| Princess María de las Mercedes | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Countess of Barcelona | |||||
 The Countess of Barcelona, 1951 | |||||
| Born | (1910-12-23)23 December 1910 Palace of Villamejor, Madrid, Spain | ||||
| Died | 2 January 2000(2000-01-02) (aged 89) Royal Residence of La Mareta, Lanzarote, Spain | ||||
| Burial | 4 January 2000 | ||||
| Spouse | |||||
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| House | Bourbon-Two Sicilies | ||||
| Father | Prince Carlos of Bourbon-Two Sicilies | ||||
| Mother | Princess Louise of Orléans | ||||
| Signature | .jpg) | ||||
Princess María de las Mercedes of Bourbon-Two Sicilies (Spanish:[maˈɾi.ameɾˈθeðes]; María de las Mercedes Cristina Genara Isabel Luisa Carolina Victoria y Todos los Santos de Borbón y Orléans; 23 December 1910 – 2 January 2000) was a member of theSpanish royal family and the mother ofKing Juan Carlos I.
The daughter ofPrince Carlos of Bourbon-Two Sicilies andPrincess Louise of Orléans, she marriedInfante Juan, Count of Barcelona, claimant to theSpanish throne.
María was born inMadrid, daughter ofPrince Carlos of Bourbon-Two Sicilies,Infante of Spain, a grandson ofKing Ferdinand II of the Two Sicilies, and his second wife,Princess Louise of Orléans, daughter ofPrince Philippe, Count of Paris, a pretender to the French throne. She was granted, at birth, therank andprecedence of aninfanta of Spain, although not the actual use of the title, her own beingPrincess of Bourbon-Two Sicilies. Her family moved toSeville, when her father was made Captain General of that province. When theSecond Spanish Republic forced them into exile, they lived inCannes and later in Paris, where she studied art at theLouvre.[citation needed]
On 14 January 1935, she attended the wedding, in Rome, ofInfanta Beatriz of Spain, daughter ofKing Alfonso XIII, toAlessandro Torlonia, 5th Prince of Civitella-Cesi. There she met the brother of the bride, herthird cousin and future husband, theInfante Juan, fourth son and designated heir of Alfonso XIII. They married in Rome on 12 October 1935. When her husband took upCount of Barcelona as atitle of pretence on 8 March 1941, María became theCountess of Barcelona.[1] They had four children.
They lived inCannes and Rome, and, with the outbreak ofWorld War II, they moved toLausanne to live withQueen Victoria Eugenie, the mother of Infante Juan. Afterwards, they resided atEstoril, on thePortuguese Riviera.
In 1953, the Countess represented theSpanish Royal Family at thecoronation of Queen Elizabeth II.[2]
In 1976, one year after the monarchy was restored in Spain in the person of her son, Juan Carlos, they returned to Spain. She mediated between her son and her husband, estranged since Juan Carlos had been designated heir byFranco. In 1977, Juan renounced his rights in favour of their son, who officially allowed him to retain the title of Count of Barcelona.[1]
She broke herhip in 1982 and the leftfemur in 1985, which forced her to use awheelchair for the rest of her life. She became a widow in 1993.
She was a fervent fan ofbull fighting and of the Andalusian culture.[citation needed] In 1995, her granddaughterInfanta Elena married in Seville in part because the Countess' love for the city.[citation needed]
She was the 1,171stDame of the Royal Order of Queen Maria Luisa on 4 March 1929.[citation needed]
She died of a heart attack in theRoyal Residence of La Mareta, inLanzarote, where the royal family had gathered tocelebrate the New Millennium.[3] She was buried with the honors of a queen at the Royal Crypt of the monastery ofSan Lorenzo de El Escorial, nearMadrid.[4]
| Ancestors of Princess María de las Mercedes of Bourbon-Two Sicilies |
|---|
Spain: Dame Grand Cross of theOrder of Charles III[5]Spain: 9th Titular Grand Mistress and 1,171st Dame Grand Cross of theOrder of Queen Maria LuisaSpain: Dame of theDecoration of the Royal Cavalry Armory of SevilleSpain: Dame of theDecoration of the Royal Cavalry Armory of GranadaSpain: Dame of theDecoration of the Royal Cavalry Armory of ValenciaSpain: Dame of theDecoration of the Royal Cavalry Armory of Zaragoza
Calabrian House of Bourbon-Two Sicilies: Knight Grand Cross of Justice of theTwo-Sicilian Sacred Military Constantinian Order of Saint George[6]
Greek Royal Family: Dame Grand Cross of theOrder of Saints Olga and Sophia
Sovereign Military Order of Malta: Bailiff Dame Grand Cross of theSovereign Military Order of Malta
United Kingdom: Recipient of theQueen Elizabeth II Coronation Medal| Heraldry of María de las Mercedes, Countess of Barcelona | ||||
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| Coat of Arms as Infanta of Spain by marriage (1935–1941) | Coat of Arms as Consort of the Pretender to the throne of Spain (1941–1977) | Coat of Arms after her husband renounced being Pretender (1977–1988) | Coat of Arms after her husband renounced being Pretender (1988–1993) (Dame of theOrder of Charles III) | Coat of Arms as a widow (1993–2000) |
Media related toMaria Mercedes of Bourbon-Two Sicilies at Wikimedia CommonsPrincess María de las Mercedes of Bourbon-Two Sicilies Cadet branch of theHouse of Bourbon Born: 23 December 1910 Died: 2 January 2000 | ||
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| Preceded by | — TITULAR — Queen consort of Spain 15 January 1941 – 14 May 1977 Reason for succession failure: Monarchy abolished in 1931 | Succeeded by |
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