrieved on 6 July 2011.