Infanta Margarita | |||||
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Infanta of Spain Duchess of Soria 2nd Duchess of Hernani |
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The Duchess and Duke of Soria and Hernani
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Duchess of Hernani | |||||
Tenure | 6 January 1979 – Present | ||||
Predecessor | Manfredo de Borbón | ||||
Heir apparent | Alfonso Juan Carlos Zurita y de Borbón | ||||
Born |
Rome, Kingdom of Italy |
6 March 1939 ||||
Spouse | Carlos Zurita (m. 1972) | ||||
Issue | Alfonso Zurita y de Borbón María Zurita y de Borbón |
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House | Bourbon | ||||
Father | Infante Juan, Count of Barcelona | ||||
Mother | Princess María Mercedes of Bourbon-Two Sicilies | ||||
Religion | Roman Catholicism |
Full name | |
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Margarita María de la Victoria Esperanza Jacoba Felicidad Perpetua de Todos los Santos de Borbón y Borbón-Dos Sicilias |
Infanta Margarita, Duchess of Soria (Margarita María de la Victoria Esperanza Jacoba Felicidad Perpetua de Todos los Santos de Borbón y Borbón-Dos Sicilias; born 6 March 1939), is the younger sister of King Juan Carlos and aunt of the reigning King Felipe VI of Spain.
Infanta Margarita was born in Rome as the younger daughter of Infante Juan, Count of Barcelona, and Princess María de las Mercedes of Bourbon-Two Sicilies. Margarita has been blind since birth.
She married the physician Carlos Zurita y Delgado on 12 October 1972 in Estoril. They have two children:
Margarita renounced her right of succession upon marriage.
On 6 January 1979, the Infanta's cousin, Manfredo de Borbón, 1st Duke of Hernani, died and willed his ducal title to be inherited by Margarita. The King granted this request, and on 27 May 1981, she became 2nd Duchess of Hernani with accompanying dignity Grandee of Spain. The peerage title referres to the town Hernani, Spain. The next month, on 23 June 1981, she was also granted a higher dukedom for life by the king, and became Duchess of Soria (referring to the city Soria in Spain).
In 1989, alongside her husband, they created the Fundación Cultural Duques de Soria (The Duke and Duchess of Soria Cultural Foundation). She's also Honorary President of Madrid's delegation of UNICEF and of the Spanish Heart Foundation.
The Infanta's style and title in full: Her Royal Highness Doña Margarita María de la Victoria Esperanza Jacoba Felicidad Perpetua de Todos los Santos de Borbón y Borbón-Dos Sicilias de Zurita, Infanta of Spain, Duchess of Soria, Grande de España, Duchess of Hernani, Grande de España.