Who was Princess Carolyne Sayn-Wittgenstein?

Princess Carolyne Sayn-Wittgenstein was a significant figure in the life of Franz Liszt, whom he met in Kyiv in 1847. A woman of influence, she persuaded Liszt to retire from his career as a traveling virtuoso to focus on composition.1

She later joined Liszt in Weimar, where they lived together openly despite the social disapproval of the local citizenry and pressure from the Russian court. Throughout their relationship, she sought to obtain a divorce from her husband to marry Liszt; however, her efforts were ultimately unsuccessful, as the pope revoked his sanction of the divorce at the last moment. Following her departure for Rome in 1860, the couple eventually resided there in separate establishments.1