Abstract
This portrait of Maria Theresia (1717-1780), painted in 1772 by Anton
von Maron, shows her mourning the death of her husband, Francis I. She
is gesturing at the Imperial crown as well as those of Bohemia and
Hungary. The portrait was completed the same year as the first Partition
of Poland (1772), which divided territories under Maria Theresia’s
control among Catherine I (the Great) of Russia and Frederick II (the
Great) of Prussia. Two additional partitions in 1793 and 1795 completed
the annexation of the territory by Russia and Prussia.