Skip to content
VitrineVitrine
Sign in

Maximilian I Joseph of Bavaria

Schwetzingen, 27 May 1756 – Nymphenburg Palace, 13 Oct 1825

14 facts3 sources

Facts and their sources

  • Born27 May 1756, Schwetzingennot verified1 source
  • Titlecount, 1776–1793or duke, 1795–1797 · Prince-Elector, 1799–1806 · duke, 1799–1806 · King of Bavaria, 1806–1825 · duke, 1810–1816not verified1 source
  • Titleduke, 1795–1797or count, 1776–1793 · Prince-Elector, 1799–1806 · duke, 1799–1806 · King of Bavaria, 1806–1825 · duke, 1810–1816not verified1 source
  • Titleduke, 1799–1806or count, 1776–1793 · duke, 1795–1797 · Prince-Elector, 1799–1806 · King of Bavaria, 1806–1825 · duke, 1810–1816not verified1 source
  • TitlePrince-Elector, 1799–1806or count, 1776–1793 · duke, 1795–1797 · duke, 1799–1806 · King of Bavaria, 1806–1825 · duke, 1810–1816not verified1 source
  • TitleKing of Bavaria, 1806–1825or count, 1776–1793 · duke, 1795–1797 · Prince-Elector, 1799–1806 · duke, 1799–1806 · duke, 1810–1816not verified1 source
  • Titleduke, 1810–1816or count, 1776–1793 · duke, 1795–1797 · Prince-Elector, 1799–1806 · duke, 1799–1806 · King of Bavaria, 1806–1825not verified1 source
  • Died13 Oct 1825, Nymphenburg Palacenot verified1 source
  • FatherFrederick Michael, Count Palatine of Zweibrückennot verified1 source
  • MotherCountess Palatine Maria Franziska of Sulzbachnot verified1 source

A life in time

  1. 27 May 1756

    Born in Schwetzingen

  2. 1776–1793

    Count

  3. 1786–1810

    12 children are born

  4. 1795–1797

    Duke

  5. 1799–1806

    Duke

  6. 1799–1806

    Prince-Elector

  7. 1806–1825

    King of Bavaria

  8. 1810–1816

    Duke

  9. 13 Oct 1825

    Dies in Nymphenburg Palace, aged 69

Family

See the tree

Parents

Partners

Children · 12

During his lifetime

He lived through 8 decades. Pick one to hear and see what it was like around Schwetzingen.

General history, not a record about the family: each item says where it comes from.

The 1750s · Maximilian I is born in Schwetzingen

In the news1756–1763

Seven Years' War casualties and destruction

During the Seven Years' War, some 160,000 Prussian soldiers died in battle or from disease, devastating the population.

Getting around

Dangers and Hardships of 18th-Century Travel

Travel was often physically demanding and dangerous, with carriages that were frequently uncomfortably sprung or unsprung, causing travelers to suffer from motion sickness or injury. Due to the poor state of roads and the threat of highwaymen, travelers often carried weapons or avoided unnecessary trips, with some prominent figures never leaving their home region.

In Europe1755

Lisbon is destroyed by an earthquake

On All Saints’ Day an earthquake, a tsunami and fires levelled Lisbon and killed tens of thousands; Europe’s thinkers argued over it for decades.

Daily life

Seasonal Schooling Led by Untrained Teachers

Schooling was primarily limited to winter months, as children were needed for farm work and tending livestock during the rest of the year. Many village schoolmasters lacked formal training, often being retired soldiers, weavers, or tinkers.

What people wore

Practical Work Clothes for Women

Working women wore practical, loose-fitting clothing like an apron, headscarf, and cap, with shorter skirts and wide sleeves to allow free arm movement while handling water, fire, or animals.

Music

Regulated music at weddings and funerals

Weddings were major social events where music was highly regulated by status, dictating the number of performers and the duration of the celebrations. Musicians often played at these weddings and funerals, with societies in places like Leuben attending up to 18 weddings annually.

At the table

Kitchen tools for open fire cooking

To save time while cooking soups, housewives used hooks with a sawtooth design to quickly adjust the height of pots over the fire. They also used a specialized iron tool called a Cold Hand to remove hot pots because oven mitts were not yet in use.