Francisco de Asís, Duke of Cádiz

This article is about the consort of Isabella II of Spain. For his father, see Infante Francisco de Paula of Spain.

Francisco de Asís (Francisco de Asís María Fernando de Borbón; 13 May 1822 – 17 April 1902) was King of Spain as the husband of Queen Isabella II from their marriage in 1846 until Isabella's deposition in 1868. Francisco and his wife were double first cousins, as their fathers were brothers and their mothers were sisters. Isabella was deposed in the Glorious Revolution of 1868, but the monarchy was restored under their son Alfonso XII in 1874.

Francisco de Asís
Duke of Cádiz
Photograph by Herbert, c. 1860
King consort of Spain
Tenure	10 October 1846 – 30 September 1868
Born	(1822-05-13)13 May 1822 Royal Palace of Aranjuez, Aranjuez, Kingdom of Spain
Died	17 April 1902(1902-04-17) (aged 79) Épinay-sur-Seine, Paris, French Third Republic
Burial	El Escorial
Spouse	Isabella II ​ (m. 1846)​
Issue Among others	Infanta Isabel, Countess of Girgenti Alfonso XII Infanta Pilar Infanta Paz, Princess Ludwig Ferdinand of Bavaria Infanta Eulalia, Duchess of Galliera
Names Francisco de Asís María Fernando de Borbón y Borbón-Dos Sicilias
House	Bourbon
Father	Infante Francisco de Paula of Spain
Mother	Princess Luisa Carlotta of the Two Sicilies

Family

Francisco de Asís was born at Aranjuez, Spain, the second son (first to survive infancy) of Infante Francisco de Paula of Spain, and of his wife (and niece), Princess Luisa Carlotta of the Two Sicilies. He was named after Saint Francis of Assisi.

Marriage and children

Francisco married Queen Isabella II of Spain, his double first cousin, on 10 October 1846. There is evidence that Isabella would rather have married his younger brother, Infante Enrique, Duke of Seville, and complained bitterly about her husband's effeminate habits after their first night together.^[1]

Twelve children were born during the marriage:^[2][3]

• Infante Luis Fernando (20 May 1849), stillbirth.
• Infante Fernando Francisco (12 July 1850), died five minutes after birth.
• Infanta María Isabel (1851–1931): married her mother's and father's first cousin Prince Gaetan, Count of Girgenti.
• Infanta Maria Cristina (5 January 1854 - 7 January).
• Infanta Margarita (23 September 1855 - 24 September 1855), born prematurely.
• Infante Francisco de Asis Fernando (21 December 1856), stillbirth.
• Alfonso XII of Spain (1857–1885) Future King of Spain.
• Infanta Maria de la Conception (1859 - 21 October 1861).
• Infanta María del Pilar (1861–1879).
• Infanta María de la Paz (1862–1946); married her paternal first cousin Prince Louis Ferdinand of Bavaria.
• Infanta María Eulalia (1864–1958); married her maternal first cousin Infante Antonio d'Orléans, Duke of Galliera.
• Infante Francisco de Asis Leopoldo Maria Enrique (24 January 1866 - 14 February 1866).

There has been considerable speculation that some or all of Isabella's children were not fathered by Francisco de Asís; this has been bolstered by rumours that Francisco de Asís was either homosexual or impotent. Francisco de Asís recognised all of them: he played the offended, proceeding to blackmail the queen to receive money in exchange for keeping his mouth shut.^[4] The extortion by her husband would continue and intensify during Isabella's exile.^[5]: 217

Later life

Portrait of King Francisco by Vicente López Portaña

Starting in 1864, Francisco de Asís acted as president of the Spanish Privy Council (Consejo del Reino).

In 1868 Francisco went into exile with his wife in France and adopted the incognito title of Count of Moratalla. On 25 June 1870, Isabella abdicated in favour of their son Alfonso XII—whom the 1874 restoration placed on the throne. By then, Francisco de Asís and Isabella had amicably separated and, with time, became good friends.

In 1881 Francisco de Asís took up residence at the château of Épinay-sur-Seine (currently the city hall). He died there in 1902. His wife Isabella and two of his daughters, Isabel and Eulalia, were present at his deathbed.^[6]

Honours

Coat of arms of King Francisco de Asís

• Spain:
  • Knight of the Golden Fleece, 14 May 1822^[7][8]
  • Grand Cross of the Order of Charles III, 14 May 1822^[9]
  • Grand Cross of Isabella the Catholic, 27 January 1824^[10][11]
•  Two Sicilies:
  • Knight of St. Januarius^[12]
  • Grand Cross of St. Ferdinand and Merit^[13]
•  Kingdom of Sardinia:
  • Knight of the Annunciation, 6 August 1849^[14]
  • Grand Cross of Saints Maurice and Lazarus, 1849
•  Duchy of Parma: Senator Grand Cross of the Constantinian Order of St. George, with Collar, 1853^[15]
•  Kingdom of Bavaria: Knight of St. Hubert, 1852^[16]
• Kingdom of Prussia: Knight of the Black Eagle, with Collar, 8 March 1853^[17]
•  Kingdom of Saxony: Knight of the Rue Crown, 1853^[18]
•  Monaco: Grand Cross of St. Charles, 7 September 1865^[19]
• Sweden-Norway: Knight of the Seraphim, with Collar, 3 May 1853^[20]
•  Baden:^[21]
  • Knight of the House Order of Fidelity, 1866
  • Grand Cross of the Zähringer Lion, 1866
•  Württemberg: Grand Cross of the Württemberg Crown, 1866^[22]
•  Grand Duchy of Hesse: Grand Cross of the Ludwig Order, 4 September 1860^[23]
•  Kingdom of Hanover:^[24]
  • Knight of St. George, 1865
  • Grand Cross of the Royal Guelphic Order
•  Austrian Empire: Grand Cross of St. Stephen, 1861^[25]
•  Denmark: Knight of the Elephant, 21 May 1848^[26]
• Kingdom of France: Grand Cross of the Legion of Honour, October 1846^[27]
•  Belgium: Grand Cordon of the Order of Leopold (military), 12 May 1863^[28]

Ancestry

Ancestors of Francisco de Asís, Duke of Cádiz

8. Charles III of Spain[29] 4. Charles IV of Spain[30] (= 14) 9. Maria Amalia of Saxony[29] 2. Infante Francisco de Paula of Spain 10. Philip, Duke of Parma[31] 5. Maria Luisa of Parma[30] (= 15) 11. Louise Élisabeth of France[31] 1. Francisco de Asís, Infante of Spain 12. Ferdinand I of the Two Sicilies[32] 6. Francis I of the Two Sicilies[33] 13. Maria Carolina of Austria[32] 3. Princess Luisa Carlotta of the Two Sicilies 14. Charles IV of Spain[34] (= 4) 7. Maria Isabella of Spain[33] 15. Maria Luisa of Parma[34] (= 5)

References

1. Sánchez Núñez, Pedro (2014). "El Duque de Montpensier, entre la historia y la leyenda" (PDF). Temas de Estética y Arte (28). Seville: Real Academia de Bellas Artes de Santa Isabel de Hungría: 219. ISSN 0214-6258.
2. Pérez Garzón, Juan Sisinio (2004). Isabel II : los espejos de la reina (in Spanish). Madrid: Marcial Pons Ediciones de Historia.
3. Campos, Carlos Robles do. "«Los Infantes de España tras la derogación de la Ley Sálica (1830)»" (PDF). Real Academia Matritense de Heráldica y Genealogía.
4. Domínguez, Mari Pau (25 August 2018). "Isabel II: la supremacía de los instintos". ABC.
5. Reyero, Carlos (2020). "Cuando el rey Francisco de Asís perdió el aura regia. Caricatura y vida cotidiana en el París del Segundo Imperio (1868-1870)". Libros de la Corte (20). Madrid: Universidad Autónoma de Madrid: 207–234. doi:10.15366/ldc2020.12.20.007. hdl:10486/694703. ISSN 1989-6425.
6. "Don Francisco d'Assisi", The Times (18 April 1902): 9.
7. Kalendario manual y guía de forasteros en Madrid (in Spanish). Imprenta Real. 1834. Retrieved 15 July 2019.
8. Nacional (Madrid), Imprenta (1866). Guía de forasteros en Madrid [para el año de 1866] (in Spanish). En la Imprenta Nacional. Retrieved 15 July 2019.
9. Kalendario manual y guía de forasteros en Madrid (in Spanish). Imprenta Real. 1826. Retrieved 15 July 2019.
10. Nacional (Madrid), Imprenta (1866). "Guía de forasteros en Madrid [para el año de 1866]" (in Spanish). En la Imprenta Nacional. Retrieved 15 July 2019.
11. "Kalendario manual y guía de forasteros en Madrid" (in Spanish). Imprenta Real. 1826. Retrieved 15 July 2019.
12. "Biblioteca ICAR - Almanacco Reale del Regno delle Due Sicilie per l'anno 1855". www.icar.beniculturali.it. Archived from the original on 3 June 2020. Retrieved 28 December 2017.
13. (Stato), Napoli (1841). Almanacco reale del Regno delle Due Sicilie: per l'anno .... 1841 (in Italian). Stamp. Reale. Retrieved 28 December 2017.
14. Cibrario, Luigi (1869). Notizia storica del nobilissimo ordine supremo della santissima Annunziata. Sunto degli statuti, catalogo dei cavalieri (in Italian). Eredi Botta. p. 112. Retrieved 4 March 2019.
15. Almanacco di corte (in Italian). 1858. Retrieved 24 April 2019.
16. Hof- und Staats-Handbuch des Königreichs Bayern (in German). Königl. Oberpostamt. 1867. p. 10. Retrieved 15 July 2019.
17. "Schwarzer Adler-orden", Königlich Preussische Ordensliste (in German), vol. 1, Berlin, 1886, p. 5 – via hathitrust.org{{citation}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
18. Staatshandbuch für den Freistaat Sachsen (1867) (in German), "Königliche Ritter-Orden", p. 4
19. Journal de Monaco
20. Sveriges statskalender (in Swedish), 1864, p. 422, retrieved 6 January 2018 – via runeberg.org
21. Hof- und Staats-Handbuch des Großherzogtum Baden (1868), "Großherzogliche Orden" pp. 51, 61
22. Hof- und Staats-Handbuch des Königreich Württemberg (1907), "Königliche Orden" p. 27
23. Hof- und Staats-Handbuch des Großherzogtum Hessen (1879), "Großherzogliche Orden und Ehrenzeichen" p. 11
24. Staat Hannover (1865). Hof- und Staatshandbuch für das Königreich Hannover: 1865. Berenberg. pp. 38, 73.
25. "A Szent István Rend tagjai" Archived 22 December 2010 at the Wayback Machine
26. Jørgen Pedersen (2009). Riddere af Elefantordenen, 1559–2009 (in Danish). Syddansk Universitetsforlag. p. 470. ISBN 978-87-7674-434-2.
27. M. & B. Wattel. (2009). Les Grand'Croix de la Légion d'honneur de 1805 à nos jours. Titulaires français et étrangers. Paris: Archives & Culture. p. 448. ISBN 978-2-35077-135-9.
28. "Liste des Membres de l'Ordre de Léopold", Almanach Royal Officiel (in French), 1864, p. 51 – via Archives de Bruxelles
29. Genealogie ascendante jusqu'au quatrieme degre inclusivement de tous les Rois et Princes de maisons souveraines de l'Europe actuellement vivans [Genealogy up to the fourth degree inclusive of all the Kings and Princes of sovereign houses of Europe currently living] (in French). Bourdeaux: Frederic Guillaume Birnstiel. 1768. p. 9.
30. Calvo Maturana, Antonio Juan. "Francisco de Paula Antonio María de Borbón". Diccionario biográfico España (in Spanish). Real Academia de la Historia.
31. Genealogie ascendate, p. 96
32. Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Francis I. of the Two Sicilies" . Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 10 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press.
33. Mateos Sáinz de Medrano, Ricardo. "Luisa Carlota de Borbón y Borbón". Diccionario biográfico España (in Spanish). Real Academia de la Historia.
34. Navarrete Martínez, Esperanza Navarrete Martínez. "María de la O Isabel de Borbón". Diccionario biográfico España (in Spanish). Real Academia de la Historia. Archived from the original on 2 August 2020. Retrieved 31 March 2019.

Bibliography

Bergamini, John D. The Spanish Bourbons: The History of a Tenacious Dynasty. New York: Putnam, 1974. ISBN 0-399-11365-7

Francisco de Asís, Duke of Cádiz House of Bourbon Cadet branch of the Capetian dynasty Born: 13 May 1822 Died: 17 April 1902
Spanish royalty
Vacant Title last held by Maria Christina of the Two Sicilies as queen consort	King consort of Spain 10 October 1846 – 30 September 1868	Vacant Bourbon dynasty deposed Title next held by Maria Vittoria dal Pozzo as queen consort
Titles in pretence
Loss of title Spanish Glorious Revolution	— TITULAR — King consort of Spain 30 September 1868 – 25 June 1870	Vacant Title next held by Mercedes of Orléans as queen consort