Archduchess Maria Elisabeth of Austria (governor)
Maria Elisabeth of Austria ( born December 13, 1680 in Linz, † August 26 1741 in Castle Mariemont in Morlanwelz in Hainaut ) was a member of the House of Habsburg. She was Archduchess of Austria, and from 1724 to 1741 governor of the Austrian Netherlands. Equipped with large powers she ruled the Netherlands relatively authoritarian and kept a great court, but was partly because of her piety and poor relief popular. Decided it was going against Jansenism and favored in the cultural field, the raising of the musical life of Brussels, in which city they resided. After 16 years of service died, the regent, who had never married, at the age of 60 years.
Ancestry and early years
Mary Elizabeth was a daughter of Emperor Leopold I and his third wife Eleonore Magdalene of the Palatinate- Neuburg. She came in December 1680 in Linz born after their parents had left Vienna because of the rampant plague there. In her youth, she received an excellent education and learned German as other languages except French, Italian and Latin, which they mastered perfectly. Already in 1698 she appeared as the author of the written down in Latin work Chronologia augustissimae Domus Austriacae in Synopses collecta ... show that deals with the history of their dynasty. The manuscript of this learned treatise is located in the Austrian National Library in Vienna. Furthermore, how many members the Archduchess showed her family a passion for Italian music and operas.
During the Spanish War of Succession died Mary Elizabeth's father, Emperor Leopold I, in 1705. His son Joseph became the new emperor. After Joseph's unexpected death in 1711 transferred his successor, Charles VI. his remaining unmarried elder sister Maria Elisabeth Tyrol the government.
Governor of the Netherlands
In June 1716 Prince Eugene of Savoy, was used as a governor of the Austrian Netherlands, which corresponded approximately to the present-day Belgium. He had but to be represented in this function by the Minister Plenipotentiary of Ercole de Turinetti Prié. This made himself very unpopular in the Dutch provinces and was finally recalled in September 1724 for alleged embezzlement to Vienna. On November 20, 1724 Prince Eugene renounced officially his governorship dignity. To his successor appointed Emperor Charles VI. the 44 -year-old Archduchess Maria Elisabeth, who left Vienna on September 4, 1725, and arrived on the next 4th of October in Tienen, where she was the son of the interim governor, the Counts of Daun received. After a short stay in Lions drew on October 9, 1725 solemnly in Brussels. Following numerous festivals were organized.
The governor resided in the palace of Coudenberg at Brussels; as this palace in the night of 3 burnt on 4 February 1731 she was able to bring only trouble with half dressed in safety. Afterwards the Hôtel d'Orange was (also called Hôtel de Nassau ) their new residence. Your plans for the restoration of the almost completely destroyed by the fire Palace of Brussels could only realize its successor, Charles Alexander of Lorraine.
The Dutch provincial estates featured Maria Elisabeth generous funds available, namely a civil list of 560,000 Brabant guilders. Therefore, they could not afford an expensive royal household. At her court there was a strict etiquette; so she took about her meals always alone. Your noble ladies of honor was long time the widowed Countess Uhlfeld ago as chatelaine.
From her imperial brother Maria Elisabeth was equipped with far -reaching powers. So she could about self - but only after the approval of the Viennese court - appointed prelates, further including governors of the various provinces and members of the Great Council of Malines, and the collateral councils. The latter had Philip V abolished, but they had been reinstated to Mary Elizabeth Initiative in September 1725; of course, still remained the Privy Council as the actual central government politically tone. The governor sought as harmoniously as possible with the existing institutions to cooperate and received thanks to their personal commitment permission to amnesty those individuals who had participated in the Brussels riots 1718. Through their policies, they mustered a reconciliation of the Austrian Netherlands with the Habsburg supremacy, but also built the central power of their dynasty at the expense of the authority of the local government authorities.
The governor had to accept that her an official appointed by the Emperor STEWARD was set aside. This was responsible primarily to perform the duties of a minister plenipotentiary, especially the observation of the state policy and the implementation uncomplaining imperial order. In this function first appeared in 1725 an Italian Count Giulio Visconti, who had accompanied the governor in the Netherlands. Maria Elisabeth to reveal its share in the government and those of her High Steward, is due to lack of studies of their term of office not yet sufficiently successful.
Using various measures by the emperor arranged for the Netherlands Maria Elisabeth was not compliant and could catching and often convince them of its position. Miss you long to do so, she practiced at times of delaying tactics. So they did not want to publish about orders of the Emperor concerning the right of asylum and the establishment of directors on the French model.
In their subjects, the populist country mother was because of her piety and care for the needy and the sick very popular. She attended religious festivities and participated in pilgrimages. Every year she washed on Holy Thursday twelve poor old women 's feet, entertained them and equipped them with new clothes. They also raised the Brussels musical life. She promoted, among others, Jean -Joseph Fiocco, who acted as choir masters of their court orchestra in Brussels and her devoted several oratorios 1726-1738. Gladly she lived by Italian ensembles organized opera performances at.
On the religious sector was devoted to the very conservative-minded governor in particular the suppression of classified as heretical Catholic faith of Jansenism. So the important Jansenist and Zeger Bernhard van Espen church lawyer was expelled by order of the governor. It was particularly non-conformist authors also to increased censorship and to publish an index of forbidden books. As a consultant at this church policy it served the Jesuits, national confessor Stefan Amiodt. This also documented their tenure in the Netherlands in a 26- volume work, which, however, never appeared in print. The Jesuit order was the governor over all very fond of.
Giulio Visconti put politics Maria Elizabeth against little resistance. For larger impact of their very self- government resigned in 1732 the Bohemian Count Friedrich August von Harrach - Rohrau the place Visconti. The new High Steward fell to the task of improving the dismal financial situation, had led to a considerable delay in the payment of wages of civil servants. After an intervention Harrach with the emperor, Maria Elisabeth was forced to cancel a number of unnecessary offices and to make another. Fifteen proteges of their high-ranking officials had to take her hat.
The across Europe since the early 1730s again winning after the doldrums of the 17th century to drive economic investigated the governor to boost in their sphere of influence; Industry and Trade experienced a revival. The industry of the country under its management let them first comprehensive analysis and hoped thus to find ways for their reformation. The authorization of the end of 1722 by Charles VI. established for maritime trade with the East Indies, very successful working Ostend Company had but the Emperor 1727 expose on international political pressure already and pick up 1731 final.
The 1737 standing in the room replacing Maria Elizabeth as Dutch regent by the son of the Emperor Charles VI. , Franz Stephan, did not materialize, which welcomed the development of the Brussels population with bonfires.
Death
In July 1741, Maria Elisabeth went to the castle Mariemont, which came in at Morlanwelz in Hainault. In this castle she wanted to spend the summer. Here she'd like to have often stopped to escape their uncomfortable Brussels home, and happily among others with fishing and participating in hunts. Already in 1739 she had also a chapel dedicated to the Virgin of outstanding Dutch artists such as Laurent Delvaux can, build. She intended from Mariemont to make a spa that can compete with spa should, and looked in the summer of 1741 physico- chemical experiments with mineral waters for which came from a source in the park. Then she took part in a hunting trip. Suddenly she became ill and died on August 26, 1741 at the age of 60 years in Mariemont Castle. The her already in her last life time since April 1741 as co- Deputy Governor successor Duke Charles Alexander of Lorraine was represented provisionally by the former Lord High Steward Friedrich August von Harrach - Rohrau, before 1744 even took over the governorship.
For now, the corpse of the deceased in the tomb of Archduchess was buried before the high altar of the church of Sainte Gudule located in Brussels, however, convicted in April 1749 on the orders of Maria Theresa in Vienna. The Archduchess is located in the Imperial Crypt buried next to her father, Emperor Leopold I and her niece Maria Anna. Her heart was buried separately and is located in the heart of the Habsburg crypt in the Loreto chapel, Vienna St. Augustine's Church.