Archduke Heinrich Anton Maria Rainer Karl Gregor, son of Viceroy Rainer of Austria, meets the woman who would change his life in Graz: Leopoldine Hofmann. On stage, she shines in the spotlight; offstage, she possesses the calm and warmth that immediately capture Heinrich’s heart. But their love is not allowed to be. The emperor denies his consent, the court protocol forbids the union, and everything stands in their way.

But Heinrich follows his path. Quietly, determinedly, unwaveringly. He resigns from his posts, renounces privileges, titles, and rights, secretly marries Leopoldine in Bolzano, and moves with her into exile in Lucerne. To the world, he lost much – but to himself, he gained everything. “Now all is well. All is forgiven,” Emperor Franz Joseph said years later, when he rehabilitated Heinrich and retroactively approved the marriage.

The family returns to Bolzano, residing in Palais Erzherzog Rainer – today’s Palais Campofranco – and spends many days at Castel Sallegg. The people of Bolzano revere them: for their kindness, humility, and humanity. They care for the poor, the sick, and orphans, offering help wherever it is needed – quietly, without fanfare.

Their lives end as intimately as they were lived: Heinrich and Leopoldine die on the same night in 1891 in Vienna, both of pneumonia. A fate that seems tragic, and yet feels like a gentle final chord to one of South Tyrol’s most touching love stories.

Today, their legacy lives on. In Bolzano. In Palais Campofranco. And at Castel Sallegg, where their great-great-grandson Georg Count von Kuenburg runs the winery – with the same respect for history, humanity, and dignity that defined Heinrich and Leopoldine.

A love that wasn’t meant to be – and precisely because of that, has never been forgotten.