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Mária Terézia was born on May 3, 1707 in Vienna. She reigned from 1740-1780. She became
queen in October 22, 1740. Also, she was crowned on June 25, 1741 in Pozsony.
She had 16 kids, but only 11 reached adulthood. The father of Mária Terézia was Charles VI who ruled from 1712-1740.
He had no male heir, so he introduced the Pragmatic Sanction, a document which provided the legal basis for a line of inheritance
in the dynasty through his daughter Mária Terézia. When Charles died, he left his daughter a weak army and an empty treasury.
Although the empire she inherited was falling apart and bankrupt, and her title and lands were demanded by others, she
was one of the greatest rulers in modern history! She married II. Lipót out of love! Mária Terézia introduced many orders
that helped the people. In home policy, she achieved loyalties by granting new privililges to the nobles. She recognized
Hungary as the most important of her crowns. She also introduced reforms in education and health care, and limited dues
that serfs owed their landlords. With all these measures she wanted to preserve the power of the central monarchy. Mária Terézia
died on November 24, 1780 in Vienna.
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