Princess Caroline Augusta of Bavaria

Caroline Augusta of Bavaria
Portrait by Franz Schrotzberg, 1864
Empress consort of Austria, Queen consort of Hungary and Bohemia, Dalmatia, Croatia, Slavonia, Galicia, Lodomeria and Illyria; Queen of Lombardy-Venetia Queen of Jerusalem etc. Archduchess of Austria; Grand Duchess of Tuscany and of Cracow; Duchess of Lorraine, of Salzburg, Styria, Carinthia, Carniola and the Bukovina; Grand Princess of Transsylvania, Margravine of Moravia Duchess of Upper and Lower Silesia, of Modena, Parma, Piacenza and Guastalla, of Auschwitz and Zator, of Teschen, Friuli, Ragusa and Zara; Princely Countess of Habsburg and Tyrol, of Kyburg, Gorizia and Gradisca; Princess of Trent and Brixen; Margravine of Upper and Lower Lusatia and in Istria; Countess of Hohenems, Feldkirch, Bregenz, Sonnenberg etc.; Lady of Trieste, of Cattaro and on the Windic March; etc., etc.
Tenure	29 October 1816 – 2 March 1835
Born	(1792-02-08)8 February 1792 Mannheim, Electoral Palatinate
Died	9 February 1873(1873-02-09) (aged 81) Vienna, Austria-Hungary
Spouse	William, Crown Prince of Württemberg Francis I of Austria
House	Wittelsbach
Father	Maximilian I Joseph of Bavaria
Mother	Princess Augusta Wilhelmine of Hesse-Darmstadt
Religion	Roman Catholicism

Princess Caroline Augusta of Bavaria (German: Karoline Auguste; Mannheim, 8 February 1792 – 9 February 1873 in Vienna) was a daughter of King Maximilian I Joseph of Bavaria (1756–1825) and his wife, Augusta Wilhelmine of Hesse-Darmstadt (1765–1796), and a member of the House of Wittelsbach. She was married to Crown Prince William of Württemberg, whom she divorced, and to Emperor Francis I of Austria. From 1816 until her husband's death in 1835, she was Empress of Austria.

On 8 June 1808, at Munich, Caroline Augusta married Crown Prince William (1781–1864) becoming Crown Princess of Württemberg. They had no children and were divorced on 31 August 1814.

Her first marriage was arranged to avoid a political marriage arranged by Napoleon. After the marriage ceremony, her spouse said to her: We are victims to politics. She spent her time writing letters to her brother Louis, and learning Italian and English. The couple never bonded with each other and the marriage was finally annulled by Pope Pius VII to enable both of them to make remarriages that were valid in the Catholic Church. At the time of the annulment, it was claimed by them that they had lived separately in the palace and that the marriage had never been consummated.

After the annulment of her marriage, Caroline Augusta was considered as a bride for both the Emperor Francis II and his younger brother, Ferdinand. Later, Ferdinand withdrew his proposal and Caroline August became the Emperor's bride.