Princess Stéphanie of Belgium
Encyclopedia
Stéphanie was a Belgium princess by birth, and then made Crown Princess of Austria through her marriage to the heir of the Habsburg dynasty, Archduke Rudolf
. She was famously widowed in 1888 when Rudolph and his mistress, Mary Vetsera, were found dead in an apparent murder-suicide
pact at the Imperial hunting lodge at Mayerling
in the Vienna Woods.
Her grandfather Leopold I of Belgium
was the country's first king. Her aunt, Charlotte of Belgium
, the future ill-fated Empress of Mexico, was married to Maximilian
, the brother of her future father-in law, the Austrian Emperor Franz Joseph.
, was an Archduchess of Austria by birth and aunt to the Queen of Spain
. Her father, Leopold II of Belgium
, finally became king of the Belgians in December 1865. The royal couple were ill-suited for each other and had an unhappy marriage. The contradictory Leopold II was serious and delicate. Marie Henriette was undisciplined, outspoken, and boisterous. Leopold was openly abrasive to her, and tried to dominate her with his criticisms and frequent infidelity. While her natural charm made Marie Henriette more popular with her Belgian subjects than her husband, she eventually retired from court life to escape him, and lived the rest of her life in Spa
near the Ardennes
.
As Leopold had little interest in Stéphanie and her older sister Princess Louise,and the education of his daughters was neglected as he focused all his doting attention on his son, Prince Léopold, Duke of Brabant
, the future of the Saxe-Coburg and Gotha
dynasty in Belgium. Tragically, when he was nine Prince Leopold caught pneumonia
and died. His father never recovered; although he reconciled briefly with Marie Henriette to produce another heir, at the birth of Princess Clémentine
in 1872, Leopold lost interest in the family. He turned his attentions to the notorious creation of the Belgian Congo
, which was his personal fiefdom and not a Belgian colonial territory, and as such its ruthless exploitation amassed him a vast private fortune. Leopold also rejected his family for his mistresses; he had so many scandalous liaisons that he was known to his subjects as Le Roi des Belges et des Belles (“The King of the Belgians and of the Beauties”). At 1909 on his deathbed, he married his favorite mistress in an attempt to expunge the sin of infidelity.
In March 1880, Rudolf, Crown Prince of Austria was invited to the Belgian court at the insistence of Leopold II. Rudolf arrived in Brussels
on 5 March. Meeting the fifteen year old Princess Stéphanie, he later wrote to his mother, Empress Elisabeth, "I have found what I sought" noting further that she was "pretty, good, [and] clever". Unable to marry his cousin Archduchess Maria Antonia and refusing several Infantes of Portugal
and Spain
, Stéphanie was one of the few available princesses in Europe. Under pressure by his parents to marry as soon as possible, the Crown Prince had been satisfied with her and by the 7th of March, he asked for her hand and announced their engagement. Despite this, the wedding had to be postponed because the bride had not yet reached puberty.Rudolfs mother was highly disappointed with the match as the Belgian royals were a new dynasty and did not compare to the Austrians in terms of their bloodline. The emperor, his father however was pleased and thus agreed.
On 10 May 1881, several weeks before her 17th birthday, Princess Stéphanie of Belgium married the Crown Prince in the Saint Augustine's Church
in Vienna
her parents walking her down the aisle. Among the illustrious attendees were the future King Edward VII of the United Kingdom and his nephew, the future German Emperor Wilhelm II. In honour of the nuptials, which were celebrated lavishly throughout Austria, the Austrian astronomer Johann Palisa
named asteroid
220 Stephania
in her honour in 1881, commemorating the union. After the ceremony, the couple honeymoon
ed at Laxenburg
outside the capital.
After an initially happy marriage, difficulties reportedly developed. Rudolf was highly intelligent, unconventional, impulsive and very liberal, while Stéphanie was conventional, formal and reactionary. Their only child, Archduchess Elisabeth Marie of Austria
, was born at Laxenburg Castle on 2 September 1883. She was known within the family as "Erzsi". She received little support from the Imperial family during her marriage. Empress Elisabeth avoided Stéphanie, referring to her as "das hässliche Trampeltier" (the ugly clumsy oaf), "a moral heavyweight" and an "ugly elephant". When Rudolf infected her with a venereal disease, which made further pregnancies impossible, they reportedly discussed divorce.
During a visit to Galicia
(presently, a region divided between Poland and Ukraine) in 1887, Stéphanie fell in love with a Polish Count. During the next eighteen months, she did not try to hide her affections for the count from her husband who continued his own liaisons.
In 1889 Rudolf and Baroness Mary Vetsera
, his lover, were found shot to death in the Mayerling incident.
On 22 March 1900 at Miramare
, Italy
(then part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire), to the disgust of her father, Stéphanie married Count Elemér Lónyay de Nagy-Lónya et Vásáros-Namény (Bodrogolaszi
, 24 August 1863 - Budapest
, 20 July 1946), a Hungarian
count of low rank who, in 1917, was elevated by the Emperor
of Austria to the rank of Fürst
. She settled with her new husband in his castle Oroszvár - Rusovce
in western Hungary, today's Slovakia, until the advancing Red Army forced them to flee their estate. They found sanctuary in the Benedictine abbey of Pannonhalma
, near Györszentmárton, Hungary.
In 1935 she wanted to publish her memoirs to set the record straight, but this caused a scandal and a court forbade their distribution. These memoirs were eventually published outside of Austria as Ich Sollte Kaiserin Werden (I Was To Be Empress).
Stéphanie died at Pannonhalma on 23 August 1945. Her only child, Archduchess Elisabeth Marie of Austria
, had four children:
Additionally, Stéphanie was born with the titles of Princess of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha and Duchess of Saxony. During her marriage to Rudolf, she was also the Crown Princess of Austria, Hungary and Bohemia. After his death she retained the title of Archduchess of Austria and also held the title of Dowager Crown Princess until her marriage to Count Lonyai.
Crown Prince
A crown prince or crown princess is the heir or heiress apparent to the throne in a royal or imperial monarchy. The wife of a crown prince is also titled crown princess....
. She was famously widowed in 1888 when Rudolph and his mistress, Mary Vetsera, were found dead in an apparent murder-suicide
Murder-suicide
A murder–suicide is an act in which an individual kills one or more other persons before or at the same time as killing himself or herself. The combination of murder and suicide can take various forms, including:...
pact at the Imperial hunting lodge at Mayerling
Mayerling Incident
The Mayerling Incident refers to the series of events leading to the apparent murder-suicide of Crown Prince Rudolf of Austria and his lover Baroness Mary Vetsera. Rudolf was the only son of Emperor Franz Josef I of Austria and Empress Elisabeth, and heir to the throne of the combined...
in the Vienna Woods.
Her grandfather Leopold I of Belgium
Leopold I of Belgium
Leopold I was from 21 July 1831 the first King of the Belgians, following Belgium's independence from the Netherlands. He was the founder of the Belgian line of the House of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha...
was the country's first king. Her aunt, Charlotte of Belgium
Charlotte of Belgium
Charlotte of Belgium is remembered today as Carlota of Mexico as empress consort of Emperor Maximilian I of Mexico, ex-Archduke of Austria.-Princess of Belgium:The only daughter of Leopold I, King of the Belgians by his second wife,...
, the future ill-fated Empress of Mexico, was married to Maximilian
Maximilian I of Mexico
Maximilian I was the only monarch of the Second Mexican Empire.After a distinguished career in the Austrian Navy, he was proclaimed Emperor of Mexico on April 10, 1864, with the backing of Napoleon III of France and a group of Mexican monarchists who sought to revive the Mexican monarchy...
, the brother of her future father-in law, the Austrian Emperor Franz Joseph.
Early life
Stéphanie Clotilde Louise Herminie Marie Charlotte was born at the Royal Palace of Laeken in the kingdom of Belgium. Her mother, Queen Marie HenrietteMarie Henriette of Austria
Marie Henriette of Austria was the queen consort of King Leopold II of Belgium.-Family:...
, was an Archduchess of Austria by birth and aunt to the Queen of Spain
Maria Christina of Austria
Maria Christina of Austria was Queen consort of Spain as the second wife of King Alfonso XII of Spain...
. Her father, Leopold II of Belgium
Leopold II of Belgium
Leopold II was the second king of the Belgians. Born in Brussels the second son of Leopold I and Louise-Marie of Orléans, he succeeded his father to the throne on 17 December 1865 and remained king until his death.Leopold is chiefly remembered as the founder and sole owner of the Congo Free...
, finally became king of the Belgians in December 1865. The royal couple were ill-suited for each other and had an unhappy marriage. The contradictory Leopold II was serious and delicate. Marie Henriette was undisciplined, outspoken, and boisterous. Leopold was openly abrasive to her, and tried to dominate her with his criticisms and frequent infidelity. While her natural charm made Marie Henriette more popular with her Belgian subjects than her husband, she eventually retired from court life to escape him, and lived the rest of her life in Spa
Spa
The term spa is associated with water treatment which is also known as balneotherapy. Spa towns or spa resorts typically offer various health treatments. The belief in the curative powers of mineral waters goes back to prehistoric times. Such practices have been popular worldwide, but are...
near the Ardennes
Ardennes
The Ardennes is a region of extensive forests, rolling hills and ridges formed within the Givetian Ardennes mountain range, primarily in Belgium and Luxembourg, but stretching into France , and geologically into the Eifel...
.
As Leopold had little interest in Stéphanie and her older sister Princess Louise,and the education of his daughters was neglected as he focused all his doting attention on his son, Prince Léopold, Duke of Brabant
Prince Leopold, Duke of Brabant
Prince Leopold of Belgium, Duke of Brabant, Count of Hainaut , was the second child and only son and heir-apparent of Leopold II of Belgium and his wife, Archduchess Marie Henriette of...
, the future of the Saxe-Coburg and Gotha
Saxe-Coburg and Gotha
Saxe-Coburg and Gotha or Saxe-Coburg-Gotha served as the collective name of two duchies, Saxe-Coburg and Saxe-Gotha, in Germany. They were located in what today are the states of Bavaria and Thuringia, respectively, and the two were in personal union between 1826 and 1918...
dynasty in Belgium. Tragically, when he was nine Prince Leopold caught pneumonia
Pneumonia
Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung—especially affecting the microscopic air sacs —associated with fever, chest symptoms, and a lack of air space on a chest X-ray. Pneumonia is typically caused by an infection but there are a number of other causes...
and died. His father never recovered; although he reconciled briefly with Marie Henriette to produce another heir, at the birth of Princess Clémentine
Princess Clementine of Belgium
align="right"|Clementine of Belgium was a member of the Belgian Royal Family and the wife of Napoléon Victor Bonaparte, Bonapartist pretender to the throne of France.-Early life:Princess Clémentine was born at the Royal Castle of Laeken in...
in 1872, Leopold lost interest in the family. He turned his attentions to the notorious creation of the Belgian Congo
Belgian Congo
The Belgian Congo was the formal title of present-day Democratic Republic of the Congo between King Leopold II's formal relinquishment of his personal control over the state to Belgium on 15 November 1908, and Congolese independence on 30 June 1960.-Congo Free State, 1884–1908:Until the latter...
, which was his personal fiefdom and not a Belgian colonial territory, and as such its ruthless exploitation amassed him a vast private fortune. Leopold also rejected his family for his mistresses; he had so many scandalous liaisons that he was known to his subjects as Le Roi des Belges et des Belles (“The King of the Belgians and of the Beauties”). At 1909 on his deathbed, he married his favorite mistress in an attempt to expunge the sin of infidelity.
Crown Princess of Austria
Brought up in the unhappy life that was the product of their parents' arranged marriage, Stéphanie and her sister did no better in their own. Louise was married to her cousin, Prince Philip of Saxe-Coburg, a harsh man who was fourteen years her senior. After she tried to elope with her lover, Leopold had her committed to a mental asylum. She was finally granted a divorce in 1907.In March 1880, Rudolf, Crown Prince of Austria was invited to the Belgian court at the insistence of Leopold II. Rudolf arrived in Brussels
Brussels
Brussels , officially the Brussels Region or Brussels-Capital Region , is the capital of Belgium and the de facto capital of the European Union...
on 5 March. Meeting the fifteen year old Princess Stéphanie, he later wrote to his mother, Empress Elisabeth, "I have found what I sought" noting further that she was "pretty, good, [and] clever". Unable to marry his cousin Archduchess Maria Antonia and refusing several Infantes of Portugal
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
and Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
, Stéphanie was one of the few available princesses in Europe. Under pressure by his parents to marry as soon as possible, the Crown Prince had been satisfied with her and by the 7th of March, he asked for her hand and announced their engagement. Despite this, the wedding had to be postponed because the bride had not yet reached puberty.Rudolfs mother was highly disappointed with the match as the Belgian royals were a new dynasty and did not compare to the Austrians in terms of their bloodline. The emperor, his father however was pleased and thus agreed.
On 10 May 1881, several weeks before her 17th birthday, Princess Stéphanie of Belgium married the Crown Prince in the Saint Augustine's Church
Augustinerkirche
The Augustinian Church in Vienna is a parish church located on Josefsplatz, next to the Hofburg, the winter palace of the Habsburg dynasty in Vienna. Originally built in the 14th century as the parish church of the imperial court of the Habsburgs, the harmonious Gothic interior was added in the...
in Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
her parents walking her down the aisle. Among the illustrious attendees were the future King Edward VII of the United Kingdom and his nephew, the future German Emperor Wilhelm II. In honour of the nuptials, which were celebrated lavishly throughout Austria, the Austrian astronomer Johann Palisa
Johann Palisa
Johann Palisa was an Austrian astronomer, born in Opava in Austrian Silesia .He was a prolific discoverer of asteroids, discovering 122 in all, from 136 Austria in 1874 to 1073 Gellivara in 1923...
named asteroid
Asteroid
Asteroids are a class of small Solar System bodies in orbit around the Sun. They have also been called planetoids, especially the larger ones...
220 Stephania
220 Stephania
220 Stephania is a Main belt asteroid. It is a P-type asteroid, meaning it is relatively dark and composed of organic rich silicates, carbon and anhydrous silicates.It was discovered by Johann Palisa on May 19, 1881 in Vienna...
in her honour in 1881, commemorating the union. After the ceremony, the couple honeymoon
Honeymoon
-History:One early reference to a honeymoon is in Deuteronomy 24:5 “When a man is newly wed, he need not go out on a military expedition, nor shall any public duty be imposed on him...
ed at Laxenburg
Laxenburg
Laxenburg is a town in the district of Mödling in the Austrian state of Lower Austria, near Vienna.- History :The place is well-known for its castle, Schloss Laxenburg, which, beside Schönbrunn, was the most important summer seat of the Habsburg dynasty....
outside the capital.
After an initially happy marriage, difficulties reportedly developed. Rudolf was highly intelligent, unconventional, impulsive and very liberal, while Stéphanie was conventional, formal and reactionary. Their only child, Archduchess Elisabeth Marie of Austria
Archduchess Elisabeth Marie of Austria
Elisabeth Maria Henriette Stephanie Gisela , was an Archduchess of Austria and the only child of Crown Prince Rudolf of Austria. She was known to the family as "Erzsi", a diminutive of her name in Hungarian...
, was born at Laxenburg Castle on 2 September 1883. She was known within the family as "Erzsi". She received little support from the Imperial family during her marriage. Empress Elisabeth avoided Stéphanie, referring to her as "das hässliche Trampeltier" (the ugly clumsy oaf), "a moral heavyweight" and an "ugly elephant". When Rudolf infected her with a venereal disease, which made further pregnancies impossible, they reportedly discussed divorce.
During a visit to Galicia
Kingdom of Galicia and Lodomeria
The Kingdom of Galicia and Lodomeria was a crownland of the Habsburg Monarchy, the Austrian Empire, and Austria–Hungary from 1772 to 1918 .This historical region in eastern Central Europe is currently divided between Poland and Ukraine...
(presently, a region divided between Poland and Ukraine) in 1887, Stéphanie fell in love with a Polish Count. During the next eighteen months, she did not try to hide her affections for the count from her husband who continued his own liaisons.
In 1889 Rudolf and Baroness Mary Vetsera
Baroness Mary Vetsera
Baroness Marie Alexandrine von Vetsera was a member of Austrian high society nobility and one of Crown Prince Rudolf of Austria's mistresses...
, his lover, were found shot to death in the Mayerling incident.
Second marriage
Miramare
The Miramare Castle is a 19th century castle on the Gulf of Trieste near Trieste, northeastern Italy. It was built from 1856 to 1860 for Austrian Archduke Ferdinand Maximilian and his wife, Charlotte of Belgium, later Emperor Maximilian I and Empress Carlota of Mexico, to a design by Carl...
, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
(then part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire), to the disgust of her father, Stéphanie married Count Elemér Lónyay de Nagy-Lónya et Vásáros-Namény (Bodrogolaszi
Bodrogolaszi
- External links :*...
, 24 August 1863 - Budapest
Budapest
Budapest is the capital of Hungary. As the largest city of Hungary, it is the country's principal political, cultural, commercial, industrial, and transportation centre. In 2011, Budapest had 1,733,685 inhabitants, down from its 1989 peak of 2,113,645 due to suburbanization. The Budapest Commuter...
, 20 July 1946), a Hungarian
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
count of low rank who, in 1917, was elevated by the Emperor
Emperor
An emperor is a monarch, usually the sovereign ruler of an empire or another type of imperial realm. Empress, the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife or a woman who rules in her own right...
of Austria to the rank of Fürst
Fürst
Fürst is a German title of nobility, usually translated into English as Prince.The term refers to the head of a principality and is distinguished from the son of a monarch, who is referred to as Prinz...
. She settled with her new husband in his castle Oroszvár - Rusovce
Rusovce
Rusovce castle")) is a borough in southern Bratislava on the right bank of the Danube river, close to the Hungarian border.- History :In the 1st century, there was a Roman settlement named Gerulata in today's Rusovce area. The first preserved written reference to the settlement is from 1208. It...
in western Hungary, today's Slovakia, until the advancing Red Army forced them to flee their estate. They found sanctuary in the Benedictine abbey of Pannonhalma
Pannonhalma
Pannonhalma is a town in western Hungary, in Győr-Moson-Sopron county with approximately 4,000 inhabitants. It is about from Győr. Archduke Otto Habsburg's heart is kept at the Pannonhalma Archabbey, while his body was laid at the Capuchin Crypt in the old Imperial capital of Vienna.-History:The...
, near Györszentmárton, Hungary.
In 1935 she wanted to publish her memoirs to set the record straight, but this caused a scandal and a court forbade their distribution. These memoirs were eventually published outside of Austria as Ich Sollte Kaiserin Werden (I Was To Be Empress).
Stéphanie died at Pannonhalma on 23 August 1945. Her only child, Archduchess Elisabeth Marie of Austria
Archduchess Elisabeth Marie of Austria
Elisabeth Maria Henriette Stephanie Gisela , was an Archduchess of Austria and the only child of Crown Prince Rudolf of Austria. She was known to the family as "Erzsi", a diminutive of her name in Hungarian...
, had four children:
- Prince Franz Joseph of Windisch-Grätz,
- Prince Ernst of Windisch-Grätz,
- Prince Rudolph of Windisch-Grätz and
- Princess Stephanie of Windisch-Grätz.
Titles and styles
Here are the primary titles and styles that Stéphanie enjoyed from birth to death in chronological order:- Her Royal Highness Princess Stéphanie of Belgium (1864–1881)
- Her Imperial and Royal Highness The Crown Princess of Austria (1881–1889)
- Her Imperial and Royal Highness The Dowager Crown Princess of Austria (1889–1900)
- Her Royal Highness Princess Stéphanie, Countess Lónyai (1900–1917)
- Her Royal Highness Princess Stéphanie, Princess Lónyai of Nagy-Lónya (1917–1945)
Additionally, Stéphanie was born with the titles of Princess of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha and Duchess of Saxony. During her marriage to Rudolf, she was also the Crown Princess of Austria, Hungary and Bohemia. After his death she retained the title of Archduchess of Austria and also held the title of Dowager Crown Princess until her marriage to Count Lonyai.
Ancestry
Portrayal on stage
- Kenneth MacMillanKenneth MacMillanSir Kenneth MacMillan was a British ballet dancer and choreographer. He was artistic director of the Royal Ballet in London between 1970 and 1977.-Early years:...
's 1978 ballet, MayerlingMayerling (ballet)Mayerling is a ballet created in 1978 by Kenneth MacMillan for the Royal Ballet, London.- Synopsis :Rudolf, Crown Prince of Austria is forced into a marriage of state with Princess Stéphanie of Belgium; Countess Marie Larisch von Moennich, the mistress of whom he is tiring, introduces him to the... - Frank WildhornFrank WildhornFrank Wildhorn is an American composer known for both his musicals and popular songs. He is most known for his musical Jekyll & Hyde, which ran four years on Broadway, and for writing the #1 International Hit song "Where Do Broken Hearts Go?" for Whitney Houston.-Early years:Wildhorn was born in...
's 2008 Musical, "RudolfRudolf (musical)Rudolf is a musical conceived for the stage by Frank Wildhorn and Steve Cuden, with a book by Jack Murphy and Phoebe Hwang, lyrics by Murphy, additional lyrics by Nan Knighton, and music by Frank Wildhorn. Arrangements by Koen Schoots and orchestrations by Kim Scharnberg. It is about Rudolf, Crown...
Affaire Mayerling" - Portrayed by Wietske Van Tongeren