Duchess Helene in Bavaria
| Duchess Helene in Bavaria | |||||
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| Hereditary Princess of Thurn and Taxis | |||||
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| Born |
4 April 1834 Munich, Kingdom of Bavaria |
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| Died | 16 May 1890 (aged 56) Regensburg, Kingdom of Bavaria |
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| Burial | Gruftkapelle, Saint Emmeram's Abbey, Regensburg | ||||
| Spouse | Maximilian Anton Lamoral, Hereditary Prince of Thurn and Taxis | ||||
| Issue |
Princess Louise of Hohenzollern Elisabeth, Duchess of Braganza Maximilian Maria, 7th Prince of Thurn and Taxis Albert, 8th Prince of Thurn and Taxis |
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| House | Wittelsbach | ||||
| Father | Duke Maximilian Joseph in Bavaria | ||||
| Mother | Princess Ludovika of Bavaria | ||||
| Religion | Roman Catholic | ||||
| Full name | |
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| German: Helene Caroline Therese |
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Styles of Helene, Hereditary Princess of Thurn and Taxis |
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| Reference style | Her Royal Highness |
| Spoken style | Your Royal Highness |
| Alternative style | Ma'am |
Helene Caroline Therese, Duchess in Bavaria (4 April 1834 – 16 May 1890) of the House of Wittelsbach, nicknamed Néné, was a Bavarian princess and, through marriage, temporarily the head of the Thurn and Taxis family.
Helene was the oldest daughter of Maximilian Joseph, Duke in Bavaria and Ludovika, Royal Princess of Bavaria. The family home was at Possenhofen Castle.
In 1853 she traveled with her mother Ludovika and her younger sister Elisabeth to the resort of Bad Ischl, Upper Austria with the hopes that she would become the bride of their cousin Franz Josef, then the emperor of Austria. He decided that he preferred Elisabeth instead. Helene was unusually pious, and would have fit into the Habsburg court well. She had one quality, though, that would not have been accepted: she was habitually late, and often missed trains and appointments.
After the failed engagement, she became depressed and Ludovika became concerned that Helene would take the veil and join a convent. Helene had almost come to terms with remaining single. At 22 years old she was considered to be an "old maid," but her mother arranged for her to meet the wealthy Maximilian Anton Lamoral, Hereditary Prince of Thurn and Taxis. Duke Max in Bavaria, Helene's father, invited the Thurn and Taxis family to Possenhofen for a hunting party, at which Prince Maximilian was introduced to Helene.
While the prince was vacationing at Possenhofen, he brought his marriage plans to his parents, who immediately agreed. The only difficulty involved was that although the Thurn and Taxis family were counted among the richest in the land, they were not considered social equals for a princess of royal blood and a member of the House of Wittelsbach. Because of this, King Maximilian II of Bavaria did not at first agree to a marriage between the two, but through Elisabeth's influence on the king, the marriage took place nevertheless. The wedding ceremony was held on 24 August 1858 at Possenhofen. To mark the occasion, the in-laws gave the bride a necklace worth 160,000 Gulden. Ironically, in spite of the earlier objections to the match, Helene is considered to have had the only happy marriage among the five Wittelsbach sisters.
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Wikipedia