Marie Antoinette

Maria Antonia was born on 2 November 1755 at the Hofburg Palace, in Vienna. She was the youngest daughter of Emperor Francis I and Empress Maria Theresa. Her godparents were Joseph Iand Mariana Victoria, King and Queen of Portugal; Archduke Joseph and Archduchess Maria Anna acted as proxies for their newborn sister. Shortly after her birth, she was placed under the care of the Governess of the Imperial children, Countess von Brandeis.  Maria Antonia was raised with her three-year older sister Maria Carolina, with whom she had a lifelong close relationship.As to her relationship with her mother, it was difficult but both the empress and her daughter loved each other.Maria Antonia spent her formative years between the Hofburg Palace and Schönnbrunn, the imperial summer residence in Vienna, where on 13 October 1762 she met Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, then a child prodigy.In spite of the private tutoring she received, results of her schooling were less than satisfactory. At the age of ten, she could not write correctly in German or in any language commonly used at court, such as French and Italian. Conversations with her were stilted.Under the teaching of Christoph Willibald Gluck, Maria Antonia developed into a good musician. She learned to play the harp, the harpsichord and the flute. During the family's gatherings in the evenings, she would sing, as she had a beautiful voice. She also excelled at dancing, had an "exquisite" poise, and loved dolls.