, title = Countess of Ahlefeldt-Langeland , image = , caption = , spouse = Ferdinand, Count of Ahlefeldt-Langeland , issue = , house =

Thurn und Taxis The Princely House of Thurn and Taxis (german: link=no, Fürstenhaus Thurn und Taxis ) is a family of German nobility that is part of the ''Briefadel''. It was a key player in the postal services in Europe during the 16th century, until the en ...

(by birth)

Ahlefeldt The House of Ahlefeldt is an ancient German and Danish noble family. It has similar coat of arms with the von Rumohr family, which indicates that they have descended from one House. Legend According to legend, the family descended from "Huno ...

(by marriage) , father = Alexander Ferdinand, 3rd Prince of Thurn and Taxis , mother = Princess Maria Henriette Josepha of

Fürstenberg-Stühlingen Fürstenberg-Stühlingen was a German county during the Middle Ages. It was located in the territorial landgraviate of Stühlingen. It emerged as a partition of Fürstenberg-Blumberg in 1614. It was partitioned in 1704 between the sons of Count Pr ...

, birth_date = , birth_place = Regensburg, Free Imperial City of Regensburg,

Holy Roman Empire The Holy Roman Empire was a political entity in Western, Central, and Southern Europe that developed during the Early Middle Ages and continued until its dissolution in 1806 during the Napoleonic Wars. From the accession of Otto I in 962 ...

, death_date = , death_place =

Prague Prague ( ; cs, Praha ; german: Prag, ; la, Praga) is the capital and List of cities in the Czech Republic, largest city in the Czech Republic, and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 milli ...

Kingdom of Bohemia The Kingdom of Bohemia ( cs, České království),; la, link=no, Regnum Bohemiae sometimes in English literature referred to as the Czech Kingdom, was a medieval and early modern monarchy in Central Europe, the predecessor of the modern Czec ...

Austrian Empire The Austrian Empire (german: link=no, Kaiserthum Oesterreich, modern spelling , ) was a Central-Eastern European multinational great power from 1804 to 1867, created by proclamation out of the realms of the Habsburgs. During its existence ...

, place of burial= , religion =

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy * Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD * Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a let ...

Maria Theresia von Ahlefeldt (16 January 1755 – 20 December 1810) was a

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

born aristocrat and a

Danish Danish may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the country of Denmark People * A national or citizen of Denmark, also called a "Dane," see Demographics of Denmark * Culture of Denmark * Danish people or Danes, people with a Danish a ...

composer. She is known as the first female composer in

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of Denmark , establish ...

Biography

Born in Regensburg, Maria Theresia was the eldest child and daughter of Alexander Ferdinand, 3rd Prince of Thurn and Taxis (1704–1773) and his wife, Princess Maria Henriette Josepha of

(1732–1772). She was a younger half-sister of

Karl Anselm, 4th Prince of Thurn and Taxis , image = Fürst Carl Anselm.jpg , caption = , reign = 17 March 1773 – 13 November 1805 , reign-type = Period , coronation = , predecessor = Alexander Ferdinand , successor = Karl Alexander , su ...

and niece of Maria Augusta of Thurn and Taxis. She grew in a cultural environment at the princely court in Regensburg, which was a centre of French, German and Italian opera, theatre, ballet, pantomimes and concerts. She was instructed in clavecin playing with her sisters and displayed an early talent of music composition. Maria Theresia was engaged to Prince Joseph of

Fürstenberg Fürstenberg (also Fuerstenberg and Furstenberg) may refer to: Historical states * Fürstenberg-Baar, county (1441–1559) * Fürstenberg-Blumberg, county (1559–1614) * Fürstenberg-Donaueschingen, county (1617–1698) * Fürstenberg-Fürsten ...

(1758-1796) from 1772 until her affair with an elderly German Prince Philipp of

Hohenlohe-Ingelfingen Hohenlohe-Ingelfingen was a German County of the House of Hohenlohe, located in northeastern Baden-Württemberg, Germany, around Ingelfingen. Hohenlohe-Ingelfingen was a scion of Hohenlohe-Langenburg. It was raised from a County to a Principality i ...

(1702-1781) in 1776. Her family, however, refused permission for her to marry Philip. In 1780 in Prague, she married the Danish noble Count Ferdinand of Ahlefeldt-Langeland (1747–1815), against the will of her family. Having conducted a marriage against the will of her family was a criminal act, for which she was forced to flee to avoid arrest. From 1780, Maria Theresia's spouse was Marshal at the Court of

Ansbach Ansbach (; ; East Franconian: ''Anschba'') is a city in the German state of Bavaria. It is the capital of the administrative region of Middle Franconia. Ansbach is southwest of Nuremberg and north of Munich, on the river Fränkische Rezat, ...

, where she was active in the

amateur theatre Amateur theatre, also known as amateur dramatics, is theatre performed by amateur actors and singers. Amateur theatre groups may stage plays, revues, musicals, light opera, pantomime or variety shows, and do so for the social activity as well as f ...

of Elizabeth Craven. During this time, she wrote a libretto. From 1792 to 1794, her spouse was marshal of the Danish royal court and director of the

Royal Danish Theatre The Royal Danish Theatre (RDT, Danish: ') is both the national Danish performing arts institution and a name used to refer to its old purpose-built venue from 1874 located on Kongens Nytorv in Copenhagen. The theatre was founded in 1748, first s ...

. Maria Theresia composed music for several

ballet Ballet () is a type of performance dance that originated during the Italian Renaissance in the fifteenth century and later developed into a concert dance form in France and Russia. It has since become a widespread and highly technical form of ...

s, operas, and plays of the royal theatre. She was given good critic as a composer and described as a “virkelig Tonekunstnerinde” ('a True Artist of Music'). She moved to

Dresden Dresden (, ; Upper Saxon: ''Dräsdn''; wen, label= Upper Sorbian, Drježdźany) is the capital city of the German state of Saxony and its second most populous city, after Leipzig. It is the 12th most populous city of Germany, the fourth ...

with her spouse in 1798, and lived from 1800 until her death in Prague.

Selection of work

* ''La Folie, ou quel Conte!'' (libretto) 1780s * ''Telemak paa Calypsos Øe'' (music, aria, choir), 1792 * ''Veddemaalet'' (music), 1793 * ''Romance de Nina'' 1794/98

Ancestry

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Ahlefeldt, Maria Theresia 1755 births 1810 deaths 18th-century Danish composers 18th-century German composers 18th-century women composers 19th-century Danish composers 19th-century German composers 19th-century women composers German Classical-period composers Danish classical composers Danish women composers Women classical composers Maria Theresia Ahlefeldt People from Regensburg Maria Theresia Ahlefeldt