The greatest Habsburg ruler of the 18th century, and the first royal patron of Mozart's genius. In October 1762, the six-year-old Wolfgang and his sister Nannerl performed for her at Schonbrunn Palace in Vienna, famously charming the Empress entirely.
She surfaces in Salzburg's story through Mozart. Visitors following the Mozart trail will encounter her name at the point where a six-year-old boy from the Getreidegasse first stepped onto the stage of European royalty. Mother of Emperor Joseph II and grandmother of Marie Antoinette, Maria Theresia connects the Salzburg Mozart story to the wider arc of Habsburg power.
