What made Austria's Maria Theresa a one-of-a-kind ruler
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March 15, 2017
Empress of Austria Maria Theresa paved the way for compulsory education in the 18th century, but also persecuted sexual immorality. A reformer and fierce ruler, Austria marks the 300th anniversary of her birth.
Austria loves its former ruler, who was born in 1717. She might not have been made the sole leader, but as first lady she had a lot of influence. We explore her sites in and around Vienna.
The Vienna estate served as the official address for Austrian rulers, but the young empress, Maria Theresa, truly loved this palace, which was a wedding gift from her father. She had it remodeled to her taste and requirements. Today Schönbrunn Palace is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of Austria's most visited tourist attractions.
Image: Schloß Schönbrunn Kultur- und Betriebsges.m.b.H./Lammerhuber
Ruling and governing in Rococo splendor
Anyone who has visited the Great Gallery at Schönbrunn Palace can tilt their head back and see Maria Theresa portrayed in the center of the ceiling fresco. She made Schönbrunn a center of courtly representation where most crowned heads of Europe would visit. The Great Gallery is regarded as one of the most splendid examples of a Rococo hall in Europe.
Image: Schloß Schönbrunn Kultur- und Betriebsges.m.b.H./Agentur Zolles
The only female ruler on Austria's throne
Even though her husband, Francis I, was the official ruler, Maria Theresa took charge of matters of state. She introduced compulsory schooling and made the potato popular in her country. She was already a legend during her lifetime and often the subject of paintings. Her looks and clothes were avidly discussed by the people, very much like today's celebrities.
Image: picture-alliance/akg-images
Klosterneuburg - a place of pilgrimage
Maria Theresa was a devout catholic. She personally took part in the courtly pilgrimage at Klosterneuburg Monastery to the grave of its founder, Saint Leopold III. Klosterneuburg is also Austria's oldest vineyard. To mark Maria Theresa's 300th anniversary, there will be a special exhibition there called "Church, Monastery, Empress" - which will also display a lock of her hair.
Image: Österreich Werbung/Zechany
Maria Theresa's heart at the Augustinian Church
In the Augustinian Church in the center of Vienna, Maria Theresa and Duke Francis of Lorraine were married in 1736. They later had 16 children, 10 of whom survived to adulthood. Church services are still held there. But you can feel even closer to Maria Theresa in the so-called "Herzgruft" (heart crypt), which contains her actual heart in a silver urn.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/R. Hackenberg
Laxenburg - leisure time in the park
Maria Theresa also expanded the Habsburg holiday residence on the shores of the Schwechat River. An inscription there sums this place up: "Rerum irrecuperabilium summa felicitas est oblivio" - which, translated, means true happiness is given to those who can forget what can't be changed. The green pavilion in the park became her favorite place.
Image: Wolfgang Mastny
Spanish Riding School - free style for Lipizzan stallions
Maria Theresa rode there herself, for instance as part of the "Ladies' carousel," a formation with horse and carriage. It took until 2016, when the riding school had been in existence for 450 years, for the first woman rider, Hannah Zeitlhofer, to be accepted into the Spanish Riding School as a rider and trainer. The school has been named by UNESCO as a piece of immaterial cultural heritage.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/C. Bruna
Albertina and a million works of art
Maria Theresa had the building constructed in 1744 at the Augustinian Bastion. Her daughter Marie Christine, together with her husband Albert, a passionate collector of art, made this administration building her home. Today the Albertina is one of the city's leading art institutions and home to works by Albrecht Dürer and Egon Schiele.
Image: Albertina, Wien/Harald Eisenberger
Niederwieden Palace - a gift for her husband
An hour's drive from Vienna you'll find Niederwieden Palace. Maria Theresa bought the hunting lodge in 1755 and gave it to her husband Francis I, Holy Roman Emperor. The intimate palace was used for rustic hunting parties and small representative baroque festivals. Following extensive restoration work, the palace reopened to the public in 2015 as an exhibition space.
Image: Österreich Werbung/Wiesenhofer
Hof Palace served as a refuge
Hof Palace is close by, a place Maria Theresa acquired at the same time as Niederweiden. Following the sudden death of her beloved husband in 1765, she only wore black and remodeled her quarters into a widow's apartment. Grey and white décor was typical for these. The bed has been reconstructed according to original designs. Also on show are paintings of the imperial family.
Image: Österreich Werbung/Lammerhuber
The Imperial Crypt - her last residence
When Maria Theresa died in 1780 at age 63, she was said to have been wearing her husband's dressing gown. She was entombed in the Imperial Crypt, a place reserved for Habsburg rulers, where she was laid to rest in opulent double sarcophagi with her late husband Emperor Francis I, above the plain single tomb of her son Joseph II. Some 12 emperors and 19 empresses and queens are entombed there.
Image: picture-alliance/chromorange/Z. Okolic
Take a seat for a photo shoot
She was described as having a full, round face, blonde, slightly red hair and blue eyes. Maria Theresa lives on for eternity in Madame Tussauds wax cabinet in Vienna's Prater amusement park. The seat next to her wax figure is reserved for those wishing to take a selfie with the ruler. And in her anniversary year you can expect to have to queue to gain an audience with the empress.
Image: Madame Tussauds Wien
Waiter, I'd like a Maria Theresa please!
Those ordering a "Maria Theresa" at a Vienna coffee house can expect a strong double coffee, topped with whipped cream and containing a shot of orange liquor. To this day there are some 150 traditional coffee houses in the Austrian capital, with wooden floors, simple chairs and plush sofas. In 2011, Viennese coffee house culture was officially declared part of the UNESCO World Heritage list.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/C. Bruna
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First of all, Maria Theresa (1717-1780) was never actually crowned empress. As the only female ruler in the House of Habsburg, she was the Archduchess of Austria and the Queen of Hungary and Bohemia.
Maria Theresa was only 23 years old when she ascended to the Austrian throne in 1740. Though the official ruler was actually her husband, Francis I, she governed the Habsburg monarchy single-handedly.
When her husband became the emperor of the Holy Roman Empire in 1745, Maria Theresa acquired the title of empress, as suits the wife of an emperor. The only female sovereign in the history of the House of Habsburg became pivotal during the era of enlightened absolutism, which served as a precursor to the Enlightenment and saw rulers in Europe increasingly valuing rationalism and supporting human rights.
The beautiful muse, Maria Theresa
No other woman of her time was painted as often as Maria Theresa, which not only had to do with her position of power. Her contemporaries described her as a very beautiful woman, especially when she was young. She had a round face, slightly reddish blonde hair, large, vivid, light blue eyes, and an upbeat expression - that's how a Prussian emissary at the Vienna court described her. However, he also stated: "After going through childbirth numerous times and filling out, she has become somewhat sluggish."
Maria Theresa is featured at Madame Tussauds in ViennaImage: Madame Tussauds Wien
The darlings of the empress
That, however, didn't affect the relationship between Maria Theresa and her husband, Francis I. Their marriage was to guarantee a balance of power within the spectrum of European politics. When they married in 1736, they already knew each other well, as the groom had lived at the Vienna court for a long time.
They not only appreciated each other, but felt a deep love for one another - and had 16 children together. The marriage was considered a happy one, although Francis I was said to have had numerous affairs. When the emperor died unexpectedly in 1765 after 29 years of marriage, Maria Theresa wrote: "I lost a husband, a friend, the only object of my love."
She took care of her 11 daughters and five sons, who were given a strict and comprehensive education. Only 10 of the 16 children reached adulthood, among them two future emperors, an elector of Cologne and Marie Antoinette, the future wife of King Louis XVI of France.
Maria Theresa's biggest foe
Maria Theresa's first major challenge came shortly after she had ascended the throne: Other European rulers started making territorial claims after she had assumed authority over the House of Hapsburg in 1740. Among them was the King of Prussia, Frederick II, who triggered the Silesian Wars and with them the War of the Austrian Succession.
When the latter ended in 1748, Maria Theresa had lost the region of Silesia forever. Furthermore, she was forced to give up the duchies of Parma and Piacenza. She did succeed, however, in keeping all other territories of the Habsburg Empire. Maria Theresa gained a great deal of respect by asserting her power in trying times. King Frederick II of Prussia remained her biggest enemy. In her view, he was a "monster" and a "miserable king."
Comprehensive state reforms
Maria Theresa was one of the most frequently painted women of her timeImage: Dauerleihgabe der Österreichische-Nationalbank, Foto: A. E. Koller für SKB
It's quite likely that Maria Theresa, who called herself Roman Empress from 1745 onwards, actually admired the Prussian king in secret. After all, she carried out long-term reforms that mirrored those made in Prussia, which were marked to some extent by the spirit of enlightened absolutism.
She doubled the size of the army, reformed the military and the judiciary, and established a high court. She also set up new structures in the educational system with the objective of introducing compulsory schooling, and standardized measurements and weights.
The capital city Vienna got a facelift and the stock exchange (Boerse) and Burgtheater were built. Streets in the city were paved, and the Schönbrunn Palace, originally a hunting lodge, was enlarged and transformed into a prestigious landmark. It became Maria Theresa's favorite palace.
Faithful and intolerant
In some regards, the conservative Catholic ruler applied a strict zero tolerance policy. She had no sympathy for non-Catholics. Under her rule, Protestants were even persecuted and expelled to be resettled in thinly populated regions of what is now Romania.
She also displayed no tolerance for Jews. Roughly four years after she had ascended to the throne, she expelled 20,000 Jews from Prague and other parts of Bohemia in 1744. The monarch remained intolerant until the end of her life.
Maria Theresa, Francis I, and their children in 1754Image: Sammlung Bundesmobilienverwaltung, Foto: Fritz Simak für SKB
During her entire life, the devout Catholic showed no tolerance at all towards immorality. She went so far as to introduce a chastity court that charged prostitutes, adulterers, homosexuals, sodomites and even sexual intercourse between members of different religions. Depending on the crime, the sentence could include whipping, deportation or even the death penalty.
Someone who was never charged by the chastity court was her own adulterous husband. From 1765 onwards, the handling of what was seen as immorality became less strict. After the death of her husband, her son Joseph II became the Holy Roman Emperor and a co-regent of the House of Habsburg. The relationship between mother and son was difficult and full of conflicts: Joseph followed the humanistic principles of Enlightenment, whereas his mother partially rejected some of these concepts as anti-Catholic.
Austria celebrates its empress
Maria Theresa died of pneumonia on November 29, 1780, at the age of 63 in her hometown, Vienna. The most enigmatic regent of the House of Habsburg has remained unforgotten until today.
Starting on March 15, Austria is celebrating her 300th anniversary of her birth on May 13, 1717, with an exhibition taking place in four different locations. The show "300 Years Maria Theresa: Strategist - Mother - Reformer" looks at all aspects of the ruler's life, including her family life and political achievements, as well as the aftermath of her rule. The exhibition will end on November 29, 2017, the anniversary of her death.
This article was updated on July 12, 2024, to reflect the fact that Maria Theresa's husband became holy Roman emperor in 1745, not 1945 as previously written.
