Death of Maria Sophie, Naples Warrior Queen
Maria Sophie was the daughter of Duke Maximilian of Bavaria and Princess Ludovika.
Born as Duchess Maria Sophia Amalie in Bavaria, on 4th October 1841, she was the younger sister of the better-known Elisabeth of Bavaria (“Sisi”) who married Emperor Franz Joseph I of Austria
Maria Sophie had a privileged but turbulent childhood.
While she was born in the lap of luxury, her upbringing was very extraordinary due to her father’s eccentric ways.
The Duke encouraged his family to take up habits like horse riding, instead of reading and studying.
Needless to say, he imparted his sense of adventure onto his children, especially Maria Sophie and Sisi.
At just 16 years of age, Maria was betrothed to Francis II, the Crown Prince of Naples.
Unfortunately, Maria still hadn’t gotten her period.
Since marriages were about siring royal heirs as quickly as possible, this posed a very big problem for Maria.
To try and remedy the situation, poor Maria was subjected to a brutal medical regime aimed at jumpstarting her period cycle.
From scorching hot baths to leeching, the young girl underwent various procedures.
Sadly, Maria and Francis were a match made in hell.
They were polar opposites in personality and temperament.
While Francis was serious and devout, Maria was young, playful, and adventurous, which didn’t translate well into their bedroom activities.
As the tale goes, their wedding night consisted of Francis desperately praying, while Maria wept.
As it turns out, Maria wasn’t the only one with troubling medical conditions.
Francis was also hiding a shameful secret from everyone.
The prince suffered from a condition called Phimosis, which made intercourse incredibly painful.
This wholly blindsided young Maria, and their marriage suffered greatly as a result.
The marriage went from bad to worse with Francis’ limiting ailment and their incompatibility.
The prince naturally failed to meet his pretty young wife’s appetites.
In fact, their marriage wasn’t consummated until years later, due to Francis’ condition.
Barely a year after their marriage, Prince Francis’ father passed away, making him the King of Two Sicilies.
Overnight, Maria became a literal Queen.
While her queendom wasn’t as luxurious as one would hope, it allowed Maria to prove herself to the people of Europe and beyond.
Becoming a Queen of the Two Sicilies did Maria no favours.
By the time she got married to Francis, the Kingdom was already on shaky ground.
A quiet but deadly revolution had been bubbling under the surface, and in 1860, it finally arrived at their doorstep.
Needless to say, they were not prepared for it.
As enemies laid siege to their Kingdom, Francis’ took a passive stance on the whole conflict.
Her husband’s spineless antics came as a shock to the bold and fiercely loyal warrior Queen.
Instead of taking charge, Francis started having panic attacks, and Maria was left to take care of the mess.
As the enemy troops slowly took over the Kingdom, Maria and Francis retreated to Gaeta with their men.
The seaside castle of Gaeta was far away from the dangers of Naples, and provided Francis with a sense of safety.
However, Maria was more intelligent than that, and knew that the incoming storm would mark the death of their empire.
Instead of relying on her good-for-nothing husband, she decided to take matters into her own hands and ended up on the front lines.
She rallied the troops, and cared for the wounded, earning the people’s respect.
Beyond being brave, Maria was also full of mischief and wicked humor.
Once, in order to distract an approaching enemy fleet, she ordered her men to moon them with their bare bottoms!!
Maria Sophie’s enemies begrudgingly admitted her greatness.
One of her biggest rivals, Gabriel D’Annunzio, once referred to her as a “stern little Bavarian Eagle.”
Her horse riding lessons with her father, ended up serving her well in battle, as she fought alongside her people.
Not only that, but Maria also wielded a sword, as if she was born to be on the battlefield.
Tales of Maria’s fearlessness and tenacity in the face of war, spread all over Europe.
She was considered such a warrior queen, that she earned the flattering title “The Modern Joan of Arc.”
That’s an impressive feat for a 19-year-old girl.
Despite Maria’s sacrifices on the battlefield, The Kingdom of Two Sicilies crumbled on 20th March 1861.
Maria and Francis escaped to Rome in peaceful exile, but this was only the beginning of the warrior queen’s incredible journey.
While they were exiled in Rome, Maria gave into temptation and committed the ultimate sin.
A handsome Belgian officer captured her heart.
In 1862, Maria discovered the consequences of giving in to her passions.
The queen was carrying her lover’s child, and due to her husband’s condition, she couldn’t even pass it off as the royal heir.
Maria’s influential family got wind of the brewing scandal, and immediately sprung into action.
The former queen was transported to the German palace, and it was agreed that Maria would secretly give birth to the baby.
Maria gave birth to her illegitimate daughter on 24th November 1862.
Maria was forced to give the baby away to her lover’s family, and to swear that she would never associate with her child again.
Heartbroken, Maria started having illicit affairs.
Maria’s husband was utterly clueless about her extracurricular activities in the bedroom.
He might have never found out about her numerous affairs, had she not confessed it all to him.
Francis’ response was strange to say the least…
Instead of throwing a fit, Francis was accepting and highly forgiving in the face of Maria’s overwhelming infidelity.
After almost a decade of marriage, Francis finally made an effort to get his instrument checked and fixed, to satisfy Maria.
In 1869, Maria found out she was pregnant with Francis’ child.
She soon gave birth to another daughter, who was the namesake of her long-lost baby girl.
The daughter was named Maria Cristina Louise Pia.
Her baby daughter was a weak child with many ailments.
When she turned three months old, the baby’s health worsened, and Maria refused to let the baby out of her sight.
The baby passed away in 1870 due to convulsions.
It’s said that Maria cradled the little girl’s body all night, unable to move on from the trauma of losing yet another child.
After their daughter’s death, the marriage plummeted further, becoming completely unsalvageable.
From then on, they both went their separate ways, and lived the rest of their lives alone.
Francis became more pious and devoted than ever before, while Maria distanced herself.
Things were so bad at the end that when Francis fell sick and passed away in 1894, Maria didn’t even bother visiting him for a final farewell.
Maria Sophie had started as a queen in her younger years, but as she grew older, the former queen witnessed the transformation of Europe.
It is known that Maria used to observe people through her window, to ascertain whether the young ones were still as brave as they used to be in her day.
She was just as tenacious in her old age as she was in her heyday, and managed to survive many regimes.
Maria remained loyal to the ones she liked and respected.
Although she did end up in impoverished conditions toward the end of her life, she continued to pay her servants till the end.
Maria Sophie passed away at the age of 83, on 19th January 1925.
During her long and illustrious life, she witnessed the fall of her country, her family, and Europe as a whole.
From a covert assassin to a grieving mother and worthy warrior, the former Queen had an exciting life where she fulfilled many roles.
The last Queen consort of the Two Sicilies, Queen Maria Sophie~1859.
Unknown artist – possibly Heinrich von Mayr.
