Mother Knows Best (opens in new tab)

A portrait of Empress Maria Theresia by the painter Jean-Étienne Liotard. Maria Theresia ruled the Habsburg monarchy from her father’s death, in 1740, until her own, in 1780. By Joanne Kaufman The ineffable Mrs. Bennet of Pride and Prejudice saw herself as grievously burdened, what with five daughters to marry off and one of those daughters ridiculously unwilling to consent to a union that would keep a critically important piece of property in the family.Maria Theresia, the ruler of the Habsb...