House of Coburg

The Union of Families

August Coburg

On January 2, 1816, a grand wedding at St. Stephen's Cathedral in Vienna united the Coburg and Koháry families. The marriage between Maria Antonia Gabriela Koháry and Ferdinand George Coburg took place after a brief acquaintance but was exceptionally founded on love.

Ferdinand George inherited vast estates spanning Slovakia, Hungary, and Austria. He not only managed them well but also expanded them. From this union, the eldest son Ferdinand married Portuguese Queen Maria II da Glória in 1836, taking the title of King as Don Fernando II.

His younger brother August Ludwig Viktor (1818–1881) inherited the family estates after their father's death and married French Princess Clémentine of Orléans (1817–1907). They had five children. The first three—Philip, Ludwig August, and Clotilde—were born in France, Amalia in Coburg, Germany, and the youngest, Ferdinand (future Tsar of Bulgaria), in Vienna.

Marriage Politics

Philip Coburg

All children married according to their social standing. Clotilde married Archduke Joseph of Habsburg, Amalia married Maximilian of Bavaria (brother of Empress Sissi), August married Brazilian Princess Leopoldina, and Philip married the daughter of King Leopold of Belgium. After their father’s death, Philip became the fiduciary of the family estates.

His interests included travel, numismatics, and hunting. In 1879, he traveled to Brazil with his brothers, and between 1872–1873, he went on a world tour. The Coburgs became close relatives of the imperial family when his sister Stephanie married Rudolf of Habsburg, heir to the throne. Philip and Louise had two children, Dorothea and Leopold.

The marriage between Louise and Philip Coburg was unhappy and later turned into a scandal. In her miserable marriage, Louise indulged in a frivolous life of luxury, gossip, and parties. At the end of the 19th century, Louise met young officer Geza Mattasich-Keglevich at a ball, sparking a fateful love that brought them both suffering, poverty, and social rejection.

Philip and Louise were divorced in 1906. In the corner of the southern and western wings of the mansion overlooking the legendary Sitno, there is Louise's salon, furnished according to the fashion of the time. The windows are adorned with original hand-embroidered 19th-century curtains featuring exotic plants and birds.

Ferdinand of Bulgaria

Ferdinand Coburg

The youngest child of August and Clémentine, Ferdinand Maximilian Karl Leopold Maria (depicted in a winter imperial uniform) was born in 1861 in Vienna. He received both military and civil education. At the age of 26, he took over governance in Bulgaria, swearing allegiance to the constitution in Veliko Tarnovo in 1887.

Fluent in several languages, Ferdinand quickly learned Bulgarian after ascending the throne. He focused all efforts on foreign policy, achieving independence from Turkey and Russia. In 1908, he declared Bulgaria an independent kingdom and crowned himself as Tsar of Bulgaria.

In 1893, Ferdinand married Maria Louisa of Bourbon-Parma. (pictured together). They had four children: Boris (1894–1943), Cyril (1895–1945), Eudoxia (1898–1985), and Nadezhda (1899–1958). Maria Louisa died shortly after giving birth to their fourth child.

Ferdinand and Louise

Ferdinand remarried in 1908 to Eleonore von Reuss-Köstritz, with whom he had no children. She died of a terminal illness after 10 years of marriage.

The tense political situation after the Balkan Wars and World War I forced Ferdinand to abdicate. He went into exile, where he could fully dedicate himself to his lifelong passions of botany, entomology, ornithology, travel, and hunting.

He loved visiting Slovakia, often staying at mansions in Predná Hora and Svätý Anton. He treated his rheumatism several times in Piešťany and also visited the spa towns of Sliač and Korytnica. He enjoyed trips to Sitno, Čabraď, and Muráň.

He owned a Mercedes off-road vehicle that was especially admired by children as he traveled through his favorite places. Ferdinand left Slovakia for good in 1944 and moved to Coburg, where he passed away in 1948.