Duchess Helene in Bavaria /

Helene Caroline Therese, Duchess in Bavaria (4 April 1834 in Munich, Bavaria - 16 May 1890 in Regensburg, Bavaria) of the House of Wittelsbach, nicknamed Néné, was a Bavarian princess and, through marriage, temporarily the head of the Thurn and Taxis family. Helene was the oldest daughter of Maximilian Joseph, Duke in Bavaria and Ludovika, Royal Princess of Bavaria. The family home was at Possenhofen Castle. In 1853 she traveled with her mother Ludovika and her younger sister Elisabeth to the resort of Bad Ischl, Upper Austria with the hopes that she would become the bride of their cousin Franz Josef, then the emperor of Austria. He decided that he preferred Elisabeth instead. Helene was unusually pious, and would have fit into the Habsburg court well. She had one quality, though, that would not have been accepted: she was habitually late, and often missed trains and appointments. After the failed engagement, she became depressed and Ludovika became concerned that Helene would take the veil and join a convent. Helene had almost come to terms with remaining single. At 22 years old she was considered to be an "old maid," but her mother arranged for her to meet the wealthy Maximilian