The imperial domains of Maria Theresa

The Vienna estate served as the official address for Austrian rulers, but the young empress, Maria Theresa, truly loved this palace, which was a wedding gift from her father. She had it remodeled to her taste and requirements. Today Schönbrunn Palace is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of Austria's most visited tourist attractions.

Anyone who has visited the Great Gallery at Schönbrunn Palace can tilt their head back and see Maria Theresa portrayed in the center of the ceiling fresco. She made Schönbrunn a center of courtly representation where most crowned heads of Europe would visit. The Great Gallery is regarded as one of the most splendid examples of a Rococo hall in Europe.

Even though her husband, Francis I, was the official ruler, Maria Theresa took charge of matters of state. She introduced compulsory schooling and made the potato popular in her country. She was already a legend during her lifetime and often the subject of paintings. Her looks and clothes were avidly discussed by the people, very much like today's celebrities.

Maria Theresa was a devout catholic. She personally took part in the courtly pilgrimage at Klosterneuburg Monastery to the grave of its founder, Saint Leopold III. Klosterneuburg is also Austria's oldest vineyard. To mark Maria Theresa's 300th anniversary, there will be a special exhibition there called "Church, Monastery, Empress" - which will also display a lock of her hair.

In the Augustinian Church in the center of Vienna, Maria Theresa and Duke Francis of Lorraine were married in 1736. They later had 16 children, 10 of whom survived to adulthood. Church services are still held there. But you can feel even closer to Maria Theresa in the so-called "Herzgruft" (heart crypt), which contains her actual heart in a silver urn.

Maria Theresa also expanded the Habsburg holiday residence on the shores of the Schwechat River. An inscription there sums this place up: "Rerum irrecuperabilium summa felicitas est oblivio" - which, translated, means true happiness is given to those who can forget what can't be changed. The green pavilion in the park became her favorite place.

Maria Theresa rode there herself, for instance as part of the "Ladies' carousel," a formation with horse and carriage. It took until 2016, when the riding school had been in existence for 450 years, for the first woman rider, Hannah Zeitlhofer, to be accepted into the Spanish Riding School as a rider and trainer. The school has been named by UNESCO as a piece of immaterial cultural heritage.

Maria Theresa had the building constructed in 1744 at the Augustinian Bastion. Her daughter Marie Christine, together with her husband Albert, a passionate collector of art, made this administration building her home. Today the Albertina is one of the city's leading art institutions and home to works by Albrecht Dürer and Egon Schiele.

An hour's drive from Vienna you'll find Niederwieden Palace. Maria Theresa bought the hunting lodge in 1755 and gave it to her husband Francis I, Holy Roman Emperor. The intimate palace was used for rustic hunting parties and small representative baroque festivals. Following extensive restoration work, the palace reopened to the public in 2015 as an exhibition space.

Hof Palace is close by, a place Maria Theresa acquired at the same time as Niederweiden. Following the sudden death of her beloved husband in 1765, she only wore black and remodeled her quarters into a widow's apartment. Grey and white décor was typical for these. The bed has been reconstructed according to original designs. Also on show are paintings of the imperial family.

When Maria Theresa died in 1780 at age 63, she was said to have been wearing her husband's dressing gown. She was entombed in the Imperial Crypt, a place reserved for Habsburg rulers, where she was laid to rest in opulent double sarcophagi with her late husband Emperor Francis I, above the plain single tomb of her son Joseph II. Some 12 emperors and 19 empresses and queens are entombed there.

She was described as having a full, round face, blonde, slightly red hair and blue eyes. Maria Theresa lives on for eternity in Madame Tussauds wax cabinet in Vienna's Prater amusement park. The seat next to her wax figure is reserved for those wishing to take a selfie with the ruler. And in her anniversary year you can expect to have to queue to gain an audience with the empress.

Those ordering a "Maria Theresa" at a Vienna coffee house can expect a strong double coffee, topped with whipped cream and containing a shot of orange liquor. To this day there are some 150 traditional coffee houses in the Austrian capital, with wooden floors, simple chairs and plush sofas. In 2011, Viennese coffee house culture was officially declared part of the UNESCO World Heritage list.