Born as an illegitimate daughter of August II the Strong, Elector of Saxony, Grand Duke of Lithuania and King of Poland, by Henriette Rénard she became Hereditary Duchess of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Beck by marriage.

[2] The first time she appeared in documents was on 21 November 1726 during the Diet of Grodno, at which the King personally signed the donation of the Blue Palace to her, which became Anna Karolina's official residence.

The court of August the Strong had the worst reputation in Europe and encouraged the Countess's behavior, which was considered scandalous according to the official moral of the time.

However, when Augustus and the Countess, who was now married and pregnant, paid a return visit to the Prussian court, Frederick was frustrated and turned to unspecified other forms of dissipation.

In 1730, the Countess obtained from her father 300,000 thalers as a dowry and married with Prince Charles Louis of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Beck - younger brother of the reigning Duke Frederick Wilhelm II- in the city of Dresden, on 10 August of that year.

However, after three years of unhappy marriage (1733), Orzelska requested a divorce;[1] from this moment, the couple began to live separately: Karl Ludwig in Königsberg and Anna Karolina in Venice, where she had a scandalous lifestyle.