Archduchess Gisela of Austria
| Archduchess Gisela of Austria | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | 12 July 1856 Laxenburg,Austrian Empire |
| Died | 27 July 1932(aged 76) Munich,Bavaria,Weimar Republic |
| Burial | |
| Spouse | |
| Issue | |
| House | Habsburg-Lorraine |
| Father | Franz Joseph I of Austria |
| Mother | Elisabeth in Bavaria |
Archduchess Gisela Louise Marie of Austria Princess of Hungary, Princess of Bohemia, Princess of Galicia and Lodomeria, Princess of Croatia, Slavonia and Dalmatia(12 July 1856 – 27 July 1932) was the second daughter and eldest surviving child ofEmperor Franz Joseph IandEmpress Elisabeth of Austria.She became aPrincess of Bavariathrough her marriage to her second cousin,Leopold.
The Archduchess was born on 12 July 1856, the second child ofFranz Joseph I of AustriaandElisabeth in Bavaria.She was named Gisella Louise Marie; the name Gisella was taken after QueenGisela of Hungary,wife ofStephen I,first Christian Hungarian king.[1]Although christenedGisella,she only ever wrote her name with one L. Just like her elder sisterArchduchess Sophieand her brotherCrown Prince Rudolf,Gisela was raised by her paternal grandmother,Archduchess Sophie of Austria.Of a sober nature like her father, she kept a reserved attitude towards her mother. She had a very close relationship with her brother, whose suicide affected her greatly.
Her royal titles were: Archduchess of Austria; Princess of Hungary; Princess of Bohemia; Princess of Galicia and Lodomeria; Princess of Croatia, Slavonia and Dalmatia; Princess of Bavaria; and Countess of Habsburg...
Life[edit]
Her father collected some of the family's personal items, such as the first pair of shoes worn by each of his children. Among these keepsakes was a poem written for him by a young Gisela one Christmas; the poem was said to be the most treasured item among this collection. Archduchess Gisela was also known to paint in her later years.
Marriage and family[edit]
On 20 April 1873, at the age of 16, Gisela was married toPrince Leopold of BavariainVienna.Prince Leopold was a son of Prince RegentLuitpold of BavariaandAuguste Ferdinande of Austria:Gisela'ssecond cousin.Leopold had initially fallen forPrincess Amalie of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha,whom Empress Elisabeth's younger brotherDuke Maximilian Emanuel in Bavariaintended to marry. The Empress therefore arranged an encounter of Leopold and Gisela atGödöllő Palace,and the prince knew he could not refuse her offer.
According to a letter to his mother written in 1872, Emperor Franz Josef wanted the match between his daughter and theWittelsbachprince, as there were so few Catholic princes available at that time. It seems he felt he had to secure the only viable candidate to whom he could give Gisela (whom he called "our darling girl" during the wedding rites) with confidence. Prince Leopold received the immense dowry of a half a million guilders and soon overcame his former infatuation with Princess Amalie.
Gisela's mother remained absent during the wedding celebrations. The young couple was made welcome in Munich by her husband's family and went on to live in the Palais Leopold residence inSchwabing.The Palais was renamedGiselastraßein her honor in 1873.
Issue[edit]
A year after her wedding, she gave birth to her first child and Empress Elisabeth attended the baptism. Gisela and Leopold had four children:
- Princess Elisabeth Marie of Bavaria(1874–1957), who married Count Otto Ludwig Philipp von Seefried aufButtenheim
- Princess Auguste Maria of Bavaria(1875–1964), who marriedJoseph August, Archduke of Austria
- Prince Georg of Bavaria(1880–1943), who marriedArchduchess Isabella of Austria
- Prince Konrad of Bavaria(1883–1969), who marriedPrincess Bona Margherita of Savoy-Genoa
Charity works and World War I[edit]
Especially after the death of her brother, Gisela was deeply involved in a variety of social and political issues and founded charities to support the poor, blind, and deaf people where she took an active role herself. DuringWorld War Ishe ran amilitary hospitalin her Palais while her husband was afield marshalon the eastern front. When theRevolutionbroke out in 1918, the rest of her family fled the city, but Gisela remained and took part in the 1919 elections for theWeimar National Assemblywhere women above the age of 20 were allowed to vote for the first time.
Such was the esteem in which she was held that she was commonly known as theGood Angel from Viennaand becamepatronfor a number of institutions, such as theGiselabahn(a train running fromSalzburgtoTirol), the still active paddle steamerGiselaon theTraunseeand theGisela Gymnasiumin Munich.
Widowhood and death[edit]
Gisela and her husband celebrated theirgolden weddinganniversary in 1923. Her husband died in 1930; Gisela only survived him by two years. She died aged 76 in Munich on 27 July 1932, and is buried next to Prince Leopold in theColombariumat theSt.Michaelskirche,Munich.
Honours[edit]
She received the following orders:[2]
Austria-Hungary:
- Dame of theOrder of the Starry Cross
- Grand Cross of theOrder of Elizabeth,1898[3]
Kingdom of Bavaria:
- Dame of theOrder of Theresa
- Dame of theOrder of Saint Elizabeth
Kingdom of Portugal:Dame of theOrder of Saint Isabel
Spain:601st Dameof theOrder of Queen Maria Luisa,29 January 1863[4]
Ancestry[edit]
| Ancestors of Archduchess Gisela of Austria |
|---|
References[edit]
- ^Hamann, Brigitte (1986).The reluctant empress.Internet Archive. New York: Knopf. p. 68.ISBN978-0-394-53717-7.
- ^Hof- und Staatshandbuch der Österreichisch-Ungarischen Monarchie (1915),Genealogy p. 1
- ^"Elisabeth-orden",Hof- und Staatshandbuch der Österreichisch-Ungarischen Monarchie,Vienna: Druck und Verlag der K.K. Hof- und Staatsdruckerei, 1899, p. 192
- ^Guía de forasteros en Madrid para el año de 1864(in Spanish). En la Imprenta Nacional. 1864. p.168.Retrieved17 March2019.
- Sources
- Leopold Prinz von Bayern:Lebenserinnerungen
- Martha Schad:Kaiserin Elisabeth und ihre Töchter,Piper 2006
- Friedrich Weissensteiner:Liebeshimmel und Ehehöllen,Heyne 2000
External links[edit]
- Gisela-Oberrealschule (nun Gisela-Gymnasium) am Elisabethplatz
- Genealogie des Hochadels vorwiegend Deutschland, Geneanet
- Empress Elisabeth and her Family, TU Magazine
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| People | |
- Austrian princesses
- Hungarian princesses
- Bohemian princesses
- Bavarian princesses
- House of Habsburg-Lorraine
- House of Wittelsbach
- 1856 births
- 1932 deaths
- Austrian Roman Catholics
- Patrons of schools
- 19th-century Austrian people
- Knights of the Order of Saint Stephen of Hungary
- Dames of the Order of Saint Isabel
- People from Laxenburg
- Franz Joseph I of Austria
- Burials at St. Michael's Church, Munich
- Daughters of emperors
- Daughters of kings