Princess Isabella of Parma

In them, she discussed philosophy, religion, ethics, politics, diplomacy, military theory, world trade, education and childrearing, human culture and societies, and the position of women.

Although her husband loved her, she did not fully return his feelings and found more fulfillment in her (likely romantic, possibly sexual) relationship with her sister-in-law, Archduchess Maria Christina.

Despite her popularity at the Viennese court, the shame and guilt inspired by her inability to reciprocate her husband's feelings, compounded by the same-sex attraction that she considered sinful, made her unhappy.

A lonely childhood with demanding and unaffectionate caretakers, the sudden loss of her mother, a difficult birth and two miscarriages in the span of ten months, and later a fourth pregnancy all adversely affected her physical and mental health.

Madame Infante was ambitious and strong-willed, unlike her husband, and soon took on a leading role in the marriage, working through to secure a higher position for themselves[2] and more power for the Bourbons.

[3] She had a contentious relationship with her mother-in-law Elisabeth Farnese, the de facto ruler of Spain, whom she threatened in her influence over her son, but they worked together to advance Philip's career.

[6] Based on these letters, her mother never displayed warmth towards Isabella, and was impatient with her; when the child threw tantrums, she chastised her so severely that Queen Elisabeth called it a 'military drill'.

Their spirit is brilliant and full of fire, it is capable of designing anything with promptness and accuracy, it is vast, it understands everything, it is precise, few things escape it, it is inventive in every way.

[24] She was officially urged by the Marshal of France, Adrien-Maurice de Noailles, to show more love to Isabella, as it was feared that rumours about her cold treatment could diminish the chances of a politically advantageous marriage.

[28] Isabella was instructed by her confessors, Fathers Fumeron and Belgrado, in the lives of the saints, and she continued to practice drawing, painting, and music with her aya; she excelled at singing and playing the violin and the harpsichord.

[29] While there is no proof that she attended lectures by Keralion and Condillac, Badinter argues that her later knowledge of military theory, history, and Enlightenment ideals shows that she did.

Influenced by Madame de Pompadour, Louis XV decided to shift alliances and join Austria against Britain and Prussia in the Diplomatic Revolution.

[36] Her bridegroom Joseph wrote to a friend that he would try to win his bride's 'respect and trust', but he considered it impossible for himself to be 'agreeable, to pose as a lover', as that went against his 'nature' which had never understood romantic love.

[37] I am extremely worried about my future happiness; I am certainly not entering this [married] state out of curiosity or bestial lust; only the thought of duty brings me to this, which costs me infinitely and disgusts me.

[41] At night, there was a display of decorative lighting with almost three thousand lanterns burning between the Hofburg and the Stephansdom and the same amount of white wax candles in two lines, complete with torches in the courtyard of the palace.

Festivities lasted for days and were commemorated in a series of paintings by Martin van Meytens, which can be viewed in the Hall of Ceremonies in Schönbrunn Palace as of 2024.

[42] This was organised despite the ongoing Seven Years' War draining the treasury, as Maria Theresa wished to distract attention and display the wealth of her empire.

[48] In early March 1763, was reported in France that she was psychologically unwell, still grieving her last miscarriage, and displaying physical symptoms: she was 'extremely thin', had an 'almost constant' 'dry cough', and pain in her sides.

[52] Despite living in the same palace, they exchanged letters and small notes daily, which Freyermuth connects to the popularity of intimate correspondence and epistolary novels at the time.

[51] Badinter argues that possessive desires, feeling pain over being separated, an 'obsession with the beloved', jealousy, and dependency—seen as characteristics of romantic-sexual relationships both in the 18th century and since then—were apparent in their correspondence.

She relied on the French pronoun on ('one'), to make her declarations impersonal: 'when one sees you [on vous voit], one can no longer be [on ne plus peut être] occupied by anything but your charms'.

[64] The Infanta was intelligent and educated, and studying sciences had been Marianne's refuge from her lonely and contentious family life, an interest that connected her with her father, who now also adored Isabella.

[75] In 1758, French historian Pierre-Jean Grosley visited Parma and described Isabella as 'one of the main wonders' of the city because of her 'marked talent' in all 'useful and pleasurable arts' and her 'good knowledge of the world'.

[76] Freyermuth argues that the travels she undertook as a child and her diverse experiences in Spain, France, Parma, and later Austria stimulated her intellectual development and her critical thinking skills.

[50] During negotiations for her marriage, Austrian observers reported that Isabella spoke French, Spanish, Italian, and some Latin, studied sciences and maps, and followed military movements in Austria's ongoing Third Silesian War.

[50] She enjoyed dancing at balls but not card games, horse-riding, or hunting (all popular forms of entertainment in European royal courts of the time), preferring brisk-paced walks as physical exercise.

[38] When her best friend and possible lover, Archduchess Maria Christina, wrote a description of Isabella, she mentioned being biased in favour of those she loved and being reluctant to change her opinions among her negative traits.

[82] Reflections on Education was Isabella's rejection of the contemporary upbringing of upper-class children and a covert condemnation of her own parents and the teachers they hired, especially the abusive tutors of her brother Ferdinand.

[84] She considered corporal punishment (which her parents had embraced) to be futile and dangerous, a form of discipline originating in 'hardened hearts' and 'lowly sentiments', based on the 'false belief' that humans are 'no better than animals' and cannot be persuaded through reason.

In her opinion, a man is born to think but instead spends his life 'with entertainment, yelling, playing heroes, running up and down, in other words, doing nothing but what flatters his vanity or requires no thought of him'.

Two toddlers, one in white and the other in white and gold in front of a red background, playing with a small dog
Isabella (right) with her cousin Maria Isabel Ana of Naples and Sicily on The Family of Philip V by Louis Michel van Loo .
A young, short-haired girl in a white gown with red and golden embellishments and lace, standing before a landscape.
Isabella in 1749, at the age of seven in a portrait by Jean-Marc Nattier painted during her stay in Versailles.
A family sitting in a luxurious salon. The mother, a middle-aged woman in white, is sitting in the front-left, next to her is the father in brown with golden embroidery. Behind them and on their right is Isabella in light purple, showing her father a drawing. On the other side of the couple are two small children playing with a sword, a boy in blue and a girl in yellow. An older woman, the governess of the children is also visible from the back in the far-right of the picture.
Isabella (standing, in a light purple dress) with her family in 1757, at the age of 16.
Façade of a yellow Renaissance palace under a blue sky, with a white marble statue in front of it.
Isabella's home in Parma, the Palazzo del Giardino .
Adolescent boy in gilded red courtly robes, hair powdered white, standing next to a table with a globe on it, with various military decorations.
Ferdinand, Isabella's brother between 1765 and 1769.
An adolescent boy in a gilded red courtly robe, his hair gray.
Archduke Joseph in 1755.
Countless carriages and horsemen are marching in front of a Viennese landscape.
An allegoric depiction of the wedding procession by Martin van Meytens. The square shown here did not exist, and existing houses were left off the picture to showcase the procession.
A bedroom with a young woman in white laying on the pink, canopy bed. A man in a gray coat is sitting next to her, leaning towards her. A woman in white is seated in the middle, nursing a swaddled baby, with a young woman in blue looking on. Next to them is a crib.
Joseph at Isabella's bedside after the birth of their daughter Maria Theresa. He was beside her throughout the delivery. [ 44 ]
A young woman in a simple white dress with a light blue coat is sitting next to a gilded table with fruits on it. Her hair is powdered white with black lace braided into it. A toddler in a light pink dress is running near her, with a small black dog and a white parrot.
Isabella with her daughter Maria Theresa.
A young woman in a simple white dress with a black apron and a white cap is sitting before a background of small paintings. She is weaving on a small loom.
Marie on a self-portrait from 1765.
Young woman wearing an elaborate pink dress with white lace, pink ribbons, and diamond jewellery. There is a fan in her hand; she is seated before a plain background, looking directly at the viewer. Her hair is long and powdered white.
Marie on a 1762 portrait attributed to Martin van Meytens
A family seated around a table, playing cards. A young man in red is on the left side and a middle-aged woman in the middle, behind her standing a young woman in pink. On the right side of the table is another young woman in blue.
Isabella with her husband, mother-in-law, and sister-in-law Marie.
Young woman seated, wearing a red skirt with light purple flowers, a white shirt with elaborate lacing, a deep yellow scarf, and a black-and-silver headdress on her hair which is powdered white.
Marianne on a contemporary portrait.
Three grey, ornamental sarcophagi standing next to each other, with a fourth underneath the one in the centre
Isabella's tomb (center), with that of her daughter Christina underneath. In the foreground is the sarcophagus of her older daughter Maria Theresa, and in the background that of Joseph's second wife, Josepha.
A young, blonde girl in a greenish-blue dress and a white cap. Her dress is embellished with white lace, greenish-blue bows and golden embroidery.
Isabella's daughter, Maria Theresa.
A middle-aged woman a little girl in a park. The woman is wearing a simple blue dress and her daughter, leaning against her legs, is in white. They both hold light pink roses and their hair is in a strict up-do, powdered white.
Isabella with her mother.
Two young men with hair powdered white, one in white-and-red, the other in black-and-gold military uniforms standing next to a statue of a Greek or Roman goddess
Her husband Joseph (right) with his brother Leopold in 1769 in a portrait by Pompeo Batoni