Eleonor Magdalene of Neuburg

Eleonore Magdalene of Neuburg (Eleonore Magdalene Therese; 6 January 1655 – 19 January 1720) was Holy Roman Empress as the spouse of Leopold I, Holy Roman Emperor.^[1] Through her marriage, she was also Queen of Bohemia and Hungary, German Queen, and Archduchess of Austria. She served as Interim Regent in 1711. She was the paternal grandmother of Empress Maria Theresa.

Birth and family

Born a Countess Palatine of Neuburg in Düsseldorf, Eleonore Magdalene was the oldest daughter of Philip William, Elector Palatine and his wife Elisabeth Amalie of Hesse-Darmstadt. Among her siblings were Maria Sophia, future wife of Peter II of Portugal and Maria Anna, future wife of Charles II of Spain.

Marriage

Eleonor married Emperor Leopold I in 1676. She was a good candidate as a bride for the emperor already in 1673 because of her family's reputed great fertility and connections, and although Claudia Felicitas of Austria was chosen before her in 1674, she was chosen in 1676. She accepted without enthusiasm to make her parents happy: Eleonor was brought up to an extreme degree of Catholicism and had originally wished to become a nun.

Empress

Eleonor was active in social works. She suffered from depression and was described as self-destructive. She introduced a more economical household at court: she hosted a court affected by her strong religious views: strict, simple and conventlike and, as it was said, in an atmosphere reminiscent of an eternal mourning period, which was regarded as somewhat ridiculous and exaggerated. She was drawn to the penitential side of Catholicism, and often dressed in black as if she were in mourning.

She was politically active and did not lack influence over her spouse: it is reported that she received and opened important political documents while the Emperor stood waiting beside her "as a secretary". She made great efforts to provide favors, positions and lucrative posts for her relatives, and secured high positions for her brothers. In addition, she was the protector of the chancellor Theodor Strattmann. She accompanied her spouse on his travels, and she also saw to the upbringing of her children personally.

She became widowed in 1705. As an Empress Dowager, she strived to keep her political influence through her daughter-in-law, Empress Wilhelmina Amalia.

Regent

After the death of her son in 1711, she served as interim Regent, during which she had conflicts with Count Wratislaw and Prince Eugene of Savoy. She managed to stop Feldmarschall Johann Graf Pálffy von Ungarn, brother of the royal mistress of the late Emperor Joseph, Marianne Pálffy, from uniting with the rebels of Hungary, after which she signed the treaty of Szatmár. She presided over the congress to determine the succession and election of an new Emperor, and favoured the election of Emperor Charles. When Charles returned from Spain, she resigned from court and retired to do works of charity and penance.

Issue

• Joseph, later Emperor Joseph I (1678–1711)
• Christina (1679 - 1679), Archduchess of Austria.
• Maria Elisabeth (1680–1741), Archduchess of Austria, Governor of the Austrian Netherlands.
• Leopold Joseph (1682–1684), Archduke of Austria.
• Maria Anna (1683–1754), Archduchess of Austria, married King John V of Portugal.
• Maria Theresia (1684–1696), Archduchess of Austria.
• Charles, later Emperor Charles VI (1685–1740) father of Empress Maria Theresa,
• Maria Josepha (1687–1703), Archduchess of Austria.
• Maria Magdalena (1689–1743), Archduchess of Austria.
• Maria Margaret (1690–1691), Archduchess of Austria.

Ancestry

References

Sources

• Wheatcroft, Andrew (1995). The Habsburgs: Embodying Empire. London: Penguin Books. ISBN 0670854905. 
• Konrad Kramar und Petra Stuiber: „Die schrulligen Habsburger – Marotten und Allüren eines Kaiserhauses“. Ueberreuter, Wien 1999, ISBN 3-8000-3742-4.
• Kaiserin Eleonore Magdalena Theresia (1655-1720)