Empress Zita of Austria (1892—1989) was declared a Servant of God by Pope Benedict XVI. But who is she? What is it about her life and spirituality that inspired the Church to open the investigation into her beatification?

Zita’s life and her integral role within the House of Habsburg during the tumultuous 20th century are not well known. In Zita: Empress of Austria and Queen of Hungary, Charles Coulombe takes readers through Zita’s lineage and the political climate she was born into, Bl. Charles and Zita’s marriage, her support of Bl. Charles amid the destruction of the Catholic Monarchy, and much more. Bl. Charles and Zita’s story is one of hope, perseverance, and great faith. Through this couple’s devotion to the Sacred Heart, they inspired their children and their peoples to a greater love of God and country, despite the many trials they faced. As we similarly live in a society that denies God and attacks the family, we can turn to the example of this saintly couple.

Journey with Zita to learn how she persevered after Charles’s death, which left her in exile with their seven children and an eighth on the way, and how she kept the hope of a restored House of Habsburg alive, even under the threat of Nazism.

Charles A.Coulombe