What you need to know:
- Karl Renner led the first government of the Austrian Republic in 1919 and went on to become the first President of the Second Republic in 1945. He is often referred to as the 'Father of the Republic'.
- Renner climbed a long way up the social ladder - he was born the 18th child of impoverished vine-growers (the 17th was his twin brother!). But because of his obvious intellect he was allowed to go to a good school and then to the University of Vienna.
- In 1895 Renner was a founding member of Friends of Nature, an international movement which aims to make nature more accessible to people and promotes green tourism. He even designed their logo!
- * 14 December 1870 in Moravia; † 31 December 1950 in Vienna
