The World
of the Habsburgs

Marie Christine, Maria Theresa’s favourite daughter, was allowed to marry the husband of her choice, Albert of Saxony-Teschen. In 1780 the couple took up the governorship of the Netherlands, from where they were forced to flee several times. The archduchess was a gifted amateur painter, and her husband was an important collector of art, founding the Albertina in Vienna. Her tomb – executed by the sculptor Antonio Canova and decorated with Masonic symbols – stands in the Augustinerkirche in Vienna.