• About Me

European Royal History

~ Exploring the History of European Royalty

European Royal History

Tag Archives: Queen Isabella II of Spain

The life of Maria Christina of the Two Sicilies, Queen Consort of Spain. Part II.

21 Saturday Dec 2019

Posted by liamfoley63 in Featured Monarch, Kingdom of Europe, Royal Genealogy, Royal Succession

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

El Escorial, Fernando VII of Spain, Kingdom of Spain, Knight of the Golden Fleece, Louis Philippe, Maria Christina of the Two Sicilies, Queen Isabella II of Spain

FF2AAE04-7A9D-439C-B769-F19B18AEB2A7

8360ADE1-03AB-461D-800C-232DA8823B74
Maria Christina as Regent

On December 28, 1833, three short months after the death of Fernando VII, Maria Christina had secretly married an ex-sergeant from the royal guard, Agustín Fernando Muñoz (1808–1873). Maria Christina and Muñoz had several children together while trying to keep their marriage a secret. This fact certainly proves that Maria Christina was carrying on an affair with Muñoz during her marriage with the king.

If Maria Christina had officially made the marriage public, she would have forfeited the regency; but her relations with Muñoz were perfectly well known within the Spanish court. When on 13 August 1836 the soldiers on duty at the summer palace La Granja mutinied and forced the regent to grant a constitution, it was generally, though wrongly, believed that they overcame her reluctance by seizing Muñoz, whom they called her guapo, or fancy man, and threatening to shoot him.

2D6965B9-13EB-4FD7-97BF-9FBE9DA1AEDE
Agustín Fernando Muñoz

Eventually, news of Maria Christina’s marriage to this low-ranking soldier became public. That news made Maria Christina deeply unpopular. Her position was undermined by news of her remarriage and concerns that she was not actually supportive of her liberal ministers and their policies. Eventually, the army, which was the backbone of Isabella II’s support, and the liberal leadership in the Cortes combined to demand that Maria Christina stand aside from the regency. In 1840 Maria Christina found her position intolerable; she renounced the regency and left Spain with Muñoz. The army commander, General Baldomero Espartero, Count of Luchana, replaced her as regent.

36A33C65-48E3-4837-86B9-5773D070703B
Maria Christina Later in life.

In 1842 Maria Christina purchased the Château de Malmaison as their residence. In 1843, on the overthrow of General Baldomero Espartero they returned to Spain. In 1844, Muñoz’s stepdaughter Queen Isabella II was declared to be of age. On 23 June 1844 Isabella gave to Muñoz the title duque de Riánsares, to which was attached a Grandeza de España; the title came from the river Riánsares, near Muñoz’s birthplace in Tarancón. On October 12, 1844 Isabella gave official consent to the marriage between her mother and Muñoz, and it was publicly performed.

In 1846 Isabella made Muñoz a Knight of the Golden Fleece. On May 30, 1846 she gave Muñoz a second title, marqués de San Agustín. Muñoz was made a Captain General, the highest rank in the Spanish Army. In 1847 Louis Philippe, King of the French, gave Muñoz the title duc de Montmorot; he also invested Muñoz with the Grand Cross of the Légion d’honneur. In 1854, Maria Christina left for France a second time. France remained her primary residence for the remainder of her life.

In 1846, by the express request of the former president Juan José Flores, the Queen participated in an attempt to restore the monarchy in Ecuador. This two-phase plan was first that her son Agustín Muñoz of Bourbon should become King of Ecuador, and later in restorer of the Spanish monarchy in Perú and Bolivia, converting the child in the monarch of the tentative United Kingdom of Ecuador, Perú and Bolivia, with herself and Flores as Regents. When everything was organized, the attempt was denounced by the press and Latin American diplomats, and plans collapsed.

Death and burial

Maria Christina’s illness returned and she suffered from serious coughing, fainting and fever. She died in Le Havre, France on August 22, 1878, aged 72. As the mother of Isabella II, Maria Christina was buried in the royal crypt of El Escorial.

Abdication: What To Call A Former Monarch, Part V.

18 Friday Jan 2019

Posted by liamfoley63 in Kingdom of Europe, Royal Genealogy, Royal Succession

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

Abdication, Duke of Aosta, Edward VIII, House of Savoy, King Manuel II of Portugal, Kingdom of Spain, Kingdom of the Netherlands, Queen Isabella II of Spain, Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands

In the previous entries I examined how Richard II of England and Holy Roman Emperor Charles V still retained their title of King and Emperor respectively after their abdications. Here are other examples of monarchs who abdicated or were dethroned yet they kept their royal title.

img_3052
King Wilhelm II of Württemberg 1891-1918

King James II-VII of England, Scotland and Ireland 1685-1688
King Louis Philippe of the French 1830-1848
King Miguel I of Portugal 1828-1834
King Manuel II of Portugal 1908-1910
Emperor Wilhelm II of Germany 1888-1918
Emperor Karl I-IV of Austria-Hungary 1916-1918
Queen Isabella II of Spain 1833-1868
King Alfonso XIII of Spain 1874-1885
King Mihail of Romania 1927-1930 and 1940-1947
King Simeon II of Bulgaria 1943-1946
King Peter II of Yugoslavia 1934-1954
King Constantine II of Greece 1964-1973
King Ludwig III of Bavaria 1913-1918
King Wilhelm II of Württemberg 1891-1918
King Friederich August III of Saxony 1904-1918
King Juan Carlos of Spain 1975-2014
King Albert II of the Belgians 1993-2013

By remaining kings, those who married after abdicating/being dethroned could even transmit their royal style to their wives – Anne of Bourbon-Parma who married King Mihail Romania and Augusta Victoria of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen wife of King Manuel II of Portugal all were wed and titled Queen long after their husbands ceased to reign.

img_2204
Queen Isabella II of Spain 1833-1868

In one case a monarch who abdicated did grant himself a lesser title and yet also kept the title of King. King Willem I of the Netherlands, after his abdication in 1840, styled himself King Willem-Frederick, Count of Nassau. Speaking of the Kingdom of the Netherlands it was only with the abdications of Queens Wilhelmina, Juliana and Beatrix did they downgrade themselves to Royal Highnesses and Princesses.

Here is an example of a monarch that did downgrade his title after his abdication. After the abdication of Queen Isabella II of Spain the Spanish Cortes decided to continue as a monarchy. They chose as their king, Amadeo I (Italian: Amedeo, sometimes anglicized as Amadeus; May 30, 1845 – January 18, 1890) and he was the only King of Spain from the House of Savoy. He was the second son of King Vittorio Emanuele II of Italy and was known for most of his life as the Duke of Aosta, but he reigned briefly as King of Spain from 1870 to 1873.

img_3054
Amadeo I of Spain 1870-1873

Amadeo’s reign was fraught with growing republicanism, Carlist rebellions in the north, and the Cuban independence movement. With the possibility of reigning without popular support, Amadeus issued an order against the artillery corps and then immediately abdicated from the Spanish throne on February 11, 1873. At ten o’clock that same night, Spain was proclaimed a republic, at which time Amadeo made an appearance before the Cortes, proclaiming the Spanish people ungovernable. Completely disgusted, the ex-monarch left Spain and returned to Italy, where he resumed the title of Duke of Aosta.

In the final entry I will show why it was deemed necessary to downgrade Edward VIII of the United Kingdom.

Recent Posts

  • May 26, 1896: Coronation of Emperor Nicholas II of Russia and Empress Alexandra Feodorovna
  • May 26, 1867: Birth of Princess Victoria Mary of Teck, Queen Consort of the United Kingdom, Empress of India
  • May 26, 946: Death of Edmund I, King of the English
  • May 25, 1660: King Charles II of England, Scotland and Ireland Arrives at Dover
  • May 24, 1819: Birth of Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom, Empress of India

Archives

  • May 2022
  • April 2022
  • March 2022
  • February 2022
  • January 2022
  • December 2021
  • November 2021
  • October 2021
  • September 2021
  • August 2021
  • July 2021
  • June 2021
  • May 2021
  • April 2021
  • March 2021
  • February 2021
  • January 2021
  • December 2020
  • November 2020
  • October 2020
  • September 2020
  • August 2020
  • July 2020
  • June 2020
  • May 2020
  • April 2020
  • March 2020
  • February 2020
  • January 2020
  • December 2019
  • November 2019
  • October 2019
  • September 2019
  • August 2019
  • July 2019
  • June 2019
  • May 2019
  • April 2019
  • March 2019
  • February 2019
  • January 2019
  • December 2018
  • November 2018
  • October 2018
  • September 2018
  • August 2018
  • July 2018
  • June 2018
  • May 2018
  • April 2018
  • March 2018
  • February 2018
  • January 2018
  • December 2017
  • November 2017
  • September 2017
  • August 2017
  • June 2017
  • April 2017
  • February 2017
  • January 2017
  • December 2016
  • October 2016
  • September 2016
  • February 2016
  • January 2016
  • October 2015
  • September 2015
  • August 2015
  • July 2015
  • June 2015
  • May 2015
  • April 2015
  • March 2015
  • December 2014
  • November 2014
  • October 2014
  • September 2014
  • August 2014
  • July 2014
  • June 2014
  • May 2014
  • February 2014
  • January 2014
  • December 2013
  • September 2013
  • August 2013
  • July 2013
  • June 2013
  • May 2013
  • April 2013
  • March 2013
  • February 2013
  • January 2013
  • December 2012
  • November 2012
  • October 2012
  • September 2012
  • August 2012
  • July 2012
  • June 2012
  • May 2012

From the E

  • Abdication
  • Art Work
  • Bishop of Rome and the Catholic Church
  • Charlotte of Great Britain
  • Crowns and Regalia
  • Duchy/Dukedom of Europe
  • Empire of Europe
  • Featured Monarch
  • Featured Noble
  • Featured Royal
  • From the Emperor's Desk
  • Grand Duke/Grand Duchy of Europe
  • Happy Birthday
  • Imperial Elector
  • In the News today…
  • Kingdom of Europe
  • Morganatic Marriage
  • Principality of Europe
  • Regent
  • Royal Bastards
  • Royal Birth
  • Royal Castles & Palaces
  • Royal Death
  • Royal Divorce
  • Royal Genealogy
  • Royal House
  • Royal Mistress
  • Royal Succession
  • Royal Titles
  • royal wedding
  • This Day in Royal History
  • Uncategorized

Like

Like

Enter your email address to follow this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Join 367 other followers

Blog Stats

  • 767,371 hits

Blog at WordPress.com.

Privacy & Cookies: This site uses cookies. By continuing to use this website, you agree to their use.
To find out more, including how to control cookies, see here: Cookie Policy
  • Follow Following
    • European Royal History
    • Join 367 other followers
    • Already have a WordPress.com account? Log in now.
    • European Royal History
    • Customize
    • Follow Following
    • Sign up
    • Log in
    • Report this content
    • View site in Reader
    • Manage subscriptions
    • Collapse this bar
 

Loading Comments...