Princess Amalie of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha


Princess Amalie of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha was a Princess of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha by birth and a Duchess in Bavaria through her marriage to Duke Maximilian Emanuel in Bavaria. Amalie was the fourth child and second eldest daughter of Prince August of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha and his wife Princess Clémentine of Orléans. Her youngest brother was Ferdinand I of Bulgaria.

Marriage and issue

From childhood, Amalie had been intended as the bride of Prince Leopold of Bavaria. However, Duke Maximilian Emanuel in Bavaria, youngest child of Duke Maximilian Joseph in Bavaria and his wife Princess Ludovika of Bavaria, fell in love with her and confided this love in his sister Elisabeth of Bavaria, now Empress of Austria.
The Empress became determined to ensure her favorite brother's happiness. She invited Leopold for an extended visit with the imperial family, among whom was her own fifteen-year-old daughter Archduchess Gisela of Austria. There, Leopold was tactfully made aware that a marriage with Gisela would be looked upon with favor by Emperor Franz Joseph. The temptation to become the Emperor's son-in-law was too strong to resist, and Leopold became engaged to Gisela after only a few days. After a sufficient amount of time had passed to enable Amalie to recover, Empress Elisabeth brought Max and Amalie together. They were married on 20 September 1875 in Ebenthal, Lower Austria, Austria–Hungary.
Amalie and Maximilian Emanuel had three sons:
The marriage was by all accounts a very happy one.

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