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Maria Theresa of Spain

Madrid, 1638 – Versailles, 30 Jul 1683

12 facts1 source

Facts and their sources

A life in time

  1. 1638

    Born in Madrid

  2. 1661–1672

    6 children are born

  3. 30 Jul 1683

    Dies in Versailles

Family

See the tree

Parents

Partner

Children · 6

During her lifetime

She lived through 6 decades. Pick one to hear and see what it was like around Madrid.

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

The 1630s · Maria is born in Madrid

In the news1630–1631

Great famine causes mass starvation

A series of continuous rains in 1630 led to widespread crop failures, causing a severe famine that lasted from August 1630 until May 1631 and caused massive demographic losses.

Getting around

Fast travel via relay horses

Travel via the post system was the fastest method, with royal mail and some travelers using relay horses to reach speeds covering 150 to 200 kilometers per day. A trip from Seville to Madrid, for example, was expected to be completed in two days and eighteen hours.

In the news1626–1632

Great plague outbreak kills one million

Between 1626 and 1632, a devastating plague outbreak killed approximately one million people, causing many towns to lose one-third to one-quarter of their inhabitants.

Daily life

Strict penalties for illegal waste dumping

On September 23, 1639, a decree in Madrid mandated that waste must be emptied only through street doors at specific times, with penalties including 100 lashes and six years of exile for servants caught throwing it out of windows.

What people wore

Costs of Fashionable Accessories

In 1680, a yard of the popular thin, black smoke cloak worn by women was valued at seven and a half reales. Meanwhile, a fashionable hand fan in the summer could cost as much as six escudos.

Music

The popularity of the guitar

The guitar was the most popular instrument in Spain, played in all social settings ranging from taverns to the royal court and households.

At the table

The staple olla stew for commoners

The staple dish for commoners was a thick stew known as olla, which was simmered for hours and often thickened with flour made from wheat or millet, popularly called flour of the poor. It typically consisted of available legumes, such as chickpeas, beans, or fava beans, and vegetables like turnips.