Wenzel Anton, prince von Kaunitz -Rietberg

Wenzel Anton, prince von Kaunitz -Rietberg

(born Feb. 2, 1711, Vienna, Austria—died June 27, 1794, Vienna) Austrian state chancellor (1753–92). He entered the Austrian foreign service in 1740 and was responsible for the foreign policy of the Habsburg monarchy, serving Maria Theresa and her successors. He represented Austria at the 1748 Aix-la-Chapelle peace conference and was ambassador to Paris (1750–52). A lifelong enemy of Prussia, he managed to reverse Austria's alliances during the Seven Years' War, bringing France and Russia into the Habsburg orbit and isolating Prussia. The French Revolution terminated the system of alliances he had created, and he resigned in 1792.