The Empress is a hit series for Netflix with many people tuning in to the period drama that's based on the real-life of Empress Elisabeth of Austria and her controversial marriage to Emperor Franz Joseph.
In the Netflix series, we follow Elisabeth (known informally as Sisi), as she adjusts to royal life having previously had a fairly relaxed upbringing. It also explores her relationships with others around her, including Franz Joseph's mother and younger brother.
Over the six-part series, we see Elisabeth before and after her wedding, where she frequently defied society’s rules and regulations of the time and often spoke her mind, which was certainly frowned upon. This created some tensions following her marriage, and life wasn't easy for the new Empress.
If you need a refresher about what happened in The Empress, scroll down where we'll be answering your biggest questions about the period drama.
The Empress ending explained: What happened to Empress Elisabeth?
Throughout the course of the series, fans watched as Elisabeth struggled to adjust to royal life, and her mother-in-law Sophie was extremely disapproving of her, so it was not long before she intervened following a string of wrongdoings by Elisabeth such as partying and getting drunk, speaking her mind, and socializing freely with commoners.
Sophie eventually gave Elisabeth an ultimatum, which would require her to put a stop to her carefree ways, or leave the palace and go elsewhere, which would also have her marriage annulled so Franz could remarry. When Elisabeth refused to leave she was punished and forced to live like an Empress should, and was put on a strict schedule in an attempt to rectify her behavior, putting a stop to anything considered indulgent or a privilege.
Under Sophie's new rules, Elisabeth could no longer ride her horse or go on evening strolls, nor was she allowed the company of the ladies in waiting and would only be accompanied by Countess Esterhazy. In addition to this, Emperor Franz Joseph would only spend time with her at designated periods, so she was essentially a prisoner with restricted access to people and things.
Meanwhile, Elisabeth learned she was pregnant, but her relationship with Franz was starting to crumble as he seemed to agree with his mother's decision to punish his wife, and Elisabeth worried he no longer loved her for who she truly was and just wanted her modeled into the perfect Empress figure instead, something that did not come naturally to Elisabeth.
Franz was expected to marry Elisabeth's sister Helene, who would have been a more appropriate candidate due to her difference in behavior, and Elisabeth thought he had married her instead because she was different and that he actually liked that about her.
Following the pregnancy news and these fears that Franz did not care for her, Elisabeth headed outside where she asked the guards to open the gates. Once there, she stepped into a crowd of people, shaking hands with them and explaining she was pregnant, as Franz looked on in amazement, having only just heard the news himself.
The crowd had gathered to protest Emperor Franz's reign, but Elisabeth's presence seemed to calm them somewhat, as she had previously shown kindness to the commoners living in the city, after meeting with a poor little girl who did not have shoes on, so Elisabeth made the controversial decision to give hers to the child, which was frowned upon by royal staff.
The final episode ends as Franz approaches Elisabeth at the gates, to bring her back to the palace where she'll be cared for during her pregnancy. Sophie is also aware of the news which she described as "good", so it is clear now the royal household is solely focused on an heir, which they hope will be good news for the city as well as the royals themselves.
