Eduard Habsburg, Archduke of Austria and Ambassador of Hungary to the Holy See from 2015 until the end of November 2025, bid farewell to the Vatican describing his decade of diplomatic service as “the best 10 years of my life.” In an interview with EWTN News shortly before his final meeting with Pope Leo XIV, the diplomat explained that he is leaving the position to dedicate more time to his family, especially his parents.
An Ambassador Marked by an Exceptional Decade
Habsburg noted that ten years is more than usual for an ambassador accredited to the Holy See. In that period, he said, he has “seen everything that can be seen here,” from a conclave to official visits by his prime minister. He acknowledges that he will miss his diplomatic activity, but emphasizes that family “is also important.”
Although his mission concluded on November 30, he advanced that he will remain linked to Hungary’s representation in international events organized by the Church and by entities in defense of the family, which will allow him, in his words, to “keep one foot in that world.”
An Unexpected Mission for a Member of the House of Habsburg
The archduke evoked with humor the surprise that being invited to take on the embassy to the Holy See caused him. Descendant of a European Catholic dynasty with more than 850 years of history, he stated that he arrived in Rome “at full speed” to begin a service that, over time, he would consider deeply enriching.
Francis and His Appreciation for Hungary
Habsburg described his relationship with Pope Francis as “incredibly positive.” According to the former ambassador, the Argentine pontiff showed genuine affection toward Hungary and its people. He recalled that Francis used expressions in Hungarian and stopped with joy to chat every time he met a citizen of that country.
The diplomat also recounted that Francis confessed to him that he had learned a lot about Hungary thanks to three Hungarian nuns who fled the Soviet occupation in 1956 and took refuge in Buenos Aires. That bond, he said, significantly facilitated his diplomatic work. The Pope visited Hungary on two occasions: in 2021, during the International Eucharistic Congress, and in 2023, on an apostolic trip to Budapest.
The Memory of Pope Benedict XVI: Humor and Closeness
Eduard Habsburg also recalled the personal relationship he maintained with Benedict XVI, who decades earlier had read his doctoral thesis on Thomas Aquinas and the Second Vatican Council. He recounted that, in the Vatican gardens, the Pope Emeritus surprised him with a humorous comment: “You know you still owe me a documentary or a thriller about Thomism.”
Habsburg highlighted that this sense of humor, spontaneous and refined, was little visible in public, but very characteristic of the German pontiff.
Impressions of Leo XIV: “A Balanced and Just Man”
The former ambassador noted that he had had four brief encounters with Pope Leo XIV before his farewell audience. He assured that he was “very impressed” by the first Pope born in the United States, whom he described as “a balanced and just man who tries to do good.”
He also emphasized his linguistic competence—English, Italian, Spanish, Latin, among others—and stated that the pontiff “carries several cultures in his heart and mind.”
“We will see the things he will do. We pray for him every day,” he concluded.