Klemens Wenzel, Prince von Metternich

KLEMENS VON METTERNICH Statesman; born at Coblenz, 15 May, 1773; died at Vienna, 11 June, 1859; son of Count Georg, Austrian envoy of the Court of Vienna at Coblenz, and Maria Beatrix, née Countess von Kageneck. He studied philosophy at the University of Strasburg, and law and diplomacy at Mainz. A journey to England completed his education. Metternich began his public career in 1801 as Austrian ambassador to the Court of Dresden. Though he had for several years prepared himself for a diplomatic

issue, “the Congress of Vienna was more successful than many other peace meetings in history” (Beck, 241). The most influential of these representatives was the foreign minister of Austria, Prince Klemens von Metternich (Beck, 238). An additional great influential representative was the French foreign minister Prince Charles-Maurice de Talleyrand, who was sent behalf of the French monarchy