Read part two here. It was expected that Maria would act as a discreet advisor to her son who should not decide on “serious matters in the council of state until they were made known to the empress and her advice sought.” He was, after all, young and inexperienced. One of Rudolf’s first acts jointly [read more]
Read part one here. In August 1556, Maria’s father abdicated as Holy Roman Emperor in favour of his brother Ferdinand, having already abdicated as King of Spain earlier in favour of Philip. Charles died in retirement two years later. By 1559, the family had moved to the nearby city of Wiener Neustadt as they grew [read more]
Read part one here. Maria Theresa would be last the Holy Roman Empress as the Holy Roman Empire was dissolved in 1806 after Austrian forces suffered a defeat at Austerlitz. Francis had to agree to the Treaty of Pressburg between him and Emperor Napoleon, which brought about the final collapse of the Holy Roman Empire [read more]
Maria Theresa of Naples and Sicily was born on 6 June 1772 as the eldest daughter of King Ferdinand IV & III of Naples and Sicily (later King Ferdinand I of the Two Sicilies) and Maria Carolina of Austria. She went on to have 17 siblings, but only six of those would survive to adulthood. [read more]
Elisabeth of Württemberg was born on 21 April 1767 as the daughter of Frederick II Eugene, Duke of Württemberg, by his wife, Sophia Dorothea of Brandenburg-Schwedt. She was the eighth of twelve children. When she was ten years old, her elder sister Sophie Dorothea became the bride of Catherine the Great’s son, which greatly enhanced [read more]
Read part one here. Maria Theresa was especially fond of Leopold and Maria Luisa’s children and was kept informed of the tiniest details, including their height. But her life was coming to an end, and she found no joy in life anymore. As she lay dying in 1780, she wrote to Leopold and Maria Luisa, [read more]
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