House of Bourbon-Two Sicilies

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The House of Bourbon-Two Sicilies is a cadet branch of the Spanish House of Bourbon that ruled Southern Italy and Sicily for more than a century in the 18th and 19th centuries. It descends from the Capetian dynasty in legitimate male line through Philip, Duke of Anjou (later Philip V of Spain), a younger grandson of Louis XIV of France (1638–1715) who established the Bourbon dynasty in Spain in 1700 as Philip V (1683–1746). In 1759, King Philip's younger grandson was appanaged with the kingdoms of Naples and Sicily, becoming Ferdinand IV and III (1751–1825), respectively, of those realms. His descendants occupied the joint throne, merged as the "Kingdom of the Two Sicilies" in 1816, until 1861, claimed it thereafter from exile, and constitute the extant Bourbon-Two Sicilies family.

House of Bourbon-Two Sicilies
Parent houseHouse of Bourbon-Anjou
CountryKingdom of the Two Sicilies
Founded1759; 266 years ago (1759)
FounderFerdinand I of the Two Sicilies
Current headDisputed:
Prince Pedro, Duke of Calabria
Prince Carlo, Duke of Castro
Final rulerFrancis II
TitlesKing of Naples, King of Sicily, King of the Two Sicilies
Deposition1861

The succession of the House of Bourbon-Two Sicilies has, since 1960, been disputed between the senior Calabrian line, which is currently being represented by Prince Pedro, Duke of Calabria (born 1968) and the junior Castro line, which is currently being represented by Prince Carlo, Duke of Castro (born 1963). Efforts of reconciliation were carried out in 2014, but have been followed by continuing arguing in the family as Prince Carlo, Duke of Castro, abolished the law of male primogeniture to absolute primogeniture in 2016, making her eldest daughter heir by going against the tradition of male-line succession within the House of Bourbon-Two Sicilies.[1]

Name

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The name "Bourbon-Two Sicilies" (sometimes shortened to "Bourbon-Sicily") combines the patriline (Bourbon) with their former territorial designation (Two Sicilies).

Kingdom of the Two Sicilies

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The name of the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies came from the unification of the Kingdom of Sicily with the Kingdom of Naples (called the kingdom of peninsular Sicily), by King Alfonso V of Aragon in 1442. The two had been separated since the Sicilian Vespers of 1282. At the death of King Alfonso in 1458, the kingdoms became divided between his brother John II of Aragon, who kept Sicily, and his bastard son Ferdinand, who became King of Naples. The crowns of Naples and Sicily remained functionally separate, albeit often ruled by the same monarch, until their formal union in 1816.

Reigning kings

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In 1861 Two Sicilies became part of the newly founded Kingdom of Italy.

Heads of the House since 1861

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Name
Reign
Portrait Birth Marriage(s)
Issue
Death Claim
Francis II
20 March 1861

27 December 1894
  16 January 1836
Naples, Two Sicilies

Son of Ferdinand II of the Two Sicilies
and Maria Cristina of Savoy
Maria Sophie of Bavaria
Bari Cathedral
3 February 1859
1 daughter
27 December 1894
Aged 58
Arco, Trentino, Austria-Hungary
Son of Ferdinand II
Deposed king of the Two Sicilies
Prince Alfonso, Count of Caserta
(Alphonse I)
27 December 1894

26 May 1934
  28 March 1841
Caserta, Two Sicilies

Son of Ferdinand II of the Two Sicilies
and Maria Theresa of Austria
Maria Antonietta of Bourbon-Two Sicilies
Church in Rome
8 June 1868
12 children
26 May 1934
Aged 93
Cannes, France
4th son of Ferdinand II
Half-brother of Francis II
Prince Ferdinand Pius, Duke of Calabria
(Ferdinand III)
26 May 1934

7 January 1960
  25 July 1869
Rome, Papal States

Son of Prince Alfonso, Count of Caserta
and Maria Antonietta of Bourbon-Two Sicilies
Maria of Bavaria
Munich Frauenkirche
31 May 1897
6 children
7 January 1960
Aged 90
Lindau, Bavaria, Germany
1st son of Alfonso, Count of Caserta

When Prince Ferdinand Pius died in 1960, he left no male descendant, and two branches of the family claimed the right to succeed him as head of the house. Ferdinand Pius had seven younger brothers. At the time of Ferdinand Pius's death in 1960, the oldest brother, Carlos (1870–1949) was deceased, but had left descendants. The next surviving brother was Ranieri (1883–1973). By the rule of primogeniture, headship would normally pass through Carlos to his son Alfonso. Ranieri contested Alfonso's claim arguing that Carlos had renounced any claim to the Two Sicilies succession on the part of himself and his heirs when he executed the Act of Cannes in 1900 in anticipation of his marriage the next year to Mercedes, Princess of Asturias, heiress presumptive to the Spanish throne. Alfonso offered a different interpretation of the Act of Cannes, describing it as effective only if Carlos should succeed to the Spanish throne. He also took the position that the Act of Cannes was invalid under the succession rules of the house of Two Sicilies itself, since these laws provided only one, specific reason for a renunciation and that was in the event of the Spanish and Two Sicilies crowns being united in one person - which has not happened since 1759. Despite an investigation by five of the highest institutions of the Spanish state having concluded unanimously that the legitimate claimant was the late Infante Carlos, Duke of Calabria, the junior line continues to perpetuate its claim.[2]

Senior (Calabrian) line
Name
Reign
Portrait Birth Marriage(s)
Issue
Death Claim
Infante Alfonso, Duke of Calabria
(Alphonse II)
7 January 1960

3 February 1964
  30 November 1901
Madrid, Spain

Son of Carlos of Bourbon-Two Sicilies
and Mercedes, Princess of Asturias
Alicia of Bourbon-Parma
St. Stephen's Cathedral, Vienna
13 April 1936
3 children
3 February 1964
Aged 62
Madrid, Spain
Grandson of Alfonso, Count of Caserta
Nephew of Ferdinand Pius, Duke of Calabria
Infante Carlos, Duke of Calabria
(Charles I)
3 February 1964

5 October 2015
16 January 1938
Lausanne, France

Son of Alfonso, Duke of Calabria
and Alicia of Bourbon-Parma
Anne of Orléans
St's Peter Church, Dreux
12 May 1965
5 children
5 October 2015
Aged 77
Retuerta del Bullaque, Ciudad Real, Spain
1st son of Alfonso, Duke of Calabria
Prince Pedro, Duke of Calabria
(Peter I)
5 October 2015

present
  16 October 1968
Age 51
Madrid, Spain

Son of Carlos, Duke of Calabria
and Anne of Orléans
Sofía Landaluce y Melgarejo
Almudena Cathedral
30 March 2001
7 children
1st son of Carlos, Duke of Calabria
Junior (Castrian) line
Name
Reign
Portrait Birth Marriage(s)
Issue
Death Claim
Prince Ranieri, Duke of Castro
(Rainier I)
7 January 1960

13 January 1973
  3 December 1883
Cannes, France

Son of Prince Alfonso, Count of Caserta
and Maria Antonietta of Bourbon-Two Sicilies
Maria Carolina Zamoyska
Church in Vyšné Ružbachy, now Slovakia
12 September 1923
2 children
13 January 1973
Aged 89
Lacombe, France
5th son of Alfonso, Count of Caserta
Brother of Ferdinand Pius, Duke of Calabria
Claim based on documents reputed invalid
Prince Ferdinand, Duke of Castro
(Ferdinand IV)
13 January 1973

20 March 2008
  28 May 1926
Maciejowice, Poland

Son of Prince Ranieri, Duke of Castro
and Maria Carolina Zamoyska
Chantal de Chevron-Villette
Church in Giez, Switzerland
23 July 1949
3 children
20 March 2008
Aged 81
Draguignan, France
Son of Ranieri, Duke of Castro
Prince Carlo, Duke of Castro
(Charles I)
20 March 2008

present
  23 February 1963
Age 58
Saint-Raphaël, France

Son of Prince Ferdinand, Duke of Castro
and Chantal de Chevron-Villette
Camilla Crociani
Saint-Charles Church, Monaco
31 October 1998
2 daughters
Son of Ferdinand, Duke of Castro

On 25 January 2014, representatives of the two rival branches, Prince Carlo (Castro line) and Prince Pedro, then Duke of Noto (Calabria line), jointly signed a pledge of partial reconciliation.[3] The document recognised both branches as members of the same house, committed both to pursue further reconciliation and concord, meanwhile recognising the titles then claimed by each branch.[4]

At the Holy Mass in Saint Peter's Basilica celebrated in Rome on 14 May 2016, during a Pilgrimage by members of the Constantinian Order awarded by Prince Carlo to Rome and Vatican City, Prince Carlo made public his decision to change the rules of succession. He claimed that this change was so the rules of succession would be (as he claimed) compatible with international and European law, prohibiting any discrimination between men and women. The rule of absolute primogeniture would henceforth apply to his direct descendants, his elder daughter being named by him as heiress apparent.[5] Prince Pedro publicly objected that Prince Carlo's declaration violated the terms of their reconciliation agreement, to which Carlo replied that further "destabilisation" could lead to termination of the 2014 pact.[6] Since the succession rules had been settled in two international treaties, enforced in the Pragmatic Decree of 1759 and incorporated into the laws of the kingdom, it was beyond the powers of any claimant to the headship of the royal house to change the succession. Furthermore, it was in outright breach of the solemn agreement made in Naples in 2014 by which Prince Carlo recognised the late Infante Carlos as "Duke of Calabria", his son Prince Pedro as "Duke of Noto" and the latter's son, Prince Jaime, as "Duke of Capua".

Members of the House

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Family tree

Titles

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Children and male-line grandchildren of the King of the Two Sicilies bore the title Prince(ss) Royal of the Two Sicilies with the style of Royal Highness. Other agnatic descendants of the King, born of authorized marriages, bore the title Prince(ss) of the Two Sicilies with the style of Royal Highness.

Since 1861, and similarly to members of the House of Bourbon-Parma, the style Prince(ss) of Bourbon-Two Sicilies has been used for and by members of this family to highlight their membership in the House of Bourbon. The title of princess is also borne by the wives of the princes of the house provided the marriage is dynastically approved.

Princes of the Two Sicilies (since 1816)

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Princesses of the Two Sicilies (since 1816)

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By birth

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By marriage

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See also

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References

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  1. ^ Grouard, Salomé. "Princesses Maria Carolina and Maria Chiara on what it means to be a modern princess". Tatler Asia. Retrieved 11 January 2025.
  2. ^ Opfell, Olga S. (2001). Royalty Who Wait: The 21 Heads of Formerly Regnant Houses of Europe. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Company. pp. 37–8. Retrieved 23 August 2016.
  3. ^ "Riconciliazione in Casa Borbone: unità per l'Ordine Costantiniano di San Giorgio?". Notiziario Araldico. 25 January 2014.
  4. ^ "Borbone: Finalmente la riconciliazione". Prliament of the Two Sicilies. 25 January 2014.
  5. ^ "New Rules of Succession decreed for the Royal House of Bourbon Two Sicilies - Sacred Military Constantinian Order of Saint George". 14 May 2016. Retrieved 11 September 2024.
  6. ^ Gigi Del Fiore (30 May 2016). "Pedro, l'abusivo spagnolo". Dagospia.
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