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Princess Elisabeth Therese de Lorraine
(1711–41)

Biographical

With the continuous decline of the Lorraine family, Elisabeth's father, Duke Leopold, tried to strengthen ties with the empire, as did King Charles Emmanuel III of Sardinia who had been left a widower for the second time, and chose Elisabeth as his next wife. The importance of this marriage was not the Lorraine family itself, which was by now of diminished power and influence, but the alliance with the family of Emperor Charles VI (his daughter, Empress Maria Theresa had married Elisabeth's brother, the future Emperor Francis I) which would attempt to establish good relations with the empire. Marriage negotiations took place in 1736, and Elisabeth's mother eagerly consented to the union. The marriage was celebrated by proxy at Lunéville in March 1737 and in person at Chambéry in April that year. The wedding was celebrated with much enthusiasm in various cities, but little is known of Elisabeth's character. It seems that she had no political role assigned to her at court, perhaps due to the brevity of her time there, for she contracted puerperal fever less than a fortnight after the birth of her last child, Benedetto Maurizio, and she died.

Place of birth: Lunéville
Place of marriage: Chambéry
Place of death: Palace of La Venaria, Turin
Place of burial: Cathedral of Turin, then at the basilica of Superga, Turin

Daughter of Leopold Joseph, Duke of Lorraine and Princesse Elisabeth Charlotte d’Orléans. She married Carlo Emanuele III, King of Sardinia (Savoy) in 1737 and had issue.

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