Maria Anna of Austria (1718–1744)

Maria Anna of Austria

Maria Anna von Habsburg (born September 14, 1718 in Vienna , † December 16, 1744 in Brussels ) was Archduchess of Austria , Duchess of Lorraine and briefly governor of the Habsburg Netherlands in 1744 .

Life

Archduchess Maria Anna

Archduchess Maria Anna Eleonore Wilhelmine Josepha of Austria was born on September 14, 1718 as the third child and second daughter of Emperor Karl VI. von Austria and his wife Elisabeth Christine von Braunschweig-Wolfenbüttel born in Vienna . Maria Anna was the younger sister of Maria Theresa . Her birth and the ceremonies at her baptism, during which her aunt Maria Elisabeth held her over the baptismal font in the name of the Portuguese queen, were celebrated with extraordinary splendor in Vienna. The celebrations held in Brussels on the same occasion on September 27, 1718 were more modest. The Dutch governor attended the religious ceremonies in the church of St. Gudula , which ended in the evening with the illumination of the most important buildings in the city.

The birth of Maria Anna caused almost public unrest, as this time there had been hopes for an heir to the throne. Elisabeth Christine von Braunschweig-Wolfenbüttel gave birth during her marriage to Emperor Karl VI. four children from Austria. The first child, the family owner Leopold Johann , was born in April 1716 and died a few months later. The last child, Maria Amalia , was born in 1724 and was only six years old. What remained were the daughters Maria Theresa and her younger sister Maria Anna.

Maria Anna grew up with her older sister at the Imperial Court in Vienna. Her upbringing was in the hands of the widowed Countess von Thurn und Taxis , b. Countess Souches. She fell in love with Karl Alexander von Lothringen , the younger brother of Franz I Stephan von Lothringen, at an early age . However, there was a lot of resistance to be overcome before the wedding. Among other things, Emperor Karl VI also spoke . against the marriage of his daughter, as the future son-in-law appeared to him politically too insignificant. Only after his death in 1740 and tough negotiations did Maria Theresa give permission to marry.

On January 7, 1744, the wedding between Maria Anna and Karl Alexander took place in Vienna's Augustinian Church. On the next day Maria Anna was given a Letters Patent issued by her sister Maria Theresia to share in the governorship in the Habsburg Netherlands, which she was to exercise from now on together with her husband Karl Alexander. Her deceased aunt Maria Elisabeth was governor until 1741. The newlyweds left Vienna on February 3rd, 1744 and arrived on the following February 24th in the Dutch village of Westwezel, where they were greeted by the authorized minister, Count Karl Ferdinand von Königsegg-Erps , at the head of a troop of hussars . From there, the noble couple moved on to Antwerp and Mechelen , where they enjoyed a brilliant reception. To the cheers of the residents, it moved into Brussels on March 26, where it resided.

In May 1744, Karl Alexander had to leave Brussels to take command of the Rhine Army during the War of the Austrian Succession . He left Maria Anna, who was expecting her first child, to rule over the Netherlands. She was supported in this by the authorized minister, Count Wenzel Anton von Kaunitz-Rietberg . Together with him, on May 26th, she inspected the camp of the Dutch and English troops gathered in Asse , which were supposed to repel a possible French attack.

During the absence of her husband, Maria Anna had a correspondence with her sister Maria Theresa on political matters in Europe. In it, Maria Theresa explains in great detail her diplomatic relations with Burmania, the Dutch ambassador, and Thomas Robinson , the English ambassador in Vienna. In particular, these letters discuss what measures should be taken to prevent a French incursion into the Netherlands.

In her letters, Maria Theresa had often expressed concern about her sister's pregnancy because of her obesity. In fact, the girl who gave birth to Maria Anna on October 9th was born dead. As a result of the difficult confinement, Maria Anna, who had suffered from constant fever ever since, died on December 16, 1744 at the age of only 26. Her funeral was celebrated with great pomp. Count Kaunitz-Rietberg led the government in the Netherlands until the return of Maria Anna's husband, Karl Alexander.

Maria Anna was later transferred to Vienna and buried in the imperial crypt with her stillborn child. Her heart urn is in the Loreto Chapel in Vienna's Augustinian Church , her entrails urn in the ducal crypt . Maria Anna is one of the 41 people who received a “ separate burial ” with the body being divided between all three traditional Viennese burial sites of the Habsburgs (imperial crypt, heart crypt, ducal crypt).

Karl Alexander did not enter into another marriage after her untimely death.

Just a few days after Maria Anna, Franz Stephans and Karl Alexander's mother, Elisabeth Charlotte von Lothringen (1676–1744) also died.

Pedigree

Pedigree of Duchess Maria Anna
Great grandparents	Emperor Ferdinand III. (1608–1657) ⚭ 1631 Maria Anna of Spain (1606–1646)	Elector Philipp Wilhelm (1615–1690) ⚭ 1653 Elisabeth Amalie of Hesse-Darmstadt (1635–1709)	Duke Anton Ulrich (1633–1714) ⚭ 1656 Elisabeth Juliane von Holstein-Norburg (1634–1704)	Count Albrecht Ernst I of Oettingen-Oettingen (1642–1683) ⚭ 1665 Christine Friederike von Württemberg (1644–1674)
Grandparents	Emperor Leopold I (1640–1705) ⚭ 1676 Eleonore Magdalene Therese of the Palatinate (1655–1720)		Duke Ludwig Rudolf (1671–1735) ⚭ 1690 Christine Luise von Öttingen (1671–1747)
parents	Emperor Charles VI. (1685–1740) ⚭ 1708 Elisabeth Christine von Braunschweig-Wolfenbüttel (1691–1750)
Maria Anna of Austria (1718–1744)

literature

Constantin von Wurzbach : Habsburg, Maria Anna (Duchess of Lorraine) . In: Biographisches Lexikon des Kaiserthums Oesterreich . 7th part. Imperial and Royal Court and State Printing Office, Vienna 1861, p. 26 ( digitized version ).
Charles Piot: Marie Anne , in: Biographie Nationale de Belgique , Vol. 13, 1894–1895, Col. 719–722.
Maria Anna , in: Brigitte Hamann (Ed.): Die Habsburger , 1988, p. 299 f.

Web links

Commons : Maria Anna von Österreich - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Maria Anna in the German biography

Remarks

^ Charles Piot: Marie Anne , in: Biographie Nationale de Belgique , Vol. 13, 1894–1895, Col. 719.
^ ^A ^b Charles Piot: Marie Anne , in: Biographie Nationale de Belgique , Vol. 13, 1894–1895, Col. 720.
↑ Maria Anna , in: Brigitte Hamann (Ed.): Die Habsburger , 1988, p. 300.
^ ^A ^b Charles Piot: Marie Anne , in: Biographie Nationale de Belgique , Vol. 13, 1894–1895, Col. 721.
^ Charles Piot: Marie Anne , in: Biographie Nationale de Belgique , Vol. 13, 1894–1895, Col. 721 f.

personal data
SURNAME	Maria Anna of Austria
ALTERNATIVE NAMES	Habsburg, Maria Anna von
BRIEF DESCRIPTION	Archduchess of Austria and Duchess of Lorraine
DATE OF BIRTH	September 14, 1718
PLACE OF BIRTH	Vienna
DATE OF DEATH	December 16, 1744
Place of death	Brussels

[1] Charles Piot: Marie Anne , in: Biographie Nationale de Belgique , Vol. 13, 1894–1895, Col. 719.

[biogr-belg-13-720-2] A ^b Charles Piot: Marie Anne , in: Biographie Nationale de Belgique , Vol. 13, 1894–1895, Col. 720.

[3] Maria Anna , in: Brigitte Hamann (Ed.): Die Habsburger , 1988, p. 300.

[biog-belg-13-721-4] A ^b Charles Piot: Marie Anne , in: Biographie Nationale de Belgique , Vol. 13, 1894–1895, Col. 721.

[5] Charles Piot: Marie Anne , in: Biographie Nationale de Belgique , Vol. 13, 1894–1895, Col. 721 f.