Famous Austrians X: Rudolf II, Holy Roman Emperor

Oh, Rudolf. He's more than just a reindeer, you know. 

Born in Vienna to Maximilian II and Maria of Spain, Rudolf II was groomed from an early age to be emperor, spending much of his childhood in Spain - the old stomping ground of his grandfather, Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor. He was shy, aloof, and a little on the nerdy side. He loved horses, clocks, and astrology (he was a Cancer) and alchemy. He never married, though did have several mistresses, trysts and illegitimate children. He could have been what we would now call bisexual - or, what may have been the portmanteau of the era, "of the Greek persuasion."

Kunstkammer

Seeing as Rudolf loved art and the occult, and at the time Prague was the seat of all that alchemy business, he moved the Habsburg capital from Vienna to Prague in 1583 - it was moved back after his death - and added to his collection of curiosities (things that were to-be-defined by science: think of them as the Renaissance version of Ripley's Believe-it-or-Not) with antiquities, sketches, "dragon" (dinosaur) bones, mermaids, and unicorns - whatever. Unfortunately, his cabinet(s) fell into disrepair and were looted some 50 years after his death. Certain collections survive in museums around Europe.

Myths surrounding Rudolf II still abound in Prague, including the Golem of Prague; the contemporary Czech artist/film maker Jan Svankmajer plays off of the creepy/occult traditions of Rudolf II for much of his work. I had the pleasure of seeing some of his stuff earlier this year at the Kunsthalle in Vienna.