Archduchess Marie Henriette of Austria
| Marie Henriette of Austria | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Queen consort of the Belgians | |
| Tenure | 10 December 1865 – 19 September 1902 |
| Born |
23 August 1836 Buda Castle, Budapest, Hungary |
| Died | 19 September 1902 (aged 66) Hôtel du Midi, Spa, Belgium |
| Spouse | Leopold II, King of the Belgians |
| Issue |
Louise, Princess Philipp of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha Prince Leopold, Duke of Brabant Stéphanie, Crown Princess of Austria Clémentine, Princess Napoléon |
| House | Habsburg-Lorraine |
| Father | Archduke Joseph of Austria |
| Mother | Duchess Maria Dorothea of Württemberg |
Marie Henriette of Austria (Marie Henriette Anne; 23 August 1836 – 19 September 1902) was Queen consort of the Belgians. She was married to King Leopold II of Belgium.
Marie Henriette was one of five children from the marriage of Archduke Joseph, Palatine of Hungary, and Duchess Maria Dorothea of Württemberg. Marie Henriette was a cousin of Emperor Franz Joseph I of Austria, and granddaughter of Leopold II, Holy Roman Emperor through her father.
When she was 16, she married 18-year-old Prince Leopold of Belgium, the heir to the throne, on 22 August 1853. Leopold was the second-surviving son of Leopold I of Belgium and his French wife, Louise of Orléans; Marie Henriette was the sister-in-law of Charlotte of Belgium, future Empress of Mexico and a cousin by marriage to Victoria of the United Kingdom and Maria II of Portugal.
The marriage was arranged to strengthen the status of the Belgian Monarchy. As the former Protestant monarch of a newly established monarchy, the Belgian king wished his son to marry a member from a Roman Catholic and prestigious dynasty, and the name Habsburg was one of her more important qualities.
Henriette was a vivid and energetic person interested in riding. Pauline de Metternich wrote that theirs was a marriage "between a stable-boy and a nun, and by nun I mean the Duke of Brabant". Henriette is said to have had a terrible temperament. The marriage became unhappy, and the couple lived more or less separate lives. She became queen in 1865. After the death of their son in 1869, the couple separated completely after having made a last attempt to have another son, which, however, resulted in their daughter Clementine. She gave her daughters a very strict upbringing. Her main interest was in her Hungarian horses. She lived most of her life unhappy and discontented. In 1895 she retreated to Spa; her youngest daughter Clementine replaced her as first lady at the Court in Brussels for the remainder of her husband's life.
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