WI: The Hapsburgs allowed to keep the throne of Austria post-WWI?

Say the Hapsburgs are allowed to retain control of a greatly reduced Austria (roughly analogous to OTL post-WWI Austrian borders), while Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Balkan areas, etc. all become independent.

How does this affect the next couple of years, and a possible second world war?
 

Zlorfik

Banned
Maybe Nazi Germany uses the Habsburg claims to the Austria-Hungary area as a pretext for war :p

More likely they just get Anschluss'd as in OTL, with the royal family fleeing the country.
 
Slightly different, but you could have Charles I be the ruling king of Hungary. In fact, he was to be the king (of course it didn't happen), and the position was vacant during the whole of the interwar Kingdom of Hungary's history.

However, you will have to prevent Horthy from becoming influential in Hungarian politics as Horthy was ultimately saw him as a large rival.

(Such a POD, I believe, could be post-1900)
 
Maybe Nazi Germany uses the Habsburg claims to the Austria-Hungary area as a pretext for war :p

More likely they just get Anschluss'd as in OTL, with the royal family fleeing the country.

Do you think they'd be restored to the throne after Allied victory, or would a Republic of some sorts be set up?
 
Charles tried 2 times to retake the throne of Hungary in 1921 but both attemts ended in failure. Its true that one of the reasons was Horthy. But there was one more important reason: Czecholovakia. During the attempts they treatened Hungary with war if they let the Habsburgs take back the throne.
 

Zlorfik

Banned
Do you think they'd be restored to the throne after Allied victory, or would a Republic of some sorts be set up?

The allies would probably put it to a referendum at some point.

Considering that the Habsburgs will have had lost two major wars within living memory, I doubt the austrian people would support their continued rule. Historically the communists performed abysmally in the first postwar elections, and would probably do so ITTL as well, leaving some sort of republic as the only remaining option.
 
Maybe Nazi Germany uses the Habsburg claims to the Austria-Hungary area as a pretext for war :p

More likely they just get Anschluss'd as in OTL, with the royal family fleeing the country.
Hitler personally hated Otto, and in fact the name for the planned occupation of Austria was Operation Otto.

Do you think they'd be restored to the throne after Allied victory, or would a Republic of some sorts be set up?
Otto seriously tried to be set up as head of an independent Austria (as he had effectively been the government-in-exile in Washington) and even arrived and set up shop in French-occupied Innsbruck, until the Socialists insisted the French kick him out.

Also, Churchill had half a mind to install Otto as the head of a Danubian Confederation which was to serve as a bulwark against the Communists, so there's that.
 
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