| Infante Luis | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Count of Chinchón | |||||
 Portrait byAnton Raphael Mengs, 1776 | |||||
| 13thCount of Chinchón | |||||
| Tenure | 1761–1785 | ||||
| Predecessor | Infante Philip of Spain | ||||
| Successor | Luis María de Borbón y Vallabriga | ||||
| Born | (1727-07-25)25 July 1727 Seville, Spain | ||||
| Died | 7 August 1785(1785-08-07) (aged 58) Palacio de la Mosquera,Arenas de San Pedro,Ávila | ||||
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| House | Bourbon | ||||
| Father | Philip V of Spain | ||||
| Mother | Elisabeth Farnese | ||||
| Religion | Roman Catholicism | ||||
Infante Luis, Count of Chinchón (Luis Antonio Jaime de Borbón y Farnesio; 25 July 1727 – 7 August 1785), known as theCardinal Infante, was a Spanishinfante and clergyman. He was a son ofPhilip V of Spain and his second wife,Elisabeth Farnese. He wascardinal deacon ofSanta Maria della Scala, as well as administrator of the temporal affairs, and later also of the spiritual affairs, of theArchdiocese of Toledo, theprimatial see of Spain.
He is listed in theGuinness Book of World Records as the youngest-ever cardinal.[1]
Luis Antonio Jaime de Borbón y Farnesio was born the youngest son of Philip V, King of Spain, and his second wife, Elisabeth Farnese. While barely eight years of age, Luis was created 699thKnight of theOrder of the Golden Fleece in 1735 and named administrator of the temporal affairs of theArchdiocese ofToledo on 10 November of the same year, and on 19 December of that year he was createdcardinal deacon ofSanta Maria della Scala, although he did not receive the red biretta until 23 March 1736 in Madrid, having previously in that year taken formal possession of the archdiocese on 13 March. On 26 November 1737 he was named administrator of the spiritual affairs of the archdiocese. On 18 December 1754 he abandoned the ecclesiastical life for lack of vocation, renounced his ecclesiastical titles and dignities and assumed the title of 13thConde de Chinchón (Count of Chinchón) granted by his brotherInfante Felipe.
When his older half-brother KingFerdinand VI died without issue in 1759, Luis claimed the throne on the grounds that, he was the only surviving son of Philip V still residing in Spain (his older brothers wereCharles, King of Naples and Sicily, andPhilip, Duke of Parma, both reigning in Italy). However valid his claim, Luis lost the succession to his oldest brother Charles, while Charles's third son becameFerdinand I of the Two Sicilies.
Infante Luis was a patron of the arts and culture, and admirer of musicianLuigi Boccherini, architectVentura Rodríguez and paintersFrancisco de Goya,Luis Paret y Alcázar, andCharles Joseph Flipart.
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King Charles III, fearful of his brother, exiled Luis far away from the Court of Madrid. In 1776 atOlias del Rey Luis contracted amorganatic marriage with anAragonese aristocrat,María Teresa de Vallabriga.[2] This was much to the liking of Charles, because Luis now could not have children with a better claim to the throne.
Since Luis's children had been born of amorganatic marriage, they could not receive royal titles, and thus the descendants of Charles were the legitimate Spanish heirs (even though the children of Charles had been born in Naples). The couple had four children:[3]
Charles had a great deal of appreciation and devotion to his younger brother, and even during his exile, Luis was treated quite well by the Spanish court. Luis loved his brother equally as much, which is why Luis later accepted Charles as king and accepted his exile. Despite this, Luis remained bitter and saddened by the fact that he lost the opportunity to be king. Luis died disgraced and in internal exile in 1785.
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