Franckenberg was born in
Groß-Glogau,
Silesia, into an ancient family devotedly attached to the
Habsburg monarchy of
Austria, and which remained so after the conquest of Silesia by
Frederick II of Prussia in 1740. Although he was the sole male heir of his family and assured of the protection of Empress
Maria Theresa, he decided, when quite young, to become a priest. He attended the
Jesuit college of his native city, went later to the
University of Breslau, and thence to the
German College at
Rome, where he obtained the degrees of
Doctor of
Theology, and of
Canon law, and was ordained priest on 10 August 1749. On his return to Austria, he was made
coadjutor to the Bishop of
Görz in
Carniola (1750–54), dean of the collegiate church of
All Saints at
Prague (1754), and later of that of
Saints Cosmas and Damian at
Alt-Bunzlau in
Bohemia (1756). On 27 May 1759, Franckenberg was appointed Archbishop of Mechelen and Primate of the Low Countries. In this office, Franckenberg frequently clashed with government ministers who he felt overstepped into ecclesiastical jurisdiction. He repeatedly refused their requests for him to grant
Lenten dispensations.
Maria Theresa sought to have Franckenberg made
Archbishop of Vienna, and in 1778 exerted herself to the uttermost to obtain for him the cardinal's hat. The accession of Joseph II brought further conflict between Franckenberg and the secular authorities. The political philosophy of
Josephinism asserted the supremacy of the state over the church, which Franckenberg resisted as an encroachment. The ex-Jesuits
Feller and
Dedoyar criticized Franckenberg, however, for the mildness of his resistance. In 1786, the emperor founded the General Seminary at
Leuven, intended for ecclesiastical reform and the suppression of
ultramontanism. Bishops were ordered to close their diocesan seminaries and send the students to the new institution. Conflict broke out, as the seminarians considered the teaching there to be heretical, and they soon abandoned the seminary. In response, Joseph II summoned Franckenberg to Vienna, and demanded his help in controlling the students. Franckenberg signed a rather equivocal statement, conceding the authority of the imperial decrees about the seminary, but reserving the right to appeal to the emperor in cases where he believed souls to be in danger. After returning to the
Austrian Netherlands, however, Franckenberg announced that his conscience would not permit him to agree with the founding of the General Seminary. He maintained this position going forward despite imperial threats, issuing a "Declaration" condemning the doctrines taught in the seminary. The country was already disturbed by insurrectionary movements, and the government was obliged to close the General Seminary. It was too late, however, to repress the rebellious agitation. The government sought, therefore, to make the cardinal responsible for it, and wished to place him under arrest. From his place of refuge, the cardinal protested against the accusation: "I take heaven and earth to witness", said he, "that I have had no share or influence whatever in this insurrection. The entire Netherlands will bear witness to this fact and do me justice in this respect." The government, finding it necessary to abandon the criminal process it had begun against the cardinal, exhibited a conciliatory temper. In the meantime, however, the
French Revolution broke out. The new administration found him friendly, and he was henceforth officially a member of the
States-General. At the same time he held aloof from purely political discussions and confined himself to recommending political union. He received with submission and respect the re-establishment of the Austrian government, to which he had always been attached. On the arrival of the French he had to undergo new trials. He refused the pension the government offered him in compensation for the suppression of his revenue, declared his opposition to the oath exacted of the clergy, and finally was expelled from the
Southern Netherlands (1797). ==Retirement==