Dorothea Sophie of Neuburg (Dorothea Sophie; 5 July 1670 – 15 September 1748) was

Duchess of Parma Duchess consort of Parma House of Farnese, 1545–1731 House of Bourbon-Anjou, 1731–1735 :None House of Habsburg, 1735–1748 House of Bourbon-Parma, 1748–1802 House of Habsburg-Lorraine, 1814–1847 House of Bourbon-Parma ...

from 1695 to 1727 by marriage to Francesco, Duke of Parma. She served as Regent of the Duchy of Parma for her grandson Charles of Spain between 1731 and 1735.

Biography

Early life

Born at the Neuburg Palace, as the fourteenth of seventeen children and the sixth daughter of the Elector Palatine, Philip William of Neuburg, and

Landgravine Elisabeth Amalie of Hesse-Darmstadt en, Elizabeth Amelia Magdalena of Hesse-Darmstadt , image= Elisabeth Amalia Magdalena im Jahr 1705.jpg , caption= Portrait by Jan Frans van Douven, c. 1705. , succession = Electress Palatine , consort=yes , reign=26 May 1685 - 2 September 1690 , ...

. On 17 September 1690, she married

Odoardo Farnese, Hereditary Prince of Parma Odoardo Farnese (12 August 1666 – 6 September 1693) was the eldest son of Duke Ranuccio II Farnese, Duke of Parma and Piacenza. Odoardo was the ''Hereditary Prince of Parma'' from his birth until his death. He was the father of the famously dom ...

, heir to the throne of the

Duchy of Parma and Piacenza The Duchy of Parma and Piacenza ( it, Ducato di Parma e Piacenza, la, Ducatus Parmae et Placentiae), was an Italian state created in 1545 and located in northern Italy, in the current region of Emilia-Romagna. Originally a realm of the Farnes ...

. The festivities for their wedding were the most splendid that had ever taken place in

Parma Parma (; egl, Pärma, ) is a city in the northern Italian region of Emilia-Romagna known for its architecture, music, art, prosciutto (ham), cheese and surrounding countryside. With a population of 198,292 inhabitants, Parma is the second mos ...

. In their three years of marriage, they had two children, a son who died in infancy and a daughter, Elisabeth, future Queen of Spain.

Duchess of Parma

Her husband died on 6 September 1693, only a month after the death of their son. On 7 December 1696, Dorothea married Odoardo's half-brother,

Francesco Farnese Francesco Farnese (19 May 1678 – 26 February 1727) reigned as the seventh Farnese Duke of Parma and Piacenza from 1694 until his death. Married to Dorothea Sophia of the Palatinate, his brother Odoardo's widow, to avoid the return of her dowry ...

, who had become Duke of

when his father died in 1694. This marriage was decided by Francesco himself, because he did not want to give up Dorothea's dowry should she marry someone else. Nevertheless, this marriage remained childless. Francesco died in 1727 and was succeeded by his only remaining brother Antonio.

Regent

Antonio died on 20 January 1731. The previous day, he had announced that Enrichetta was pregnant; after his death, a Regency council for the potential heir was formed, consisting of Enrichetta, a bishop, the first Secretary of State and two gentlemen of the Court. It was decided that, should the child be female, the duchy of Parma would revert to the Infante Don Carlos (then aged 12), eldest of the three sons of

Elisabeth Farnese Elisabeth Farnese ( Italian: ''Elisabetta Farnese'', Spanish: ''Isabel Farnesio''; 25 October 169211 July 1766) was Queen of Spain by marriage to King Philip V. She exerted great influence over Spain's foreign policy and was the ''de facto'' r ...

, wife of

Philip V of Spain Philip V ( es, Felipe; 19 December 1683 – 9 July 1746) was King of Spain from 1 November 1700 to 14 January 1724, and again from 6 September 1724 to his death in 1746. His total reign of 45 years is the longest in the history of the Spanish mon ...

, niece of Antonio by his older half-brother Odoardo, who had been heir-apparent to the duchy but predeceased their father. Enrichetta was thus invested as Regent of Parma, supported by Imperial troops. Her pregnancy was questioned by the Queen of Spain though her mother, Dorothea Sophie, who wished to defend the right of Don Carlos, as well as the Pope, who wished to retract the Duchy to the Papal State. However, Enrichetta was supported by the Emperor, who opposed Spanish influence in Parma. Of the request of Spain, Enrichetta was examined in May 1731 by doctors confirming her pregnancy. The news was reported around Parma and then around the European courts. Her regency could thus continue, with support by the Emperor. On 22 July however, the Second Treaty of Vienna officially recognised the right of the young Infante Don Charles as the Duke of Parma and Piacenza, pursuant to the Treaty of London (1718). When Spain demanded that the delivery of Enrichetta should be a public affair, the Emperor retracted his support to Enrichetta and discontinued the original plan to arranged a simulated birth. Queen Elisabeth in Spain convinced her mother to have Enrichetta examined again on 13 September 1731; it was then reported that there was in fact no child, and the

House of Farnese The House of Farnese family (, also , ) was an influential family in Renaissance Italy. The titles of Duke of Parma and Piacenza and Duke of Castro were held by various members of the family. Its most important members included Pope Paul II ...

was extinct. Charles of Spain was thus recognised as Duke of Parma and Piacenza, deposing the regency of Enrichetta d'Este. Since Charles was still a minor, his maternal grandmother Dorothea Sophie, was named regent. Dorothea ruled as regent until 1735, when the Duchy was ceded to Austria after the

War of the Polish Succession The War of the Polish Succession ( pl, Wojna o sukcesję polską; 1733–35) was a major European conflict sparked by a Polish civil war over the succession to Augustus II of Poland, which the other European powers widened in pursuit of thei ...

. She died in

in 1748 and was buried at the

Sanctuary of Santa Maria della Steccata The Shrine of Santa Maria della Steccata is a Greek-cross design Renaissance church in central Parma, Italy. The name derives from the fence (Italian: ''steccato'') in the church. A Nursing Madonna is enshrined within, crowned on 27 May 1601 by ...

Issue

#Alessandro Ignazio Farnese (6 December 1691 – 5 August 1693) died in infancy. #

(25 October 1692 – 11 July 1766) married

and had issue.

Ancestry

Notes and references

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dorothea Sophie Of The Palatinate 1670 births 1748 deaths Duchesses of Parma House of Farnese Countesses Palatine of Neuburg Regents of Parma House of Wittelsbach 18th-century women rulers People from Neuburg an der Donau 17th-century German people 18th-century German people Hereditary Princesses of Parma Burials at the Sanctuary of Santa Maria della Steccata