Maria Theresa, although having many children, always remained dedicated to state work, even if this resulted in a lack of 'family time.'
This was no less true when little Maria Antoina was born. There were days when the mother was so busy with work she had no time to see her brood! As you can imagine this must be incredibly hard on any mother.
For peace of mind each evening she would have a physician give her a run down on everyone's health of that day. When certain visitors were at court, however, Maria Theresa would have the whole family dine together, a treat for the younger children who did not often get to do so.
Marie Antoinette also maintained that Maria Theresa didn't exactly inspire feelings of love from her children, admitting that she was always in fear and awe of her mother. MT was very hard on her children, especially the girls. She herself had married for love, but she sure as heck wasn't about to waste valuable political alliances by allowing her daughters to do so. She even pressured her eldest son, Joseph, to make a second marriage to a woman he cared nothing for, in order to secure a key ally.
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