Category Archives: Sardinia Royals

Marie Adélaïde of Savoy, Duchess of Burgundy, wife of Louis, Duke of Burgundy, Le Petite Dauphin

by Susan Flantzer
© Unofficial Royalty 2023

Marie Adélaïde of Savoy, Duchess of Burgundy; Credit – Wikipedia

Marie Adélaïde of Savoy was the wife of Louis, Duke of Burgundy, Le Petite Dauphin and the mother of Louis XV, King of France. Born on December 6, 1685, at the Royal Palace of Turin, in the Duchy of Savoy, now in Italy, Marie Adélaïde was the eldest of the six children and the eldest of the three daughters of Vittorio Amadeo II, Duke of Savoy (later King of Sardinia) and Anne Marie of Orléans, a niece of King Louis XIV of France. Her paternal grandparents were Carlo Emanuele II, Duke of Savoy and Marie Jeanne Baptiste of Savoy-Nemours. Marie Adélaïde’s maternal grandparents were Philippe, Duke of Orléans (only sibling of King Louis XIV of France) and his first wife Henrietta of England, (the daughter of King Charles I of England and Henrietta Maria of France, daughter of King Henri IV of France).

Marie Adélaïde had five siblings but only two survived childhood:

Marie Adélaïde during her early years in France; Credit – Wikipedia

In 1696, when Marie Adélaïde was eleven-year-old, she was betrothed to fourteen-year-old Louis, Duke of Burgundy, Le Petit Dauphin, the eldest of the three sons of Louis, Le Grand Dauphin of France and Maria Anna Victoria of Bavaria. At the time of his birth, Louis’ grandfather Louis XIV was King of France and his father was the heir apparent to the French throne. After Louis’ birth, his father was called Le Grand Dauphin and his son Louis, who was second in the line of succession, was called Le Petit Dauphin. However, King Louis XIV outlived both his son and his grandson and was succeeded by his five-year-old great-grandson King Louis XV when he died in 1715.

Marie Adélaïde’s husband Louis, Duke of Burgundy, Le Petit Dauphin, 1700; Credit – Wikipedia

The betrothal was the result of the Treaty of Turin in which Marie Adélaïde’s father agreed to support France in the Nine Years’ War. The treaty also stipulated that eleven-year-old Marie Adélaïde be sent to France to prepare her for her future role. She arrived in France on November 4, 1696, and was welcomed by King Louis XIV who had traveled to Montargis, France to greet her. Because of her young age, the marriage was delayed and Marie Adélaïde attended the Maison royale de Saint-Louis in Saint-Cyr, just west of Versailles, France,  the girls’ school Françoise d’Aubigné, Marquise de Maintenon, the former mistress and morganatic second wife of Louis XIV, had founded in 1684 in Saint-Cyr, in the vicinity of Versailles.

Wedding of Louis, Duke of Burgundy, Le Petit Dauphin and Marie-Adélaïde; Credit – Wikipedia

On December 6, 1697, on her twelfth birthday, Marie Adelaïde was formally married to Louis, Duke of Burgundy, Le Petite Dauphin at the Chapel Royal of the Palace of Versailles in Versailles, France. She wore a silver dress strewn with rubies and had an eight-meter-long train. The consummation of the marriage was delayed because of the age of the bride. It would be seven years before Marie Adélaïde and her husband had their first child, a short-lived son.

Marie Adelaïde with her youngest son, the future King Louis XV of France; Credit – Wikipedia

Louis and Marie Adélaïde had three sons but only one survived childhood:

Marie Adélaïde, described as “a breath of fresh air”, became the favorite of King Louis XIV and his morganatic second wife Madame de Maintenon. Because Madame de Maintenon’s marriage to the king was morganatic and Maria Anna Victoria of Bavaria, the wife of Louis of France, Le Grand Dauphin had died in 1690, the young Maria Adélaïde held the highest female position at court and was given the queen’s apartments at the Palace of Versailles. She attended numerous balls, hunts, games, and banquets, charming the court. Marie Adélaïde often took part in political deliberations and was privy to many important state secrets and decisions. After her death, when King Louis XIV looked through her letters, it became apparent Marie Adélaïde misused this information by telling her father any information that would be of interest to him. Louis XIV is said to have told Madame de Maintenon that the “little woman” had deceived him.

In the spring of 1711, King Louis XIV’s only surviving legitimate child Louis, Le Grand Dauphin, Marie Adélaïde’s father-in-law, caught smallpox, apparently from a priest who was distributing Holy Communion after he had visited a smallpox victim, and died on April 14, 1711, at the age of 49. His son Louis, Marie Adélaïde’s husband, who had been styled Le Petit Dauphin, became the heir to the French throne but in less than a year, he and Marie Adélaïde would be dead.

Basilica of St. Denis; By Thomas Clouet – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=42109690

On February 12, 1712, at the Palace of Versailles, 26-year-old wife Marie Adélaïde died from measles. Her husband Louis dearly loved his wife and stayed by her side throughout her illness. He caught the disease and died six days after her death, on February 18, 1712, aged 29, at the Château de Marly in France. The couple was buried together at the Basilica of St. Denis, the traditional burial site of the Kings of France and the French royal family.

Marie Adélaïde and Louis’ five-year-old elder son, the Duke of Brittany, succeeded as Dauphin but he also developed measles. He died three weeks later on March 8, 1712, apparently from being bled to death by the doctors. His younger brother, the future King Louis XV, also developed measles but he survived because of his governess Charlotte de La Motte Houdancourt, Duchess of Ventadour. Deciding that she would not allow her younger charge to be bled by the doctors, Madame de Ventadour locked herself up with three nursery maids and refused to allow the doctors near the boy. The two-year-old survived and became King of France upon the death of his great-grandfather, King Louis XIV, three years later.

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

Works Cited

  • Flantzer, Susan. (2019) Louis of France, Le Grand Dauphin, Unofficial Royalty. Available at: https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/louis-le-grand-dauphin/ (Accessed: 12 June 2023).
  • Flantzer, Susan. (2019) Louis, Duke of Burgundy, Le Petit Dauphin, Unofficial Royalty. Available at: https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/louis-duke-of-burgundy-le-petit-dauphin/ (Accessed: 12 June 2023).
  • Flantzer, Susan. (2021) Vittorio Amedeo II, King of Sardinia, Duke of Savoy, Unofficial Royalty. Available at: https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/vittorio-amedeo-ii-king-of-sardinia/ (Accessed: 12 June 2023).
  • Fraser, Antonia. (2006). Love and Louis XIV. New York: Nan A. Talese Doubleday
  • Marie-Adélaïde de Savoie (2023) Wikipedia (French). Available at: https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marie-Ad%C3%A9la%C3%AFde_de_Savoie (Accessed: 12 June 2023).
  • Marie Adélaïde of Savoy (2023) Wikipedia. Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marie_Ad%C3%A9la%C3%AFde_of_Savoy (Accessed: 12 June 2023).

Maria Luisa of Savoy, Queen of Spain

by Susan Flantzer
© Unofficial Royalty 2022

Maria Luisa of Savoy, Queen of Spain; Credit – Wikipedia

The first of the two wives of Felipe V, King of Spain, Maria Luisa Gabriella of Savoy was born on September 17, 1688, at the Royal Palace of Turin in Turin, Duchy of Savoy, now in Italy. She was the third of the six children and the third of the three daughters of Vittorio Amedeo II, King of Sardinia and Anne Marie of Orléans. Maria Luisa’s paternal grandparents were Carlo Emanuele II, Duke of Savoy and his second wife Marie Jeanne Baptiste of Nemours. Her maternal grandparents were Philippe I, Duke of Orléans (son of King Louis XIII of France and the only sibling of King Louis XIV of France) and Princess Henrietta of England (daughter of King Charles I of England).

Maria Luisa had five siblings:

In 1700, Carlos II, King of Spain died childless with no immediate Habsburg heir. Louis, Le Grand Dauphin, son of King Louis XIV of France and the heir apparent to the French throne had the strongest genealogical claim to the Spanish throne because his mother Maria Theresa, Infanta of Spain had been the half-sister of Carlos II. However, neither Louis, Le Grand Dauphin nor his elder son Louis, Duke of Burgundy, Le Petit Dauphin could be displaced from their place in the succession to the French throne. Therefore, Carlos II, King of Spain, in his will, had named the second son of Louis, Le Grand Dauphin, 16-year-old Philippe, Duke of Anjou, as his successor. He reigned as Felipe V, King of Spain, the first Bourbon monarch of Spain.

Felipe V, King of Spain, 1701; Credit – Wikipedia

Soon after his arrival in Spain, King Felipe V’s grandfather King Louis XIV arranged a marriage for him. In order to strengthen Felipe V’s shaky authority over Spain due to his French birth, King Louis XIV decided to maintain ties with Vittorio Amadeo II, then Duke of Savoy, whose eldest daughter Marie Adelaide of Savoy was already married to Felipe V’s elder brother Louis, Duke of Burgundy, Le Petit Dauphin. Felipe V was betrothed to thirteen-year-old Maria Luisa of Savoy. In Turin, Duchy of Savoy, Felipe and Maria Luisa were married by proxy on September 12, 1701. Maria Luisa then left for Spain where the young couple met for the first time on November 2, 1701, and were married in person at a local parish church in Figueres, Spain.

Maria Luisa with her eldest child, the future King Luis I of Spain; Credit – Wikipedia

Maria Luisa and Felipe V had four sons but only two survived childhood and they both had childless marriages:

The death of Maria Luisa; Credit – Wikipedia

Maria Luisa and Felipe V had a loving, happy marriage. She acted as Regent of Spain from 1702 until 1703 during Felipe V’s absence due to the War of the Spanish Succession and had great influence over him as his adviser. Sadly, Maria Luisa died from tuberculosis at the age of 25 on February 14, 1714. She was buried in the Pantheon of Kings in the Royal Basilica of San Lorenzo de El Escorial in San Lorenzo de El Escorial, Spain.

Tomb of Maria Luisa of Savoy, Queen of Spain; Credit – www.findagrave.com

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

Works Cited

  • Flantzer, Susan (2019) Felipe V, King of Spain, Unofficial Royalty. Available at: https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/felipe-v-first-bourbon-king-of-spain/ (Accessed: November 1, 2022).
  • Flantzer, Susan (2021) Vittorio Amedeo II, King of Sardinia, Duke of Savoy, Unofficial Royalty. Available at: https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/vittorio-amedeo-ii-king-of-sardinia/ (Accessed: November 1, 2022).
  • Maria Luisa di Savoia (2022) Wikipedia (Italian). Wikimedia Foundation. Available at: https://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maria_Luisa_di_Savoia (Accessed: November 1, 2022).
  • María Luisa Gabriela de Saboya (2022) Wikipedia (Spanish). Wikimedia Foundation. Available at: https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mar%C3%ADa_Luisa_Gabriela_de_Saboya (Accessed: November 1, 2022).
  • Maria Luisa Gabriella of Savoy (2022) Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation. Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maria_Luisa_Gabriella_of_Savoy (Accessed: November 1, 2022).

Basilica of Superga in Turin, Italy

by Susan Flantzer
© Unofficial Royalty 2022

Basilica of Superga; Credit – Di Antoniors81 – Opera propria, CC0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=26674899

The Basilica of Superga is a Roman Catholic church located in Turin (Torino in Italian), Italy. The Royal Crypt, built under the Basilica of Superga, is one of the traditional burial places of the members of the House of Savoy. Two Kings of Italy (who came from the House of Savoy), Vittorio Emanuele II and Umberto I, were interred in the Pantheon in Rome. The earlier generations of the House of Savoy as well as Carlo Felice, King of Sardinia and Umberto II, the last King of Italy, are buried in Hautecombe Abbey, the ancestral burial site of the House of Savoy, now in Saint-Pierre-de-Curtille near Aix-les-Bains in Savoy, France.

The House of Savoy had been Counts and then Dukes of Savoy, since the 11th century and ruled from the city of Turin, now in northern Italy. Vittorio Amedeo II, Duke of Savoy became King of Sicily in 1713 as a result of his participation in the War of the Spanish Succession. However, in 1720, Vittorio Amedeo II was forced to exchange the Kingdom of Sicily for the less important Kingdom of Sardinia after objections from the Quadruple Alliance (Great Britain, France, Habsburg Austria, and the Dutch Republic).

Sardinia, now in Italy, is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea after Sicily but the Kings of Sardinia of the House of Savoy ruled from Turin, the capital of the Duchy of Savoy. They styled themselves as Kings of Sardinia because the title was superior to their original lesser title as Dukes of Savoy. However, they retained the regnal numerical order of the Dukes of Savoy. The children of the Kings of Sardinia were styled “of Savoy.”

Vittorio Emanuele II became the last King of Sardinia upon the abdication of his father in 1849. He then became a driving force behind the Italian unification movement along with Giuseppe Garibaldi, a general and nationalist, and Giuseppe Mazzini, a politician and journalist. Garibaldi conquered Naples and Sicily, the territories of the Kingdom of Two Sicilies, while the Sardinian troops occupied the central territories of the Italian peninsula, except Rome and part of Papal States. With all the newly acquired land, Vittorio Emanuele II was proclaimed the first King of the new, united Kingdom of Italy in 1861.

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History of the Basilica of Superga

Photo taken by Italian photographer Giacomo Brogi, circa 1850 – 1851; Credit – Wikipedia

The Basilica of Superga, now in Turin, Italy, is located at the top of the Superga, a 2,205 ft/672-meter hill. During the 117-day 1706 Siege of Turin in the War of the Spanish Succession, over 44,000 French soldiers surrounded the fortified citadel of Turin defended by about 10,500 Savoy soldiers. On August 28, 1706, Vittorio Amedeo II, Duke of Savoy (later the first King of Sardinia) and his cousin Prince Eugenio of Savoy-Carignano climbed the Superga hill to better examine the position of troops so they could develop battle strategies. On September 2, 1706, Vittorio Amedeo II and Eugenio once again climbed the Superga. They entered a small church on the hill where Vittorio Amedeo II prostrated himself in front of a wooden statue of the Virgin Mary as Madonna delle Grazie, Our Lady of Grace, and vowed that if the Virgin Mary allowed him to be victorious in, the Siege of Turin, he would build a magnificent church at the top of the hill dedicated to her. On September 7, 1706, the forces of Vittoria Amadeo II and Eugenio won a victory.

 

Vittorio Amedeo II kept his vow and commissioned Italian architect Filippo Juvarra to design the magnificent church at the top of the Superga. The Basilica of Superga, designed in the Rococo and Neoclassical styles, was constructed from 1717 to 1731. On November 1, 1731, the Basilica of Superga was consecrated and dedicated to Our Lady of Grace whose original wooden statue that Vittorio Amadeo II had prostrated himself before is kept in the Chapel of the Vow on the left side of the main altar of the Basilica of Superga.

The memorial to the victims of the Superga air disaster at the Basilica of Superga; Credit – Wikipedia

On May 4, 1949, an airplane carrying the Italian football (soccer) team Torino Football Club nicknamed Il Grande Torino, was returning to Turin, Italy after traveling to Lisbon, Portugal where the team had played the Portuguese football (soccer) team Benfica. At around 5:00 PM, the airplane was flying over the outskirts of Turin and was preparing for landing, when pilot Pierluigi Meroni, a World War II flying veteran, was warned that the weather in Turin was poor with fog, showers, and strong wind gusts. Minutes later, the airplane crashed into the retaining wall at the back of the Basilica of Superga. All thirty-one passengers which included players, coaching staff, team officials, journalists, and the flight crew were killed. Only three players who did not travel with the team because of injury or illness escaped the disaster. The walls damaged by the impact of the airplane are still visible, as it was decided not to rebuild them. This tragic event is commemorated by a museum and a plaque on the rear building, and a solemn mass is celebrated at the basilica every May 4 in memory of the victims.

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The Exterior of the Basilica of Superga

The Basilica of Superga; Credit – Wikipedia

During the construction, building materials were carried up the hill by donkeys. The hill was leveled by about 131 feet/40 meters to create a flat area for the basilica’s construction. A staircase leads to a large portico supported by eight Corinthian columns inspired by the Pantheon in Rome. Atop the basilica is a 213-foot/65-meter high Baroque-style dome with two symmetrical bell towers on either side.

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The Interior of the Basilica of Superga

The interior of the Basilica of Superga; Credit – Di Paris Orlando – Opera propria, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=74180912

The interior was designed with a Greek cross plan, a church plan in the form of a Greek cross, with a square central mass and four arms of equal length. The diagram below shows the difference between the Greek cross plan and the more widely used Latin cross plan.

Greek cross (Church of Saint Sava) and Latin cross (St. Paul’s Cathedral) in church floorplans; Credit – Wikipedia

The Main Altar; Credit – Di Incola – Opera propria, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=32157514

The interior has six chapels, four altars, and the main altar which is decorated with sculptures and monuments in Carrara marble. In the Vow Chapel is the original wooden statue of the Madonna delle Grazie, Our Lady of Grace, the statue Vittorio Amedeo II knelt in front of, and asked for the grace to defeat the French army.

The wooden statue of the Madonna delle Grazie; Credit – Wikipedia

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Burials at the Basilica of Superga

The Hall of the Queens – Notice the burial niches; Credit – Basilica of Superga

The original plans for the Basilica of Superga included a burial crypt but the plans were temporarily shelved because of funding issues. In 1774, forty-three years after the consecration of the Basilica of Superga, Vittorio Amedeo III, King of Sardinia commissioned architect Francesco Martinez, grandson of the original architect Filippo Juvara, to build a burial crypt. In 1778, the burial crypt was consecrated and arrangements began for the reburial of some royal remains that had been interred in other burial sites.

The Royal Crypt is divided into five rooms, including the Hall of Kings, the Hall of the Queens, and the Hall of Children, where children and princes and princesses who never reigned were interred. While there are some tombs, most burials are in niches along the walls of the rooms as seen in the above photo.

Traditionally, at the death of the sovereign, his remains were placed in the center of the Hall of Kings. Upon the death of the next sovereign, the previous sovereign’s remains were then moved to one of the niches. The last sovereign buried at the Basilica of Superga was Carlo Alberto I, King of Sardinia. He died in 1849 and his tomb remains in the center of the Hall of Kings because his successors became Kings of Italy and were buried elsewhere.

Hall of the Kings (First Room)

Tomb of Carlo Alberto, King of Sardinia in the Hall of Kings; Credit – Wikipedia

Second Room

Hall of the Queens (Third Room)

The funeral of Amedeo of Savoy-Aosta, 5th Duke of Aosta on July 1, 2021 at the Basilica of Superga

Fourth Room

Hall of the Children (Fifth Room)

  • Emanuele Filiberto of Savoy (born and died 1705), son of Vittorio Amedeo II, King of Sardinia
  • Vittorio Amadeo, Prince of Piedmont (1699 – 1715), son and heir of Vittorio Amedeo II, King of Sardinia, died in his teens from smallpox, first buried in the Cathedral of Saint John the Baptist in Turin, moved to the Basilica of Superga
  • Vittorio Amedeo of Savoy, Duke of Aosta (1723 – 1725), son of Carlo Emanuele III, King of Sardinia, moved from his original burial site in 1790
  • Carlo Francesco Romualdo of Savoy, Duke of Chablais (born and died 1733), son of Carlo Emanuele III, King of Sardinia, moved from his original burial site in 1790
  • Emanuele Filiberto of Savoy, Duke of Aosta (1731 – 1735), son of Carlo Emanuele III, King of Sardinia, moved from his original burial site in 1790
  • Maria Vittoria of Savoy (1740 – 1742), daughter of Carlo Emanuele III, King of Sardinia
  • Carlo Francesco of Savoy, Duke of Aosta (1738 – 1745), son of Carlo Emanuele III, King of Sardinia, moved from his original burial site in 1790
  • Maria Elisabetta Carlotta of Savoy (1752 – 1753), daughter of Vittorio Amedeo III, King of Sardinia, moved from her original burial site in 1790
  • Amedeo Alessandro of Savoy (1754 – 1755), son of Vittorio Amedeo III, King of Sardinia,
  • Maria Anna Vittoria of Savoy (1683 – 1763), daughter of Luigi Tommaso of Savoy-Soissons, Count of Soissons, wife of Prince Joseph of Saxe-Hildburghausen, marriage dissolved, moved from her original burial site in 1921
  • Maria Luisa Gabriella of Savoy (1729 – 1767), daughter of Carlo Emanuele III, King of Sardinia, first buried at the convent of St. Andrew in Chieri, Kingdom of Sardinia, moved to the chapel in the cemetery at the church of St. George in Chieri in 1811, and then moved to the Basilica of Superga in 1823
  • Maria Cristina of Savoy (1760 – 1768), daughter of Vittorio Amedeo III, King of Sardinia
  • Eleonora Maria Teresa of Savoy (1728 – 1781), daughter of Carlo Emanuele III, King of Sardinia
  • Maria Adelaide of Savoy (1794 – 1795), daughter of Vittorio Emanuele I, King of Sardinia
  • Maria Felicita of Savoy (1730 – 1801), daughter of Carlo Emanuele III, first buried in the Basilica of the Holy Apostles in Rome, moved to the Royal Basilica of Superga in 1858
  • A daughter (1800 – 1801), daughter of Vittorio Emanuele I, King of Sardinia, moved from her original burial site in 1939
  • Benedetto of Savoy, Duke of Chablais (1741 – 1808), son of Carlo Emanuele III, King of Sardinia, first buried at the Church of San Nicolo dei Cesarini in Rome, moved to the Royal Basilica of Superga in 1926
  • Maria Anna of Savoy, Duchess of Chablais (1757 – 1824), daughter of Vittorio Amedeo III, King of Sardinia, wife and niece of Benedetto of Savoy, Duke of Chablais
  • Vittorio Emanuele of Savoy (born and died 1852), son of Vittorio Emanuele II, King of Sardinia, King of Italy
  • Carlo Alberto of Savoy, Duke of Chablais (1851 – 1854), son of Vittorio Emanuele II, King of Sardinia, King of Italy
  • Vittorio Emanuele of Savoy (born and died 1855), son of Vittorio Emanuele II
  • Prince Napoléon-Jérôme Bonaparte (1822 – 1891), husband of Maria Clotilde of Savoy, a daughter of Vittorio Emanuele II, King of Sardinia, King of Italy
  • Maria Clotilde of Savoy, Princess Napoleon (1843 – 1911), daughter of Vittorio Emanuele II, King of Sardinia, King of Italy, wife of Prince Napoléon-Jérôme Bonaparte
  • Prince Louis Bonaparte (1864 – 1932), son of Napoléon-Jérôme Bonaparte and Maria Clotilde of Savoy, grandson of Vittorio Emanuele II, King of Sardinia, King of Italy
  • Lydia di Arenberg, Duchess of Genoa (1905 – 1977), wife of Prince Filiberto of Savoy, 4th Duke of Genoa
  • Adalberto of Savoy-Genoa, Duke of Bergamo (1898 – 1982), son of Tommaso, 2nd Duke of Genoa
  • Filiberto of Savoy, 4th Duke of Genoa (1895 – 1990), son of Tommaso, 2nd Duke of Genoa

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

Works Cited

  • Basilicadisuperga.com. 2022. The Basilica – Basilica di Superga. [online] Available at: <http://www.basilicadisuperga.com/en/places/the-basilica/> [Accessed 3 May 2022].
  • Basilicadisuperga.com. 2022. The Royal Tombs – Basilica di Superga. [online] Available at: <http://www.basilicadisuperga.com/en/places/the-royal-tombs/> [Accessed 3 May 2022].
  • De.wikipedia.org. 2022. Superga – Wikipedia. [online] Available at: <https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Superga> [Accessed 3 May 2022].
  • En.wikipedia.org. 2022. Basilica of Superga – Wikipedia. [online] Available at: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Basilica_of_Superga> [Accessed 3 May 2022].
  • Flantzer, Susan, 2021. Kingdom of Sardinia Royal Burial Sites. [online] Unofficial Royalty. Available at: <https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/kingdom-of-sardinia-royal-burial-sites/> [Accessed 3 May 2022].
  • Fr.wikipedia.org. 2022. Basilique de Superga — Wikipédia. [online] Available at: <https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Basilique_de_Superga> [Accessed 3 May 2022].
  • It.wikipedia.org. 2022. Basilica di Superga – Wikipedia. [online] Available at: <https://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Basilica_di_Superga> [Accessed 3 May 2022].
  • It.wikipedia.org. 2022. Cripta Reale di Superga – Wikipedia. [online] Available at: <https://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cripta_Reale_di_Superga#Elenco_dei_Savoia_attualmente_tumulati_a_Superga> [Accessed 3 May 2022].

Maria Carolina of Savoy, Electoral Princess of Saxony

by Susan Flantzer
© Unofficial Royalty 2022

Maria Carolina of Savoy, Electoral Princess of Saxony; Credit – Wikipedia

Maria Carolina of Savoy, Electoral Princess of Saxony was the first wife of the future Anton, King of Saxony. Maria Carolina Antonietta Adelaide was born on January 17, 1764, at the Royal Palace of Turin in the Kingdom of Sardinia, now in Italy. She was the tenth of the twelve children and the youngest of the six daughters of Vittorio Amadeo III, King of Sardinia, Duke of Savoy and Infanta Maria Antonia Ferdinanda of Spain. Maria Carolina’s paternal grandparents were Carlo Emanuele III, King of Sardinia, Duke of Savoy and the second of his three wives Polyxena of Hesse-Rheinfels-Rotenburg. Her maternal grandparents were Felipe V, King of Spain and his second wife Elisabeth Farnese.

Maria Carolina’s parents and some of their older children in 1760; Credit – Wikipedia

Maria Carolina had eleven siblings:

Maria Carolina was raised with her two younger siblings, the future Carlo Felice, King of Sardinia and Prince Giuseppe of Savoy, Count of Asti. In 1781, Maria Carolina’s father decided she would marry Anton, Electoral Prince of Saxony, who was the heir to his elder brother Friedrich August I, Elector of Saxony. Despite her protests, seventeen-year-old Maria Carolina was married by proxy on September 29, 1781, in the chapel of Moncalieri Castle near Turin. The eldest brother of the bride, the future Carlo Emanuele IV, King of Sardinia, stood in for the groom. Wedding celebrations were held throughout Turin and official balls were held at the Royal Palace in Turin and Moncalieri Castle.

Shortly after the proxy marriage, Maria Carolina reluctantly left Turin for Dresden, the capital of Saxony. Her family accompanied her as far as Vercelli, eighty miles from Turin, where she boarded a carriage that would take her to Saxony. Her sister Maria Giuseppina wrote about the trip: “We accompanied Maria Carolina to Vercelli. She was afraid. She didn’t want to get married, but the matters of state require that a princess usually get married. Maria Carolina must understand that. She has a certain tendency to shyness. I hope she will correct it so that both she and Prince Antonio can get along. Our sister Maria Teresa and I had to push her out of the carriage. She was crying, I hope she is well in Saxony.” Both Maria Carolina’s elder sisters understood the duties of a princess very well. Previously, Maria Teresa had married the future King Charles X of France and Maria Giuseppina the future King Louis XVIII of France. However, both sisters died before their husbands became King of France.

Anton and Maria Carolina; Credit – Wikipedia

Maria Carolina arrived in Dresden in the Electorate of Saxony, now in the German state of Saxony, on October 24, 1781, and she saw her husband for the first time. Their in-person wedding took place that evening. Maria Carolina’s husband Anton and his brother Friedrich August I, Elector of Saxony did their best to make her feel welcome in Saxony but she remained sad and homesick.

Tomb of Maria Carolina of Savoy, Electoral Princess of Saxony; Credit – www.findagrave.com

Around December 14, 1782, Maria Carolina became ill with smallpox, and died on December 28, 1782, at the age of 18. She was buried in the Great Crypt of the Catholic Church of the Royal Court of Saxony (in German: Katholische Hofkirche) in Dresden, now known as Dresden Cathedral. Popular in her homeland, Maria Carolina was remembered in a folk song, “The Beautiful Mademoiselle,” composed in her honor after her early death. Maria Carolina’s husband married a second time to Maria Theresa of Austria. They had four children who all died in infancy. Anton became King of Saxony at the age of 72. He reigned for nine years, dying on June 6, 1836, fifty-four years after the death of his first wife Maria Carolina.

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

Works Cited

  • De.wikipedia.org. 2022. Maria Carolina von Savoyen – Wikipedia. [online] Available at: <https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maria_Carolina_von_Savoyen> [Accessed 14 May 2022].
  • En.wikipedia.org. 2022. Princess Maria Carolina of Savoy – Wikipedia. [online] Available at: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Princess_Maria_Carolina_of_Savoy> [Accessed 14 May 2022].
  • Flantzer, Susan, 2021. Vittorio Amadeo III, King of Sardinia, Duke of Savoy. [online] Unofficial Royalty. Available at: <https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/vittorio-amadeo-iii-king-of-sardinia-duke-of-savoy/> [Accessed 14 May 2022].
  • Mehl, Scott, 2017. Anton, King of Saxony. [online] Unofficial Royalty. Available at: <https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/anton-king-of-saxony/> [Accessed 14 May 2022].
  • Ru.wikipedia.org. 2022. Мария Каролина Савойская — Википедия. [online] Available at: <https://ru.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D0%9C%D0%B0%D1%80%D0%B8%D1%8F_%D0%9A%D0%B0%D1%80%D0%BE%D0%BB%D0%B8%D0%BD%D0%B0_%D0%A1%D0%B0%D0%B2%D0%BE%D0%B9%D1%81%D0%BA%D0%B0%D1%8F> [Accessed 14 May 2022].

Maria Teresa of Savoy, Duchess of Parma

by Susan Flantzer
© Unofficial Royalty 2021

The Duchy of Parma was in today’s northwest Italy and came into existence in 1545 when Pope Paul III made his illegitimate son Pier Luigi Farnese the Duke of Parma and Piacenza, territories that previously were a part of the Papal States. The House of Farnese reigned until 1731 when the male line went extinct. The duchy passed to Felipe V, King of Spain from the Spanish House of Bourbon whose second wife Elizabeth Farnese was the Farnese heiress. Felipe V made Carlos, his only son with Elizabeth Farnese, the Duke of Parma. However, in 1738, Felipe V traded the Duchy of Parma to the House of Habsburg-Lorraine for the Kingdom of Naples and Sicily and Carlos became King of Naples and Sicily.

In 1748, the Duchy of Parma was ceded back to the Bourbons. Infante Felipe of Spain became Duke of Parma and was the founder of the House of Bourbon-Parma, a cadet branch of the Spanish House of Bourbon.  In 1796, the Duchy of Parma was occupied by French troops under Napoleon Bonaparte. It remained in French hands until the defeat of Napoleon in 1814 when the duchy was given to Napoleon’s second wife, Marie-Louise of Habsburg-Lorraine. She reigned until her death in 1847 when the Duchy of Parma was restored to the House of Bourbon-Parma. In 1859, the Duchy of Parma was abolished during the Italian unification movement. It was merged with the Kingdom of Sardinia as part of the unification of Italy. In 1861, Vittorio Emanuele II, King of Sardinia was proclaimed the first King of the new, united Kingdom of Italy.

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Maria Teresa of Savoy, Duchess of Parma; Credit – Wikipedia

Maria Teresa of Savoy was the wife of Carlo II Ludovico, Duke of Parma. Maria Teresa Fernanda Felicitas Gaetana Pia was born on September 19, 1803, at the Palazzo Colonna in Rome, Papal States, now in Italy. She had a twin sister, Maria Anna Ricciarda Carolina Margherita Pia. The twin sisters were the fifth and sixth of the seven children and the fourth and fifth of the six daughters of Vittorio Emanuele I, King of Sardinia and Maria Theresa of Austria-Este. Maria Teresa’s paternal grandparents were Vittorio Amadeo III, King of Sardinia and Maria Antonia Ferdinanda of Spain. Her maternal grandparents were Ferdinand Karl, Archduke of Austria-Este and Maria Beatrice d’Este, Duchess of Massa.

Vittorio Emanuele I, Maria Theresa, and their three youngest surviving daughters: twins Maria Teresa and Maria Anna and Maria Cristina; Credit – Wikipedia

Maria Teresa had six siblings. Two of Maria Teresa’s sisters died in infancy and her only brother died at the age of three from smallpox. Maria Teresa and her three surviving sisters all married sovereigns. Children of Kings of Sardinia were often styled “of Savoy” as their fathers were also Dukes of Savoy from the House of Savoy

Maria Teresa spent much of her early life on the island of Sardinia. In 1796, before her birth, the French occupied Turin, the capital of the Duchy of Savoy, and forced her uncle Carlo Emanuele IV, King of Sardinia and Duke of Savoy to give up all his territories on the Italian mainland. Carlo Emanuele IV and the rest of the Sardinian royal family withdrew to the island of Sardinia in 1799. When Carlo Emanuele’s beloved wife Marie Clotilde of France died from typhoid fever in 1802, the childless Carlo Emanuele IV was so upset by her death that he decided to abdicate. He left the throne of Sardinia to his brother, Maria Teresa’s father who reigned as Vittorio Emanuele I, King of Sardinia. In 1814, two-thirds of Savoy was restored to the Kingdom of Sardinia following Napoleon’s defeat, and the family was able to return to Turin.

Maria Teresa’s husband Carlo Ludovico in 1824; Credit – Wikipedia

In 1819, Maria Teresa was betrothed to the future Carlo II Ludovico, Duke of Parma. A proxy marriage was held on August 15, 1820, at the Villa Reale in Turin with the groom being represented by Maria Teresa’s paternal uncle Carlo Felice, then the Duke of Genoa, later King of Sardinia. Soon Maria Teresa left for Viareggio, Duchy of Lucca, now in Italy. There she met Carlo Ludovico and married him at the court of his mother Maria Luisa of Spain, Duchess of Lucca in her own right. Carlo Ludovico’s father Ludovico of Parma (King of Etruria from 1801 – 1803) had died at the age of 29 in 1803.

Carlo Ludovico and Maria Teresa had two children:

The marriage was a mismatch. Maria Teresa was very religious and a secular member of the Dominican Order. Carlo Ludovico lived for his own pleasure and preferred entertainment and travel to praying. In 1824, Carlo Ludovico’s mother died and he became the reigning Duke of Lucca. However, he had no interest in reigning. He left the Duchy of Lucca in the hands of his government ministers and instead traveled around Europe. The seemingly endless travels all over Europe with her husband shattered Maria Teresa’s nervous system. In 1833, she stopped accompanying Carlo Ludovico on his travels.

Eventually, Maria Teresa left the Duchy of Lucca court, first settling at the Villa Marlia in the Duchy of Lucca and then at the Villa delle Pianore (link in Italian) also in the Duchy of Lucca, which became a favorite of future members of the House of Bourbon-Parma. Maria Teresa’s grandson Roberto I, the last Duke of Parma enlarged the villa, and his daughter Zita of Bourbon-Parma, the wife of Karl I, the last Emperor of Austria, was born there. Maria Teresa surrounded herself with priests and nuns and dedicated her life to religion. After 1840 she lived in complete religious seclusion.

In 1847, Carlo Ludovico ceded the Duchy of Lucca to the Grand Duchy of Tuscany for financial compensation. Two months later, in December 1847, at the death of Napoleon’s second wife Marie-Louise of Austria, Duchess of Parma, he succeeded her as the reigning Duke of Parma according to the stipulations of the 1815 Congress of Vienna. However, the reign of Carlo II Ludovico, Duke of Parma was short. He was very unpopular with the citizens of Parma, and within a few months, he was ousted by a revolution. Carlo Ludovico regained control of Parma with the help of Austrian troops but finally abdicated in favor of his son Carlo III, Duke of Parma on March 14, 1849.

Maria Teresa’s son Carlo III, Duke of Parma, circa 1852; Credit – Wikipedia

Maria Teresa’s son Carlo III, Duke of Parma reigned only five years. He was assassinated on March 27, 1854, due to his authoritarian policies. He was succeeded by his six-year-old son Roberto I, Duke of Parma with his mother Louise Marie Thérèse of France acting as regent. Roberto reigned for only five years. In 1859, the Duchy of Parma was abolished during the Italian unification movement. It was merged with the Kingdom of Sardinia as part of the unification of Italy. In 1861, Vittorio Emanuele II, King of Sardinia was proclaimed the first King of the new, united Kingdom of Italy.

Villa Borbone; Credit – Di I, Sailko, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=27517303

After the assassination of her son, Maria Teresa lived at the Villa Borbone (link in Italian) in Viareggio, Grand Duchy of Tuscany, after 1861 in the Kingdom of Italy. Here she had a chapel built as a burial place for her assassinated son Carlo III, Duke of Parma.

Tenuta Maria Teresa (Villa Maria Teresa); Credit – Di Sailko – Opera propria, CC BY 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=63147242

Maria Teresa’s final residence was the Tenuta Maria Teresa (Villa Maria Teresa) – link in Italian) which was built for her by the Italian architect by Lorenzo Nottolini in San Martino, Vignale in the hills, just north of Lucca in Italy. It is still called Tenuta Maria Teresa in her honor and is now a winery. There Maria Teresa led a very secluded life. She never left the villa and her only visitors were her confessor and the administrator of the property. The local citizens gave her the nickname “sepolta viva” (buried alive). During the last years of her life, Maria Teresa suffered from progressive atherosclerosis of the cerebral blood vessels.

Chapel of the Dominican Order at the Verano Cemetery in Rome; Credit – By Fczarnowski – Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=29347833

Maria Teresa of Savoy died on July 16, 1879, aged 75, at the Tenuta Villa Maria. Her funeral was held on July 23, 1879, at Saint Romano Church in Lucca, Italy. Her body, dressed in a Dominican nun’s habit, was taken by train to Rome, Italy where it was buried in the Chapel of the Dominican Order at the Verano Cemetery. Maria Teresa’s husband survived his wife by nearly three years, dying in Nice, France on April 16, 1883, at the age of 83. He was buried at the Chapel of the Villa Borbone (link in Italian) in Viareggio, Italy where his assassinated son was buried and where many subsequent members of the House of Bourbon-Parma were buried.

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

Works Cited

  • Almanachdegotha.org. 2021. Duchy of Parma – House of Bourbon-Parma. [online] Available at: <http://www.almanachdegotha.org/id29.html> [Accessed 11 October 2021].
  • En.wikipedia.org. 2021. Maria Teresa of Savoy (1803–1879) – Wikipedia. [online] Available at: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maria_Teresa_of_Savoy_(1803%E2%80%931879)> [Accessed 11 October 2021].
  • Flantzer, Susan, 2021. Carlo II Ludovico, Duke of Parma. [online] Unofficial Royalty. Available at: <https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/carlo-ii-ludovico-duke-of-parma/> [Accessed 11 October 2021].
  • Flantzer, Susan, 2021. Vittorio Emanuele I, King of Sardinia and Duke of Savoy. [online] Unofficial Royalty. Available at: <https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/vittorio-emanuele-i-king-of-sardinia-and-duke-of-savoy/> [Accessed 11 October 2021].
  • It.wikipedia.org. 2021. Maria Teresa di Savoia (1803-1879) – Wikipedia. [online] Available at: <https://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maria_Teresa_di_Savoia_(1803-1879)> [Accessed 11 October 2021].
  • Louda, Jiri and MacLagan, Michael, 2002. Lines of Succession. New York: Barnes and Noble.
  • Ru.wikipedia.org. 2021. Мария Тереза Савойская (1803—1879) — Википедия. [online] Available at: <https://ru.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D0%9C%D0%B0%D1%80%D0%B8%D1%8F_%D0%A2%D0%B5%D1%80%D0%B5%D0%B7%D0%B0_%D0%A1%D0%B0%D0%B2%D0%BE%D0%B9%D1%81%D0%BA%D0%B0%D1%8F_(1803%E2%80%941879)> [Accessed 11 October 2021].

Maria Beatrice of Savoy, Duchess of Modena and Reggio

by Susan Flantzer
© Unofficial Royalty 2021

The Duchy of Modena and Reggio was a small northwestern Italian state that existed from 1452 to 1859, except during the Napoleonic Wars (1796 – 1814). The House of Este ruled the duchy from 1452 – 1796, and then the House of Austria-Este ruled from 1814 – 1859. In 1796, Modena was occupied by a French army under Napoleon Bonaparte, who deposed Ercole III d’Este, Duke of Modena and Reggio, and added the duchy to the French Empire. Ercole III died in exile in 1803.

Ercole III’s only surviving child of Maria Beatrice d’Este, the heiress of Modena and Reggio, married Archduke Ferdinand Karl of Austria, son of Francis Stephen, Duke of Lorraine, Grand Duke of Tuscany, Holy Roman Emperor and Maria Theresa, in her own right Archduchess of Austria, and Queen of Hungary, Croatia, and Bohemia. The son of Maria Beatrice and Ferdinand Karl regained the Duchy of Modena and Reggio as Francesco IV in 1814, after the fall of Napoleon Bonaparte.

The Duchy of Modena and Reggio was abolished during the Italian unification movement. It was annexed to the Kingdom of Sardinia in 1860. In 1861, Vittorio Emanuele II, King of Sardinia was proclaimed the first King of the new, united Kingdom of Italy.

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Maria Beatrice of Savoy, Duchess of Modena and Reggio; Credit – Wikipedia

Maria Beatrice of Savoy was the niece and the wife of Francesco IV, Duke of Modena and Reggio. She was also the Jacobite pretender to the thrones of England and Scotland from 1824 – 1840 (see below). Maria Beatrice Vittoria Giuseppina was born on December 6, 1792, in Turin, Kingdom of Sardinia, now in Italy. She was the eldest of the seven children and the eldest of the six daughters of Vittorio Emanuele I, King of Sardinia and Duke of Savoy and Maria Theresa of Austria-Este. Maria Beatrice’s paternal grandparents were Vittorio Amedeo III, King of Sardinia and Maria Antonia Ferdinanda of Spain. Her maternal grandparents were Archduke Ferdinand Karl of Austria-Este and Maria Beatrice d’Este, Duchess of Massa and Carrara in her own right.

Two of Maria Beatrice’s sisters died in childhood and her only brother died at the age of three from smallpox. Maria Beatrice and her three surviving sisters all married sovereigns. Children of Kings of Sardinia were often styled “of Savoy” as their fathers were also Dukes of Savoy from the House of Savoy.

In 1798, when Maria Beatrice was six years old, the French occupied Turin, the capital of the Duchy of Savoy, and forced her uncle Carlo Emanuele IV, King of Sardinia to give up all his territories on the Italian mainland. Carlo Emanuele IV and the rest of the Sardinian royal family withdrew to the island of Sardinia in 1799. When his beloved wife Marie Clotilde of France died from typhoid fever on March 7, 1802, the childless Carlo Emanuele IV was so upset by her death that he decided to abdicate. He left the throne of Sardinia to his brother, Maria Beatrice’s father who reigned as Vittorio Emanuele I, King of Sardinia. Maria Beatrice and her family remained on the island of Sardinia for fifteen years, living mostly in Cagliari. In 1814, two-thirds of Savoy was restored to the Kingdom of Sardinia following Napoleon’s defeat, and the family was able to return to Turin.

Maria Beatrice’s husband and uncle, Francesco IV, Duke of Modena and Reggio; Credit – Wikipedia

On June 20, 1812, at the Cathedral of the Assumption of the Mother of God and Saint Cecilia in Cagliari, Kingdom of Sardinia, now in Italy, 20-year-old niece Maria Beatrice married her 33-year-old maternal uncle Francesco IV, Duke of Modena and Reggio. Due to their close relationship, a special dispensation was received for their marriage from Pope Pius VII. Francesco was convinced that if he married Maria Beatrice, and her father and his two surviving brothers had no sons, he could become King of Sardinia. However, this plan did not work out. At a later date, Maria Beatrice’s mother and Francesco’s sister (and his mother-in-law) Maria Theresa was accused of trying to convince her childless brother-in-law Carlo Felice, King of Sardinia to name her brother Francesco as the heir to the throne of Sardinia and was exiled from the Kingdom of Sardinia for a while. On his deathbed, Carlo Felice, King of Sardinia named Carlo Alberto, Prince of Carignano, the senior male member of the House of Savoy-Carignano, a cadet branch of the House of Savoy, as his heir.

Francesco and Maria Beatrice had four children:

Like Maria Beatrice’s family, her husband Francesco had also been exiled since 1796 from the Duchy of Modena and Reggio due to the occupation of Napoleon’s French forces. After the fall of Napoleon in 1814, the couple was able to return and made their solemn entry into Modena on July 14, 1814.

Henrietta of England, Duchess of Orléans, Maria Beatrice’s great-great-great-grandmother; Credit – Wikipedia

As the senior surviving descendant of Henrietta of England, Duchess of Orléans, daughter of King Charles I of England and sister of James II, King of England/James VII, King of Scots, Maria Beatrice became the Jacobite pretender to the thrones of England and Scotland after the death of her father Vittorio Emanuele I, King of Sardinia in 1824. James II had been deposed by the Glorious Revolution in 1688. The goal of the Jacobites was to restore the Roman Catholic heirs of King James II of England/VII of Scotland to the thrones of England and Scotland. However, unlike the Stuart Jacobite pretenders – James II’s son James Edward Francis Stuart and James II’s grandsons Charles Edward Stuart and Cardinal Henry Benedict Stuart – none of the later Jacobite pretenders ever claimed the title.

James II’s last legitimate Stuart descendant Cardinal Henry Benedict Stuart died in 1807. There were no surviving siblings of King James II/VII, son of King Charles I of England, or their legitimate descendants, except for the descendants of his youngest sister Henrietta of England, Duchess of Orléans. Henrietta married Philippe I, Duke of Orléans and they had one son who died in infancy and two daughters. Only their daughter Anne Marie d’Orléans, who married Vittorio Amedeo II, King of Sardinia, had children and so the Jacobite line of succession proceeded in the House of Savoy. See how the Jacobite succession arrived in the House of Savoy via Henrietta of England below.

Charles I of England → his daughter Henrietta of England, Duchess of Orléans → her daughter Anne Marie d’Orléans, Queen of Sardinia → her son Carlo Emanuele III, King of Sardinia → his son Vittorio Amadeo III, King of Sardinia → his son Carlo Emanuele IV, King of Sardinia → his brother Vittorio Emanuele I, King of Sardinia → his daughter Maria Beatrice of Savoy, Duchess of Modena and Reggio

Castello del Catajo; Credit – By Alessandro Vecchi – Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=25277385

During the last years of her life, Maria Beatrice preferred to live at the Castello del Catajo in Battaglia Terme near Padua, then in the Kingdom of Lombardy-Venetia, now in Italy, a summer home that had been purchased by Francesco IV in 1803. It was there that Maria Beatrice died from heart failure on September 15, 1840, at the age of 47. She was interred at the Church of San Vincenzo in Modena, Duchy of Modena and Reggio, now in Italy, in the funeral chapel her husband had built in 1836 for members of his family. Francesco IV survived his wife by less than six years, dying on January 21, 1846, aged 66, and was buried with his wife.

Funeral chapel of the House of Este and House of Austria-Este at the Church of San Vincenzo in Modena; Credit – Wikipedia

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

Works Cited

  • En.wikipedia.org. 2021. Maria Beatrice of Savoy – Wikipedia. [online] Available at: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maria_Beatrice_of_Savoy> [Accessed 8 October 2021].
  • Flantzer, Susan, 2021. Francesco IV, Duke of Modena and Reggio. [online] Unofficial Royalty. Available at: <https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/francesco-iv-duke-of-modena-and-reggio/> [Accessed 8 October 2021].
  • Flantzer, S., 2021. Vittorio Emanuele I, King of Sardinia and Duke of Savoy. [online] Unofficial Royalty. Available at: <https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/vittorio-emanuele-i-king-of-sardinia-and-duke-of-savoy/> [Accessed 8 October 2021].
  • It.wikipedia.org. 2021. Maria Beatrice di Savoia (1792-1840) – Wikipedia. [online] Available at: <https://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maria_Beatrice_di_Savoia_(1792-1840)> [Accessed 8 October 2021].
  • Ru.wikipedia.org. 2021. Мария Беатриче Савойская — Википедия. [online] Available at: <https://ru.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D0%9C%D0%B0%D1%80%D0%B8%D1%8F_%D0%91%D0%B5%D0%B0%D1%82%D1%80%D0%B8%D1%87%D0%B5_%D0%A1%D0%B0%D0%B2%D0%BE%D0%B9%D1%81%D0%BA%D0%B0%D1%8F> [Accessed 8 October 2021].

Blessed Maria Cristina of Savoy, Queen of the Two Sicilies

by Susan Flantzer
© Unofficial Royalty 2021

The Kingdom of the Two Sicilies was located in today’s southern Italy. It included the island of Sicily and all of the Italian peninsula south of the Papal States. Ferdinando I, the first King of the Two Sicilies, had previously reigned over two kingdoms, as Ferdinando IV of the Kingdom of Naples and Ferdinando III of the Kingdom of Sicily. He had been deposed twice from the throne of Naples: once by the revolutionary Parthenopean Republic for six months in 1799 and again by Napoleon in 1805, before being restored in 1816 after the defeat of Napoleon. After the 1816 restoration, the two kingdoms were united into the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies.

Vittorio Emanuele II, King of Sardinia became a driving force behind the Italian unification movement along with Giuseppe Garibaldi, a general and nationalist, and Giuseppe Mazzini, a politician and journalist. Garibaldi conquered Naples and Sicily, the territories of the Kingdom of Two Sicilies. Francesco II, King of the Two Sicilies was deposed, the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies ceased to exist, and its territory was incorporated into the Kingdom of Sardinia. Eventually, the Sardinian troops occupied the central territories of the Italian peninsula, except Rome and part of Papal States. With all the newly acquired land, Vittorio Emanuele II was proclaimed the first King of the new, united Kingdom of Italy in 1861.

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Maria Cristina of Savoy, Queen of the Two Sicilies; Credit – Wikipedia

Maria Cristina of Savoy was the first wife of Ferdinando II, King of the Two Sicilies, and has been venerated in the Roman Catholic Church as Blessed Maria Cristina of Savoy since her beatification in 2014. Maria Cristina Carlotta Giuseppa Gaetana Efisia was born on November 14, 1812, in Cagliari, on the island of Sardinia in the Kingdom of Sardinia, now in Italy. She was the youngest of the six daughters and the youngest of the seven children of Vittorio Emanuele I, King of Sardinia and Maria Theresa of Austria-Este. Her paternal grandparents were Vittorio Amedeo III, King of Sardinia and Maria Antonia Ferdinanda of Spain. Her maternal grandparents were Ferdinand Karl, Archduke of Austria-Este and Maria Beatrice d’Este, Duchess of Massa.

Vittorio Emanuele I, King of Sardinia, his wife Maria Theresa, and their daughters: twins Maria Teresa and Maria Anna and Maria Cristina; Credit – Wikipedia

Maria Cristina had five sisters and one brother. Two of her sisters died in infancy and her brother died in childhood from smallpox.

Marriage of Maria Cristina and Ferdinando II, King of the Two Sicilies; Credit – Wikipedia

On November 21, 1832, at the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Acquasanta in Genoa, Kingdom of Sardinia, now in Italy, 20-year-old Maria Cristina married 22-year-old Ferdinando II, King of Two Sicilies. Ferdinando had become King of the Two Sicilies two years earlier upon the death of his father Francesco I, King of the Two Sicilies.

Maria Cristina at prayer; Credit – Wikipedia

Maria Cristina was shy, modest, reserved, and a very devout Catholic. She found herself living in a court with a lifestyle that was very far from her sensitivity. This caused her to never feel quite comfortable. During the short time that she was Queen of the Two Sicilies, Maria Cristina managed to prevent the carrying out of all death sentences. Maria Cristina was called “the Holy Queen” for her deep religious devotion. She endured her nearly constant illnesses with patience and piety and was popular with the people for her charity, modesty, and humility.

Ferdinando and Maria Cristina had one child:

On January 21, 1836, five days after giving birth to her only child, 23-year-old Maria Cristina died from childbirth complications. She was buried at the Basilica of Santa Chiara in Naples, Kingdom of the Two Sicilies, the traditional burial site for the House of Bourbon-Two Sicilies, now in Italy. A year after Maria Cristina’s death, Ferdinando married Maria Theresa of Austria, daughter of Archduke Karl of Austria, Duke of Teschen and Henrietta of Nassau-Weilburg. The couple had twelve children.

Tomb of Blessed Maria Cristina of Savoy; Credit – By © José Luiz Bernardes Ribeiro, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=38973019

In 1859, a cause for the canonization of Maria Cristina as a saint of the Roman Catholic Church was opened. On July 10, 1872, Maria Cristina was declared to be a Servant of God and on May 6, 1937, she was declared a Venerable Servant of God. On May 3, 2013, Pope Francis authorized a decree recognizing a miracle due to her intercession and approved Maria Cristina’s beatification. She is known in the Roman Catholic Church as Blessed Maria Cristina of Savoy and is one step away from canonization as a saint.

Guests at the Beatification of Blessed Maria Cristina of Savoy at the Basilica of Santa Chiara; Credit – https://realcasadiborbone.it/en/duke-duchess-castro-attend-beatification-queen-maria-cristina/

On January 25, 2014, the Basilica of Santa Chiara in Naples, Italy, the burial site of Maria Cristina, was the site of her beatification ceremony. Several thousand people attended the ceremony including the two branches of the House of Bourbon-Two Sicilies led by Carlos, Prince of Bourbon-Two Sicilies, Infante of Spain, Duke of Calabria and Carlo, Prince of Bourbon-Two Sicilies, Duke of Castro. Both branches claim to be Head of the House of Bourbon-Two Sicilies and this event united them for the first time in fifty years. Carlos, Prince of Bourbon-Two Sicilies, Infante of Spain, Duke of Calabria, who died the following year, did not attend the beatification and was represented by his wife.

Beatification of Blessed Maria Cristina of Savoy at the Basilica of Santa Chiara; Credit – https://realcasadiborbone.it/en/duke-duchess-castro-attend-beatification-queen-maria-cristina/

Pope Francis was represented at the beatification ceremony by Cardinal Angelo Amato, Prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints. Cardinal Sepe Crescenzio, Archbishop of Naples was celebrant, and Cardinal Renato Raffaele Martino, Grand Prior of the Sacred Military Constantinian Order of St George, a dynastic order of knighthood of the House of Bourbon-Two Sicilies, was also present. Following the beatification ceremony, members of the House of Bourbon-Two Sicilies paid their respects at the tomb of Blessed Maria Cristina of Savoy.

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

Kingdom of the Two Sicilies Resources at Unofficial Royalty

Works Cited

  • En.wikipedia.org. 2021. Maria Cristina of Savoy – Wikipedia. [online] Available at: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maria_Cristina_of_Savoy> [Accessed 16 August 2021].
  • Flantzer, Susan, 2021. Ferdinando II, King of the Two Sicilies. [online] Unofficial Royalty. Available at: <https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/ferdinando-ii-king-of-the-two-sicilies/> [Accessed 16 August 2021].
  • Flantzer, Susan, 2021. Vittorio Emanuele I, King of Sardinia and Duke of Savoy. [online] Unofficial Royalty. Available at: <https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/vittorio-emanuele-i-king-of-sardinia-and-duke-of-savoy/> [Accessed 16 August 2021].
  • It.wikipedia.org. 2021. Maria Cristina di Savoia – Wikipedia. [online] Available at: <https://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maria_Cristina_di_Savoia> [Accessed 16 August 2021].
  • Realcasadiborbone.it. 2014. Beatification of Queen Maria Cristina of Savoy – Real Casa di Borbone delle Due Sicilie. [online] Available at: <https://realcasadiborbone.it/en/duke-duchess-castro-attend-beatification-queen-maria-cristina/> [Accessed 16 August 2021].

Rosa Vercellana, Countess of Mirafiori and Fontanafredda, Mistress and Wife of Vittorio Emanuele II, King of Sardinia, King of Italy

by Susan Flantzer
© Unofficial Royalty 2021

Credit – Wikipedia

Rosa Vercellana was the mistress and the morganatic second wife of Vittorio Emanuele II, King of Sardinia, after 1861, King of Italy. Born on June 3, 1833, in Nice, now in France, then part of the Kingdom of Sardinia, she was the daughter of career soldier Giovanni Battista Vercellana and Maria Teresa Grigli. On June 15, 1833, she was baptized at the San Giacomo Church in Nice and given the name of Maria Rosa Chiara Teresa Aloisia. Rosa’s father had been a member of the Napoleonic Imperial Guard but after Napoleon’s defeat in 1814, he joined the army of the Kingdom of Sardinia.

Vittorio Emanuele in the 1840s; Credit – Wikipedia

In 1847, Rosa’s father became the commander of the royal garrison at the Royal Castle of Racconigi, the hunting estate of the royal family of Sardinia. While living at the estate, fourteen-year-old Rosa met 27-year-old Vittorio Emanuele, Prince of Piedmont, the eldest son and heir of Carlo Alberto I, King of Sardinia, and soon became his mistress. At that time, Vittorio Emanuele had been married to his wife Adelheid of Austria for seven years and five of their eight children had been born.

Vittorio Emanuele already had some extramarital affairs and had fathered illegitimate children. However, those relationships were brief but his relationship with Rosa lasted the rest of his life. Their early meetings were very secret because Vittorio Emanuele’s father Carlo Alberto, King of Sardinia was against the affair and because it was illegal to have sex with minors. Eventually, Rosa was given a home on the grounds of the Palazzina di caccia of Stupinigi (the hunting residence of Stupinigi), closer to Turin, the seat of government. Vittorio Emanuele became King of Sardinia in 1849.

Rosa and Vittorio Emanuele had a daughter and a son, born when Rosa was fifteen and eighteen:

  • Vittoria Guerrieri (1848 – 1905), married (1) Giacomo Filippo Spinola, had three children (2) Luigi Domenico Spinola, brother of her first husband, had one daughter (3) Paolo de Simone, no children
  • Emanuele Alberto Guerrieri, Count of Mirafiori and Fontanafredda (1851 – 1894), married Bianca Enrichetta de Lardere, had two sons

Rosa and Vittorio Emanuele with their two children in the 1860s Credit – Wikipedia

After the death of Vittorio Emanuele’s wife Adelheid in 1855, his relationship continued, despite his numerous other lovers, and became more public. Although the relationship caused much scandal and hostility at court, Vittorio Emanuele did not yield to any pressure. In 1858, Vittorio created Rosa Countess of Mirafiori and Fontanafredda, recognized their two children, and gave them the surname Guerrieri. A year later, Vittorio Emanuele purchased the Castle of Sommariva Perno (link in Italian) for Rosa. Although Rosa was despised by the nobles, she was loved by the common people for her peasant origins.

Vittorio Emanuele became the first King of a united Italy in 1861. In 1864, when the capital of the Kingdom of Italy was moved from Turin to Florence, Rosa followed Vittorio Emanuele and settled in the Villa La Petraia.

When Vittorio Emanuele fell seriously ill in 1869 and feared he was dying, he married Rosa in a religious ceremony on October 18, 1869. However, Vittorio Emanuele did not die. The marriage was morganatic, a marriage between people of unequal social rank in which the position or privileges of the higher-ranked spouse are not passed on to the other spouse or any children. Rosa’s children had no succession rights and she did not become Queen of Italy, instead, she retained her titles Countess of Mirafiori and Fontanafredda, which the Vittorio Emanuele had given her in 1858. So that Rosa would have marriage civil rights, a civil marriage was held on October 7, 1877. Three months later, on January 9, 1878, Vittorio Emanuele II, King of Italy, aged 57, died at the Quirinal Palace in Rome, Italy, and was buried at the Pantheon in Rome.

Rosa’s original burial place, the Mausoleum of Bela Rosina; Credit -Di Uccio “Uccio2” D’Ago…, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=54728753

Rosa spent the remaining years at the Palazzo Feltrinelli in Pisa, Italy which Vittorio Emanuele had bought for their daughter Vittoria. Rosa survived her husband by nearly nine years, dying at the age of 52, on December 26, 1885. The members of the Italian royal family refused to allow Rosa to be buried with her husband at the Pantheon in Rome. Instead, her children had a replica of the Pantheon built on a smaller scale in Turin called the Mausoleum of Bela Rosin (link in Italian) – beautiful Rosina, Rosa’s nickname in the Piedmontese dialect of Italian. In 1970, upon the death of Rosa’s great-granddaughter Vittoria Guerrieri Gromis di Trana, the City of Turin purchased the mausoleum from her estate. However, the mausoleum was desecrated by grave robbers hunting for jewels, and Rosa’s remains were moved to the Monumental Cemetery of Turin (link in Italian). The mausoleum has since been renovated and restored and now serves as a center for debates, exhibitions, concerts, and other temporary events.

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

Works Cited

  • De.wikipedia.org. 2021. Rosa Vercellana – Wikipedia. [online] Available at: <https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rosa_Vercellana> [Accessed 5 July 2021].
  • En.wikipedia.org. 2021. Rosa Vercellana – Wikipedia. [online] Available at: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rosa_Vercellana> [Accessed 5 July 2021].
  • It.wikipedia.org. 2021. Mausoleo della Bela Rosin – Wikipedia. [online] Available at: <https://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mausoleo_della_Bela_Rosin> [Accessed 5 July 2021].
  • It.wikipedia.org. 2021. Rosa Vercellana – Wikipedia. [online] Available at: <https://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rosa_Vercellana> [Accessed 5 July 2021].
  • Mehl, Scott, 2016. King Vittorio Emanuele II of Italy. [online] Unofficial Royalty. Available at: <https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/king-vittorio-emanuele-ii-of-italy/> [Accessed 5 July 2021].

Maria Theresa, Archduchess of Austria, Princess of Tuscany, Queen of Sardinia

by Susan Flantzer
© Unofficial Royalty 2021

The Kingdom of Sardinia: The House of Savoy had been Counts and then Dukes of Savoy, since the 11th century and ruled from the city of Turin, now in northern Italy. Vittorio Amedeo II, Duke of Savoy became King of Sicily in 1713 as a result of his participation in the War of the Spanish Succession. However, in 1720, Vittorio Amedeo II was forced to exchange the Kingdom of Sicily for the less important Kingdom of Sardinia after objections from the Quadruple Alliance (Great Britain, France, Habsburg Austria, and the Dutch Republic).

Sardinia, now in Italy, is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea after Sicily, also now in Italy, but the Kings of Sardinia of the House of Savoy ruled from Turin, the capital of the Duchy of Savoy. They styled themselves as Kings of Sardinia because the title was superior to their original lesser title as Dukes of Savoy. However, they retained the regnal numerical order of the Dukes of Savoy.

Vittorio Emanuele II became the last King of Sardinia upon the abdication of his father in 1849. He then became a driving force behind the Italian unification movement along with Giuseppe Garibaldi, a general and nationalist, and Giuseppe Mazzini, a politician and journalist. Garibaldi conquered Naples and Sicily, the territories of the Kingdom of Two Sicilies, while the Sardinian troops occupied the central territories of the Italian peninsula, except Rome and part of Papal States. With all the newly acquired land, Vittorio Emanuele II was proclaimed the first King of the new, united Kingdom of Italy in 1861.

Note: Children of Kings of Sardinia were often styled “of Savoy” as their fathers were also Dukes of Savoy from the House of Savoy.

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Maria Theresa, Archduchess of Austria, Princess of Tuscany, Queen of Sardinia; Credit – Wikipedia

Born an Archduchess of Austria and a Princess of Tuscany, Maria Theresa Franziska Josepha Johanna Benedikta was the wife of Carlo Alberto, King of Sardinia. Her birth occurred on March 21, 1801, in Vienna, Austria. She was the youngest of the five children and the youngest of the three daughters of Ferdinando III, Grand Duke of Tuscany and his first wife and also his double first cousin, Princess Luisa of Naples and Sicily. Maria Theresa’s paternal grandparents were Pietro Leopoldo I, Grand Duke of Tuscany (reigned 1765 – 1790) (also Leopold II, Holy Roman Emperor, reigned 1790 – 1792) and Maria Luisa of Spain. Her maternal grandparents were Ferdinando I, King of the Two Sicilies and Maria Carolina of Austria.

Maria Theresa had four older siblings.

  • Archduchess Carolina Ferdinanda of Austria (1793 – 1802), died in childhood
  • Francesco Leopoldo, Grand Prince of Tuscany (1794 – 1800), died in childhood after falling from a carriage
  • Leopoldo II, Grand Duke of Tuscany (1797 – 1870), married (1) Maria Anna of Saxony, had three daughters (2) Maria Antonia of the Two Sicilies, had ten children
  • Archduchess Maria Luisa of Austria (1798 – 1857), unmarried

In 1802, when Maria Theresa was just eighteen months old her mother died giving birth to a stillborn son. However, her father did not marry again until 1821 when he married the much younger Maria Ferdinanda of Saxony. Ferdinando III, Grand Duke of Tuscany was hoping that his second marriage would produce another male heir but the marriage was childless.

Carlo Alberto, Maria Theresa’s husband; Credit – Wikipedia

In 1817, sixteen-year-old Maria Theresa was chosen as the bride for nineteen-year-old Carlo Alberto, 7th Prince of Carignano. Carlo Alberto was the senior male member of the House of Savoy-Carignano, a cadet branch of the House of Savoy. Neither Vittorio Emanuele I, King of Sardinia nor his younger brother and eventual successor Carlo Felice from the House of Savoy had sons. Therefore, Carlo Alberto was second in line to the throne of Sardinia after Carlo Felice. On September 30, 1817, Maria Theresa and Carlo Alberto were married in Florence, Grand Duchy of Tuscany, now in Italy. A nuptial mass was held on October 2, 1817, at Florence Cathedral. After her marriage, Maria Theresa was styled as the Princess of Carignano.

Maria Theresa in the year of her marriage; Credit – Wikipedia

The couple resided at the Palazzo Carignano in Turin, Duchy of Savoy, now in Italy and Carlo Alberto often invited young intellectuals who shared his liberal ideas. Maria Theresa was a very religious, shy, and immature sixteen-year-old and had a temperament quite different than her husband. She was not ready to fully take on her role as a wife. In the evening, rather than keep her husband company, she preferred to play games like blind man’s bluff with the friends she invited to the palace. After a three-year period of adjustment, Maria Theresa and Carlo Alberto began their family and had three children:

Maria Theresa and her two sons; Credit – Wikipedia

Upon the death of the childless Carlo Felice, King of Sardinia on April 27, 1831, the throne passed to Carlo Alberto of the House of Savoy-Carignano and the direct male line of the House of Savoy came to an end. Maria Theresa was then styled as Queen of Sardinia.

In 1848, Carlo Alberto attempted to rid the Italian peninsula of Austrian rule and supported states resulting in the First Italian War of Independence, part of the Italian Unification. After his forces were defeated by the Austrian forces at the Battle of Novara, Carlo Alberto immediately abdicated in favor of his son Vittorio Emanuele and went into exile in Porto, Portugal. However, by the time he reached Porto in April 1849, he was seriously ill. On July 28, 1849, Carlo Alberto suffered a third heart attack. He was given last rites, fell asleep with a crucifix on his chest, and died at 3:30 PM at the age of 50. Carlo Alberto’s remains were returned to Turin, Duchy of Savoy, now in Italy, where his funeral took place on October 13, 1849, at the Turin Cathedral. He was buried at the Basilica of Superga in Turin, the traditional burial site of the House of Savoy.

Maria Theresa, Dowager Queen of Sardinia; Credit – Wikipedia

After the death of her husband, Maria Theresa no longer appeared in public. However, she was a great influence on her son Vittorio Emanuele II, King of Sardinia. Maria Theresa was a fervent Catholic, an Italian nationalist, and a conservative who believed in checks and balances on royal power. Her son became a driving force behind the Italian unification movement along with Giuseppe Garibaldi, a general and nationalist, and Giuseppe Mazzini, a politician and journalist. Garibaldi conquered Naples and Sicily, the territories of the Kingdom of Two Sicilies, while the Sardinian troops occupied the central territories of the Italian peninsula, except Rome and part of Papal States. With all the newly acquired land, Vittorio Emanuele II was proclaimed the first King of the new, united Kingdom of Italy in 1861.

Basilica of Superga; Credit – By Paris Orlando – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=74180727

However, Maria Theresa did not live long enough to see her son become King of a united Italy. On January 12, 1855, in Turin, Maria Theresa died at the age of 53, just eight days before the death of daughter-in-law Adelheid of Austria, Queen of Sardinia, and a month before the death of her younger son Ferdinando of Savoy, Duke of Genoa. Maria Theresa was buried with her husband at the Basilica of Superga in Turin.

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

Works Cited

  • De.wikipedia.org. 2021. Maria Theresia von Österreich-Toskana (1801–1855) – Wikipedia. [online] Available at: <https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maria_Theresia_von_%C3%96sterreich-Toskana_(1801%E2%80%931855)> [Accessed 5 July 2021].
  • En.wikipedia.org. 2021. Maria Theresa of Austria (1801–1855) – Wikipedia. [online] Available at: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maria_Theresa_of_Austria_(1801%E2%80%931855)> [Accessed 5 July 2021].
  • Flantzer, Susan, 2021. Carlo Alberto, King of Sardinia and Duke of Savoy. [online] Unofficial Royalty. Available at: <https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/carlo-alberto-king-of-sardinia-and-duke-of-savoy/> [Accessed 5 July 2021].
  • It.wikipedia.org. 2021. Maria Teresa d’Asburgo-Lorena – Wikipedia. [online] Available at: <https://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maria_Teresa_d%27Asburgo-Lorena> [Accessed 5 July 2021].

Carlo Alberto, King of Sardinia and Duke of Savoy

by Susan Flantzer
© Unofficial Royalty 2021

The Kingdom of Sardinia: The House of Savoy had been Counts and then Dukes of Savoy, since the 11th century and ruled from the city of Turin, now in northern Italy. Vittorio Amedeo II, Duke of Savoy became King of Sicily in 1713 as a result of his participation in the War of the Spanish Succession. However, in 1720, Vittorio Amedeo II was forced to exchange the Kingdom of Sicily for the less important Kingdom of Sardinia after objections from the Quadruple Alliance (Great Britain, France, Habsburg Austria, and the Dutch Republic).

Sardinia, now in Italy, is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea after Sicily, also now in Italy, but the Kings of Sardinia of the House of Savoy ruled from Turin, the capital of the Duchy of Savoy. They styled themselves as Kings of Sardinia because the title was superior to their original lesser title as Dukes of Savoy. However, they retained the regnal numerical order of the Dukes of Savoy.

Vittorio Emanuele II became the last King of Sardinia upon the abdication of his father in 1849. He then became a driving force behind the Italian unification movement along with Giuseppe Garibaldi, a general and nationalist, and Giuseppe Mazzini, a politician and journalist. Garibaldi conquered Naples and Sicily, the territories of the Kingdom of Two Sicilies, while the Sardinian troops occupied the central territories of the Italian peninsula, except Rome and part of Papal States. With all the newly acquired land, Vittorio Emanuele II was proclaimed the first King of the new, united Kingdom of Italy in 1861.

Note: Children of Kings of Sardinia were often styled “of Savoy” as their fathers were also Dukes of Savoy from the House of Savoy.

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Carlo Alberto, King of Sardinia; Credit – Wikipedia

Carlo Alberto, the senior male member of the House of Savoy-Carignano, a cadet branch of the House of Savoy, became King of Sardinia upon the death of Carlo Felice, King of Sardinia when the male line of the House of Savoy became extinct. Born on October 2, 1798, as the Palazzo Carignano in Turin, Duchy of Savoy, now in Italy, he was the only son and the eldest of the two children of Carlo Emanuele of Savoy, 6th Prince of Carignano and Maria Christina of Saxony. Vittorio Amedeo of Savoy, 5th Prince of Carignano and Joséphine of Lorraine were his paternal grandparents. Carlo Alberto’s maternal grandparents were Prince Karl of Saxony, Duke of Courland, son of King Augustus III of Poland, and Countess Franciszka Krasińska.

Carlo Alberto had one younger sister:

Carlo Alberto’s father Carlo Emanuele of Savoy, 6th Prince of Carignano had liberal French sympathies. In 1798, the French occupied Turin, the capital of the Duchy of Savoy, and the seat of power for the Kings of Sardinia. The royal family retreated to the island of Sardinia. However, Carlo Emanuele of Savoy, 6th Prince of Carignano went to Turin and became part of the Piedmont Republic set up by the French. The French became suspicious of Carlo Emanuele and confined him at the citadel in Turin. Eventually, he was sent to Paris where he lived in the home of a police officer who was in charge of monitoring him. On August 16, 1800, Carlo Emanuele of Savoy, 6th Prince of Carignano, aged 29, died of sudden paralysis. His son Carlo Alberto, not yet two years old, became the 7th Prince of Carignano.

The French had no intention of recognizing the family’s rights, titles, or property. However, Carlo Alberto’s mother Maria Christina of Saxony refused to send her son to the Savoy family in Sardinia. Instead, he received a liberal education at the Collège Stanislas in Paris, and after his mother moved to Geneva, Switzerland from Jean-Pierre Etienne Vaucher, a follower of Jean-Jacques Rousseau whose political philosophy influenced the progress of the Enlightenment throughout Europe.

Carlo Alberto in his youth; Credit – Wikipedia

After the defeat of Napoleon in 1814, the re-establishment of peace in Europe meant that the King and the royal family of the Kingdom of Sardina could return to Turin, and so did Carlo Alberto. Sixteen-year-old Carlo Alberto arrived in Turin on May 24, 1814, and was warmly greeted by Vittorio Emanuele I, King of Sardina and his wife Maria Theresa of Austria-Este. The property and lands of Carlo Alberto’s family were restored to him and he was granted the Palazzo Carignano as a residence. Because neither Vittorio Emanuele I nor his younger brother and eventual successor Carlo Felice had sons, Carlo Alberto was second in line to the throne of Sardinia after Carlo Felice. He was given tutors to try to counter the liberal ideas that he had been taught in Paris and Geneva.

Carlo Alberto’s wife Maria Theresa in the year of her marriage; Credit – Wikipedia

A bride was chosen for Carlo Alberto, Archduchess Maria Theresa of Austria, Princess of Tuscany, the daughter of Ferdinando III, Grand Duke of Tuscany and Maria Luisa of Naples and Sicily. On September 30, 1817, Carlo Alberto and Maria Theresa were married in Florence, Grand Duchy of Tuscany, now in Italy. A nuptial blessing was held on October 2, 1817, at Florence Cathedral.

Maria Theresa and her two sons; Credit – Wikipedia

Carlo Alberto and Maria Theresa had three children:

In March 1821, liberal revolutions were occurring throughout Italy. However, Vittorio Emanuele I, King of Sardinia was not willing to grant a liberal constitution so he abdicated the throne of Sardinia in favor of his brother Carlo Felice on March 13, 1821, but remained Duke of Savoy until his death. Because Carlo Felice was in the Duchy of Modena at the time, Vittorio Emanuele temporarily appointed Carlo Alberto as regent. Carlo Alberto made concessions to the rebels and put a liberal constitution into effect. However, when Carlo Felice returned, he abolished the new constitution and ruled as an absolute monarch.

In 1830, Carlo Felice’s health began to suffer. On April 24, 1831, he summoned Carlo Alberto and the entire government to his sickbed and officially declared Carlo Alberto to be his successor. Three days later, Carlo Felice, King of Sardinia died and Carlo Alberto succeeded him. The throne passed to the House of Savoy-Carignano and the direct male line of the House of Savoy came to an end.

Carlo Alberto in his coronation robes; Credit – Wikipedia

Carlo Alberto initially continued Carlo Felice’s conservative policies. He entered into a military alliance with Austria and suppressed liberal movements. However, he did institute reform projects early in his reign including creating a code of law based on the Napoleonic Code, reorganizing the military, and supporting the arts and science. By 1840, his political philosophy had become moderately liberal and he began to turn against Austria. On March 4, 1848, Carlo Alberto approved a constitution, the Albertine Statute, that established a constitutional monarchy. The Albertine Statute later became the constitution of the unified Kingdom of Italy and remained enforced, with changes, until 1948.

Carlo Alberto, King of Sardinia signing the Albertine Statute; Credit – Wikipedia

In 1848, Carlo Alberto attempted to rid the Italian peninsula of Austria ruled and supported states resulting in the First Italian War of Independence, part of the Italian Unification. After his forces were defeated by the Austrian forces at the Battle of Novara, Carlo Alberto immediately abdicated in favor of his son Vittorio Emanuele. Vittorio Emanuele II, King of Sardinia then became a driving force behind the Italian unification movement along with Giuseppe Garibaldi, a general and nationalist, and Giuseppe Mazzini, a politician and journalist. Garibaldi conquered Naples and Sicily, the territories of the Kingdom of Two Sicilies, while the Sardinian troops occupied the central territories of the Italian peninsula, except Rome and part of Papal States. With all the newly acquired land, Vittorio Emanuele II was proclaimed the first King of the new, united Kingdom of Italy in 1861.

On March 24, 1849, the day after his defeat at the Battle of Novara, Carlo Alberto left the Italian peninsula and wound up in Porto, Portugal on April 19, 1849. During his travels to Portugal, he became ill with a liver condition. He stayed for two weeks at the Hotel do Peixe in Porto and his condition worsened. Carlo Alberto accepted the offer from a private individual of a home on the Rua de Entre Quintas in Porto with an ocean view.

Carlo Alberto’s deathbed; Credit – Wikipedia

Although Carlo Alberto had coughing fits and two heart attacks, his doctors considered the liver condition more serious. By early July 1849, his coughing fits were more frequent and he could no longer get out of bed. After being in quite a serious condition on July 27, Carlo Alberto seemed to improve on July 28, 1849, but then his condition seriously deteriorated after a third heart attack. He was given last rites, fell asleep with a crucifix on his chest, and died at 3:30 PM at the age of 50.

Tomb of Carlo Alberto, King of Sardinia; Credit – Wikipedia

Carlo Alberto’s remains were returned to Turin, Duchy of Savoy, now in Italy, where his funeral took place on October 13, 1849, at the Turin Cathedral. He was buried at the Basilica of Superga in Turin, the traditional burial site of the House of Savoy.

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

Works Cited

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