Editing Zita of Bourbon-Parma (section)

==Exile==
[[File:Charles_I_of_Austria,_Zita_and_seven_of_eight_children.jpg|thumb|Charles and Zita with their children in exile at Herstenstein, Switzerland, 1921]]
After a difficult few months at Eckartsau, the Imperial Family received aid from an unexpected source. Prince Sixtus had met [[George V of the United Kingdom|King George V]] and appealed to him to help the Habsburgs. George was reportedly moved by the request, it being only months since his imperial relatives in Russia had been [[Shooting of the Romanov family|executed by revolutionaries]], and promised "We will immediately do what is necessary."<ref name="Brook-Shepherd"/>{{Rp|137}}

Several British Army officers were sent to help Charles, most notably Lieutenant-Colonel [[Edward Lisle Strutt]], who was a grandson of [[Edward Strutt, 1st Baron Belper|Lord Belper]] and a former student at the [[University of Innsbruck]].<ref name="Brook-Shepherd"/>{{Rp|139}} On 19 March 1919, orders were received from the War Office to "get the Emperor out of Austria without delay". With some difficulty, Strutt managed to arrange a train to Switzerland, enabling the Emperor to leave the country with dignity without having to abdicate. Charles, Zita, their children and their household left Eckartsau on 24 March escorted by a detachment of British soldiers from the [[Honourable Artillery Company]] under the command of Strutt.<ref name="Brook-Shepherd"/>{{Rp|141–146}}

===Hungary and exile in Madeira===
{{further|Attempts of Charles IV to return to the throne of Hungary}}
[[File:Die Kinder von Kaiser Karl und Kaiserin Zita, Quinta Vigia, Funchal.jpg|thumb|The children in [[Lequeitio]], 1920s]]
The family's first home in exile was Wartegg Castle in [[Rorschach, St. Gallen|Rorschach]], Switzerland, a property owned by the [[Bourbon-Parmas]]. However, the Swiss authorities, worried about the implication of the Habsburgs living near the Austrian border, compelled them to move to the western part of the country. The next month, therefore, found them moving to Villa [[Prangins]], near [[Lake Geneva]], where they resumed a quiet family life.<ref name="Bogle"/>{{Rp|20}} This abruptly ended in March 1920 when, after a period of instability in Hungary, [[Miklós Horthy]] was elected [[regent]]. Charles was still technically King (as Charles IV) but Horthy sent an emissary to Prangins advising him not to go to Hungary until the situation had calmed.<ref name="Brook-Shepherd"/>{{Rp|153–156}} After the [[Trianon Treaty]] Horthy's ambition soon grew. Charles became concerned and requested the help of Colonel Strutt to get him into Hungary.<ref name="Brook-Shepherd"/>{{Rp|153–156}} Charles twice attempted to regain control, once in March 1921 and again in October 1921. Both attempts failed, despite Zita's staunch support (she insisted on travelling with him on the final dramatic train journey to [[Budapest]]).<ref name="Brook-Shepherd"/>{{Rp|192}}

Charles and Zita temporarily resided at [[Tata Castle]], the home of [[Móric Esterházy|Count Esterházy]],<ref name="Brook-Shepherd"/>{{Rp|195}} until a suitable permanent exile could be found. [[Malta]] was mooted as a possibility, but was declined by [[George Curzon, 1st Marquess Curzon of Kedleston|Lord Curzon]], and French territory was ruled out given the possibility of Zita's brothers intriguing on Charles's behalf.<ref name="Brook-Shepherd"/>{{Rp|199}} Eventually, the Portuguese island of [[Madeira]] was chosen. On 31 October 1921, the former Imperial couple were taken by rail from [[Tihany]] to [[Baja, Hungary|Baja]], where the [[Royal Navy]] [[Monitor (warship)|monitor]] [[Insect-class gunboat|HMS ''Glowworm'']] was waiting. They finally arrived at [[Funchal]] on 19 November.<ref name="Brook-Shepherd"/>{{Rp|200–207}} Their children were being looked after at Wartegg Castle in Switzerland by Charles's step-grandmother [[Infanta Maria Theresa of Portugal|Maria Theresa]], although Zita managed to see them in [[Zürich]] when her son Robert needed an operation for [[appendicitis]].<ref name="Brook-Shepherd"/>{{Rp|210–211}} The children joined their parents in Madeira in February 1922.<ref name="Howe">{{cite journal |last1=Howe |first1=Malcolm |title=Zita, the last Empress of Austria, grand-daughter of a King of Portugal |journal=British Historical Society of Portugal Annual Report |date=2020 |volume=47|url=https://www.bhsportugal.org/library/articles/zita-the-last-empress-of-austria-grand-daughter-of-a-king-of-portugal |access-date=5 January 2022}}</ref>

===Death of Charles===
Charles had been in poor health for some time. After going shopping on a chilly day in Funchal to buy toys for Carl Ludwig, he was struck by an attack of [[bronchitis]]. This rapidly worsened into [[pneumonia]], not helped by the inadequate medical care available. Several of the children and staff were also ill, and Zita (at the time eight months pregnant) helped nurse them all. Charles weakened and died on 1 April, his last words to his wife being "I love you so much."<ref name="Brook-Shepherd"/>{{Rp|214–215}} Charles was 34 years old. After his funeral, a witness said of Zita "This woman really is to be admired. She did not, for one second, lose her composure... she greeted the people on all sides and then spoke to those who had helped out with the funeral. They were all under her charm."<ref name="Brook-Shepherd"/>{{Rp|216}} Zita wore mourning black in Charles's memory throughout sixty-seven years of widowhood.<ref name="Bogle"/>{{Rp|151}}