Maria Theresa of

Austria-Este The House of Habsburg-Este (), also known as the House of Austria-Este () and holder of the title of Archduke of Austria-Este (; ), is a cadet branch of the House of Habsburg-Lorraine and also descends from the House of Este in the cognatic lin ...

(Maria Theresia Josefa Johanna; 1 November 1773 – 29 March 1832) was born an

archduchess of Austria The Archduchy of Austria (german: Erzherzogtum Österreich) was a major principality of the Holy Roman Empire and the nucleus of the Habsburg monarchy. With its capital at Vienna, the archduchy was centered at the Empire's southeastern peripher ...

-Este and a princess of Modena. She was later

Queen of Sardinia This is a list of consorts of the Savoyard monarchs. Countess of Savoy, 1003–1416 Duchess of Savoy, 1416–1713 ;As courtesy title Queen of Sardinia, 1720–1861 Between 1859 and 1861 the Kingdom of Sardinia incorporated the majo ...

as wife of

Victor Emmanuel I of Sardinia Victor Emmanuel I (Vittorio Emanuele; 24 July 1759 – 10 January 1824) was the Duke of Savoy and King of Sardinia (1802–1821). Biography Victor Emmanuel was the second son of King Victor Amadeus III of Sardinia and Maria Antonia Ferdinand ...

Family and infancy

She was born at the

Royal Palace of Milan The Royal Palace of Milan (Italian: ''Palazzo Reale di Milano'') was the seat of government in the Italian city of Milan for many centuries. Today, it serves as a cultural centre and it is home to international art exhibitions. It spans through ...

, a daughter of Archduke Ferdinand of Austria, governor of

Milan Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city h ...

and son of

Empress Maria Theresa Maria Theresa Walburga Amalia Christina (german: Maria Theresia; 13 May 1717 – 29 November 1780) was ruler of the Habsburg dominions from 1740 until her death in 1780, and the only woman to hold the position ''suo jure'' (in her own right). ...

after whom she was named. Her mother was

Maria Beatrice d'Este Mary of Modena ( it, Maria Beatrice Eleonora Anna Margherita Isabella d'Este; ) was Queen of England, Scotland and Ireland as the second wife of James II and VII. A devout Roman Catholic, Mary married the widower James, who was then the young ...

, heir to the

Duchy of Modena A duchy, also called a dukedom, is a medieval country, territory, fief, or domain ruled by a duke or duchess, a ruler hierarchically second to the king or queen in Western European tradition. There once existed an important difference between " ...

Marriage

Maria Theresa married on 25 April 1789 at the age of 15 with the 29-year-old Victor Emmanuel, Duke of Aosta future King Victor Emmanuel I. Their relationship was a happy one. She was a good friend of

Marie Clotilde of France Marie Clotilde of France (Marie Adélaïde Clotilde Xavière; 23 September 1759 – 7 March 1802), known as Clotilde in Italy, was Queen of Sardinia by marriage to Charles Emmanuel IV of Sardinia. She was the younger sister of Louis XVI of Fr ...

, the childless consort of Charles Emmanuel, Prince of Piedmont. She was also close to the Duchess of Chablais. At the time of her marriage, her spouse was the

Duke of Aosta Duke of Aosta ( it, Duca d'Aosta; french: Duc d'Aoste) was a title in the Italian nobility. It was established in the 13th century when Frederick II, Holy Roman Emperor, made the County of Aosta a duchy. The region was part of the Savoyard stat ...

as such she was styled as Her Royal Highness the Duchess of Aosta till she became queen. The couple had six daughters and one son, who died young. Upon the invasion of

Savoy Savoy (; frp, Savouè ; french: Savoie ) is a cultural-historical region in the Western Alps. Situated on the cultural boundary between Occitania and Piedmont, the area extends from Lake Geneva in the north to the Dauphiné in the south. Savo ...

Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...

in 1798, she left with her family first to

Tuscany Tuscany ( ; it, Toscana ) is a Regions of Italy, region in central Italy with an area of about and a population of about 3.8 million inhabitants. The regional capital is Florence (''Firenze''). Tuscany is known for its landscapes, history, art ...

and then to

Sardinia Sardinia ( ; it, Sardegna, label=Italian, Corsican and Tabarchino ; sc, Sardigna , sdc, Sardhigna; french: Sardaigne; sdn, Saldigna; ca, Sardenya, label=Algherese and Catalan) is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, after ...

Queen

After the abdication of

Charles Emmanuel IV of Sardinia Charles Emmanuel IV (Carlo Emanuele Ferdinando Maria; 24 May 1751 – 6 October 1819) was King of Sardinia from 1796 to 1802. He abdicated in favour of his brother Victor Emmanuel I. Biography Carlo Emanuele Ferdinando Maria di Savoia was ...

in 1802, Maria Theresa became queen consort, but she had to wait on the island of Sardinia for the end of the war in 1814 to return to the capital

Turin Turin ( , Piedmontese language, Piedmontese: ; it, Torino ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in Northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital ...

. Maria Theresa was initially enthusiastically welcomed in Turin, but she soon aroused great discontent among the public. She was accused of wishing to undermine and abolish so much as possible of the reforms initiated during the French occupation, and was additionally said to treat all whom cooperated with the French with contempt. Her conduct has been suggested as one of the reasons behind the discontent which led to the rebellions of 1821 which led to her consort's abdication. After the outbreak of a liberal revolution in 1821, her husband Victor Emmanuel abdicated in favor of his brother, Charles Felix. During the riots, she declared herself willing to assume regency if necessary. Instead, she followed her abdicated spouse to

Nice Nice ( , ; Niçard: , classical norm, or , nonstandard, ; it, Nizza ; lij, Nissa; grc, Νίκαια; la, Nicaea) is the prefecture of the Alpes-Maritimes department in France. The Nice agglomeration extends far beyond the administrative c ...

. Maria Theresa survived Victor Emmanuel by eight years. She was accused of having tried to convince her childless brother-in-law Charles Felix to assign Francis IV, duke of Modena (her brother and the husband of her eldest daughter Maria Beatrice), as heir to the throne. Due to the hostility directed toward her, she was not allowed to return to Turin until 1831. She was buried in the

Basilica of Superga The Basilica of Superga () is a church in Superga, in the vicinity of Turin. History It was built from 1717 to 1731 for Victor Amadeus II of Savoy, designed by Filippo Juvarra, at the top of the hill of Superga. This fulfilled a vow the duke ...

Issue

Portrait of King Victor Emmanuel I of Sardinia and his family by Luigi Bernero

# Princess Maria Beatrice Vittoria Josepha of Savoy (Maria Beatrice Vittoria Giuseppina; 6 December 1792 – 15 September 1840), married Francis IV, Duke of Modena, had issue. # Princess Maria Adelaide of Savoy (Maria Adelaide Clothilde Xaveria Borbonia; 1 October 1794 – 9 March 1802) died in childhood. # Prince Charles Emmanuel of Savoy (Carlo Emanuele; 3 September 1796 – 9 August 1799) died of smallpox. # A daughter (November 13, 1800 – 10 January 1801) died in infancy. #

Maria Teresa of Savoy Maria may refer to: People * Mary, mother of Jesus * Maria (given name), a popular given name in many languages Place names Extraterrestrial *170 Maria, a Main belt S-type asteroid discovered in 1877 *Lunar maria (plural of ''mare''), large, da ...

(Maria Teresa Fernanda Felicitas Gaetana Pia; 19 September 1803 – 16 July 1879) married

Charles II, Duke of Parma Charles Louis ( it, Carlo Ludovico; 22 December 1799 – 16 April 1883) was King of Etruria (1803–1807; reigned as Louis II), Duke of Lucca (1824–1847; reigned as Charles I), and Duke of Parma (1847–1849; reigned as Charles II). He was t ...

, had issue. #

Princess Maria Anna of Savoy Maria Anna of Savoy (''Maria Anna Carolina Gabriella''; 17 December 1757 – 11 October 1824) was a Princess of Savoy by birth and Duchess of Chablais by her marriage to her uncle, Prince Benedetto, Duke of Chablais. Early life Born at the R ...

(Maria Anna Ricciarda Carolina Margherita Pia; 19 September 1803 – 4 May 1884) married

Ferdinand I of Austria en, Ferdinand Charles Leopold Joseph Francis Marcelin , image = Kaiser Ferdinand I.jpg , caption = Portrait by Eduard Edlinger (1843) , succession = Emperor of AustriaKing of Hungary , moretext = ( more...) , cor-type = ...

, no issue. # Princess Maria Cristina of Savoy (Maria Cristina Carlotta Giuseppina Gaetana Elise; 14 November 1812 – 21 January 1836) married

Ferdinand II of the Two Sicilies Ferdinand II ( it, Ferdinando Carlo; scn, Ferdinannu Carlu; nap, Ferdinando Carlo; 12 January 1810 – 22 May 1859) was King of the Two Sicilies from 1830 until his death in 1859. Family Ferdinand was born in Palermo to King Francis I of the T ...

, had issue.

Ancestry

External links