Maria Theresa of Austria (13 May 1717 – 29 November 1780) was the only female sovereign of the Habsburg Dynasty.
She reigned as the de facto Empress Regnant of the Holy Roman Empire and Queen of Germany. She was also queen of Hungary and Bohemia, archduchess of Austria, and held many other titles.
Maria Theresa of Austria | |||||
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Empress Regnant of the Holy Roman Empire (de facto) Queen of Germany | |||||
Reign | 13 September 1745 – 18 August 1765 | ||||
Archduchess of Austria Queen of Hungary and Croatia | |||||
Reign | 20 October 1740 – 29 November 1780 | ||||
Coronation | 25 June 1741 | ||||
Predecessor | Charles III | ||||
Successor | Joseph II | ||||
Queen of Bohemia | |||||
Reign | 20 October 1740 – 19 December 1741 | ||||
Predecessor | Charles II | ||||
Successor | Charles Albert | ||||
Reign | 12 May 1743 – 29 November 1780 | ||||
Coronation | 12 May 1743 | ||||
Predecessor | Charles Albert | ||||
Successor | Joseph II | ||||
Born | Hofburg Palace, Vienna, Austria | 13 May 1717||||
Died | 29 November 1780 Hofburg Palace, Vienna, Austria | (aged 63)||||
Burial | Imperial Crypt, Vienna | ||||
Spouse | |||||
Issue | See
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House | Habsburg | ||||
Father | Charles VI, Holy Roman Emperor | ||||
Mother | Elisabeth Christine of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel | ||||
Religion | Roman Catholicism | ||||
Signature |
During her rule she changed the royal palace outside Vienna (the Austrian capital) to look much like Versailles. Vienna itself became an important center for the arts, especially music. Maria Theresa added support to her absolute power by tightening her hold on the government. She also improved conditions for the peasants. She is generally known to history as the Empress Maria Theresa.
Maria Theresa was born in Vienna, Austria, on 13 May 1717. Her parents were Charles VI, Holy Roman Emperor and Elisabeth Christine of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel. Her father had made the Pragmatic Sanction of 1713, a decree which allowed a female ruler despite the Salic law prohibition.
Maria Theresa married Duke Francis Stephan I of Lorraine for love. They had sixteen children:
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