 King Frederick William had died the day before her institution had opened, and she now asked king's Bavarian-born widow, Elisabeth Ludovika (1801–1873), who was known to be deeply committed to charitable causes, for permission to name it after her.The Queen Dowager agreed to the request, with the result that the institution became known "not" as the "Blödsinnigenanstalt", but as the "Elisabethstift" ("loosely, "Elisabeth Foundation"").During its first year of operation the Elisabethstift provided a home for fifteen children.