TheMonument to the Royal Stuarts is a memorial inSt. Peter's Basilica in theVatican City State. It commemorates the last three members of the RoyalHouse of Stuart:James Francis Edward Stuart ("the Old Pretender", d. 1766), his elder sonCharles Edward Stuart ("the Young Pretender" or "Bonnie Prince Charlie", d. 1788), and his younger son,Henry Benedict Stuart ("the Cardinal Duke of York", d. 1807). TheJacobites recognised these three as kings ofEngland,Scotland andIreland.
The marblemonument is byAntonio Canova (1757–1822), the most celebrated Italian sculptor of his day. It was erected in 1819.
The monument takes the form of a truncatedobelisk. It carriesbas relief profile portraits of the three exiled princes, and the following inscription:
Below the inscription are two weeping angels, symbolising the lost hopes of the exiled Stuarts.
The monument to the Royal Stuarts was originally commissioned by Monsignor Angelo Cesarini, executor of the estate ofHenry Benedict Stuart. Among the subscribers wasKing George IV, who (once the Jacobite threat to his throne had ended with the death of Cardinal Stuart in 1807) was an admirer of the Stuart legend.[1]
The monument stands towards the back of the basilica in the left aisle opposite the door from which people coming down the spiral staircase from the dome and roof exit. It is frequently adorned with flowers by Jacobite romantics.
The monument is, strictly speaking, acenotaph, not atomb. The three Stuarts are buried in thecrypt below the basilica.James Francis Edward Stuart was buried here at his death in 1766. WhenCharles Edward Stuart died in 1788, he was buried in theBasilica of St Peter Apostle inFrascati. When his brotherHenry Benedict Stuart died in 1807, both brothers were laid to rest next to their father in the crypt of St. Peter's. Three separate tombstones were erected.
Until 1938 the bodies of the three Stuarts were buried where the tomb ofPius XI now stands. In that year the bodies were moved slightly further east on the left side of the crypt, to make room for Pius's tomb. In 1939 a single sarcophagus was erected over the three graves. On top of the sarcophagus is a bronze pillow on which is placed a bronze crown. On the front of the sarcophagus is the same inscription quoted above. The original tombstones, when they were recognized as Kings (James III, Charles III and Henry IX), are now in thePontifical Scots College.
Opposite the monument to the Royal Stuarts in St. Peter's Basilica is a monument toMaria Clementina Sobieska, wife ofJames Francis Edward Stuart and mother ofCharles Edward Stuart andHenry Benedict Stuart. Its inscription reads:
QueenChristina of Sweden, the only other monarch with a memorial in the church, also lies entombed in the crypt below the basilica, with the Royal Stuarts. She abdicated her throne in 1654 to convert to Catholicism.
