Archduchess Maria Leopoldine of Austria-Este

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Archduchess Maria Leopoldine of Austria-Este (December 10, 1776 - June 23, 1848) was the wife of Charles Theodore, Elector of Bavaria.

Maria Leopoldine was born at Milan, the second eldest daughter of Archduke Ferdinand of Austria-Este and of his wife, Princess Maria Beatrice Ricciarda d'Este.

Against her will Maria Leopoldine was married in August 1795 with Charles Theodore, Elector of Bavaria. Charles Theodor was 52 years older than Maria Leopoldine. The marriage was arranged with the hope that it would result in a son and heir for the senior line of the House of Wittelsbach, but Maria Leopoldine rejected sexual contact with her husband. Instead she started numerous love affairs, including with Maximilian of Palatinate-Zweibrücken and Maximilian von Montgelas. She terrorized her husband and the court and allied herself with the House of Palatinate-Zweibrücken against the alliance which her husband had forged with her own Habsburg family. When her husband was dying in 1799 she informed his heir Maximilian of Palatinate-Zweibrücken to secure his succession and retired to the Castle of Berg at Lake Starnberg, where she was soon known for an eccentric lifestyle with permissive parties. She became pregnant and was exiled in Laibach for some time. Later she became very wealthy by the management of her Bavarian manor in Stepperg.

On November 14, 1804 at Munich Maria Leopoldine married Count Ludwig Arco. They had three children:

• Count Aloys Nikolaus Ambros von Arco (December 6, 1808 - September 10, 1891)
• Count Maximilian Joseph Bernhard von Arco-Zinneberg (December 13, 1811 - November 13, 1885)
• Countess Caroline von Arco (December 26, 1814 - January 18, 1815)

In 1848 Maria Leopoldine was travelling by carriage from Munich to Vienna. Her carriage overturned near Wasserburg am Inn and she was killed. She left a fortune of 15 million florins to her two sons.^[1]

[edit] Ancestry

v • d • e Ancestors of Archduchess Maria Leopoldine of Austria-Este

16. Charles V, Duke of Lorraine               8. Leopold, Duke of Lorraine                       17. Eleonora Maria Josefa of Austria               4. Francis I, Holy Roman Emperor                             18. Philippe I, Duke of Orléans               9. Élisabeth Charlotte of Orléans                       19. Elizabeth Charlotte, Princess Palatine               2. Archduke Ferdinand of Austria-Este                                   20. Leopold I, Holy Roman Emperor               10. Charles VI, Holy Roman Emperor                       21. Eleonore-Magdalena of Neuburg               5. Maria Theresa of Austria                             22. Louis Rudolph, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg               11. Elisabeth Christine of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel                       23. Princess Christine Louise of Oettingen-Oettingen               1. Archduchess Maria Leopoldine of Austria-Este                                         24. Rinaldo III, Duke of Modena               12. Francesco III d'Este, Duke of Modena                       25. Charlotte Felicity of Brunswick-Lüneburg               6. Ercole III d'Este, Duke of Modena                             26. Philippe II, Duke of Orléans               13. Charlotte Aglaé of Orléans                       27. Françoise-Marie de Bourbon               3. Maria Beatrice Ricciarda d'Este                                   28. Carlo II Cibo-Malsapina, Duke of Massa               14. Alderano Cibo-Malsapina, Duke of Massa                       29. Teresa Pamfili               7. Maria Teresa Cibo-Malsapina, Duchess of Massa                             30. Camillo II Gonzaga, Count of Novellara               15. Ricciardia Gonzaga of Novellara                       31. Matilde d'Este

[edit] Footnotes

[edit] Bibliography

• Krauss-Meyl, Sylvia. Das "Enfant terrible" des Königshauses: Maria Leopoldine, Bayerns letzte Kurfürstin (1776-1848). Regensburg: Pustet, 1997. ISBN 3791715585.

Preceded by Elizabeth Augusta of Sulzbach

Electress of Bavaria 1795 – 1799

Succeeded by Caroline of Baden