How Maria Theresa Inherited Her Father's Legacy

Maria Theresa of Austria (1717-1780) was the only female ruler in the 650-year history of the Habsburg dynasty. She was the eldest daughter of Holy Roman Emperor Charles VI, who issued the Pragmatic Sanction of 1713 to allow her to succeed to the Habsburg monarchy. When Charles VI died in 1740, Maria Theresa inherited a weakened and impoverished state, which led to the War of the Austrian Succession. Despite facing numerous challenges, Maria Theresa successfully ruled the Habsburg dominions for 40 years and implemented significant reforms that transformed the empire into a modern state.

Maria Theresa's succession

At the time, many of the great powers of Europe agreed to her succession of power, but at a price. Upon Charles' death in 1740, challenges to the Habsburg lands led to the War of the Austrian Succession. King Frederick II of Prussia was her first challenger, when he took the occasion of Charles' death to occupy Silesia. Bavaria and France joined in and invaded Maria Theresa's lands from the west. This challenge by Frederick became the dominating element of Maria Theresa's long reign.

Maria Theresa was determined not to surrender to her enemies but to reconquer all of her lands. She began by initiating reforms. She strengthened the army by doubling the number of troops from her father's reign, reorganised the tax structure to ensure a predictable annual income to support the costs of the government and army, and centralised an office to assist in the collection of the taxes. Economic reform fuelled prosperity for her empire. The war ended with the loss of Silesia, but her state intact, and her husband recognised as Holy Roman Emperor.

In 1756, Maria Theresa felt that Austria was strong enough to renew her conflict with Frederick II. This conflict began what is known as the Seven Years' War. In 1763, after much bloodshed, Maria Theresa signed the Treaty of Hubertusberg, ending all hostilities and recognising Prussian possession of Silesia once and for all.

The War of the Austrian Succession

The First Silesian War

The war began when Prussia invaded and occupied the Austrian province of Silesia in 1740. This marked the start of the First Silesian War, which lasted from 1740 to 1742. Prussia was supported by France and the Electorate of Bavaria, while Austria was backed by Britain, the Dutch Republic and Hanover, collectively known as the Pragmatic Allies. The Prussian army proved to be a powerful force, and the Peace of Breslau in 1742 gave Prussia all of Silesia and Glatz County, with Austria retaining only a portion of Upper Silesia.

The Second Silesian War

In 1744, Prussia renewed its alliance with France and invaded Bohemia, beginning the Second Silesian War. The Treaty of Dresden, signed in 1745, forced Austria to adhere to the terms of the Treaty of Breslau and cede Silesia to Prussia, but Prussia recognised the election of Maria Theresa's husband, Francis I, as Holy Roman Emperor.

The Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle

The war ended in 1748 with the Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle, which confirmed Maria Theresa in her titles but failed to resolve underlying tensions between the signatories. Prussia was considered the clearest winner, having acquired Silesia from Austria, while France achieved minimal gains for a vast expenditure. The war demonstrated that Hanover, then held in personal union with the British Crown, was vulnerable to Prussian attacks, and many British politicians felt they had received little benefit from the enormous subsidies paid to Austria.

Aftermath

The war was followed by a realignment of alliances known as the Diplomatic Revolution, which set the scene for the outbreak of the Seven Years' War in 1756. Austria and France ended their centuries-long rivalry, while Prussia allied with Great Britain.

Maria Theresa's marriage

Maria Theresa married Francis Stephen of Lorraine on 12 February 1736 at the Augustinian Church in Vienna. The couple had known each other since childhood and were distant cousins. Maria Theresa's family had offered shelter to Francis's father and grandfather during their exile from their Duchy of Lorraine. Francis Stephen was not always the intended groom, however, as Maria Theresa was initially betrothed to the Hereditary Prince of Lorraine, Léopold Clément. Unfortunately, Léopold died of smallpox at the age of sixteen on his way to Vienna.

Maria Theresa's father, Emperor Charles VI, put Francis in a difficult position. In order for him to be able to marry Maria Theresa, he would have to give away the Duchy of Lorraine. To help solve the War of the Polish Succession, it was decided that Lorraine would go to the deposed King of Poland, Stanisław I, for his lifetime. Francis would be compensated by being given the Grand Duchy of Tuscany.

The wedding ceremony was a grand affair, with the procession to the church led by imperial chamberlains, followed by privy counsellors, conference members, and the Knights of the Golden Fleece in long medieval robes. The groom wore cloth of silver, a white hat, and the collar of the Golden Fleece, while the bride wore a gown of silver-thread fabric studded with diamonds and pearls. The church was lit with thousands of candles and hung with splendid Flemish tapestries. The bride and groom exchanged rings and were blessed by the papal nuncio, and the celebrations ended with a Te Deum and a magnificent banquet.

The marriage was a happy one, with the couple having sixteen children together. It was also a love match, which was untypical for aristocratic court unions at the time. Maria Theresa and Francis Stephen called each other Chère Mitz or Reserl and Mäusel (little mouse), respectively, and their many letters to each other attest to their affection. However, Maria Theresa's strict interpretation of Catholic sexual morals with regard to conjugal fidelity led to conflict with her husband, who had a liberal attitude and few inhibitions about acting on his desires.

Despite their happy marriage, Maria Theresa's father did not prepare her for her future role as sovereign. She was not given any training in government, and upon her father's death, she found herself in a difficult situation, having to rely on her father's advisors and her husband, whom she considered more experienced. She was also expected to cede power to her husband and eldest son, who were officially her co-rulers in Austria and Bohemia, but Maria Theresa ruled as an autocratic sovereign, with the counsel of her own advisers.

The Pragmatic Sanction

Charles VI spent his entire reign securing acceptance of the Pragmatic Sanction from the courts of Europe. However, despite gaining recognition from several European powers, including Great Britain, France, Spain, Prussia, Russia, and Denmark, Saxony, Prussia, Bavaria, and France repudiated the sanction following his death.

Her father's legacy

Maria Theresa's father, Holy Roman Emperor Charles VI, was the last surviving prince of his line. In an effort to preserve the Habsburg dominions, he issued the Pragmatic Sanction of 1713, allowing Maria Theresa to succeed him. This was a royal act that was eventually recognised by most powers, though at a price. It allowed female issue to inherit the domains of the Habsburgs.

Charles VI's death in 1740 left the Habsburg state at the lowest point of its prestige, with empty coffers and unrest in the capital. Maria Theresa's refusal to negotiate with King Frederick II of Prussia, who had invaded the Habsburg province of Silesia, astounded Europe's chancelleries. Her successful appearance before the Hungarian Estates, ending with an appeal for a mass levy of troops, gave her a European reputation for diplomatic skill.

Maria Theresa's father had not given her any training in government, and the army was weak and the treasury depleted as a result of two wars near the end of her father's reign. However, she was courageous, generous, and kind, and she respected the rights of others. She was also determined, and her internal and external policies focused on strengthening her state and creating positive diplomacy to defeat the Prussian monarch.

Maria Theresa's reforms strengthened the economy and the state in general. She doubled the size of the army, reorganised the tax structure, and centralised an office to assist in the collection of taxes. She also established the Theresian Military Academy in 1752 and an academy of engineering science in 1754. She centralised the government by combining the Austrian and Bohemian chancelleries into one administrative office. She also created a supreme court with the sole responsibility of upholding justice in her lands.

Maria Theresa was a devout Roman Catholic and was deeply pious, strictly observant, and intolerant to the point of bigotry. She expelled 20,000 Jews from Prague and other parts of Bohemia in 1744. She also displayed no tolerance for Protestants, who were persecuted and expelled to be resettled in thinly populated regions of what is now Romania.

Frequently asked questions