IN THE YEARS THAT FOLLOWED the first performances of König Ottokar, Franz Grillparzer's relationship with the Viennese censorship authorities remained troubled. Despite the playwright's essential loyalty to the Habsburg dynasty and popularity with contemporary theatergoers, the restrictions placed by censorship on his writing continued to cause him intense frustration. His resentment is perhaps expressed most powerfully in the following diary extract from April 1826:

This was not an isolated outburst. Another diary entry written in March of the same year describes how Grillparzer was finding it difficult to write due to the aftereffects of the König Ottokar affair (SW II/8:196). A couple of months later, he had fresh cause for irritation after a poem he had written in honor of the emperor's recovery from a serious illness displeased the empress by depicting two women at her husband's bedside, when in reality she had been the only female present (SW II/8:205). And in March 1828, Grillparzer was exasperated by the emperor's attempt to buy the exclusive rights for his latest play, Ein treuer Diener seines Herrn (SW II/8:294–95). Although the drama had been approved by the censors, the emperor evidently felt suspicious of its contents.