Join this channel to get early access to episodes, ad-free watching, and priority access to our live events: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCUYK0BJZF3yNb2fw1EdAXUQ/join What was Vienna like in the 1880s, and why was Crown Prince Rudolf considered the outcast of the prestigious Habsburg dynasty? How did meeting 17-year-old Baroness Mary Vetsera change both of their lives, and perhaps the trajectory of Europe, forever? What really happened inside the Habsburg hunting lodge at Mayerling? Did Rudolf and Mary enter into a romantic murder-suicide pact, or did the heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne cold-bloodedly murder his teenage mistress? And why did the imperial family attempt to erase almost every trace of the tragedy? Join Dominic and Tom as they unravel the dark and mysterious story of the Mayerling Incident. Twitter: @TheRestHistory @holland_tom @dcsandbrook Social channels: https://www.instagram.com/theresthistory/ https://www.tiktok.com/@theresthistory https://x.com/TheRestHistory https://bsky.app/profile/theresthistory.bsky.social https://www.threads.com/@theresthistory 0:00 The Door at Mayerling 0:57 Lloyds 2:09 Breaking Down the Locked Door 5:07 Rudolf and Mary Vetsera 7:44 Emperor Franz Joseph 11:13 The Tragic Empress Elisabeth 18:05 Rudolf’s Traumatic Childhood 27:08 An Empire in Crisis 31:26 Nationalism and Antisemitism 37:29 National Geographic 38:38 Vienna at the Birth of the Modern World 44:43 The Troubled Crown Prince 46:48 Rudolf’s Disastrous Marriage 55:19 Rudolf vs Kaiser Wilhelm II 58:42 The Teenage Baroness Mary Vetsera 1:06:09 The Secret Matchmaker 1:11:01 The Affair Begins 1:20:40 A Pact “United Unto Death” 1:24:43 Christmas with the Habsburgs 1:30:21 The Plan Takes Shape 1:34:06 Rudolf’s Final Days 1:39:19 “I’m Going Hunting Forever” 1:41:00 The Journey to Mayerling 1:44:31 The Final Day at the Hunting Lodge 1:48:00 Rudolf and Mary’s Last Night 1:49:57 The Locked Bedroom Door 1:52:01 The Bodies Are Discovered 1:53:12 The News Reaches the Palace 1:56:01 The Royal Scandal Breaks 1:58:38 The Truth About the Deaths 1:59:31 Rudolf’s Farewell Letters 2:01:37 The Imperial Cover-Up 2:03:34 Mary Vetsera’s Secret Burial 2:06:23 Rudolf’s Funeral 2:10:04 The Shock Across Vienna 2:12:38 The Mayerling Conspiracies 2:15:43 What Really Drove Them to Death? 2:17:38 Erasing Mayerling 2:19:05 The Habsburg Family’s Final Tragedies 2:22:18 The Road to 1914 Video Editor: Jack Meek, Harry Swan & Adam Thornton Social Producer: Harry Balden Producers: Aaliyah Akude & Tabby Syrett Senior Producer: Callum Hill Executive Producer: Dom Johnson Head of Digital & Social: Sam Oakley