Home with the Habsburgs The Michaelerplatz in Vienna curves up to the elaborate entrance of Hofburg, the royal palace of the powerful Habsburg dynasty that ruled the Austrian Empire for seven centuries. Once the residence of Emperor Franz Josef and his court, the palace is now a museum showcasing the Austrian crown jewels.     Schönbrunn Palace: A Dynasty’s Legacy Situated in a suburb of Vienna, the magnificent summer palace of the Habsburg dynasty is a stunning reminder of Austria’s glorious past. For more than six centuries, the powerful Habsburgs ruled a vast empire that included Austria, Hungary, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Bohemia. It was in the ornate Baroque halls of Schönbrunn Palace, completed in 1711, that Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756–1791) and other renowned artists entertained at court for an admiring Empress Maria Theresa.