Franciszka Krasińska

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Franciszka Krasińska (1742–1796) was a Polish noblewoman who became Duchess of Courland through her marriage to Charles, Duke of Courland. She was born on March 9, 1742, in Maleszowa, the daughter of Count Stanisław Krasiński and Aniela Humięcka.

At about 15, she fell in love with Charles of Saxony, the heir to Courland. They married in secret on March 25, 1760, because she was not from a reigning dynasty. The marriage was later recognized in 1764 as a Morganatic marriage, meaning she did not share her husband’s dynastic title. In 1775, Emperor Joseph II granted her the title of Princess, though the Prussian court did not recognize it. The couple often lived apart, and they had two daughters: Maria Theresia (1767), who died in infancy, and Maria Christina (1770–1851), who became the grandmother of Victor Emmanuel II, the later King of Italy. Franciszka also received an annuity from the Polish Sejm.

Franciszka died on April 30, 1796, in Dresden, likely from breast cancer, at age 53. She was buried at St. Marienstern Abbey in Panschwitz-Kuckau. Her life was the subject of a historical novel by Klementyna Hoffmanowa.