Born Princess Charlotte of Belgium in 1840, Carlota was raised amid privilege, intellect, and the intricate alliances of Europe's royal dynasties. Her marriage to Archduke Maximilian of Austria-dreamer, idealist, and younger brother of Emperor Franz Joseph-seemed a union of promise. Together they built Miramare Castle on the Gulf of Trieste, a palace overlooking the sea that would one day mirror their fate: magnificent, isolated, and haunted by unfinished dreams.

When Napoleon III's ambitions drew them across the ocean to rule as Emperor and Empress of Mexico, Carlota and Maximilian embraced a vision of a benevolent, enlightened monarchy. Yet their idealism clashed with political reality, rebellion, and betrayal. As their empire crumbled, Maximilian faced his tragic end, and Carlota-brilliant, determined, and undone by grief-slipped into a lifelong madness that would imprison her for sixty years.

Sweeping from the palaces of Europe to the jungles of Mexico, Carlota is a haunting story of power and love, ambition and ruin-a portrait of an empress who dared to dream beyond her century and paid the ultimate price.

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What secrets linger in Miramare’s halls and across Mexico’s deserts—and why do they still echo today?