Category Archives: Saxony Royals

Maria Josepha of Saxony, Dauphine of France

by Susan Flantzer
© Unofficial Royalty 2023

Maria Josepha of Saxony, Dauphine of France; Credit – Wikipedia

Maria Josepha of Saxony was the second wife of Louis, Dauphin of France, the son and heir of King Louis XV of France, and the mother of three Kings of France, Louis XVI, Louis XVIII, and Charles X. Maria Josepha Karolina Eleonore Franziska Xaveria was born on November 4, 1731, at Dresden Castle in Dresden, Electorate of Saxony, later in the Kingdom of Saxony, now in the German state of Saxony. She was the eighth of the fourteen children and the fourth of the seven daughters of Augustus III, Elector of Saxony, King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania and Maria Josepha of Austria. Her paternal grandparents were Augustus II, Elector of Saxony, King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania and Christiane Eberhardine of Brandenburg-Bayreuth. Maria Josepha’s maternal grandparents were Joseph I, Holy Roman Emperor and Wilhelmina Amalia of Brunswick-Lüneburg.

Maria Josepha had thirteen siblings:

Louis, Dauphin of France, son of King Louis XV, husband of Maria Josepha; Credit – Wikipedia

Louis, Dauphin of France was the elder son and heir apparent of his father Louis XV, King of France. In 1739, King Louis XV negotiated a marriage for his son Louis with Maria Teresa Rafaela, Infanta of Spain, daughter of Felipe V, King of Spain, born Philippe of France, Duke of Anjou, a grandson of Louis XIV, King of France and his second wife Elisabeth Farnese of Parma. The purpose of this marriage was to strengthen the alliance of Bourbon France and Bourbon Spain. Louis, Dauphin of France and Maria Teresa Rafaela, Infanta of Spain were married in 1745.

Louis and Maria Teresa Rafaela had one daughter Princess Marie Thérèse of France, born on July 19, 1746. Sadly, Maria Teresa Rafaela died three days later, on July 22, 1746, at the age of twenty. Louis’ sorrow was so intense that his father King Louis XV had to physically drag his son away from Maria Teresa Rafaela’s deathbed. Louis and Maria Teresa Rafaela’s daughter did not survive to her second birthday, dying on April 27, 1748.

Even though he grieved for his first wife, Louis knew he had to marry again to provide for the succession to the French throne. His first wife’s brother Fernando VI, King of Spain offered his youngest sister but Louis XV wanted to expand France’s diplomatic connections. France and Saxony had been on opposing sides in the recent War of the Austrian Succession (1740 -1748) and a marriage between a Princess of Saxony and the Dauphin of France would form a new alliance between the two countries. On January 10, 1747, fifteen-year-old Maria Josepha of Saxony was married by proxy to seventeen-year-old Louis, Dauphin of France. A second marriage ceremony took place in person at the Palace of Versailles on February 9, 1747. At the time of this marriage, Louis was still grieving for Maria Teresa Rafaela but Maria Josepha was patient and won his heart a little at a time.

Maria Josepha and her son Louis Joseph, Duke of Burgundy; Credit – Wikipedia

Maria Josepha and Louis had eight children including three Kings of France:

The couple’s first child, a daughter, was born on the feast day of Saint Zephyrinus and named Marie Zéphyrine. The birth was greeted with much joy by her parents but her grandfather King Louis XV was disappointed the child was not a male. On August 30, 1755, five-year-old Marie Zéphyrine suffered convulsions and died on September 2, 1755. Maria Josepha and Louis’ second child Louis Joseph, Duke of Burgundy fell off a toy horse in 1759. He started limping and a tumor began to grow on his hip. This was operated on in 1760, but he never recovered the use of his legs. Louis Joseph was diagnosed with extrapulmonary tuberculosis of the bone which caused his death in 1761. The couple’s second son, Xavier, Duke of Aquitaine died after an epileptic seizure when he was five months old.

Maria Josepha’s husband Louis was a pious man, faithful to her, and concerned about the welfare and education of his children. Like her husband, Maria Josepha was very devout. Maria Josepha and Louis were a counterbalance to the behavior of King Louis XV, who had many mistresses and many illegitimate children. The couple was not fond of the various entertainments held at the Palace of Versailles every week and preferred to stay in their apartments. Kept away from government affairs by his father, Louis was at the center of the Dévots, a group of religiously-minded men who hoped to gain power when he succeeded to the throne.

Allegory on the Death of the Dauphin by Louis-Jean-François Lagrenée, 1765; Credit – Wikipedia

However, Maria Josepha’s husband Louis never succeeded to the throne. He died of tuberculosis at the Château de Fontainebleau in France on December 20, 1765, at the age of 36. According to Louis’ last wishes, he was buried at the Cathedral of Saint-Étienne in Sens, France, and his heart was buried at the Basilica of Saint-Denis, near the grave of his first wife. Maria Josepha, who had cared for Louis during his last illness, also contracted tuberculosis. She died at the Palace of Versailles, on March 13, 1767, at the age of 35, and was buried with her husband.

When King Louis XV died of smallpox at the Palace of Versailles on May 10, 1774, he was succeeded by his grandson, King Louis XVI, the third but the eldest surviving son of Maria Josepha and her husband. During the French Revolution (1789 – 1799), King Louis XVI and his wife Marie Antoinette were beheaded as was Louis XVI’s youngest sister Elisabeth. Louis XVI’s two younger brothers escaped France and survived the French Revolution. Both reigned as Kings of France during the Bourbon Restoration (1814 – 1830).

Louis and Maria Josepha’s restored tomb; Credit – Par Aubry Gérard — Travail personnel, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=42182840

In March 1794, during the French Revolution, Louis and Maria Josepha’s tomb was desecrated and their remains were thrown into a mass grave. After the Bourbon Restoration, on the orders of Louis and Maria Josepha’s son King Louis XVIII, their remains were found, their tomb was restored, and they were reinterred at the Cathedral of Saint-Étienne in Sens, France on December 8, 1814.

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

Works Cited

  • Augustus III of Poland (2023) Wikipedia. Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Augustus_III_of_Poland (Accessed: 13 June 2023).
  • Flantzer, Susan. (2019) Louis, Dauphin of France, Unofficial Royalty. Available at: https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/louis-dauphin-of-france/ (Accessed: 13 June 2023).
  • Maria Josepha of Saxony, Dauphine of France (2023) Wikipedia. Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maria_Josepha_of_Saxony,_Dauphine_of_France (Accessed: 13 June 2023).
  • Maria Josepha von Sachsen (1731–1767) (2023) Wikipedia (German). Available at: https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maria_Josepha_von_Sachsen_(1731%E2%80%931767) (Accessed: 13 June 2023).
  • Marie-Josèphe de Saxe (1731-1767) (2023) Wikipedia (French). Available at: https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marie-Jos%C3%A8phe_de_Saxe_(1731-1767) (Accessed: 13 June 2023).

Maria Josepha of Saxony, Archduchess of Austria

by Susan Flantzer
© Unofficial Royalty 2023

Maria Josepha of Saxony, Archduchess of Austria; Credit – Wikipedia

Princess Maria Josepha of Saxony was the wife of Archduke Otto Franz of Austria and the mother of Karl I, the last Emperor of Austria. Maria Josepha Louise Philippina Elisabeth Pia Angelica Margaretha was born on May 31, 1867, in Dresden, Kingdom of Saxony, now in the German state of Saxony. She was the fifth of the eight children and the youngest of the four daughters of King Georg of Saxony and Infanta Maria Ana of Portugal. Maria Josepha’s paternal grandparents were King Johann of Saxony and Princess Amalie Auguste of Bavaria. Her maternal grandparents were Queen Maria II of Portugal and her second husband Prince Ferdinand of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha-Koháry.

Maria Josepha had seven siblings:

Maria Josepha, circa 1893; Credit – Wikipedia

Maria Josepha was raised in a strict Catholic environment. In 1883, her youngest sibling Albert became very ill. Their mother Maria Ana took care of him intensively for months until he recovered, but overworked herself so much that she died of exhaustion on February 5, 1884, at the age of 40. Maria Ana’s death occurred before her husband, who never remarried, became King of Saxony.

Otto Franz and Maria Josepha at the time of their engagement; Credit – Wikipedia

On October 2, 1886, in Dresden, Kingdom of Saxony, now in the German state of Saxony, 19-year-old Princess Maria Josepha married her 21-year-old second cousin Archduke Otto Franz of Austria, the son of Archduke Karl Ludwig of Austria and his second wife Princess Maria Annunciata of Bourbon-Two Sicilies. Maria Josepha’s father-in-law Karl Ludwig was the younger brother of Franz Joseph I, Emperor of Austria and Archduke Maximilian of Austria, the executed Emperor of Mexico. Her new husband Otto Franz was the brother of the ill-fated Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria whose assassination in 1914 was one of the causes of World War I

The marriage was not a love match. Otto Franz’s first cousin Crown Prince Rudolf of Austria and Otto’s brother Franz Ferdinand had snubbed the Saxony court by rejecting Maria Josepha’s elder sister Mathilde as a bride. Relations between Austria-Hungary and Saxony improved only when Otto Franz, under pressure from the Austrian-Hungarian court, married Mathilde’s younger sister Maria Josepha. The marriage of Otto Franz and Maria Josepha was increasingly unhappy. Otto Franz had many affairs and Maria Josepha was very religious and was insultingly called “the nun” by her husband because of her deeply pious beliefs.

Otto Franz and Maria Josepha with their two sons Karl and Maximilian Eugen, circa 1897; Credit – Wikipedia

Maria Josepha and Otto Franz had two sons:

In 1889, Otto Franz’s first cousin Crown Prince Rudolf of Austria died by suicide at his hunting lodge Mayerling. Crown Prince Rudolf, the only son of Emperor Franz Joseph of Austria, had no sons, and the succession would pass to Emperor Franz Joseph’s brother Archduke Karl Ludwig and his eldest son Archduke Franz Ferdinand, Maria Josepha’s father-in-law and brother-in-law. There have been suggestions that Karl Ludwig renounced his succession rights in favor of his son Franz Ferdinand. However, an act of renunciation was never formally signed and Karl Ludwig was never officially designated heir to the throne. He was only three years younger than Franz Joseph and not a realistic choice. When Karl Ludwig died in 1896, Maria Josepha’s brother-in-law Franz Ferdinand became the heir to his uncle’s throne.

Meanwhile, Otto Franz was involved in many scandals, including jumping nude from a window in a private dining room in the Hotel Sacher in Vienna in front of a visiting British peeress and being spotted in the hallway at the same hotel about to enter a lady’s room, wearing nothing but a sword. The imperial court gradually became alienated from Otto Franz as did his wife.


Maria Josepha and Otto Franz; Credit – Wikipedia

By 1900, it was clear that Maria Josepha’s husband Otto Franz had contracted the sexually transmitted disease syphilis. He withdrew from public life and spent a year in Egypt where he temporarily improved. After returning to Austria, Otto Franz became quite ill. He was in agonizing pain for the last two years of his life and was forced to replace his nose with a rubber prosthetic due to the facial deformity caused by syphilis. During the last months of his life, Otto Franz lived in a villa in Währing, a district of Vienna, and was nursed by his last mistress Luise Robinson and his stepmother, his father’s second wife Maria Theresa of Portugal. On November 1, 1906, Archduke Otto Franz, aged forty-one, died. He was interred in the Imperial Crypt at the Capuchin Church in Vienna, Austria. After the death of her husband, Maria Josepha remained unmarried. The German-Austrian stage and film actor Otto Tressler was a close friend, and possibly Maria Josepha and Otto had a relationship.

Karl and Zita’s wedding: (L – R) Archduke Franz Ferdinand, Archduchess Maria Josepha, Emperor Franz Joseph, Karl, and Zita; Credit – Wikipedia

On October 21, 1911, Maria Josepha’s son Karl married Princess Zita of Bourbon-Parma, the daughter of the deposed Robert I, Duke of Parma and his second wife, Maria Antonia of Portugal at Schwarzau Castle, an Austrian home of Zita’s family. 

Maria Josepha’s son Karl I, the last Emperor of Austria; Credit – Wikipedia

Maria Josepha’s brother-in-law Archduke Franz Ferdinand was the heir to the Austrian throne until his assassination on June 28, 1914, an event that was one of the causes of World War I. Franz Ferdinand had been allowed to make a morganatic marriage with the condition that the children of the marriage would not have succession rights. Upon Franz Ferdinand’s death, Maria Josepha’s son Karl became the heir to the Austrian throne. He succeeded to the throne as Emperor Karl I of Austria upon the death of Emperor Franz Joseph I in 1916. Karl reigned until the monarchy was abolished in 1918, at the end of World War I.

At the end of World War I, the armistice required that the Austrian-Hungarian Empire allow for autonomy and self-determination of the government of its various ethnic populations. The various areas proclaimed independence and by October 1918 there was not much left of the empire. On November 11, 1918, the same day as the armistice ending World War I, Karl issued a proclamation in which he recognized the rights of the people of Austria to determine their form of government and released his government officials from their loyalty to him. On November 13, 1918, Karl issued a similar proclamation for Hungary. Karl did not use the term “abdicate” in his proclamations and would never admit that he had abdicated.

On March 23, 1919, Karl and his family, including his mother Maria Josepha, left for Switzerland. On April 3, 1919, the Austrian Parliament passed the Habsburg Law which forbade Karl or his wife Zita from ever returning to Austria. The law also prevented other Habsburgs from returning to Austria unless they renounced all intentions of claiming the throne and accepted the condition of living as ordinary citizens. In 1921, Karl returned to Hungary twice, attempting to regain the throne of Hungary. After the second attempt, the Council of Allied Powers decided to exile Karl and his family to the Portuguese island of Madeira. In March 1922, Karl caught a cold which developed into bronchitis and further developed into pneumonia. After suffering two heart attacks and respiratory failure, Karl died on April 1, 1922, at the age of 34. Due to the Habsburg Law, Karl could not be buried in the Imperial Crypt in Vienna, Austria. He was buried at the Church of Our Lady of the Mount on the island of Madeira in Portugal.

The restrictions on the Habsburgs entering Austria were eventually rescinded, but only for those Habsburgs born after April 10, 1919. In 1982, the restrictions were eased and after 63 years, Karl’s widow Zita could return to Austria for visits. When Zita died in 1989, the government of Austria allowed her funeral to take place in Austria provided that the Habsburg family pay the cost and Zita was allowed to be buried in the Habsburg traditional burial site, the Imperial Crypt at the Capuchin Church in Vienna, Austria. However, the remains of her husband Karl are still interred in Portugal.

Beatification of Karl in 2004

Maria Josepha had raised Karl with a very religious upbringing, and upon marrying Princess Zita of Bourbon-Parma, also a very devout Roman Catholic, Karl told her, “Now, we must help each other to get to Heaven.” Karl was beatified on October 3, 2004, by Pope John Paul II, is known as Blessed Karl of Austria. Beatification is the third of four steps toward sainthood in the Roman Catholic Church.

Tomb of Maria Josepha, to the right of her husband’s tomb in the Imperial Crypt at the Capuchin Church in Vienna; Credit – www.findagrave.com

After Karl and his family were exiled to the Portuguese island of Madeira, Maria Josepha settled in Bavaria, Germany where she lived in Geiselgasteig near Munich. Because of Allied bombings during World War II, Maria Josepha moved to the safety of Wildenwart Castle in Chiemgau, Bavaria, Germany. The castle belonged to the former Bavarian royal family, and Maria Josepha lived there with Princess Hildegard and Princess Helmtrud, two unmarried daughters of Ludwig III, the last King of Bavaria. Maria Josepha died at Wildenwart Castle on May 28, 1944, at the age of 76, and was allowed to be buried in the New Vault of the Imperial Crypt at the Capuchin Church in Vienna, beside her husband.

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

Works Cited

  • Flantzer, Susan. (2014) Karl I, Emperor of Austria, Unofficial Royalty. Available at: https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/karl-i-emperor-of-austria/ (Accessed: 29 May 2023).
  • Flantzer, Susan. (2023) Archduke Otto Franz of Austria, Unofficial Royalty. Available at: https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/archduke-otto-franz-of-austria/ (Accessed: 29 May 2023).
  • Maria Josepha von Sachsen (1867–1944) (2023) Wikipedia (German). Available at: https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maria_Josepha_von_Sachsen_(1867%E2%80%931944) (Accessed: 29 May 2023).
  • Princess Maria Josepha of Saxony (1867–1944) (2023) Wikipedia. Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Princess_Maria_Josepha_of_Saxony_(1867%E2%80%931944) (Accessed: 29 May 2023).
  • Wheatcroft, Andrew, 1995. The Habsburgs. London: Viking.

Maria Amalia of Saxony, Queen of Spain, Queen of Naples and Sicily

by Susan Flantzer
© Unofficial Royalty 2023

Maria Amalia of Saxony, Queen of Spain, Queen of Naples & Sicily; Credit – Wikipedia

Maria Amalia of Saxony was the wife of King Carlos III of Spain who also was King Carlo VII of Naples from 1735 – 1759 and King Carlo V of Sicily from 1734 – 1759. Born on November 24, 1724, at Dresden Castle, in Dresden, Electorate of Saxony, now in the German state of Saxony, Maria Amalia Christina Franziska Xaveria Flora Walburga was a Princess of Poland and a Princess of Saxony. She was the fourth of the fourteen children and the eldest of the seven daughters of Augustus III, King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania, who was also Friedrich August II, Elector of Saxony, and Archduchess Maria Josepha of Austria. Maria Amalia’s paternal grandparents were Augustus II, King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania, who was also Friedrich August I, Elector of Saxony, and Christiane Eberhardine of Brandenburg-Bayreuth. Her maternal grandparents were Holy Roman Emperor Joseph I and Wilhelmine Amalie of Brunswick -Lüneburg.

Maria Amalia had thirteen siblings:

Dresden Castle where Maria Amalia was born and raised; Credit – By X-Weinzar – Self-photographed, CC BY-SA 2.5, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=7530258

Maria Amalia was raised at her father’s court at Dresden Castle in Dresden, Electorate of Saxony, now in the German state of Saxony. She received instruction in foreign languages, mathematics, foreign cultures, theater, and dancing. Maria Amalia was also an excellent musician and sang and played the piano from an early age.

Maria Amalia’s husband Carlos as King of Naples and Sicily; Credit – Wikipedia

In 1738, a marriage was arranged for fourteen-year-old Maria Amalia and twenty-two-year-old Carlos of Spain, then sovereign of two Italian kingdoms as King Carlo VII of Naples and King Carlo V of Sicily. Carlos was the eldest son of Felipe V, the first Bourbon King of Spain and his second wife ​Elisabeth Farnese of Parma, who had arranged the marriage. Carlos was not expected to become King of Spain because he had two elder surviving brothers from his father’s first marriage to Maria Luisa of Savoy.

On May 8, 1738, a proxy marriage was held in Dresden, Electorate of Saxony, now in Germany with the bride’s brother Friedrich Christian of Saxony standing in for Carlos. Shortly afterward, Maria Amalia traveled to the Kingdom of Naples, and on June 19, 1738, at Portella, a village on the border of the Kingdom of Naples, Carlos and Maria Amalia met for the first time and were married.

Three children of Maria Amalia and Carlos: Francisco Javier, Maria Luisa, and Carlos III’s successor, the future King Carlos IV; Credit – Wikipedia

Maria Amalia and Carlos had thirteen children but only seven survived childhood. Their children who were born before Carlos became King of Spain were Princes and Princesses of Naples and Sicily. Their children who survived until Carlos became King of Spain were then Infantes and Infantas of Spain.

Royal Palace of Caserta in Caserta, Italy; Credit – By Carlo Pelagalli, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=52612424

As Queen of Naples and Sicily, Maria Amalia had great influence and actively participated in state affairs. After the birth of her first son in 1747, she was given a seat on the council of state. Maria Amalia ended the careers of several politicians she disliked. She played an important role in the planning and construction of the Royal Palace of Caserta.

Maria Amalia’s in-laws: King Felipe V of Spain and Elisabeth Farnese of Parma, Queen of Spain in 1739

Carlos’ father Felipe V, King of Spain died of a stroke at the age of 62 on July 9, 1746, and Carlos’ only surviving elder half-brother Fernando succeeded to the Spanish throne as Fernando VI, King of Spain, and reigned for thirteen years. However, Fernando’s marriage to Barbara of Portugal produced no children, and so upon his death in 1759, his elder surviving half-brother, Maria Amalia’s husband Carlos, succeeded him as King Carlos III of Spain. With great sadness, by both Carlos and the people of Naples and Sicily, Carlos abdicated the thrones of Naples and Sicily in favor of his eight-year-old third son Ferdinando with a regency council ruling until his sixteenth birthday.

Maria Amalia, her husband, and their surviving children moved from Naples to Madrid, Spain in the autumn of 1759. Besides leaving their third son Ferdinando who was now King of Naples and Sicily, they left their eldest son Felipe who was excluded from the succession due to learning disabilities and epilepsy. Felipe lived hidden away at the Palace of Portici in the Kingdom of Naples, occasionally being visited by his brother King Ferdinando. Felipe died, aged 30, in 1777, from smallpox.

Maria Amalia had lived in her husband’s Italian kingdoms for twenty-one years and did not like Spain. She complained about the food, the language, which she refused to learn, the climate, the Spaniards, whom she regarded as passive, and the Spanish courtiers, whom she regarded as ignorant and uneducated. She planned reforms for the Spanish court but did not have time to complete them.

A posthumous portrait of Maria Amalia, circa 1761; Credit – Wikipedia

On September 27, 1760, a year after arriving in Spain, 35-year-old Maria Amalia died from tuberculosis at the Buen Retiro Palace in Madrid, Spain. She was buried in the Pantheon of Kings in the Royal Crypt of the Monastery of El Escorial. Upon Maria Amalia’s death, her husband Carlos said, “In twenty-two years of marriage, this is the first serious upset that Amalia has given me.” After Maria Amalia’s death, Carlos remained unmarried. He survived his wife by twenty-eight years, dying, aged 72, on December 14, 1788, at the Royal Palace of Madrid in Spain. He was buried in the Pantheon of Kings in the Royal Crypt of the Monastery of El Escorial.

Tomb of Maria Amalia of Saxony, Queen of Spain; Credit – www.findagrave.com

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

Works Cited

  • Augustus III of Poland (2022) Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation. Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Augustus_III_of_Poland (Accessed: January 2, 2023).
  • Flantzer, Susan. (2023) Carlos III, King of Spain, Duke of Parma and Piacenza, King of Naples, King of Sicily, Unofficial Royalty. Available at: https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/carlos-iii-king-of-spain-duke-of-parma-and-piacenza-king-of-naples-king-of-sicily/ (Accessed: January 2, 2023).
  • María Amalia de Sajonia (2022) Wikipedia (Spanish). Wikimedia Foundation. Available at: https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mar%C3%ADa_Amalia_de_Sajonia (Accessed: January 2, 2023).
  • Maria Amalia di Sassonia (2022) Wikipedia (Italian). Wikimedia Foundation. Available at: https://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maria_Amalia_di_Sassonia (Accessed: January 2, 2023).
  • Maria Amalia of Saxony (2022) Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation. Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maria_Amalia_of_Saxony (Accessed: January 2, 2023).
  • Maria Amalia von Sachsen (1724–1760) (2023) Wikipedia (German). Wikimedia Foundation. Available at: https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maria_Amalia_von_Sachsen_(1724%E2%80%931760) (Accessed: January 2, 2023).

Dresden Cathedral (Katholische Hofkirche) in Dresden, Germany

by Susan Flantzer
© Unofficial Royalty 2022

Dresden Cathedral; Credit – Wikipedia

Dresden Cathedral is a Roman Catholic church in Dresden in the German state of Saxony. During the time of the Electorate of Saxony and the Kingdom of Saxony, it was called the Catholic Church of the Royal Court of Saxony (in German: Katholische Hofkirche). Always the most important Catholic church in Dresden, in 1964, Dresden Cathedral was elevated to the status of co-cathedral, a cathedral church that shares the function of being a bishop’s seat with another cathedral. Dresden Cathedral is a co-cathedral of the Diocese of Dresden-Meissen with St. Peter’s Cathedral in Bautzen, Germany. It also serves as a parish church.

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History of Dresden Cathedral

Dresden Cathedral, circa 1840; Credit – Wikipedia

The House of Wettin split into two ruling branches in 1485: the Ernestine branch and the Albertine branch. The Albertine branch, while less prominent, ruled most of Saxony and briefly ruled Poland. In 1697, Friedrich August I, Elector of Saxony converted to Roman Catholicism to obtain the Polish crown. From 1697 to 1706, and again from 1709 until his death in 1733, he reigned as King of Poland as Augustus II while remaining Elector of Saxony. This conversion to Roman Catholicism caused concern in Protestant Saxony, which increased when his grandson the future Friedrich August II, Elector of Saxony (who also reigned as Augustus III, King of Poland), also converted in 1712.

Upon his conversion in 1697, Friedrich August I had guaranteed religious freedom for the people of the Electorate of Saxony. However, he did not dare to displease his mostly Protestant subjects by building a Catholic church in Dresden. Instead, he discreetly practiced his Catholic faith in the Dresden Castle chapel. In 1708, Friedrich August I had a ballroom the Opera House at the Taschenberg in Dresden, converted into a Catholic church. He supported the rebuilding of the Frauenkirche, originally a Catholic church until the Reformation, when it became a Protestant church. This gave further assurance to the people of Saxony that Friedrich August I, Elector of Saxony would not force upon them the principle of cuius regio, eius religio – whose realm, their religion – meaning that the religion of the ruler was to dictate the religion of those ruled.

It was not until Friedrich August I’s son Friedrich August II succeeded him as Elector of Saxony in 1733 that the Catholic Court Church (Katholische Hofkirche) was commissioned in 1736, initially under strict secrecy. At first, it was referred to as “a certain building”. Because of the conversion of the ruling family of Saxony, it was necessary to build a Roman Catholic church in Dresden to provide a Roman Catholic burial site for members of the Albertine branch. Friedrich August II’s father, Friedrich August I, Elector of Saxony who had converted to Roman Catholicism to become King of Poland, had been buried at the Roman Catholic Wawel Cathedral in Kraków, Poland. His wife Christiane Eberhardine of Brandenburg-Bayreuth remained Lutheran and was buried in a Lutheran church. Christiane Eberhardine was called Sachsens Betsäule (Saxony’s pillar of prayer) by the Protestant people of Saxony for her refusal to convert to Catholicism and her loyalty to the Protestant faith.

The church was designed by Italian architect Gaetano Chiaveri and construction was carried out from 1739 to 1755. Initially, the Catholic Court Church was for the use of the Elector of Saxony, his family, and high-ranking officials and it was connected with a walkway to Dresden Castle, the residence of the family of the Elector of Saxony, and later, the King of Saxony. The Catholic Court Church was consecrated as the Court Church of the Most Holy Trinity on June 29, 1751, four years before the church was entirely completed, by Archbishop Alberico Archinto, Apostolic Nuncio to Poland.

Dresden Cathedral’s destroyed roof after the 1945 bombing; Credit – Wikipedia

During the joint British and American bombing of Dresden during World War II, from February 13 – February 15, 1945, the church was hit by bombs and badly damaged. As early as June 1945, mass was celebrated in the Benno Chapel and later in the left aisle. In 1962, the nave could be used again and the restoration was completed by 1965.

From March 2020 to February 2021 the cathedral was closed for extensive renovation work including the rebuilding of the walkway from the church to Dresden Castle. The nave was temporarily scaffolded up to the ceiling to repair damage and dirt on the ceiling and walls. The sacristy was completely redesigned and the cathedral received new lighting and a new speaker system.

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The Exterior of Dresden Cathedral

An aerial view of Dresden Cathedral; Credit – Von Carsten Pietzsch – Eigenes Werk, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=31879551

The cathedral was built in the late Baroque style. The structure of the free-standing, high central nave and the lower ambulatory aisle which completely surrounds the nave, are clearly visible from the outside. The ambulatory aisle served as a procession area. Any form of outdoor Catholic worship was forbidden in Protestant Saxony, and Catholic processions were banned.

Statues of saints; Credit – By Ad Meskens – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=41602816

A striking feature of Dresden Cathedral is the seventy-eight larger-than-life statues of saints on the façade and the balustrades designed by the Italian sculptor Lorenzo Mattielli and the Dresden sculptors Paul and Jakob Mayer. The saints were chosen by Maria Josepha of Austria, Electress of Saxony, Queen of Poland, the Italian Jesuit and court confessor Ignatius Guarini (link in German), and the church architect Gaetano Chiaveri. Male and female saints are depicted and include apostles, evangelists, church fathers, founders of religious orders, important Jesuits, patron saints from the Saxon, Bohemian, Habsburg, and Polish regions, and allegorical figures.

During the bombing of Dresden in February 1945, sixteen statues were completely destroyed, eighteen were severely damaged, and numerous others had minor damage. From 1961 to 1972, the damaged statues were restored. The destroyed figures were replaced with copies from 1968 to 2002. Since 2002, unstable statues have been replaced with copies.

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The Interior of Dresden Cathedral

The nave looking toward the high altar; Credit – Von Jörg Blobelt – Eigenes Werk, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=62227414

The interior is divided into a nave, two aisles, and four corner chapels. A feature unique to Dresden Cathedral is the procession ambulatory, which runs around the entire nave. It was integrated into the church, at the time of construction, because Dresden was a Protestant city and the Catholic processional services had to take place inside.

The High Altar

The High Altar; Credit – Von Jörg Blobelt – Eigenes Werk, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=62227415

The high altar, made from marble and gilded bronze ornaments, was created by the Italian sculptor Andrea Salvatore di Antonio Aglio. The altarpiece, the large painting above the high altar, depicts the Ascension of Jesus Christ by Dresden court painter Anton Raphael Mengs.

The Left Aisle

The Martyrs Altar; Credit – By Ricardalovesmonuments – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=110287469

At the end of the left aisle was originally an altar dedicated to Saint Francis Xavier but it was destroyed in the 1945 Dresden bombing. It was replaced by the Martyrs’ Altar commemorating three World War II martyrs whose ashes were originally interred in the Old Catholic Cemetery in Dresden (link in German). The three urns with their ashes were transferred on February 5, 2011, in a procession from the Old Catholic Cemetery to Dresden Cathedral where they are kept permanently on the Martyrs’ Altar.

  • Blessed Alois Andritzki (1914 – 1943), a German Roman Catholic priest who was a vocal critic of the Nazi regime and was killed by lethal injection in the Dachau concentration camp, beatified (the last step before sainthood) in 2011 at Dresden Cathedral
  • Bernhard Wensch (link in German) (1908 – 1942), a German Roman Catholic priest who was a vocal critic of the Nazi regime, died in the Dachau concentration camp
  • Aloys Scholze (link in German) (1893 – 1942), a German Roman Catholic priest who was a vocal critic of the Nazi regime, died in the Dachau concentration camp

Tje baptismal font by sculptor Balthasar Permoser; Credit – By SchiDD – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=111691972

Also in the left aisle is the baptismal font with a gilded metal lid created by sculptor Balthasar Permoser in 1721.

The Right Aisle

Statue of the Blessed Virgin Mary holding the Infant Jesus, surrounded by angels by German sculptor Herman Leitherer; Credit – By Ricardalovesmonuments – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=110287485

At the end of the right aisle was originally an altar dedicated to Saint Ignatius of Loyola but it was destroyed in the 1945 Dresden bombing. An altar dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary replaced the original altar. In the wall niche above the altar is a statue of Mary holding the Infant Jesus, surrounded by angels created, by German sculptor Herman Leitherer (link in German) in 1987, inspired by the Mühlhausen altar in Bamberg Cathedral.

The Four Corner Chapels

Four chapels are located at the four corners of Dresden Cathedral. All four chapels suffered damage during the Dresden bombing in February 1945. Three of the corner chapels have been restored close to their original. An exception is the Memorial Chapel commemorating the victims of World War II which is an entirely new chapel.

The Sacrament Chapel

The Sacrament Chapel; Credit – By Mogadir – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=43707533

The Sacrament Chapel, dedicated to the Eucharist (Holy Communion), is located at the southwest corner and is used for silent worship. The Founder’s Crypt, where the Electors and Kings of Saxony from 1694 to 1827 and some family members are interred, is located under the Sacrament Chapel.

The reproduction of The Institution of the Eucharist by the German painter Gerhard Keil; Credit – By Jörg Blobelt – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=98058798

The original altarpiece, the painting over the altar, The Institution of the Eucharist (by French painter Louis de Silvestre, 1752), was destroyed in the Dresden bombing. It was replaced in 1984 with a reproduction by the German painter Gerhard Keil (link in German).

The reproduction of the ceiling fresco Adoration of the Eucharistic; Credit – By Jörg Blobelt – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=77116515

The ceiling fresco Adoration of the Eucharistic (by Italian painter Stefano Torelli, 1755) was also destroyed and was recreated.

The Cross Chapel

The Cross Chapel; Credit – By Ad Meskens – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=41624986

The Cross Chapel is located at the northwest corner. It is where weekday masses for the cathedral parish are celebrated. The Royal Crypt, where the two Kings of Saxony from 1830 to 1873 and their wives are interred is located under the Cross Chapel.

The altarpiece, Crucifixion of Christ (by French painter Charles François Hutin, 1753), was restored after the Dresden bombing but the ceiling fresco painted by Benjamin Theil in 1787 was damaged and was only partly restored.

The Benno Chapel

The Benno Chapel; Credit – By Ricardalovesmonuments – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=110287472

The Benno Chapel is located at the southeast corner. It is dedicated to Saint Benno of Meissen (circa 1010 – 1106) who was named Bishop of Meissen in 1066. Benno, venerated since the 13th century, was canonized as a saint in 1523. Saint Benno is the patron saint of the Diocese of Dresden-Meissen and also the city of Munich in Bavaria, Germany.

Reproduction of Bishop Benno Proclaiming the Christian Faith to the Sorbs; Credit – By Jörg Blobelt – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=98058793

The original altarpiece Bishop Benno Proclaiming the Christian Faith to the Sorbs, a West Slavic ethnic group who lived in Saxony and Brandenburg (by Stefano Torelli, 1752), and the ceiling fresco (by Austrian painter Franz Anton Maulbertsch, 1770 ) were destroyed in the Dresden bombing and reproductions were made.

Reliquary made by German sculptor Paul Brandenburg containing Saint Benno of Meissen’s miter; Credit – Bistum Dresden-Meissen (Diocese of Dresden-Meissen)

On the altar is a reliquary made by German sculptor Paul Brandenburg (link in German) in 1997 containing Saint Benno of Meissen’s miter, the traditional headdress of a bishop, which is venerated as a relic.

The Memorial Chapel

Friedrich Press’ Pietà and altar in the Memorial Chapel; Credit – Bistum Dresden-Meissen (Diocese of Dresden-Meissen)

The Memorial Chapel is located on the northeast corner and is the new chapel that was built to replace the one that was destroyed in the Dresden bombing. The original chapel was dedicated to Saint Johann Nepomuk (circa 1345 – 1393) who was tortured and drowned after being thrown into the Vltava River (Moldau River in German) from Charles Bridge in Prague, then in the Kingdom of Bohemia, by order of King Wenceslaus IV of Bohemia after a dispute.  Johann Nepomuk was the confessor of King Wenceslaus IV’s second wife Sophia of Bavaria, Queen of Bohemia and apparently, he refused to reveal her confession.

Since 1976, the chapel has been a memorial for the victims of the Dresden bombing in February 1945 that killed up to 25,000 people. Displayed in the Memorial Chapel is a modern Pietà, a work of art depicting the Virgin Mary cradling the dead body of Jesus after his body was removed from the cross. Sculpted by German sculptor Friedrich Press (link in German) (1904 – 1990), the Pietà in the Memorial Chapel is the largest sculpture ever made from Meissen porcelain. The altar in the Memorial Chapel is also the work of Friedrich Press. During the Nazi regime, Press’ works were officially considered “degenerate art.” After World War II, nearly all of his works were religious-related art.

High up on the walls of the Memorial Chapel are the words of the sermon during the last mass before the bombing. Also on the walls are the names of 52 priests from the Diocese of Dresden-Meissen who were killed by the Nazis.

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Burials in the Founders Crypt

The Founders Crypt; Credit – By Mogadir – Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=43489343

The Founders Crypt is located under the Sacrament Chapel in the south of the cathedral. The Electors and Kings of Saxony from 1694 to 1827 are interred here. The crypt contains nine coffins including the coffins of three children of Friedrich August II, Elector of Saxony, during whose reign the Catholic Church of the Royal Court of Saxony was built. The three coffins are the oldest in the entire burial crypt and were moved from their original burial site in 1751.

The heart of Friedrich August I, Elector of Saxony, who reigned also as Augustus II (the Strong), King of Poland in a niche in the Founders Crypt; Credit – By Mogadir – Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=43489045

In addition, the heart of Friedrich August I, Elector of Saxony, who reigned also as Augustus II (the Strong), King of Poland rests in a niche in the Founders Crypt. His body was buried in Wawel Cathedral in Kraków, Poland.

Burials in the Royal Crypt

The Royal Crypt; Credit – By User:Kolossos – Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=2452678

The two Kings of Saxony from 1830 to 1873 and their wives are interred in the Royal Crypt under the Cross Chapel of the cathedral. The Royal Crypt is the smallest burial place in the church but the sarcophagi are the most ornate. The bronze sarcophagi were decorated in the Neo-Baroque style and each weigh five tons. King Johann’s sarcophagus is decorated with the owl of the Greek goddess Athena in honor of his knowledgable and studious nature. King Johann was an avid student of literature, and under a pseudonym, published numerous translations into German, including Dante’s Divine Comedy.

Burials in the New Crypt

The New Crypt; Credit – By Mogadir – Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=43488502

The two Kings of Saxony from 1873 to 1918, along with some of their relatives are interred in the New Crypt under the southeast aisle of the cathedral. The most recent burial in the cathedral is that of Georg, Crown Prince of Saxony son of Friedrich August III, King of Saxony, who became a Roman Catholic priest and renounced his succession rights.

Burials in the Great Crypt

The Great Crypt; Credit – royaltyguide.nl

Twenty-five coffins of members of the electoral and royal families of Saxony from 1763 to 1898 are interred in the Great Crypt under the northwest aisle of the cathedral.

  • Joseph of Saxony (1754 – 1763), son of Friedrich Christian, Elector of Saxony
  • Karl Maximilian of Saxony (1752 – 1781), son of Friedrich Christian, Elector of Saxony
  • Maria Carolina of Savoy, Electoral Princess of Saxony (1764 – 1782), 1st wife of Anton, King of Saxony
  • Friedrich August of Saxony (born and died 1796), son of Anton, King of Saxony
  • Maria Ludovica of Saxony (1795 – 1798), daughter of Anton, King of Saxony
  • Maria Johanna of Saxony (1798 – 1799), daughter of Anton, King of Saxony
  • Maria Theresa of Saxony (born and died 1799), daughter of Anton, King of Saxony
  • Carolina of Bourbon-Parma, Hereditary Princess of Saxony (1770 – 1804), wife of Maximilian, Hereditary Prince of Saxony
  • Franz Xaver of Poland and Saxony (1730 – 1806), son of Friedrich August II, Elector of Saxony/Augustus III, King of Poland
  • Maria Elisabeth of Poland and Saxony (1736 – 1818), daughter of Friedrich August II, Elector of Saxony/Augustus III, King of Poland
  • Maria Anna of Saxony (1761 – 1820), daughter of Friedrich Christian, Elector of Saxony
  • Maria Kunigunde of Poland and Saxony (1740 – 1826), daughter of Friedrich August II, Elector of Saxony/Augustus III, King of Poland
  • Maria Theresa of Austria, Queen of Saxony (1767 – 1827) 2nd wife of Anton, King of Saxony
  • Maria Karoline of Austria, Crown Princess of Saxony (1801 – 1832), 1st wife of Friedrich August II, King of Saxony
  • Anton, King of Saxony (1755 – 1836), son of Friedrich Christian, Elector of Saxony
  • Maximilian, Hereditary Prince of Saxony (1759 – 1838), son of Friedrich Christian, Elector of Saxony, renounced his succession to the throne in favor of his son Friedrich August II
  • Ernst of Saxony (1831 – 1847), son of Johann I, King of Saxony
  • Maria Augusta of Saxony (1827 – 1857), daughter of Johann I, King of Saxony
  • Marie Johanna Amalie of Saxony (1860 – 1861), daughter of Georg, King of Saxony
  • Sidonia of Saxony (1834 – 1862), daughter of Johann I, King of Saxony
  • Maria Augusta of Saxony (1782 – 1863), daughter of Friedrich Augustus I, King of Saxony
  • Elisabeth of Saxony (1862 – 1863), daughter of Georg, King of Saxony
  • Amalie of Saxony (1794 – 1870), daughter of Prince Maximilian of Saxony, granddaughter of Friedrich Christian, Elector of Saxony
  • Maria Anna of Portugal, Princess of Saxony (1843 – 1884), wife of Georg, King of Saxony
  • Maria Alix Carola of Saxony (born and died 1898), daughter of Friedrich August III, King of Saxony

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This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

Works Cited

  • Bistum-dresden-meissen.de. 2022. Geschichte der Kathedrale. [online] Available at: <https://www.bistum-dresden-meissen.de/wir-sind/kathedrale/geschichte/geschichte-der-kathedrale> [Accessed 13 May 2022].
  • De.wikipedia.org. 2022. Katholische Hofkirche – Wikipedia. [online] Available at: <https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Katholische_Hofkirche> [Accessed 13 May 2022].
  • De.wikipedia.org. 2022. Liste der Bestatteten in der Wettiner-Gruft der Katholischen Hofkirche – Wikipedia. [online] Available at: <https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liste_der_Bestatteten_in_der_Wettiner-Gruft_der_Katholischen_Hofkirche> [Accessed 13 May 2022].
  • En.wikipedia.org. 2022. Dresden Cathedral – Wikipedia. [online] Available at: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dresden_Cathedral> [Accessed 13 May 2022].

Maria Carolina of Savoy, Electoral Princess of Saxony

by Susan Flantzer
© Unofficial Royalty 2022

Maria Carolina of Savoy, Electoral Princess of Saxony; Credit – Wikipedia

Maria Carolina of Savoy, Electoral Princess of Saxony was the first wife of the future Anton, King of Saxony. Maria Carolina Antonietta Adelaide was born on January 17, 1764, at the Royal Palace of Turin in the Kingdom of Sardinia, now in Italy. She was the tenth of the twelve children and the youngest of the six daughters of Vittorio Amadeo III, King of Sardinia, Duke of Savoy and Infanta Maria Antonia Ferdinanda of Spain. Maria Carolina’s paternal grandparents were Carlo Emanuele III, King of Sardinia, Duke of Savoy and the second of his three wives Polyxena of Hesse-Rheinfels-Rotenburg. Her maternal grandparents were Felipe V, King of Spain and his second wife Elisabeth Farnese.

Maria Carolina’s parents and some of their older children in 1760; Credit – Wikipedia

Maria Carolina had eleven siblings:

Maria Carolina was raised with her two younger siblings, the future Carlo Felice, King of Sardinia and Prince Giuseppe of Savoy, Count of Asti. In 1781, Maria Carolina’s father decided she would marry Anton, Electoral Prince of Saxony, who was the heir to his elder brother Friedrich August I, Elector of Saxony. Despite her protests, seventeen-year-old Maria Carolina was married by proxy on September 29, 1781, in the chapel of Moncalieri Castle near Turin. The eldest brother of the bride, the future Carlo Emanuele IV, King of Sardinia, stood in for the groom. Wedding celebrations were held throughout Turin and official balls were held at the Royal Palace in Turin and Moncalieri Castle.

Shortly after the proxy marriage, Maria Carolina reluctantly left Turin for Dresden, the capital of Saxony. Her family accompanied her as far as Vercelli, eighty miles from Turin, where she boarded a carriage that would take her to Saxony. Her sister Maria Giuseppina wrote about the trip: “We accompanied Maria Carolina to Vercelli. She was afraid. She didn’t want to get married, but the matters of state require that a princess usually get married. Maria Carolina must understand that. She has a certain tendency to shyness. I hope she will correct it so that both she and Prince Antonio can get along. Our sister Maria Teresa and I had to push her out of the carriage. She was crying, I hope she is well in Saxony.” Both Maria Carolina’s elder sisters understood the duties of a princess very well. Previously, Maria Teresa had married the future King Charles X of France and Maria Giuseppina the future King Louis XVIII of France. However, both sisters died before their husbands became King of France.

Anton and Maria Carolina; Credit – Wikipedia

Maria Carolina arrived in Dresden in the Electorate of Saxony, now in the German state of Saxony, on October 24, 1781, and she saw her husband for the first time. Their in-person wedding took place that evening. Maria Carolina’s husband Anton and his brother Friedrich August I, Elector of Saxony did their best to make her feel welcome in Saxony but she remained sad and homesick.

Tomb of Maria Carolina of Savoy, Electoral Princess of Saxony; Credit – www.findagrave.com

Around December 14, 1782, Maria Carolina became ill with smallpox, and died on December 28, 1782, at the age of 18. She was buried in the Great Crypt of the Catholic Church of the Royal Court of Saxony (in German: Katholische Hofkirche) in Dresden, now known as Dresden Cathedral. Popular in her homeland, Maria Carolina was remembered in a folk song, “The Beautiful Mademoiselle,” composed in her honor after her early death. Maria Carolina’s husband married a second time to Maria Theresa of Austria. They had four children who all died in infancy. Anton became King of Saxony at the age of 72. He reigned for nine years, dying on June 6, 1836, fifty-four years after the death of his first wife Maria Carolina.

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

Works Cited

  • De.wikipedia.org. 2022. Maria Carolina von Savoyen – Wikipedia. [online] Available at: <https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maria_Carolina_von_Savoyen> [Accessed 14 May 2022].
  • En.wikipedia.org. 2022. Princess Maria Carolina of Savoy – Wikipedia. [online] Available at: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Princess_Maria_Carolina_of_Savoy> [Accessed 14 May 2022].
  • Flantzer, Susan, 2021. Vittorio Amadeo III, King of Sardinia, Duke of Savoy. [online] Unofficial Royalty. Available at: <https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/vittorio-amadeo-iii-king-of-sardinia-duke-of-savoy/> [Accessed 14 May 2022].
  • Mehl, Scott, 2017. Anton, King of Saxony. [online] Unofficial Royalty. Available at: <https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/anton-king-of-saxony/> [Accessed 14 May 2022].
  • Ru.wikipedia.org. 2022. Мария Каролина Савойская — Википедия. [online] Available at: <https://ru.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D0%9C%D0%B0%D1%80%D0%B8%D1%8F_%D0%9A%D0%B0%D1%80%D0%BE%D0%BB%D0%B8%D0%BD%D0%B0_%D0%A1%D0%B0%D0%B2%D0%BE%D0%B9%D1%81%D0%BA%D0%B0%D1%8F> [Accessed 14 May 2022].

Albert, Margrave of Meissen

by Scott Mehl
© Unofficial Royalty 2021

Albert, Margrave of Meissen was briefly one of the disputed Heads of the House of Saxony, and pretender to the former throne of the Kingdom of Saxony.

photo: By Adrian Nikiel – Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=7919702

Albert Joseph Maria Franz-Xaver, Prince of Saxony was born in Bamberg, Bavaria on November 30, 1934. He was the younger son of Prince Friedrich Christian of Saxony, Margrave of Meissen and Princess Elisabeth Helene of Thurn und Taxis, and had four siblings:

After finishing secondary school in Bregenz, Austria, the family moved to Munich, Germany where Albert studied history and ethnography at the Ludwig Maximilian University, receiving his Ph.D. in 1961. He worked as a historian, studying the history of the Duchy and then the Kingdom of Saxony and its relationship to Bavaria.

Albert and his wife, 2005. photo: Wikipedia

In a civil ceremony on April 10, 1980, and a religious ceremony two days later at the Theatinerkirche in Munich, Germany, Albert married Elmira Henke, his assistant for many years. They had no children.

Upon the death of his elder brother, Maria Emanuel, in July 2012, Albert assumed the Headship of the House of Saxony. This was disputed as Maria Emanuel had named and adopted his nephew Prince Alexander of Saxe-Gessaphe as his rightful heir. (More on the succession dispute below). However, Albert’s role in the dispute was short-lived, as he passed away in Munich three months later, on October 6, 2012. He is buried in the Old Catholic Cemetery in Dresden, Germany along with his wife.

SUCCESSION DISPUTE

Having no children, in May 1977 Maria Emanuel named his nephew Prince Alexander of Saxe-Gessaphe as his heir. Alexander was the son of the Margrave’s eldest sister Anna. A document was drafted, agreed to, and signed by all the other members of the former royal house. Two years later, in September 1999, Maria Emanuel legally adopted Alexander. However, in 2002, three of the family members retracted their agreement. One of them was Maria Emanuel’s younger brother Albert who stated that the headship of the family should eventually pass to Prince Rüdiger, the son of their late cousin Prince Timo of Saxony. Despite this disagreement, Maria Emanuel continued to assert that Prince Alexander was his rightful heir. Following Maria Emanuel’s death in July 2012, both Albert and Alexander claimed the headship of the family. When Albert died just three months later, the dispute intensified. Prince Rüdiger claimed that he was the rightful heir, and assumed the title Margrave of Meissen, just as Prince Alexander had done upon Maria Emanuel’s death.

In 2015, the heads of three Ernestine branches of the House of Wettin, Michael, Prince of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach, Andreas, Prince of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, and Konrad, Prince of Saxe-Meiningen, issued a statement stating that they did not recognize Prince Alexander as Head of the House of Saxony or as Margrave of Meissen. Notably, their statement did not specifically recognize Prince Rüdiger either.

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Saxony Resources at Unofficial Royalty

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Maria Emanuel, Margrave of Meissen

by Scott Mehl
© Unofficial Royalty 2021

Maria Emanuel, Margrave of Meissen was Head of the House of Saxony and pretender to the former throne of Saxony from 1968 until he died in 2012. Having no children, his death brought about a dispute over the headship of the family between several of his relatives.

Maria Emanuel, Prince of Saxony was born on January 31, 1926 at Prüfening Abbey in Regensburg, the eldest child of Prince Friedrich Christian of Saxony, Margrave of Meissen, and Princess Elisabeth Helene of Thurn und Taxis. He had four younger siblings:

  • Princess Maria Josepha (1928) – unmarried
  • Princess Anna (1929) – married Roberto de Afif, had issue
  • Prince Albert, Margrave of Meissen (1934) – married Elmira Henke, no issue
  • Princess Mathilde (1936) – married Prince Johannes Heinrich of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, had issue

In 1944, he was arrested due to a letter he wrote against the Nazi regime following the attempted assassination of Hitler. He was transferred to Potsdam to be put on trial. Fortunately, thanks to the efforts and connections of his father, he was charged as a juvenile and avoided the death penalty. Finally, at the end of the war in 1945, he was released and rejoined his family. After studying at the Düsseldorf Art Academy, Maria Emanuel worked as a painter and graphic artist in Munich, before moving to Switzerland in 1958.

 

On June 22, 1962 in La Tour-de-Peilz, Switzerland, Maria Emanuel married Princess Anastasia of Anhalt. She was the daughter of Prince Eugen of Anhalt and Anastasia Jungmeier. The couple had no children.

Maria Emanuel, Margrave of Meissen died in La Tour-de-Peilz on July 23, 2012. He is buried alongside his parents in the grounds next to the Königskapelle in Karrösten, North Tyrol.

 

SUCCESSION DISPUTE

Having no children, in May 1977 Maria Emanuel named his nephew, Prince Alexander of Saxe-Gessaphe, as his heir. Alexander was the son of the Margrave’s eldest sister Anna. A document was drafted, agreed to, and signed by all the other members of the former royal house. Two years later, in September 1999, Maria Emanuel legally adopted Alexander. However, in 2002, three of the family members retracted their agreement. One of them was Maria Emanuel’s younger brother, Albert, who stated that the headship of the family should eventually pass to Prince Rüdiger – the son of their late cousin, Prince Timo of Saxony. Despite this disagreement, Maria Emanuel continued to assert that Prince Alexander was his rightful heir. Following his death in July 2012, both Albert and Alexander claimed the headship of the family. When Albert died just three months later, the dispute intensified. Prince Rüdiger claimed that he was the rightful heir, and assumed the title Margrave of Meissen, just as Prince Alexander had done upon Maria Emanuel’s death.

In 2015, the heads of three Ernestine branches of the House of Wettin – Michael, Prince of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach, Andreas, Prince of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, and Konrad, Prince of Saxe-Meiningen – issued a statement stating that they did not recognize Prince Alexander as Head of the House of Saxony, nor as Margrave of Meissen. It is notable that their statement did not specifically recognize Prince Rüdiger either.

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Saxony Resources at Unofficial Royalty

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Prince Friedrich Christian of Saxony, Margrave of Meissen

by Scott Mehl
© Unofficial Royalty 2021

Prince Friedrich Christian of Saxony, Duke of Saxony, Margrave of Meissen was the first pretender to the former throne of Saxony, and head of the House of Saxony, from 1932 until his death in 1968.

Prince Friedrich Christian of Saxony, Margrave of Meissen photo: Wikipedia

Prince Friedrich Christian Albert Leopold Anno Sylvester Macarius of Saxony was born in Dresden on December 31, 1893, the second son of the last King of Saxony, King Friedrich August III of Saxony and his wife Archduchess Luise of Austria, Princess of Tuscany. He had six siblings:

After studying at the Military Academy in Dresden, Friedrich Christian served during World War I in the General Staff on the Western Front. Due to his fluency in several languages, he was sent on diplomatic missions to Spain, Turkey, and Austria. The Saxony monarchy ended in November 1918 when the German Empire collapsed and his father abdicated. Friedrich Christian then devoted his time to academics, studying law at universities in Cologne, Freiburg, Wroclaw, and Würzburg. After earning his degree, he taught art history privately before being asked by his father to take over the management of the family’s estates in Saxony and Silesia.

On June 16, 1923 in Regensburg, Friedrich Christian married Princess Elisabeth Helene of Thurn und Taxis, the daughter of Albert, 8th Prince of Thurn und Taxis and Archduchess Margarethe Klementine of Austria. Together, the couple had five children:

  • Prince Maria Emanuel, Margrave of Meissen (1926) – married Princess Anastasia of Anhalt, no issue
  • Princess Maria Josepha (1928) – unmarried
  • Princess Anna (1929) – married Roberto de Afif, had issue
  • Prince Albert, Margrave of Meissen (1934) – married Elmira Henke, no issue
  • Princess Mathilde (1936) – married Prince Johannes Heinrich of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, had issue

That same year, Friedrich Christian became heir apparent to the former throne of Saxony when his elder brother renounced his rights to the throne and entered the priesthood. Nine years later, in February 1932, his father died and Friedrich Christian became Head of the House of Saxony and pretender to the former throne. At that time, he took on the historic title Margrave of Meissen. Over the next years, the family moved around quite a bit – living in Bamberg for several years before settling at Wachwitz Castle in Dresden until 1945. Moving several more times, they eventually settled in Munich in 1955.

Burial site at the Königskapelle. photo: Wikipedia

Friedrich Christian, Margrave of Meissen, died on August 9, 1968 in Samedan, Switzerland. Some years earlier, he had chosen the Königskapelle in Karrösten, North Tyrol to be his future burial site, instead of Dresden Cathedral, the traditional burial site for the Saxon family. He had a crypt designed in the grounds next to the chapel and is buried there alongside his wife and eldest son.

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Saxony Resources at Unofficial Royalty

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Anna of Saxony, Hereditary Grand Duchess of Tuscany

by Susan Flantzer
© Unofficial Royalty 2021

Anna of Saxony, Princess of Tuscany; Credit – Wikipedia

Anna of Saxony was the first wife of the future Ferdinando IV, Grand Duke of Tuscany. However, she died before her husband became Grand Duke. Anna Maria Maximiliane Stephania Karoline Johanna Luisa Xaveria Nepomucena Aloysia Benedicta was born in Dresden, Kingdom of Saxony, now in the German state of Saxony on January 4, 1836. She was the seventh of the nine children and the fourth of the six daughters of Johann, King of Saxony and Amalie Auguste of Bavaria. Anna’s paternal grandparents were Maximilian, Hereditary Prince of Saxony and his first wife Carolina of Bourbon-Parma. Her maternal grandparents were Maximilian I Joseph, King of Bavaria and his second wife Caroline of Baden.

Anna had eight siblings:

Ferdinando of Tuscany, Anna’s husband; Credit – Wikipedia

Anna’s father was a close friend of Leopoldo II, Grand Duke of Tuscany. The two families were linked by several marriages. A marriage between Anna and Leopoldo’s eldest son and heir Ferdinando, Hereditary Grand Duke of Tuscany was negotiated when the future bride and groom were still children. Anna and Ferdinando were married on November 24, 1856, in Dresden, Kingdom of Saxony, now in the German state of Saxony.

Anna gave birth to a daughter in 1858. On February 6, 1859, during a trip to Naples, Kingdom of the Two Sicilies, now in Italy, Anna miscarried a daughter due to typhoid fever. Four days later Anna died at the age of twenty-three. She was buried at the Basilica of San Lorenzo in Florence, Grand Duchy of Tuscany, now in Italy.

Anna and Ferdinando’s daughter Maria Antonietta, circa 1875; Credit – Wikipedia

Ferdinando and Anna had one surviving daughter:

Shortly after Anna’s death, on April 27, 1859, the Grand Ducal family was forced to flee Florence because of the wars caused by the Italian unification movement, and the family took refuge in Austria. On July 21, 1859, Leopoldo II abdicated in favor of his son Ferdinando IV who was Grand Duke of Tuscany in name but never really reigned. The Grand Duchy of Tuscany was annexed to the Kingdom of Sardinia in 1860, as a part of the unification of Italy. In 1861, Vittorio Emanuele II, King of Sardinia was proclaimed the first King of the new, united Kingdom of Italy, and Ferdinando’s hopes to reclaim the throne were ended. Ferdinando spent the rest of his life in exile in the Austrian-Hungarian Empire. On January 11, 1868, Ferdinando married Princess Alice of Bourbon-Parma, daughter of Carlo III, Duke of Parma and Louise Marie Thérèse of France. and the couple had ten children.

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

Grand Duchy of Tuscany Resources at Unofficial Royalty

Works Cited

  • De.wikipedia.org. 2021. Anna Maria von Sachsen – Wikipedia. [online] Available at: <https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anna_Maria_von_Sachsen> [Accessed 29 September 2021].
  • En.wikipedia.org. 2021. Princess Anna of Saxony (1836–1859) – Wikipedia. [online] Available at: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Princess_Anna_of_Saxony_(1836%E2%80%931859)> [Accessed 29 September 2021].
  • Flantzer, Susan, 2021. Ferdinando IV, Grand Duke of Tuscany. [online] Unofficial Royalty. Available at: <https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/ferdinando-iv-grand-duke-of-tuscany/> [Accessed 29 September 2021].
  • It.wikipedia.org. 2021. Anna Maria di Sassonia – Wikipedia. [online] Available at: <https://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anna_Maria_di_Sassonia> [Accessed 29 September 2021].
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  • Wilson, Peter, 2016. Heart of Europe – A History of the Holy Roman Empire. Cambridge: Belknap Press of Harvard University Press.

Maria Anna of Saxony, Grand Duchess of Tuscany

by Susan Flantzer
© Unofficial Royalty 2021

The Grand Duchy of Tuscany was located in present-day northwest Italy. It existed, with a few interruptions, from 1569 – 1859. Tuscany was ruled by the de Medici family from 1434–1494 and from 1512 until the extinction of its senior branch in 1737. In 1569, Pope Pius V elevated Tuscany to a Grand Duchy and Cosimo I de’ Medici became its first Grand Duke.

In 1737, the House of Habsburg-Lorraine obtained control of the Grand Duchy of Tuscany.  François Étienne, Duke of Lorraine exchanged the Duchy of Lorraine for the Grand Duchy of Tuscany. Stanisław I, the father-in-law of King Louis XV of France, had abdicated the throne of Poland in 1736 and now became the Duke of Lorraine.

Except for a period of thirteen years from 1801 – 1814 during the French Revolutionary Wars and Napoleonic Wars, the House of Habsburg-Lorraine retained the Grand Duchy of Tuscany until Tuscany was annexed to the Kingdom of Sardinia in 1860, as a part of the unification of Italy. In 1861, Vittorio Emanuele II, King of Sardinia was proclaimed the first King of the new, united Kingdom of Italy.

Two Grand Dukes of Tuscany were also Holy Roman Emperors: Francesco II Stefano, Grand Duke of Tuscany (reigned 1737 – 1765) also Franz I, Holy Roman Emperor (reigned 1745 – 1765) and Pietro Leopoldo I, Grand Duke of Tuscany (reigned 1765 – 1790) also Leopold II, Holy Roman Emperor (reigned 1790 – 1792).

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Maria Anna of Saxony, Grand Duchess of Tuscany; Credit – Wikipedia

Maria Anna of Saxony was the first wife of Leopoldo II, Grand Duke of Tuscany. Maria Anna Carolina Josepha Vincentia Xaveria Nepomucena Franziska de Paula Franziska de Chantal Johanna Antonia Elisabeth Cunigunde Gertrud Leopoldina was born on November 15, 1799, at the Royal Palace of Dresden in the Electorate of Saxony, now in the German state of Saxony. She was the fifth of the seventh children and the third of the four daughters of Maximilian, Hereditary Prince of Saxony and his first wife Princess Carolina of Parma. Maria Anna’s paternal grandparents were Friedrich Christian, Elector of Saxony, and Maria Antonia Walpurgis of Bavaria. Her maternal grandparents were Ferdinando, Duke of Parma and Maria Amalia of Austria.

Maria Anna had six siblings:

Leopoldo II, Grand Duke of Tuscany; Credit – Wikipedia

In 1817, Maria Anna became betrothed to the future Leopoldo II, Grand Duke of Tuscany. The couple had a proxy marriage on October 28, 1817, in Dresden, Kingdom of Saxony, now in the German state of Saxony. However, Maria Anna was so terrified of meeting her bridegroom that she refused to leave Saxony unless her sister Maria Ferdinanda accompanied her. Accompanied by her sister Maria Ferdinanda, Maria Anna finally met Leopoldo and they were married in person on November 16, 1817, at the Basilica of the Most Holy Annunciation in Florence, Grand Duchy of Tuscany, now in Italy.

Maria Ferdinanda, sister of Maria Anna, in the year of her marriage; Credit – Wikipedia

Four years later, when his son Leopoldo and his daughter-in-law Maria Anna had not produced any children, Ferdinando III, Grand Duke of Tuscany decided to marry twenty years after the death of his first wife Luisa of Naples and Sicily. During his son’s wedding celebrations, Maria Ferdinanda of Saxony, the bride’s sister, had caught the eye of Ferdinand III, who was twenty-seven years older than Maria Ferdinanda. He remembered Maria Ferdinanda and chose her as his second wife. They were married on May 6, 1821, in Florence. Ferdinando III hoped to have more children but his marriage to Maria Ferdinadna remained childless.

Maria Anna as Grand Duchess of Tuscany; Credit – Wikipedia

Three years after his second wedding, Ferdinando I, Grand Duke of Tuscany, aged 55, died on June 18, 1824, in Florence, Grand Duchy of Tuscany, now in Italy. Maria Anna’s husband succeeded to the throne as Leopoldo II, Grand Duke of Tuscany, and Maria Anna replaced her sister Maria Ferdinanda as the Grand Duchess of Tuscany. Maria Anna and her husband were the founding patrons of L’Istituto Statale della Ss. Annunziata, the first female boarding school in Florence to educate aristocratic and noble young ladies. The school is still in existence.

The three daughters of Maria Anna and Leopoldo; Credit – Wikipedia

Maria Anna and Leopoldo eventually had children – three daughters who could not succeed to the throne. If Leopoldo did not have a male heir, the throne of the Grand Duchy of Tuscany would revert to Leopoldo’s Austrian Habsburg relatives.

Maria Anna’s inability to produce a male heir caused depression and coupled with her chronic ill health, made her developing tuberculosis more severe. The doctors advised Maria Anna to move to Pisa because of its milder and healthier climate. The court moved to Pisa in the winter of 1832 but Maria Anna showed no improvement. Her condition worsened in March 1832 and it became clear that she would soon die. Maria Anna serenely awaited her death with her confessor at her bedside but she regretted abandoning her husband and children. On March 24, 1832, 32-year-old Maria Anna died at the Royal Palace (link in Italian) in Pisa, Grand Duchy of Tuscany, now in Italy. She was interred at the Basilica of San Lorenzo in Florence in a beautiful red porphyry sarcophagus surmounted by a crown.

Maria Anna’s husband Leopoldo greatly grieved his beloved wife. However, because he had three daughters and needed a male heir to ensure the succession he married again the following year to his first cousin Maria Antonia of the Two Sicilies. Leopoldo and Maria Antonia had ten children including Leopoldo’s heir and the last Grand Duke of Tuscany, Ferdinand IV.

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

Grand Duchy of Tuscany Resources at Unofficial Royalty

Works Cited

  • En.wikipedia.org. 2021. Leopold II, Grand Duke of Tuscany – Wikipedia. [online] Available at: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leopold_II,_Grand_Duke_of_Tuscany> [Accessed 27 September 2021].
  • En.wikipedia.org. 2021. Princess Maria Anna of Saxony (1799–1832) – Wikipedia. [online] Available at: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Princess_Maria_Anna_of_Saxony_(1799%E2%80%931832)> [Accessed 27 September 2021].
  • Flantzer, Susan, 2021. Leopoldo II, Grand Duke of Tuscany. [online] Unofficial Royalty. Available at: <https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/leopoldo-ii-grand-duke-of-tuscany/> [Accessed 27 September 2021].
  • Flantzer, Susan, 2021. Maria Ferdinanda of Saxony, Grand Duchess of Tuscany. [online] Unofficial Royalty. Available at: <https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/maria-ferdinanda-of-saxony-grand-duchess-of-tuscany/> [Accessed 27 September 2021].
  • It.wikipedia.org. 2021. Maria Anna Carolina di Sassonia – Wikipedia. [online] Available at: <https://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maria_Anna_Carolina_di_Sassonia> [Accessed 27 September 2021].
  • Wheatcroft, Andrew, 1995. The Habsburgs. New York: Viking.
  • Wilson, Peter, 2016. Heart of Europe – A History of the Holy Roman Empire. Cambridge: Belknap Press of Harvard University Press.