 Maria Theresa found herself in a difficult situation . She did not know enough about matters of state and she was unaware of the weakness of her father 's ministers . She decided to rely on her father 's advice to retain his councillors and defer to her husband , whom she considered to be more experienced , on other matters . Both decisions , though natural , later gave cause for regret . Ten years later , Maria Theresa recalled in her Political Testament the circumstances under which she had ascended : " I found myself without money , without credit , without army , without experience and knowledge of my own and finally , also without any counsel because each one of them at first wanted to wait and see how things would develop . " 
