Don Carlos María Isidro Benito de Borbón y Borbón-Parma (29 March 1788 – 10 March 1855) was an Infante of Spain and the second surviving son of King Charles IV of Spain and Maria Luisa of Parma. He claimed the throne of Spain after the death of his older brother King Ferdinand VII in 1833. His claim was contested by liberal forces loyal to the dead king's infant daughter, resulting in the First Carlist War (1833–1840). Don Carlos had support from the Basque provinces and much of Catalonia, but lost the war. His heirs continued the traditionalist cause, fought two more Carlist wars and were active into the mid-20th century, but never gained the throne.

Early life

Carlos was born on 29 March 1788 at the Palacio Real de Aranjuez in Aranjuez, in what is now the Community of Madrid. In 1808, Napoleon captured Madrid in the Battle of Somosierra and he induced Carlos's father, Charles IV, and Carlos's older brother, Ferdinand VII, to renounce their rights to the throne of Spain. But Carlos, who was heir presumptive to his brother, refused to renounce his rights to the throne, which he considered to have been given to him by God. From 1808 until 1814, he and his brothers were prisoners of Napoleon at the palace of Valençay in France.

In 1814, Carlos and the rest of the Spanish royal family returned to Madrid. In September 1816, he married his niece, Infanta Maria Francisca of Portugal (1800–1834), daughter of King John VI of Portugal and Carlos's sister Carlota Joaquina. Francisca was also sister of the second wife of Carlos's brother, Ferdinand VII. The couple had three sons:

  • Carlos Luis de Borbón (1818–1861), known as Count of Montemolin
  • Juan de Borbón y Braganza (1822–1887), known as Count of Montizón
  • Fernando de Borbón y Braganza (1824–1861)

Apart from several formal offices, Carlos took no significant part in the government of Spain. Ferdinand VII had found it necessary to cooperate with the moderate liberals and to sign a Constitution. Carlos, however, was known for his firm belief in the divine right of kings to govern absolutely, the rigid orthodoxy of his religious opinions, and his personal piety.

During the revolutionary troubles of 1820–1823 (the 'liberal triennium'), Carlos was threatened by the extreme radicals, but no attack was made on him. The prefect was asked to find an appropriate location; he opted for the city of Bourges. The best he could have suggested was Hôtel Panette, a large but somewhat neglected residence in the centre of the city, which was rented for 2,000 francs per month. In late September 1839 Carlos settled there with his family and the court of some 30 people, including advisers, secretaries, chamberlains, confessors, a doctor, a pharmacist, preceptors for children, servants, cooks, grooms, a picketman, a coachman and a confectioner. Some of this staff, e.g. the confessors, had their own servants. The monthly cost of maintaining this court was around some 6,000 francs. The infant was supposed not to leave Bourges unless agreed with administration and not to engage in any political activity; he remained under supervision of governmental agents.

Carlos spent 5 years in Hôtel Panette. Throughout all this time he was accompanied by his second wife María Teresa de Braganza and by his oldest son Carlos Luis, then in his 20s; two younger sons, Juan and Fernando, during long strings were being educated in Genoa. The French administration tolerated visits of numerous Carlists, either exiled in France or arriving from Spain, given their arrivals were agreed in advance; apart from this, no official receptions or balls were given. There is little information available on their daily routine; most of it was related to religious chores. The royals attended the mass every day; they probably enjoyed the service as this was the sole case of them going out not accompanied by police agents. They also engaged in some local charity initiatives. Some scholars claim their life was marked by some puritan traits, especially that Carlos started to consider his war defeat in terms of divine punishment for his sins, while María Teresa had to do with company of 2-3 dames d'honneur and developed some depression. Unlike Carlos Luis, who watched military exercises of the French army in the neighborhood, Carlos did not attend. When in 1842 the violin professor of Carlos Luis suggested that he gives a family concert, Carlos objected; he noted that given the circumstances, enjoying music was immoral.

Act of Bourges (1845)

On 18 May 1845 La Gazette du Berri published (in Spanish, with French translations following) 4 documents: Carlos abdicated in favor of his son, Carlos Luis, while the latter accepted the hereditary claims transmitted; the papers are collectively referred to as the Act of Bourges. There are numerous motives of the abdication quoted by historians. Some are mostly personal: the 57-year-old claimant was increasing tired and tending to melancholy; his wife, diagnosed with serious respiratory and nervous problems, was heavily recommended to undergo treatment in Italian resorts, the trip the French government did not agree to unless the claim is renounced. Political considerations appear to be more important. There were serious plans developed and advanced in Spain to mend the dynastic feud; they consisted of marrying Carlos Luis with Isabella, and abdication was thought a step towards facilitating this marriage. It is possible that the plan was supported by Metternich; Marqués de Villafranca for few years has been acting as intermediary between Carlos and the Austrian chancellor, who kept suggesting abdication against longtime demurrals of the claimant. The French prime minister Guizot was neither averse to the project, though in case of France what mattered more was the position of king Louis Philippe I, who found it highly inconvenient to be forced to keep his relative in house arrest. Some scholars trace even the influence of the Russian Empire and the tsar Nicolas I personally. Last but not least, also Pope Gregory XVI recommended abdication; in his case a number of motives, related to position of the Catholic church in Spain, might have been in play. Following abdication Carlos adopted the title of Duke of Molina.

Last years (1845–1855)

thumb|150px|left|Don Carlos, 1850s

In July 1845, two months following his abdication, Carlos and his wife were allowed to leave Bourges. They first travelled to Gréoux-les-Bains and then to Marseille, where the government – to great relief of king Louis Philippe – issued them passports. In the autumn via Nice they arrived in Genoa and then settled for few months of 1846 in Aix-les-Bains, at that time a spa in the Kingdom of Sardinia. In early 1847 the couple visited the Duchy of Modena to attend the wedding of Carlos' middle son Juan with Maria Beatrix of Austria-Este, sister of the ruling Duke of Modena, Francis V. In the autumn of 1847 they arrived in Venice, in the Austrian-held Kingdom of Lombardy-Venetia, and were hosted in Palazzo Rezzonico, the property of the Austria-Estes. The revolution and the anti-Habsburg rising of March 1848 forced them to flee Venice; they were leaving together with the Duchess of Berry towards her palace in Trieste. The Duchess left one floor of her palazzetto at what is now Via del Lazzaretto Vecchio at their disposal. The place became Carlos' last permanent residence; he was being paid a regular pension by the emperor Franz Joseph I and the tsar Nicholas I.

In 1849 Carlos, at the time in his early 60s, suffered a stroke; despite treatment in Baden, he did not regain full mobility. The youngest son Fernando, at the time single and in his late 20s, lived with his father in Trieste. In the early 1850s Carlos had 2 grandchildren from the marriage of Juan; however, in 1852 the latter abandoned his wife and settled in London. Carlos was admitting countless visitors, mostly Carlists, arriving either from Spain or from elsewhere in Europe, e.g. general Cabrera from London. The quasi-court, maintained in Trieste, amounted to at least 25 people; they included secretaries, advisors, aide-de-camps, a confessor, a chamberlain, a doctor, dames d'honneur and numerous servants, including a maggiordomo, butler, maids, cooks and others. Some historians write that though merely Conde de Molina, he "behaved like he were the king of Spain", but visitors were unimpressed by "povero palazzo" and some note his absent-minded gaze. He died at 18:00 CET on 10 March 1855, 19 days before his 67th birthday.

Ancestors

Heraldry

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Notes

References

  • Carr, Raymond. Spain: 1808–1975 (2nd ed 1982) ch 5
  • Holt, Edgar. The Carlist Wars in Spain. Chester Springs, Pennsylvania: Dufour Editions, 1967.
  • Moral Roncal, Antonio Manuel. Carlos V de Borbón. Madrid: Actas Editorial, 1999

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