Isabella, Princess of Asturias (1851–1931)
| Infanta Isabella | |
|---|---|
| Infanta of Spain Dowager Countess of Girgenti |
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.jpg)
Photograph, 1874
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| Born |
20 December 1851 Madrid, Spain |
| Died | 22 April 1931 (aged 79) Paris, French Third Republic |
| Burial | Royal Palace of La Granja de San Ildefonso |
| Spouse |
Prince Gaetan, Count of Girgenti (m. 1868 - 1871; his death) |
| House | Bourbon |
| Father | Infante Francis, Duke of Cadiz |
| Mother | Queen Isabella II of Spain |
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Royal styles of Infanta Isabella of Spain, Countess of Girgenti |
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|---|---|
| Reference style | Her Royal Highness |
| Spoken style | Your Royal Highness |
| Alternative style | Doña |
For other Princesses of Asturias named Isabella, see
Isabella, Princess of Asturias (Spanish: Isabel; 20 December 1851 – 22 April 1931), was twice recognized as the heir presumptive to the Spanish throne and given the title Princess of Asturias, reserved for the heir to the crown. The eldest daughter of Queen Isabella II, she married Gaetan of Bourbon-Two Sicilies, Count of Girgenti, a son of King Ferdinand II of the Two Sicilies, on 13 May 1868. Her husband committed suicide three years later.
Infanta Isabella was a prominent figure during the reign of her brother King Alfonso XII of Spain and during the minority of her nephew King Alfonso XIII. She was the most popular member of the Spanish Royal family. After the fall of the monarchy of Alfonso XIII, she refused the offer of the republicans to continue living in Spain. She died days later in exile in France.
Born at the Royal Palace of Madrid on 20 December 1851, she was the eldest surviving daughter of Queen Isabella II and the King consort, Francisco de Asis. Her birth was eagerly awaited since her mother had previously given birth to a son who had died within hours. In the tumultuous age of Carlist uprisings and sporadic civil war, Isabella was immediately recognized as the heir to her mother's throne and was granted the traditional crown-princely title of Asturias.
The child was baptized the day after her birth with the names María Isabel Francisca de Asís. The marriage of her parents was unhappy. At age sixteen, Queen Isabella II had been married against her will to Francisco de Asis, Duke of Cádiz, who was twice her first cousin. The Queen, who never overcame the antipathy towards her effeminate husband, found an outlet for her passionate nature taking lovers. Historians and biographers attribute Infanta Isabella's paternity to José Ruiz de Arana y Saavedra (1826–1891), a young Spanish aristocratic and military officer. Ruiz de Arana came from palace's circles, his father, the Count of Sevilla La Nueva, was usher to ambassadors. The relationship between Queen Isabella's and Ruiz de Arana lasted from 1851 to 1856. It was with some reluctance that King Francisco recognized Isabella as his daughter as he would do subsequently with all the children Queen Isabella II bore during their troubled marriage.
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