Maria was born in The Hague, the youngest daughter of Amalia of Solms-Braunfels and her husband Frederick Henry, Prince of Orange.

However, in the end he opted to marry Catharine of Braganza to establish an anti-Spanish alliance with Portugal.

A year later marriage negotiations with John Maurice, Prince of Nassau-Siegen began, but these also proved abortive.

Maria and Louis Henry were married eight years but the marriage proved childless and on her husband's death the Simmern-Kaiserslautern line died out.

Like her sisters Louise Henriette with the Oranienburg, Albertine Agnes with the Oranienstein and Henriette Catherine with Oranienbaum, Maria built herself a new palace after her marriage - she completed hers in 1669 at Bad Kreuznach and named it Schloss Oranienhof.