Princess Isabella of Croÿ
| Princess Isabella | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Duchess of Teschen | |||||
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| Born | 27 February 1856 Dülmen, Province of Westphalia, Kingdom of Prussia | ||||
| Died | 5 September 1931 (aged 75) Budapest | ||||
| Burial | |||||
| Spouse | Archduke Friedrich, Duke of Teschen | ||||
| Issue | Maria Christina, Hereditary Princess of Salm-Salm Maria Anna, Princess of Bourbon-Parma Maria Henrietta, Princess Gottfried of Hohenlohe-Waldenburg-Schillingfurst Archduchess Natalie Maria Archduchess Stephanie Maria Isabelle Archduchess Gabriele Maria Theresia Isabella, Princess Georg of Bavaria Maria Alice, Baroness von Bassenheim Archduke Albrecht Franz, Duke of Teschen | ||||
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| House | Croÿ | ||||
| Father | Rudolf, Duke of Croÿ | ||||
| Mother | Princess Natalie of Ligne | ||||
| Religion | Roman Catholicism | ||||
Princess Isabella Hedwig Franziska Natalie of Croÿ (27 February 1856 – 5 September 1931) was the daughter of Rudolf, Duke of Croÿ, and his wife, Princess Natalie of Ligne.
Biography
Marriage and issue
She married Archduke Friedrich, Duke of Teschen on 8 October 1878. They had eight daughters and one son:
- Maria Christina, Archduchess of Austria-Teschen (1879–1962), married Prince Emanuel of Salm-Salm
- Maria Anna, Archduchess of Austria-Teschen (1882–1940), married Elias, Duke of Parma
- Maria Henrietta, Archduchess of Austria-Teschen (1883–1956), married Prince Gottfried of Hohenlohe-Waldenburg-Schillingfurst
- Natalie Maria, Archduchess of Austria-Teschen (1884–1898)
- Stephanie Maria Isabelle, Archduchess of Austria-Teschen (1886–1890)
- Gabriele Maria Theresia, Archduchess of Austria-Teschen (1887–1954)
- Isabella, Archduchess of Austria-Teschen (1887–1973), married Prince Georg of Bavaria
- Maria Alice, Archduchess of Austria-Teschen (1893–1962), married Baron Friedrich Waldbott von Bassenheim
- Albrecht Franz, Archduke of Austria, Duke of Teschen (1897–1955)
Archduke Franz Ferdinand
In the mid-1890s, the heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria began visiting Isabella and Friedrich's home. At first, it was assumed that he was there to court one of their many daughters. Eventually, it was discovered that in fact he was courting Countess Sophie Chotek, a lady-in-waiting to Archduchess Isabella.[1]
Isabella became infuriated that Franz Ferdinand had not singled out one of her eight daughters as his bride and future empress; as a result she engaged in a crusade to thwart the marriage of Franz Ferdinand and Sophie. Sophie was dismissed from service, thus beginning an ongoing conflict between Friedrich and Franz Ferdinand, who married Sophie in 1900. The marriage was morganatic; Sophie was subjected to the indignities of a much lower rank at court than that of her husband, and none of their children could succeed to their father's dynastic honours—all chiefly as a result of Isabella's machinations.[1]
A decade later, Archduchess Isabella created a similar furor when her nephew, Karl, 13th Prince von Croÿ, of the House of Croÿ, sought to marry Nancy Leishman, the charming young daughter of United States Ambassador to Germany John George Alexander Leishman, the former president of Carnegie Steel. The Archduchess felt that Nancy, being an American commoner, was not an appropriate spouse for a prince of Croÿ. Karl and Nancy were wed, nonetheless; today their grandson is the present Duke of Croÿ.[2]
Ancestry
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Sources
- ^ a b Radziwill, Catherine (1916). The Austrian Court From Within. London: Cassel and Company, LTD. ISBN 1-4021-9370-X.
- ^ "Miss Leishman Weds Duke of Croy". New York Times. 25 October 1913. p. 1.
