A magnificent historic Habsburg tiara has returned to the public eye at a family wedding.
On 29 August 2026, Count Géza von Königsegg Aulendorf married Countess Elena von Arco Zinneberg at Sherborne Abbey in Dorset.
For her wedding, Elena wore an extraordinary family jewel: the great Diamond Fringe Tiara of Archduchess Isabella of Austria Teschen, née Princess Isabella of Croÿ.
The jewel is particularly significant for the groom's family. Archduchess Isabella was Géza's great great grandmother.
Count Géza von Königsegg Aulendorf
Count Géza Paul Stephan Eusebius von Königsegg Aulendorf was born in Vienna on 19 January 1998.
He is the youngest of the three children of Count Markus von Königsegg Aulendorf and Countess Philippa, née Countess of Waldburg Zeil Hohenems, and a nephew of Count Maximilian von Königsegg Aulendorf, head of the house.
Countess Elena von Arco Zinneberg
Countess Elena Maria Cecilia Eugenia Marietta Sophie von Arco Zinneberg, born in Vienna on 11 November 1999, is the daughter of Count Andreas von Arco Zinneberg and Daria Maria Turnauer.
The couple's marriage therefore united two historic aristocratic families, but it was the bride's choice of tiara that provided an exceptional connection with the groom's Habsburg ancestry.
The Wedding Tiara of Archduchess Isabella
The magnificent diamond jewel belonged to Archduchess Isabella of Austria Teschen (1856–1931), born Princess Isabella of Croÿ and wife of Archduke Friedrich, Duke of Teschen.
Historic court photographs show Isabella wearing the distinctive tiara as part of her spectacular collection of diamond and pearl jewellery.
Its design consists of graduated pointed diamond set elements interspersed with narrower diamond rays, rising towards a high central section and creating the characteristic appearance of a fringe tiara or kokoshnik.Made by Köchert, Vienna.
The jewel had already attracted renewed attention in 2025 when it was exhibited at Schloss Halbturn.
Only one year later it returned to its original function as a living family jewel.
How the Tiara Reached the Königsegg Aulendorf Family
This is where I would make your page particularly valuable, because the family connection can be shown clearly:
Archduke Friedrich, Duke of Teschen
married Princess Isabella of Croÿ
↓
their daughter
Archduchess Maria Alice of Austria Teschen (1893–1962)
married Baron Friedrich Heinrich Waldbott von Bassenheim
↓
their daughter
Baroness Stephanie Waldbott von Bassenheim
married Count Johannes von Königsegg Aulendorf
↓
their son
Count Markus von Königsegg Aulendorf
married Countess Philippa of Waldburg Zeil Hohenems
↓
their son
Count Géza von Königsegg Aulendorf
↓
married 29 August 2026
Countess Elena von Arco Zinneberg
Damit ist Isabella Gézas Ururgroßmutter.
Schloss Halbturn and the Teschen Inheritance
The survival of the tiara within this family becomes still more interesting through Schloss Halbturn.
The estate had originally been associated with Archduchess Maria Christina, daughter of Empress Maria Theresa, and her husband Albert, Duke of Teschen. Through the subsequent Teschen succession it eventually came into the possession of Archduke Friedrich.
After the death of Friedrich's son Archduke Albrecht in 1955, Schloss Halbturn passed to his nephew Baron Paul Waldbott von Bassenheim, son of Archduchess Maria Alice.
Paul and his wife remained childless. In 2000 he adopted his nephew Count Markus von Königsegg Aulendorf, Géza's father, who later inherited the estate.
Today Schloss Halbturn is owned by Count Markus and Count Maximilian von Königsegg Aulendorf.
This creates a remarkable continuity: the family associated today with Schloss Halbturn descends directly from Archduke Friedrich and Archduchess Isabella, and Isabella's Diamond Fringe Tiara has survived within this family circle.
A Historic Jewel Lives Again
The wedding of Géza and Elena therefore represents much more than the reappearance of an antique diamond tiara.
In 2025 the jewel could be admired as part of the history of the Habsburg family at Schloss Halbturn.
In 2026 it was once again placed on the head of a bride marrying one of Archduchess Isabella's direct descendants.
After generations of dynastic history, Archduchess Isabella's Diamond Fringe Tiara is once again a living family jewel.
Original research and documentation: Royal Magazin
THE COLLECTION:
