Maria Theresa of Austria (1816-1867)
Encyclopedia
Maria Theresa of Austria (Maria Theresia Isabella; 31 July 1816 – 8 August 1867) was the second wife of Ferdinand II of the Two Sicilies
.
and Henrietta of Nassau-Weilburg.
Her paternal grandparents were Leopold II, Holy Roman Emperor
and Infanta Maria Luisa of Spain. Her maternal grandparents were Frederick William of Nassau-Weilburg (1768–1816) and his wife Burgravine Louise Isabelle of Kirchberg
.
Frederick William was the eldest surviving son of Karl Christian of Nassau-Weilburg and Princess Wilhelmine Carolina of Orange-Nassau.
Wilhelmine Carolina was a daughter of William IV, Prince of Orange
and Anne, Princess Royal
. Anne was in turn the eldest daughter of George II of Great Britain
and Caroline of Ansbach
.
. The bride was almost twenty-one years old and the groom twenty-seven.
Queen Maria Theresa is described as badly dressed and did not answer to the ideal of a regal person: she disliked her public role and life at court and preferred to confine her self to her private rooms dedicated to needlework and her children. She had a good relationship to both her spouse and her stepson Francis: her stepson respected her and she used to demonstratively call him her son. Maria Theresa was interested in politics: she is known to have acted as the king's advisor and to have influenced him to be strict, and when she could not be present at the reception of officials and wished to hear the conversation, she listened to the talk behind the door. She nursed Ferdinand at his death bed.
Ferdinand II of the Two Sicilies
Ferdinand II was King of the Two Sicilies from 1830 until his death.-Family:Ferdinand was born in Palermo, the son of King Francis I of the Two Sicilies and his wife and first cousin Maria Isabella of Spain.His paternal grandparents were King Ferdinand I of the Two Sicilies and Queen Marie...
.
Family
She was the eldest daughter of Archduke Charles, Duke of TeschenArchduke Charles, Duke of Teschen
Archduke Charles of Austria, Duke of Teschen was an Austrian field-marshal, the third son of emperor Leopold II and his wife Infanta Maria Luisa of Spain...
and Henrietta of Nassau-Weilburg.
Her paternal grandparents were Leopold II, Holy Roman Emperor
Leopold II, Holy Roman Emperor
Leopold II , born Peter Leopold Joseph Anton Joachim Pius Gotthard, was Holy Roman Emperor and King of Hungary and Bohemia from 1790 to 1792, Archduke of Austria and Grand Duke of Tuscany from 1765 to 1790. He was a son of Emperor Francis I and his wife, Empress Maria Theresa...
and Infanta Maria Luisa of Spain. Her maternal grandparents were Frederick William of Nassau-Weilburg (1768–1816) and his wife Burgravine Louise Isabelle of Kirchberg
Burgravine Louise Isabelle of Kirchberg
Louise Isabelle Alexandrine Auguste, Countess of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Hachenburg, Burgravine of Kirchberg, full German name: Luise Isabelle Alexandrine Auguste, Gräfin zu Sayn-Hachenburg, Burggräfin von Kirchberg was the Princess consort of Nassau-Weilburg through her...
.
Frederick William was the eldest surviving son of Karl Christian of Nassau-Weilburg and Princess Wilhelmine Carolina of Orange-Nassau.
Wilhelmine Carolina was a daughter of William IV, Prince of Orange
William IV, Prince of Orange
William IV, Prince of Orange-Nassau , born Willem Karel Hendrik Friso, was the first hereditary stadtholder of the Netherlands.-Early life:...
and Anne, Princess Royal
Anne, Princess Royal and Princess of Orange
Anne, Princess Royal and Princess of Orange was the second child and eldest daughter of King George II of Great Britain and his consort, Caroline of Ansbach. She was the spouse of William IV, Prince of Orange, the first hereditary stadtholder of the Netherlands...
. Anne was in turn the eldest daughter of George II of Great Britain
George II of Great Britain
George II was King of Great Britain and Ireland, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg and Archtreasurer and Prince-elector of the Holy Roman Empire from 11 June 1727 until his death.George was the last British monarch born outside Great Britain. He was born and brought up in Northern Germany...
and Caroline of Ansbach
Caroline of Ansbach
Caroline of Brandenburg-Ansbach was the queen consort of King George II of Great Britain.Her father, John Frederick, Margrave of Brandenburg-Ansbach, was the ruler of a small German state...
.
Queen
On 27 January 1837, Maria Theresa married Ferdinand II of the Two SiciliesFerdinand II of the Two Sicilies
Ferdinand II was King of the Two Sicilies from 1830 until his death.-Family:Ferdinand was born in Palermo, the son of King Francis I of the Two Sicilies and his wife and first cousin Maria Isabella of Spain.His paternal grandparents were King Ferdinand I of the Two Sicilies and Queen Marie...
. The bride was almost twenty-one years old and the groom twenty-seven.
Queen Maria Theresa is described as badly dressed and did not answer to the ideal of a regal person: she disliked her public role and life at court and preferred to confine her self to her private rooms dedicated to needlework and her children. She had a good relationship to both her spouse and her stepson Francis: her stepson respected her and she used to demonstratively call him her son. Maria Theresa was interested in politics: she is known to have acted as the king's advisor and to have influenced him to be strict, and when she could not be present at the reception of officials and wished to hear the conversation, she listened to the talk behind the door. She nursed Ferdinand at his death bed.
Queen Dowager
At the death of her spouse, she intended to continue her political activity by being the advisor of her stepson Francis, the new monarch. Francis was willing, and her authoritarian policy has been considered to contribute to the public discontent which lead to the abolishment of the Kingdom of Naples. Francis' spouse Maria Sophia, however, disputed her influence and Francis had a difficult position in the conflict between his wife and stepmother, without being able to satisfy either. Maria Sophia informed Francis about a plot created by Maria Theresa with the attempt to put the biological son of Maria Theresa on the throne, but Francis chose to believe Maria Theresa when she swore her innocence. It was not until the revolts against the monarchy had already begun that Francis decided to listen to the advice of his wife rather than his stepmother. Maria Theresa was among the first to leave Naples during the revolt: first to Gaeta with her children and advisors, and then to Rome. She resided in the same palace as Francis and Maria Sophia would use when they arrived. She died in cholera, nursed by her stepson Francis, who mourned her greatly.Issue
| Name | Birth | Death | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lodovico, Count of Trani Prince Louis, Count of Trani Prince Louis Maria of Bourbon-Two Sicilies, Count of Trani was the eldest son of Ferdinand II of the Two Sicilies and his second wife Archduchess Maria Theresa of Austria.... |
1 August 1838 | 8 June 1886 | Married Mathilde Ludovika, Duchess in Bavaria, sister of Empress Elisabeth of Austria Elisabeth of Bavaria Elisabeth of Austria was the spouse of Franz Joseph I, and therefore both Empress of Austria and Queen of Hungary. She also held the titles of Queen of Bohemia and Croatia, among others... . Their only daughter, Princess Maria Teresa of Bourbon-Two Sicilies Princess Maria Teresa of Bourbon-Two Sicilies Princess Maria Teresa Maddalena of Bourbon-Two Sicilies was the only child of Prince Louis of Bourbon-Two Sicilies, Count of Trani and his wife Duchess Mathilde... , married Prince Wilhelm of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen. |
| Alberto, Count of Castrogiovanni | 17 September 1839 | 12 July 1844 | Died in childhood. |
| Alfonso, Count of Caserta Prince Alfonso, Count of Caserta Prince Alfonso Maria Giuseppe Alberto of Bourbon-Two Sicilies, Count of Caserta was the third son of Ferdinand II of the Two Sicilies and Archduchess Maria Theresa of Austria.... |
28 March 1841 | 26 May 1934 | Married his first cousin Princess Antonietta of Bourbon-Two Sicilies and has issue. The current lines of Bourbon-Two Sicilies descend from him. |
| Maria Annunciata of the Two Sicilies | 24 March 1843 | 4 May 1871 | Married Archduke Karl Ludwig of Austria Archduke Karl Ludwig of Austria Archduke Karl Ludwig Joseph Maria of Austria was the younger brother of Franz Joseph I of Austria and the father of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria , whose assassination ignited the start of World War I.-Biography:He was born at Schönbrunn in Vienna, the son of Archduke Franz Karl of Austria ... . |
| Maria Immaculata Clementina of the Two Sicilies Princess Maria Immaculata of Bourbon-Two Sicilies (1844–1899) Princess Maria Immaculata of Bourbon-Two Sicilies was fifth child and second-eldest daughter of Ferdinand II of the Two Sicilies and his wife Maria Theresa of Austria... |
14 April 1844 | 18 February 1899 | Married Archduke Karl Salvator of Austria Archduke Karl Salvator of Austria Archduke Karl Salvator of Austria, in Italian Carlo Salvatore Maria Giuseppe Giovanni Battista Filippo Jacopo Gennaro Lodovico Gonzaga Raniero, in German Karl Salvator Maria Joseph Johann Baptist Philipp Jakob Januarius Ludwig Gonzaga Ranier , was a member of the Tuscan branch of the House of... , Prince of Tuscany. |
| Gaetano, Count of Girgenti Prince Gaetan, Count of Girgenti Prince Gaetano Maria Federico of Bourbon-Two Sicilies, Count of Girgenti was the seventh child of Ferdinand II of the Two Sicilies and his wife Maria Theresa of Austria... |
12 January 1846 | 26 November 1871 | In 1868, he married Isabel, Infanta of Spain Spain Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula... (eldest daughter of Queen Isabella II of Spain Isabella II of Spain Isabella II was the only female monarch of Spain in modern times. She came to the throne as an infant, but her succession was disputed by the Carlists, who refused to recognise a female sovereign, leading to the Carlist Wars. After a troubled reign, she was deposed in the Glorious Revolution of... ) and was created Infante of Spain. |
| Giuseppe, Count of Lucera | 4 March 1848 | 28 September 1851 | Died in childhood. |
| Maria Pia of the Two Sicilies | 21 August 1849 | 29 September 1882 | Married Roberto I Duke of Parma and Piacenza. |
| Vincenzo, Count of Melazzo | 26 April 1851 | 13 October 1854 | Died in childhood. |
| Pasquale, Count of Bari Prince Pasquale, Count of Bari Prince Pasquale of Bourbon-Two Sicilies, Count of Bari, full Italian name: Pasquale Baylen Maria del Carmine Giovanni-Battista Vincenzo-Ferreri Michele Arcangel Francesco di Paola Ferdinando Francesco di Assisi Luigi-Re Alfonso Gaetano Giuseppe Pietro Paolo Gennaro Luigi-Gonzaga Giovanni Giuseppe... |
15 September 1852 | 21 December 1904 | Married morganatically to Blanche Marconnay. |
| Maria Louisa of the Two Sicilies | 21 January 1855 | 23 February 1874 | Married Prince Henry of Bourbon-Parma, Count of Bardi Prince Henry, Count of Bardi Prince Henry of Bourbon-Parma, Count of Bardi was the youngest son and child of Charles III, Duke of Parma and his wife Princess Louise Marie Thérèse of France, the eldest daughter of Charles Ferdinand, Duke of Berry and Princess Caroline Ferdinande Louise of the Two Sicilies.Henry was thus a... . |
| Gennaro, Count of Caltagirone Prince Januarius, Count of Caltagirone Januarius Maria Immaculata Louis of Bourbon-Two Sicilies, Count of Caltagirone was the twelfth and youngest child of Ferdinand II of the Two Sicilies and his wife Maria Theresa of Austria... |
28 February 1857 | 13 August 1867 | Died in childhood. |