7 April – A two-in-one family celebration

In Maria Theresa’s closest family circle, 7 April was a meaningful day of celebration for at least two reasons.

First, in 1768, Maria Theresa chose this date for the wedding of her tenth daughter, Maria Karolina, to Ferdinand of Naples. The ceremony by proxy took place in Vienna but was legally binding, after which the bride travelled to her new home in Italy. Their marriage, although far from happy, produced seventeen children. In this respect, Maria Karolina even surpassed the legendary fertility of her mother.

The second reason for celebration came from 1771 onwards, when the Empress’s son Ferdinand married Maria Beatrice d’Este, who had been born on 7 April 1750. As the last descendant of her line, she was the heiress to the Duchy of Modena. Their union, blessed with ten children, founded the House of Austria-Este. One of their daughters would later marry her cousin, Francis II, and become Holy Roman Empress.