Ferdinand Maria, Elector of Bavaria
 |
Ferdinand Maria, Picture from 1658 |
Ferdinand Maria, Elector of Bavaria (
October 31,
1636 -
May 26,
1679) was a
Wittelsbach ruler of
Bavaria and an elector (
Kurfürst) of the
Holy Roman Empire from
1651 to 1679.
He was born in
Munich. He was the eldest son of
Maximilian I, Elector of Bavaria - whom he succeeded, and his second wife
Maria Anna of Austria, daughter of the emperor
Ferdinand II, Holy Roman Emperor.
He was crowned on
October 31,
1654. His
absolutistic style of leadership became a benchmark for the rest of
Germany. Though Ferdinand Maria allied with France he abstained the imperial crown in
1657 to avoid a conflict with
Habsburg.
He married
Henriette Adelaide of Savoy (d.
1676), daughter of
Victor Amadeus I of Savoy. With her the Italian Baroque was introduced in Bavaria. The
Theatiner Church in Munich was built from
1663 onwards as a gesture of thanks for the birth of the long-awaited heir to the Bavarian crown, Prince Max Emanuel. In
1664, he commissioned the building of
Nymphenburg Palace, near Munich.
He died in
Schleissheim Palace and was succeeded by his son
Maximilian II Emanuel.
* Duchess
Maria Anna of Bavaria *
Maximilian II,
Kurfürst of Bavaria
* Luise Margarete Antonie, Duchess of Bavaria
* Ludwig Amadeus Victor, Duke of Bavaria
* Kajetan Maria Franz, Duke of Bavaria
*
Joseph Clemens Kajetan,
Kurfürst and
Archbishop of Cologne* Violante Beatrix, Duchess of Bavaria
