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Elizabeth Charlotte of the Palatinate, Duchess of Orléans

Heidelberg Castle, 27 May 1652 – Château de Saint-Cloud, 8 Dec 1722

9 facts3 sources

Facts and their sources

A life in time

  1. 27 May 1652

    Born in Heidelberg Castle

  2. 1674–1676

    2 children are born

  3. 8 Dec 1722

    Dies in Château de Saint-Cloud, aged 70

Family

See the tree

Parents

Partner

Children · 2

During her lifetime

She lived through 8 decades. Pick one to hear and see what it was like around Heidelberg Castle.

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

The 1650s · Elizabeth is born in Heidelberg Castle

In the news1654

Legally binding serfdom in Mecklenburg

The Servants Law of 1654 legally anchored serfdom in Mecklenburg, divesting serfs of personal freedoms and allowing them to be sold with property.

Getting around

River travel from Regensburg to Vienna

Starting in 1696, boats called 'Ordinari' transported passengers down the Danube from Regensburg to Vienna, a distance of about 450 kilometers that took at least one week.

In the news1656

Royal Edict on Beggars (1656)

In 1656, a royal edict established the Hopital General in Paris, forcing over six thousand beggars into labor as part of a policy to clear the streets.

Daily life

Difficult water access and pollution

Rural water access was difficult, often relying on collecting rainwater or hauling water from village wells or ditches. In some towns, polluted water was a risk because waste was simply poured onto streets and entered groundwater.

What people wore

Eleven caps for one woman

In Scheessel, a woman possessed about eleven different caps for various occasions, with five reserved exclusively for mourning. These caps were stored in colorful painted hatboxes.

Music

Town Musicians Performed on Diverse Instruments

Town musicians, known as Stadtpfeifer, performed on instruments like the cornett, sackbut, and various flutes at civic festivals, weddings, and funerals. They often used sets of instruments in different sizes, called consorts, including discant, alto, tenor, and bass versions.

At the table

Daily Porridge Habits

Because meat was expensive and rarely eaten, families often relied on a thick, long-cooking grain porridge as their primary warm meal. To stretch the food, they frequently reheated it, resulting in a thick, semi-solid consistency.