Charles I of Austria was the final monarch of the House of Habsburg-Lorraine to rule the Austro-Hungarian Empire, reigning from 1916 until its dissolution in 1918. Born in 1887 at Persenbeug Castle, he became the heir presumptive following the assassination of his uncle, Franz Ferdinand. A devout Catholic, Charles attempted to preserve his empire through federalist reforms and secret peace negotiations during the First World War. Following the empire's collapse, he lived in exile and died in 1922 on the island of Madeira.