Duchess Elisabeth of Württemberg

Elisabeth of Württemberg (Elisabeth Wilhelmine Luise; 21 April 1767 – 18 February 1790) was an Archduchess of Austria by marriage to Archduke Francis of Austria.

For the Duchess born 1802, see Duchess Elisabeth Alexandrine of Württemberg.
Duchess Elisabeth
Archduchess of Austria, Princess Royal of Hungary and Bohemia, Princess of Tuscany
Portrait by Johann Baptist von Lampi the Elder
Born21 April 1767
Treptow an der Rega, Pomerania
Died18 February 1790 (aged 22)
Vienna, Austria
Burial
Imperial Crypt
SpouseArchduke Francis of Austria
IssueArchduchess Ludovika Elisabeth
Names
Elisabeth Wilhelmine Luise
HouseWürttemberg
FatherFrederick II Eugene, Duke of Württemberg
MotherPrincess Sophia Dorothea of Brandenburg-Schwedt
ReligionLutheranism then Roman Catholicism

Life

Elisabeth Wilhelmine Luise was born on 21 April 1767, in Treptow an der Rega, Pomerania. She was born as the third daughter and eighth child borne to Frederick II Eugene, Duke of Württemberg and his wife, Princess Sophia Dorothea of Brandenburg-Schwedt. Her name came from her baptism.

At the age of 15, she was called by the Holy Roman Emperor, Joseph II, to Vienna.[1] There, she was educated in the Salesianerinnenkloster by the nuns, in which she also converted to Catholicism. The purpose of this was to make her the future wife of Joseph II's nephew Francis, the future Holy Roman Emperor.

In Vienna on 6 January 1788, Elisabeth and Francis were married. At this time, Emperor Joseph was in ill health; the young archduchess was close to the emperor and brightened his last years with her youthful charm.[1][2]

At the end of 1789, Elisabeth became pregnant; however, her condition was very delicate. After her visitation to the anointing of the sick, held by the emperor, on 15 February 1790, Elisabeth fainted—and on the night of 18 February, she prematurely gave birth to Archduchess Ludovika Elisabeth, who lived for only 16 months. Despite an emergency operation to save her life, Elisabeth did not survive the birth, which lasted more than 24 hours. She is buried in the Imperial Crypt, in Vienna. The emperor died two days after the death of his niece.

Issue
  • Archduchess Ludovika Elisabeth of Austria (18 Feb 1790 - 24 June 1791) died in infancy.

Archives

Elisabeth's letters to her parents, Frederick II Eugene, Duke of Württemberg and Princess Friederike of Brandenburg-Schwedt, written between 1780 and 1790, are preserved in the State Archive of Stuttgart (Hauptstaatsarchiv Stuttgart) in Stuttgart, Germany.[3][4] Elisabeth's letters to her brother, Charles Frederick Henry of Württemberg, are also preserved in the State Archive of Stuttgart.[5]

Ancestry

References
  1. "The Ill-Fated Archduchess Elisabeth of Austria". Retrieved 2022-04-05.
  2. Susan (2013-04-20). "Elisabeth of Württemberg, Archduchess of Austria". Unofficial Royalty. Retrieved 2022-04-05.
  3. "Briefe der Prinzessin Elisabeth an ihre Eltern, Herzog Friedrich Eugen und Herzogin Sophie Dorothee 1780-1790". Hauptstaatsarchiv Stuttgart. Retrieved 22 November 2021.
  4. "1. Briefe der Prinzessin Elisabeth an ihre Eltern, Herzog Friedrich Eugen und Herzogin Sophie Dorothee 1780-1790". Hauptstaatsarchiv Stuttgart. Retrieved 22 November 2021.
  5. "2. Briefe der Prinzessin Elisabeth an ihren Bruder Karl Friedrich Heinrich und 1 Schreiben ihres Gemahles und 2 weitere an den Prinzen über deren Tod 1782-1790". Hauptstaatsarchiv Stuttgart. Retrieved 22 November 2021.
  • Brigitte Hamann: Die Habsburger, ein biographisches Lexikon. Verlag Carl Ueberreuter, Vienna, 1988
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.