Maria Theresa of Naples and Sicily
Czech queen
Biography
Lists
Also Viewed
The basics
Quick Facts
| Intro | Czech queen | ||||||||||
| A.K.A. | of Naples-Sicily Empress consort of Francis I Emperor of Austria Maria Theresa Queen consort of Hungary Italy and Bohemia Maria Theresa | ||||||||||
| A.K.A. | of Naples-Sicily Empress consort of Francis I Emperor of Austria Maria Theresa Queen consort of Hungary Italy and Bohemia Maria Theresa | ||||||||||
| Places | Austria | ||||||||||
| was | Politician | ||||||||||
| Work field | Politics | ||||||||||
| Gender |
| ||||||||||
| Religion: | Catholic church | ||||||||||
| Birth | 6 June 1772, Naples, Metropolitan city of Naples, Campania, Italy | ||||||||||
| Death | 13 April 1807Vienna, Austria (aged 34 years) | ||||||||||
| Star sign | Gemini | ||||||||||
| Family |
|
The details
Biography
Maria Theresa of Naples and Sicily (6 June 1772 – 13 April 1807) was the last Holy Roman Empress and the first Empress of Austria by marriage to Francis II, Holy Roman Emperor. She was the eldest daughter of Ferdinand IV & III of Naples and Sicily (later Ferdinand I of the Two Sicilies) (1751–1825) and his wife, Marie Caroline of Austria (1752–1814).
Life
Born Maria Teresa, and named after her maternal grandmother Maria Theresa of Austria, she was the eldest of 17 children born to her parents, the King and Queen of Naples and Sicily. Her father was a son of Charles III of Spain and Princess Maria Amalia of Saxony. Through her mother she was a niece of Marie Antoinette; through her father she was a niece of Maria Luisa of Spain and Charles IV of Spain. She was her mother's favourite child from birth until she left the Neapolitan court to marry.
Her brothers included the future King Francis and Leopold, Prince of Salerno. Another, Carlo, Duke of Calabria died in 1778 aged 3 of smallpox.
Her sisters included Grand Duchess of Tuscany. Her younger sister Princess Maria Cristina, was the wife of the future Charles Felix of Sardinia as Queen of Sardinia. Maria Cristina's twin Princess Maria Cristina Amelia died in 1783 of smallpox. Another sister was the Queen of the French as the wife of Louis Philippe I and the youngest was the future Princess of Asturias.
Empress
Maria Theresa with her husband and children.
On 15 September 1790 she married her double first cousin Archduke Francis of Austria, who would later become Holy Roman Emperor Francis II, and then Emperor Francis I of Austria. The marriage is described as a happy one, despite differences in personality.
Maria Theresa was described as easy-going with a sensuous appearance. She loved masquerades and carnivals, and participated in every ball even while she was pregnant.
Hedwig Elizabeth Charlotte of Holstein-Gottorp described the view of Maria Theresa and the relationship between the couple in her famous diary during her visit to Vienna in 1798–99:
The Empress is reputed to be so jealous that she does not allow him to take part in social life or meet other women. Vicious tongues accuse her of being so passionate that she exhausts her consort and never leaves him alone even for a moment. Although the people of Vienna cannot deny that she is gifted, charitable and carries herself beautifully, she is disliked for her intolerance and for forcing the Emperor to live isolated from everyone. She is also accused of interesting herself in unimportant matters and socializing exclusively with her lady-companions. With them she spends her evenings singing, acting out comedies and being applauded.
In February 1799, her seeming indifference to the revolution against her parents in Naples attracted some disfavour in Vienna. Hedwig Elisabeth Charlotte also recounts a scene described to her by a foreigner, who bribed his way into the private park at Laxenburg and came to witness a scene between the couple:
"He saw the Emperor sitting on a bench, alone in his thoughts. Immediately, the Empress came to fetch him, and he exlaimed: "Can't you ever leave me alone, so that I may breathe for one moment? For God's sake, don't follow me around all the time."
She did have some political influence, as she was interested in politics. She gave her husband advice and is believed to have been partially responsible for the dismissal of Johann Baptist Freiherr von Schloissnigg and Graf Franz Colloredo; she was also critical of Napoleon and encouraged her husband in the wars against him.
An important patron of Viennese music, she commissioned many compositions for official and private use. Joseph Haydn wrote his Te Deum for chorus and orchestra at her request. He also composed numerous masses to celebrate her reign. Her favourite composers included Paul Wranitzky and Joseph Leopold Eybler, a composer of sacred music.
Issue
Children of Maria Theresa of Naples and Sicily
| Name | Picture | Birth | Death | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| By Francis II, Holy Roman Emperor | ||||
| Archduchess Marie Louise | 12 December 1791 | 17 December 1847 (aged 56) | Married first Emperor Napoleon I of France, had issue, married second Adam, count of Neipperg, had issue, married third to Charles, Count of Bombelles, no issue. | |
| Emperor Ferdinand I of Austria | 19 April 1793 | 29 June 1875 (aged 82) | Married Maria Anna of Savoy, Princess of Sardinia, no issue. | |
| Archduchess Maria Caroline | 8 June 1794 | 16 March 1795 (aged 0) | Died in childhood, no issue. | |
| Archduchess Caroline Ludovika | 22 December 1795 | 30 June 1797 (aged 1) | Died in childhood, no issue. | |
| Archduchess Caroline Josepha Leopoldine | 22 January 1797 | 11 December 1826 (aged 29) | Renamed Maria Leopoldina upon her marriage; married Pedro I of Brazil, had issue. | |
| Marie Clementine, Princess of Salerno | 1 March 1798 | 3 September 1881 (aged 83) | Married her maternal uncle Leopold, Prince of Salerno, had issue. | |
| Archduke Joseph Franz Leopold | 9 April 1799 | 30 June 1807 (aged 8) | Died some weeks after his mother in childhood, no issue. | |
| Archduchess Marie Caroline | 8 April 1801 | 22 May 1832 (aged 31) | Married Crown Prince (later King) Frederick Augustus II of Saxony, no issue. | |
| Archduke Franz Karl | 17 December 1802 | 8 March 1878 (aged 75) | married Princess Sophie of Bavaria; father of Franz Joseph I of Austria and Maximilian I of Mexico. | |
| Archduchess Marie Anna | 8 June 1804 | 28 December 1858 (aged 54) | Born intellectually disabled (like her eldest brother, Emperor Ferdinand I) and to have suffered from a severe facial deformity. Died unmarried. | |
| Archduke Johann Nepomuk | 30 August 1805 | 19 February 1809 (aged 3) | Died in childhood, no issue. | |
| Archduchess Amalie Theresa | 6 April 1807 | 9 April 1807 (aged 0) | Died in childhood, no issue. | |
Titles and styles
- 6 June 1772 – 15 September 1790: Her Royal Highness Princess Maria Theresa of Naples and Sicily
- 15 September 1790 – 1 March 1792: Her Royal Highness Archduchess Francis of Austria
- 1 March 1792 – 11 August 1804: Her Imperial Majesty The Holy Roman Empress, German Queen, Queen of Hungary and Bohemia
- simplified: Her Imperial Majesty The Holy Roman Empress
- 11 August 1804 – 6 August 1806: Her Imperial and Royal Apostolic Majesty The Holy Roman Empress, Empress of Austria, German Queen, Queen of Hungary and Bohemia
- 6 August 1806 – 13 April 1807: Her Imperial and Royal Apostolic Majesty The Empress of Austria, Queen of Hungary and Bohemia
Ancestry
| Ancestors of Maria Theresa of Naples and Sicily | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Literature
- Richard Reifenscheid, Die Habsburger in Lebensbildern, Piper 2006
- John A. Rice, Empress Marie Therese and Music at the Viennese Court, 1792–1807, Cambridge 2003