Francis I of the Two Sicilies
Encyclopedia
Francis I of the Two Sicilies was King of the Two Sicilies from 1825 to 1830.
, the son of Ferdinand I of the Two Sicilies
and his wife Archduchess Maria Carolina of Austria
. He was also the nephew of Marie Antoinette
and Louis XVI
the last King and Queen of France before the first French Republic.
At the death of his older brother Carlo, Duke of Calabria
, Francis became the heir to the throne and became the Duke of Calabria, the traditional title of the heir apparent to the Neapolitan throne.
In 1796 Francis married his double first cousin Archduchess Maria Clementina of Austria
, daughter of the Holy Roman Emperor Leopold II
. When she died, he married his first cousin María Isabel
, daughter of King Charles IV of Spain
.
After the Bourbon
family fled from Naples to Sicily
in 1806, and Lord William Bentinck
, the British resident, had established a constitution and deprived Ferdinand of all power, Francis was appointed regent (1812).
On the fall of Napoleon his father returned to Naples and suppressed the Sicilian constitution and autonomy, incorporating his two kingdoms into that of the Two Sicilies (1816); Francis then assumed the revived title of duke of Calabria
. While still heir apparent he professed liberal ideas, and on the outbreak of the revolution of 1820 he accepted the regency apparently in a friendly spirit towards the new constitution. But he was probably more conservatively inclined than that.
Hence, on succeeding to the throne in 1825, he followed more conservative principles as well. He took little part in the government, which he left in the hands of favourites and police officials, and lived with his mistresses, surrounded by soldiers, ever in dread of assassination. During his reign the only revolutionary movement was the outbreak on the Cilento (1828), repressed by the marquis Delcarretto, an ex-Liberal. He was, however successful in having the Austrian occupation force withdrawn (1827) therefore relieving a large financial burden on the Treasury.
During his reign, the Royal Order of Francis I
was founded to reward civil merit.
With Isabella of Spain:
Also had illegitimate children with his mistresses.
Biography
Francis was born in NaplesNaples
Naples is a city in Southern Italy, situated on the country's west coast by the Gulf of Naples. Lying between two notable volcanic regions, Mount Vesuvius and the Phlegraean Fields, it is the capital of the region of Campania and of the province of Naples...
, the son of Ferdinand I of the Two Sicilies
Ferdinand I of the Two Sicilies
Ferdinand I reigned variously over Naples, Sicily, and the Two Sicilies from 1759 until his death. He was the third son of King Charles III of Spain by his wife Maria Amalia of Saxony. On 10 August 1759, Charles succeeded his elder brother, Ferdinand VI, as King Charles III of Spain...
and his wife Archduchess Maria Carolina of Austria
Maria Carolina of Austria
Maria Carolina of Austria was Queen of Naples and Sicily as the wife of King Ferdinand IV & III. As de facto ruler of her husband's kingdoms, Maria Carolina oversaw the promulgation of many reforms, including the revocation of the ban on Freemasonry, the enlargement of the navy under her...
. He was also the nephew of Marie Antoinette
Marie Antoinette
Marie Antoinette ; 2 November 1755 – 16 October 1793) was an Archduchess of Austria and the Queen of France and of Navarre. She was the fifteenth and penultimate child of Holy Roman Empress Maria Theresa and Holy Roman Emperor Francis I....
and Louis XVI
Louis XVI of France
Louis XVI was a Bourbon monarch who ruled as King of France and Navarre until 1791, and then as King of the French from 1791 to 1792, before being executed in 1793....
the last King and Queen of France before the first French Republic.
At the death of his older brother Carlo, Duke of Calabria
Carlo, Duke of Calabria
Carlo of Naples and Sicily was a Prince of Naples and Sicily and Duke of Calabria. He died in infancy of smallpox.-Biography:Born at the Caserta Palace near Naples, he was created Duke of Calabria at birth as the heir apparent to his father's throne...
, Francis became the heir to the throne and became the Duke of Calabria, the traditional title of the heir apparent to the Neapolitan throne.
In 1796 Francis married his double first cousin Archduchess Maria Clementina of Austria
Archduchess Maria Clementina of Austria
Maria Clementina of Austria was an Austrian archduchess and the tenth child and third daughter of Leopold II, Holy Roman Emperor and Maria Luisa of Spain. In 1797 she married her first cousin Francis I of the Two Sicilies, then Duke of Calabria, heir of Naples and Sicily...
, daughter of the Holy Roman Emperor Leopold II
Leopold II, Holy Roman Emperor
Leopold II , born Peter Leopold Joseph Anton Joachim Pius Gotthard, was Holy Roman Emperor and King of Hungary and Bohemia from 1790 to 1792, Archduke of Austria and Grand Duke of Tuscany from 1765 to 1790. He was a son of Emperor Francis I and his wife, Empress Maria Theresa...
. When she died, he married his first cousin María Isabel
Maria Isabella of Spain
María Isabella of Spain was an Infanta of Spain and the Queen of the Two Sicilies. She was the second wife of Francis I and the youngest surviving daughter of the Spanish king Charles IV and his consort Maria Luisa of Parma...
, daughter of King Charles IV of Spain
Charles IV of Spain
Charles IV was King of Spain from 14 December 1788 until his abdication on 19 March 1808.-Early life:...
.
After the Bourbon
House of Bourbon
The House of Bourbon is a European royal house, a branch of the Capetian dynasty . Bourbon kings first ruled Navarre and France in the 16th century. By the 18th century, members of the Bourbon dynasty also held thrones in Spain, Naples, Sicily, and Parma...
family fled from Naples to Sicily
Sicily
Sicily is a region of Italy, and is the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. Along with the surrounding minor islands, it constitutes an autonomous region of Italy, the Regione Autonoma Siciliana Sicily has a rich and unique culture, especially with regard to the arts, music, literature,...
in 1806, and Lord William Bentinck
Lord William Bentinck
Lieutenant-General Lord William Henry Cavendish-Bentinck GCB, GCH, PC , known as Lord William Bentinck, was a British soldier and statesman...
, the British resident, had established a constitution and deprived Ferdinand of all power, Francis was appointed regent (1812).
On the fall of Napoleon his father returned to Naples and suppressed the Sicilian constitution and autonomy, incorporating his two kingdoms into that of the Two Sicilies (1816); Francis then assumed the revived title of duke of Calabria
Calabria
Calabria , in antiquity known as Bruttium, is a region in southern Italy, south of Naples, located at the "toe" of the Italian Peninsula. The capital city of Calabria is Catanzaro....
. While still heir apparent he professed liberal ideas, and on the outbreak of the revolution of 1820 he accepted the regency apparently in a friendly spirit towards the new constitution. But he was probably more conservatively inclined than that.
Hence, on succeeding to the throne in 1825, he followed more conservative principles as well. He took little part in the government, which he left in the hands of favourites and police officials, and lived with his mistresses, surrounded by soldiers, ever in dread of assassination. During his reign the only revolutionary movement was the outbreak on the Cilento (1828), repressed by the marquis Delcarretto, an ex-Liberal. He was, however successful in having the Austrian occupation force withdrawn (1827) therefore relieving a large financial burden on the Treasury.
During his reign, the Royal Order of Francis I
Royal Order of Francis I
The Royal Order of Francis I is a dynastic Order of Knighthood of the Royal House of Bourbon Two Sicilies...
was founded to reward civil merit.
Issue
With Maria Clementina of Austria:- Carolina Ferdinanda LuisaPrincess Caroline of Naples and SicilyCaroline of Naples and Sicily was the daughter of the future King Francis I of the Two Sicilies and his first wife, Maria Clementina of Austria.-Life:...
(1798–1870), who married 1st Charles Ferdinand, duc de BerryCharles Ferdinand, duc de BerryCharles Ferdinand d'Artois, Duke of Berry was the younger son of the future king, Charles X of France, and his wife, Princess Maria Theresa of Savoy....
, the second son of King Charles X of FranceCharles X of FranceCharles X was known for most of his life as the Comte d'Artois before he reigned as King of France and of Navarre from 16 September 1824 until 2 August 1830. A younger brother to Kings Louis XVI and Louis XVIII, he supported the latter in exile and eventually succeeded him...
, and 2nd Ettore Count Lucchesi Palli, Prince di Campofranco, Duke della Grazia. - Ferdinando (1800–1801).
With Isabella of Spain:
- Luisa CarlottaPrincess Luisa Carlotta of the Two SiciliesLuisa Carlotta of Naples and Sicily , Princess the Two Sicilies, Infanta of Spain, was a daughter of King Francis I of the Two Sicilies.-Family:...
(1804–1844), who married her mother's younger brother Infante Francisco de Paula of SpainInfante Francisco de Paula of SpainInfante Francisco de Paula of Spain was the youngest son of Charles IV of Spain and Maria Luisa of Parma.-Marriage and children:...
. - María CristinaMaria Christina of the Two SiciliesMaria Christina of the Two Sicilies was Queen consort of Spain and Regent of Spain .-Early years and first marriage:...
(1806–1878), who married 1st her uncle Ferdinand VII of Spain (her mother's older brother) and 2nd Ferdinand Muñoz, Duke of Rianzares. - Ferdinand II of the Two SiciliesFerdinand II of the Two SiciliesFerdinand II was King of the Two Sicilies from 1830 until his death.-Family:Ferdinand was born in Palermo, the son of King Francis I of the Two Sicilies and his wife and first cousin Maria Isabella of Spain.His paternal grandparents were King Ferdinand I of the Two Sicilies and Queen Marie...
(1810–1859) who became Francis I's successor and married twice. - Carlo FerdinandoCharles Ferdinand, Prince of CapuaCharles Ferdinand of the Two Sicilies, Prince of Capua was a member of the House of Bourbon-Two Sicilies.-Family:Charles Ferdinand was second-eldest son of Francis I of the Two Sicilies and his second wife Maria...
, Prince of Capua (1811–1862). Married morganatically to Penelope Smyth and had issue. - LeopoldoLeopold of the Two Sicilies (1813-1860)Prince Leopoldo Beniamino Giuseppe of Bourbon-Two Sicilies, Count of Syracuse was a member of the House of Bourbon-Two Sicilies.-Family:...
, Count di Siracusa (1813–1860). Married Princess Maria of Savoy-CarignanPrincess Maria of Savoy-CarignanMaria Vittoria of Savoy, was a member of the House of Savoy-Carignan and a Princess of Savoy by birth and a member of the House of Bourbon-Two Sicilies and Countess consort of Syracuse through her marriage to Prince Leopold of...
. No issue. - Maria AntoniettaPrincess Maria Antonia of the Two SiciliesPrincess Maria Antonia of the Two Sicilies was Grand Duchess of Tuscany from 1833 to 1859 as the consort of Leopold II...
(1814–1898). Married Leopold II, Grand Duke of TuscanyLeopold II, Grand Duke of TuscanyLeopold II of Tuscany was the last reigning grand duke of Tuscany ....
. - Antonio, Count of Lecce (1816–1843).
- Maria Amalia (1818–1857), who married Infante Sebastian of Portugal and SpainInfante Sebastian of Portugal and SpainSebastian Gabriel de Borbon y de Braganza, Infante of Portugal and Spain, was a royal of the 19th century, progenitor of the ducal lines of Hernani, Ansola, Durcal and Marchena, and Carlist army commander in the First Carlist War.- Family :He was born in Rio de Janeiro in 1811 as the only child of...
. - Maria Carolina (1820–1861). Married Carlos, Conde de Montemolin of Spain and CarlistCarlismCarlism is a traditionalist and legitimist political movement in Spain seeking the establishment of a separate line of the Bourbon family on the Spanish throne. This line descended from Infante Carlos, Count of Molina , and was founded due to dispute over the succession laws and widespread...
pretender to the throne of Spain. - Teresa (1822–1889). Married Pedro II of BrazilPedro II of BrazilDom Pedro II , nicknamed "the Magnanimous", was the second and last ruler of the Empire of Brazil, reigning for over 58 years. Born in Rio de Janeiro, he was the seventh child of Emperor Dom Pedro I of Brazil and Empress Dona Maria Leopoldina and thus a member of the Brazilian branch of...
. - LuigiPrince Louis, Count of AquilaPrince Luigi Carlo Maria Giuseppe of Bourbon-Two Sicilies, Count of Aquila was a member of the House of Bourbon-Two Sicilies.-Family:...
, Count di Aquila (1824–1897). Married Januária Maria, Princess Imperial of Brazil (sister of Pedro II of Brazil and Maria II of Portugal). Had issue. - Francesco, Count of TrapaniPrince Francis, Count of TrapaniFrancis of the Two Sicilies, Count of Trapani was a member of the House of the Two Sicilies.-Family:...
(1827–1892). Married Archduchess Maria Isabella of Austria, Princess of Tuscany and had issue.
Also had illegitimate children with his mistresses.