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Maria Theresa of Spain
Maria Theresa of Spain (Spanish: María Teresa de España; French: Marie-Thérèse d'Espagne; 10 September 1638 – 30 July 1683) was Queen of France from 1660 to 1683 as the wife of King Louis XIV. She was born an Infanta of Spain and Portugal as the daughter of King Philip IV and Elisabeth of France, and was also an Archduchess of Austria as a member of the Spanish branch of the House of Habsburg.
Her marriage in 1660 to King Louis XIV, her double first cousin, was arranged with the purpose of ending the lengthy war between France and Spain. Famed for her virtue and piety, she saw five of her six children die in early childhood, and is frequently viewed as an object of pity in historical accounts of her husband's reign, since she was often neglected by the court and overshadowed by the King's many mistresses.
Without any political influence in the French court or government (except briefly in 1672, when she was named regent during her husband's absence during the Franco-Dutch War, making her the last Queen of France to hold a regency), she died aged 44 due to complications from an abscess on her arm. Her grandson Philip V inherited the Spanish throne in 1700 after the death of her younger half-brother, Charles II. The resulting War of the Spanish Succession established the House of Bourbon as the new ruling dynasty of Spain, where it has reigned with some interruption until the present time.
Born at the Royal Monastery of El Escorial on 10 September 1638, Maria Theresa was the eighth child and seventh daughter of Philip IV of Spain and his first wife Elisabeth of France. As a member of the House of Habsburg, Maria Theresa was entitled to use the title Archduchess of Austria. She was baptized on 7 October by Cardinal Gaspar de Borja y Velasco, with Francesco I d'Este, Duke of Modena and Marie de Bourbon, Princess of Carignan, as godparents.
Maria Theresa was named after Teresa of Ávila, who her mother Elisabeth chose to protect her youngest daughter: all her six elder sisters died in infancy, with the only son and heir, Balthasar Charles, Prince of Asturias living. The Queen, born a princess of France and suffering greatly from being far from her native country, described to her daughter the beauties of France. She had promised that she would marry her cousin the Dauphin, born only five days before her. But on 6 October 1644, Elisabeth died following complications after another miscarriage, and left an immense void in the heart of the six-year-old Maria Theresa.
After the death of her mother, the young Infanta became closer to her father and received a strict and religious education in the sense of the Catholic Counter-Reformation. However, her education was careful and she was not deprived of affection and entertainment: she was surrounded by a multitude of pets and dwarves. It was the royal governess Luisa Magdalena de Jesus who took care of her during her early years.
From the age of five, Maria Theresa's religious education was first carried out by Juan de Palma, commissioner of the Indies who had been the confessor of Elizabeth of France. He was charged by Philip IV with caring for his daughter, as he had cared for the Infanta's mother. Later, Father Vasquez, a man recognised in Spain for being highly educated and of great virtue, was entrusted with Maria Theresa's spiritual education.
The death of her brother Balthasar Charles in 1646 left Maria Theresa as heiress presumptive to the vast Spanish Empire. Although women were recognized as having the right to ascend the throne, Philip IV feared that the absence of a male heir could cause profound unrest that could destabilize the Catholic Monarchy. He thus remarried in 1649 to his niece, Archduchess Maria Anna of Austria, the union being intended to continue the matrimonial and political alliance between the Austrian and Spanish branches of the House of Habsburg. The proximity in age between Maria Theresa and her cousin (now her stepmother) fostered a deep affection and friendship between them.
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Maria Theresa of Spain
Maria Theresa of Spain (Spanish: María Teresa de España; French: Marie-Thérèse d'Espagne; 10 September 1638 – 30 July 1683) was Queen of France from 1660 to 1683 as the wife of King Louis XIV. She was born an Infanta of Spain and Portugal as the daughter of King Philip IV and Elisabeth of France, and was also an Archduchess of Austria as a member of the Spanish branch of the House of Habsburg.
Her marriage in 1660 to King Louis XIV, her double first cousin, was arranged with the purpose of ending the lengthy war between France and Spain. Famed for her virtue and piety, she saw five of her six children die in early childhood, and is frequently viewed as an object of pity in historical accounts of her husband's reign, since she was often neglected by the court and overshadowed by the King's many mistresses.
Without any political influence in the French court or government (except briefly in 1672, when she was named regent during her husband's absence during the Franco-Dutch War, making her the last Queen of France to hold a regency), she died aged 44 due to complications from an abscess on her arm. Her grandson Philip V inherited the Spanish throne in 1700 after the death of her younger half-brother, Charles II. The resulting War of the Spanish Succession established the House of Bourbon as the new ruling dynasty of Spain, where it has reigned with some interruption until the present time.
Born at the Royal Monastery of El Escorial on 10 September 1638, Maria Theresa was the eighth child and seventh daughter of Philip IV of Spain and his first wife Elisabeth of France. As a member of the House of Habsburg, Maria Theresa was entitled to use the title Archduchess of Austria. She was baptized on 7 October by Cardinal Gaspar de Borja y Velasco, with Francesco I d'Este, Duke of Modena and Marie de Bourbon, Princess of Carignan, as godparents.
Maria Theresa was named after Teresa of Ávila, who her mother Elisabeth chose to protect her youngest daughter: all her six elder sisters died in infancy, with the only son and heir, Balthasar Charles, Prince of Asturias living. The Queen, born a princess of France and suffering greatly from being far from her native country, described to her daughter the beauties of France. She had promised that she would marry her cousin the Dauphin, born only five days before her. But on 6 October 1644, Elisabeth died following complications after another miscarriage, and left an immense void in the heart of the six-year-old Maria Theresa.
After the death of her mother, the young Infanta became closer to her father and received a strict and religious education in the sense of the Catholic Counter-Reformation. However, her education was careful and she was not deprived of affection and entertainment: she was surrounded by a multitude of pets and dwarves. It was the royal governess Luisa Magdalena de Jesus who took care of her during her early years.
From the age of five, Maria Theresa's religious education was first carried out by Juan de Palma, commissioner of the Indies who had been the confessor of Elizabeth of France. He was charged by Philip IV with caring for his daughter, as he had cared for the Infanta's mother. Later, Father Vasquez, a man recognised in Spain for being highly educated and of great virtue, was entrusted with Maria Theresa's spiritual education.
The death of her brother Balthasar Charles in 1646 left Maria Theresa as heiress presumptive to the vast Spanish Empire. Although women were recognized as having the right to ascend the throne, Philip IV feared that the absence of a male heir could cause profound unrest that could destabilize the Catholic Monarchy. He thus remarried in 1649 to his niece, Archduchess Maria Anna of Austria, the union being intended to continue the matrimonial and political alliance between the Austrian and Spanish branches of the House of Habsburg. The proximity in age between Maria Theresa and her cousin (now her stepmother) fostered a deep affection and friendship between them.