Marie Caroline of Austria
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Maria Carolina of Austria (German: Maria Karolina von Österreich; Italian: Maria Carolina d'Austria; 13 August 1752 – 8 September 1814), born Archduchess Maria Carolina of Austria (German: Erzherzogin Maria Karolina von Österreich), and later becoming Maria Carolina, Queen of Naples and Sicily (Italian: Maria Carolina, Regina di Napoli e di Sicilia) was queen consort and de facto ruler of Naples from 1768 to 1799 and from 1799 to 1806, and of Sicily from 1768 until her death in 1814, though she had lost the de facto power in 1812. She was born an Austrian Archduchess and was a sister of Queen Marie Antoinette of France.
Contents |
[edit] Early life and marriage
| Styles of Queen Maria Carolina as consort |
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| Reference style | Her Majesty |
| Spoken style | Your Majesty |
| Alternative style | Ma'am |
Archduchess Maria Carolina Ludovica Josepha Johanna Antonia of Austria, Princess Royal of Hungary and Bohemia, Princess of Tuscany was born in 1752, the daughter of Maria Theresa of Austria and Francis I, Holy Roman Emperor.
Maria Carolina, also called Charlotte in the Viennese court, was the 13th child in the family. She and Marie-Antoinette (aka Antoine) were the two youngest Archduchess and they were raised together. They were extremely close to each other and shared the same governess until 1967. They were both lively girls. While Marie Antoinette neglected her studies, Maria Carolina was diligent student. Her mother encouraged her talent in drawing and she was also taught Latin in addition to history, geography and writing, among others. Their governess Countess Brandeis was kindly but not very strict and Maria Carolina begged her mother to place her under the governess who was in-charge of her sister, Maria Josepha. Her mother described Maria Carolina as the daughter who resembled her most, not only in looks but also in character and intelligence. In a letter to her then 15-year old daughter, whom the Empress considered as childish for her age, Maria Theresa mother advised Carolina to work diligently on her studies and make the most of the gifts God has given her, not to be idle and seek unsuitable amusements, and encouraged her to be more gentle with her ladies-in-waiting and show a more mature and kindly attitude. Shortly after this letter, Maria Carolina and Marie Antoinette were separated and Carolina was placed under the governess of her choice. This separation was decided by the Empress because of the perceived idle, careless and unsuitable behavior of the two sisters and Carolina was told to be firm with the separation and to ignore the "little one" (as the Empress would sometimes call Marie Antoinette to Carolina) when she made attempts to continue their old ways. She was also told to attach herself to her sister Marie Amalie instead of the "little one", in order for her to develop a mature behavior and outlook. Despite this separation, Maria Carolina and Marie Antoinette would retain their great affection and concern for each other throughout their lives. Decades later, Marie Antoinette's daughter, Marie-Therese-Charlotte, told her aunt that her mother spoke about her (Carolina) often and that she was the sister that Marie Antoinette loved most.
When her older sister Maria Josepha died, Maria Carolina was took her place as the designated bride for the King of Naples and Sicily. Maria Carolina did not want to marry him, a total stranger who was also reported to be uneducated, had low tastes and boorish manners, in addition to being childish and lazy. Despite her tears, pleas, and remonstrations and her mother's misgivings about her daughter's intended, her mother was determined to seal the alliance with King Charles III of Spain and further Austrian interests in the Italian Peninsula so Maria Carolina had no choice in the matter. Her departure for Naples caused her and her family great distress. At the last minute, Carolina had sprung out her carriage to give her beloved Antoine a series of hugs and pleaded with her governess later on to write her everything that she knows about Antoine. Carolina was said to be extremely upset upon crossing the borders of her mother's dominions and it was an immense relief to her that her brother Leopold, who was based in Tuscany that time and her favorite brother, would accompany her on the last part of her journey to Naples.
On 12 May 1768, she married the young Ferdinand IV of Naples who was also Ferdinand III of Sicily. Ferdinand was intelligent but very indolent, and Maria Carolina took advantage of that to assume control of the affairs of the kingdom. Her first few months in Naples were extremely distressing to her and she wrote her mother that she would prefer to die than relive her first few weeks there and that she would have taken her life if not for her faith in and love for God. She would also write to her mother that marriage is hard enough with her husband but to pretend to the content with it (as advised by her mother) was an even greater burden. Her mother encouraged her daughter to make the most of the marriage, saying that marriage is the most important thing in life. Her mother also advised her that, "Above all, she must try to understand her ill-educated but well-meaning husband". In time, Maria Carolina resigned herself to her marriage and was very good mother to her children and very kind to other family members, in addition to carefully supervising her children's education. Her youngest daughter Maria Antonia wrote to her in despair from Spain, "Mother, you have been deceived. For you are too good a mother to have sacrificed me like this if you had known." in reference to her marriage and the treatment of her mother in-law, Maria Luisa of Parma, who was Queen of Spain at that time. Queen Maria Carolina and Queen Maria Luisa were bitter enemies yet she loved her daughter-in-law Maria Isabella of Spain very much despite the fact that Maria Isabella was the daughter of her enemy (and was rumored to be fathered not by King Charles IV but by the Prime Minister Godoy) - a clear contrast of the treatment by Maria Luisa to Maria Antonia. She was very much embittered by the French revolution and hated Napoleon I, yet she was fond of her great grandson, Napoleon II, despite her horror that her granddaughter Archduchess Marie Louise was to marry Napoleon I.
On 14 August 1777, when she gave birth to a male heir, Francis, she became a Counsellor of State, and she took advantage of this position of political influence. She inherited much of her mother's intelligence, but was also ambitious and cruel, wanting to raise the kingdom to a position of power. Maria Carolina eventually established a tyrannical reign through her husband's power.
Like her sister, Marie Antoinette, her daughter, Maria Amalia became queen consort of France. Another of her daughters, Maria Teresa, became the wife of the Francis II, Holy Roman Emperor. Later, the eldest daughter of Maria Teresa, Marie Louise, became the second wife of Napoleon I, Emperor of the French.
Ferdinand and Maria Caroline's children were:
[edit] Children
| Name | Birth | Death | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Maria Teresa | June 6, 1772 | April 13, 1807 | married her first cousin Francis II of Austria, had issue. | |
| Maria Luisa Amelia Teresa | July 27, 1773 | September 19, 1802 | married her first cousin Ferdinand III, Grand Duke of Tuscany, had issue. | |
| Carlo | January 6, 1775 | December 17, 1778 | died in childhood. | |
| Maria Anna | November 23, 1775 | February 22, 1780 | died in childhood. | |
| Francis I | August 19, 1777 | November 8, 1830 | married his first cousin Maria Clementina had issue. | |
| Maria Cristina Amelia | January 17, 1779 | March 11, 1849 | married Charles Felix of Sardinia. | |
| Maria Amelia Cristina | January 17 1779 | February 26, 1783 | twin of the precedent, died in childhood. | |
| Carlos | April 12, 1780 | January 2, 1789 | died in childhood. | |
| Giuseppe | January 18, 1781 | December 19, 1783 | died in childhood. | |
| Maria Amelia Teresa | April 26, 1782 | March 24, 1866 | married the future Louis-Philippe of France, had issue. | |
| Maria Cristina | July 19, 1783 | July 19, 1783 | died in childhood (lived few hours). | |
| Maria Antonietta | December 14, 1784 | May 21, 1806 | married her first cousin Ferdinand VII of Spain, no issue. | |
| Maria Clothilde | February 18, 1786 | September 12, 1792 | died in childhood. | |
| Maria Enrichetta | July 31, 1787 | September 20, 1792 | died in childhood. | |
| Carlo | August 26, 1788 | February 1, 1789 | died in childhood. | |
| Leopoldo | July 2, 1790 | 10 March 1851 | married his niece Maria Clementina (1798-1881), had issue. | |
| Alberto | May 2, 1792 | December 24, 1798 | died in childhood, on sea on the escape from Napoleon Bonaparte. | |
| Maria Isabella | December 2, 1793 | April 23, 1801 | died in childhood. |
[edit] The First Coalition
During the French Revolution, the queen actually sympathized with the French rebels until the French monarchy was abolished on 21 September 1792. She further turned against the rebels with the execution of first her brother-in-law Louis XVI of France (21 January 1793) and then her own younger sister Marie Antoinette (16 October, 1793).
The Queen and her husband were horrified, and Maria Carolina used her uxorious husband to bring the Neopolitan and Sicilian armies into the First Coalition against France. Peace was made in 1796.
[edit] The Parthenopaean Republic
Early in 1799, Naples had its own (albeit short-lived) revolution, which replaced the Kingdom of Naples with the Parthenopaean Republic. In June, restoration forces commanded by Cardinal Ruffo destroyed the republic, returning the royal family to control. Before entry of the British fleet, allied to the court and commanded by Lord Nelson into the Bay of Naples, a capitulation treaty had been signed by Ruffo giving many republicans safe-passage to France.
The king and queen, intent on crushing the republican spirit and showing no mercy to the rebels, worked through Lady Hamilton, wife of the British Ambassador and mistress of Lord Nelson - who was at the time the Queen's close friend and confidant - to dupe the republicans into putting themselves into a position in which they could be captured. Several thousand of them were summarily judged and hanged.
[edit] Deposition and death
In 1806, her husband was deposed as King of Naples (thus deposing her as de facto ruler) by Napoleon Bonaparte. However, Maria Carolina retained her status and power in Sicily until 1812, when her husband essentially (but not officially) abdicated, appointing his son Francis regent, which deprived the queen of her influence, and Maria Carolina was exiled to her homeland Austria, where she died in 1814. After her death, her husband became subservient to the will of Austria with his top advisor Maria Carolina gone.
[edit] Ancestry
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Marie Caroline of Austria
Cadet branch of the House of Lorraine
Born: 13 August 1752 Died: 8 September 1814 |
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| Regnal titles | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Maria Amalia of Saxony |
Queen Consort of Sicily 12 May 1768- 8 September 1814 |
Succeeded by Lucia Migliaccio of Floridia (Royal consort) |
| Queen Consort of Naples 12 May 1768-23 January 1799 |
Succeeded by Parthenopaean Republic |
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| Preceded by Parthenopaean Republic |
Queen Consort of Naples 13 June 1799-30 March 1806 |
Succeeded by Julie Clary |
