Archiduchesse Maria-Theresia Kaisergruft

Maria Theresa of Austria (22 August 1684 – 28 September 1696) was a daughter of

Leopold I, Holy Roman Emperor Leopold I (Leopold Ignaz Joseph Balthasar Franz Felician; ; 9 June 1640 – 5 May 1705) was Holy Roman Emperor, King of Hungary, List of Croatian monarchs, Croatia, and List of Bohemian monarchs, Bohemia. The second son of Ferdinand III, Holy Rom ...

and his third wife, Eleonor Magdalene of the Palatinate-Neuburg.

Biography

She was born at the

Hofburg Palace The Hofburg () is the former principal imperial palace of the Habsburg dynasty in Austria. Located in the center of Vienna, it was built in the 13th century by Ottokar II of Bohemia and expanded several times afterwards. It also served as the im ...

Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...

, as a member of the

House of Habsburg The House of Habsburg (; ), also known as the House of Austria, was one of the most powerful Dynasty, dynasties in the history of Europe and Western civilization. They were best known for their inbreeding and for ruling vast realms throughout ...

, the fourth daughter of Leopold I, Holy Roman Emperor and his third wife, Eleonore Magdalena of Pfalz-Neuburg. Maria Theresa died of

smallpox Smallpox was an infectious disease caused by Variola virus (often called Smallpox virus), which belongs to the genus '' Orthopoxvirus''. The last naturally occurring case was diagnosed in October 1977, and the World Health Organization (W ...

at the age of twelve, at the Palais Ebersdorf in Vienna. She is buried in the

Imperial Crypt The Imperial Crypt (), also called the Capuchin Crypt (''Kapuzinergruft''), is a burial chamber beneath the Capuchin Church and monastery in Vienna, Austria. It was founded in 1618 and dedicated in 1632, and located on the Neuer Markt square of ...

. In 1695, at the age of 11, Maria Theresa was engaged to

Maximilian II Emanuel Maximilian II (11 July 1662 – 26 February 1726), also known as Max Emanuel or Maximilian Emanuel, was a Wittelsbach ruler of Bavaria and a prince-elector of the Holy Roman Empire. He was also the last governor of the Spanish Netherlands and Duke ...

, the

Elector of Bavaria The following is a list of monarchs during the history of Bavaria. Bavaria was ruled by several dukes and kings, partitioned and reunited, under several dynasties. Since 1918, Bavaria has been under a republican form of government, and from 19 ...

, as part of a political alliance between

Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...

and

Bavaria Bavaria, officially the Free State of Bavaria, is a States of Germany, state in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the list of German states by area, largest German state by land area, comprising approximately 1/5 of the total l ...

. The marriage was arranged to strengthen the ties between the two states and secure Bavaria's support for the Habsburg dynasty, but she died before her wedding could take place. Her groom later married her half-sister,

Maria Antonia of Austria Maria Antonia Josepha Benedicta Rosalia Petronella of Austria (18 January 1669 – 24 December 1692) was an Electress of Bavaria as the wife of Maximilian II Emanuel, Elector of Bavaria. She was the eldest daughter and only surviving child of L ...

, daughter of Leopold I and his first wife,

Margaret Theresa of Spain Margaret Theresa of Spain (, ; 12 July 1651 – 12 March 1673) was, by marriage to Leopold I, Holy Roman Empress, German Queen, Archduchess of Austria and Queen of Hungary and Bohemia. She was the daughter of King Philip IV of Spain and the ...

Ancestors

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Maria Theresa Of Austria, Archduchess 1684-1696 1684 births 1696 deaths 17th-century House of Habsburg 17th-century Austrian women Burials at the Imperial Crypt Burials at St. Stephen's Cathedral, Vienna Princesses in the Holy Roman Empire Nobility from Vienna Deaths from smallpox Daughters of emperors Austrian royalty who died as children Children of Leopold I, Holy Roman Emperor Daughters of kings Daughters of dukes