Princess Elisabeth of Saxony

Elisabeth of Saxony (4 February 1830 – 14 August 1912) was a Princess of Saxony who married the second son of the King of Sardinia. She was the mother of Margherita, Queen of Italy.

Elisabeth of Saxony
Duchess of Genoa
Marchioness di Rapallo
Born(1830-02-04)4 February 1830
Dresden, Kingdom of Saxony
Died14 August 1912(1912-08-14) (aged 82)
Stresa, Piedmont, Kingdom of Italy
SpouseFerdinand, Duke of Genoa
Niccolò Bernoud, Marchese di Rapallo
IssueMargherita, Queen of Italy
Thomas, Duke of Genoa
Full name
Maria Elisabeth Maximiliana Ludovika Amalie Franziska Sophia Leopoldine Anna Baptista Xaveria Nepomucena
HouseWettin
FatherJohn of Saxony
MotherAmalie Auguste of Bavaria
ReligionRoman Catholicism

Early life and family

She was born in Dresden, capital of Saxony, as daughter of King John of Saxony and his wife Amalie Auguste of Bavaria. Her paternal grandparents were Prince Maximilian of Saxony and Carolina of Parma. Her maternal grandparents were King Maximilian I Joseph of Bavaria and Karoline of Baden.

Marriages and issue

On 22 April 1850, she married, in Dresden Cathedral, Prince Ferdinand, 1st Duke of Genoa, second son of King Charles Albert of Sardinia and Maria Theresa of Austria and Tuscany. Their marriage was a dynastic arrangement, and it was generally held to be loveless.[1]

The couple had two children:

NameBirthDeathNotes
Margherita Maria Teresa GiovannaPalazzo Chiablese, 20 November 1851Bordighera, 4 January 1926married Umberto I of Italy; had issue.
Tommaso Alberto Vittorio, 2nd Duke of GenoaPalazzo Chiablese, 6 February 1854Turin, 15 April 1931married Princess Isabella of Bavaria; had issue.

On 10 February 1855 her husband died in Turin, leaving Elizabeth a widow at the age of 25.

Before her second year of widowhood had ended, she remarried on 4 October 1856 with her chamberlain Niccolò Bernoud, Marchese di Rapallo.[1] They married secretly, before her period of official mourning was over. This act so infuriated her brother-in-law Victor Emmanuel II of Italy that he ordered her into virtual exile and disallowed her from seeing her two children.[1] They were later reunited however.

In 1882, her second husband committed suicide. Court gossip had often hinted that their marriage was unhappy, and his suicide added fuel to these stories.[1] Elisabeth had no children from her second marriage.

Death

Elisabeth suffered an attack of apoplexy in 1910, which caused her health to quickly deteriorate.[1] She died on 14 August 1912.[1]

Titles and styles
  • 4 February 1830 – 22 April 1850: Her Royal Highness Princess Elizabeth of Saxony
  • 22 April 1850 – 10 February 1855: Her Royal Highness The Duchess of Genoa
  • 10 February 1855 – 4 October 1856: Her Royal Highness The Dowager Duchess of Genoa
  • 4 October 1856 – 27 November 1882: Her Royal Highness The Marchioness Rapallo
  • 27 November 1882 – 14 August 1912: Her Royal Highness The Dowager Marchioness Rapallo

Ancestry

References
  1. "Margherita's Mother Dead", The New York Times, Rome, 15 August 1912
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