Isabella was the elder daughter ofKing Ferdinand VII andQueen Maria Christina. Shortly before Isabella's birth, her father issued thePragmatic Sanction to revert theSalic Law and ensure the succession of his firstborn daughter, due to his lack of a son. She came to the throne a month before her third birthday, but her succession was disputed by her uncleInfante Carlos (founder of theCarlist movement), whose refusal to recognize a female sovereign led to theCarlist Wars. Under the regency of her mother, Spain transitioned from an absolute monarchy to a constitutional monarchy, adopting theRoyal Statute of 1834 andConstitution of 1837.
Isabella was declared of age and began her personal rule in 1843. Her effective reign was a period marked by palace intrigues, back-stairs and antechamber influences, barracks conspiracies, and militarypronunciamientos. Her marriage toFrancisco de Asís, Duke of Cádiz was an unhappy one, and her personal conduct as well as rumours of affairs damaged her reputation. In September 1868, a naval mutiny began inCadiz, marking the beginning of theGlorious Revolution. The defeat of her forces by MarshalFrancisco Serrano, 1st Duke of la Torre, brought her reign to an end, and she went into exile in France. In 1870, she formally abdicated the Spanish throne in favour of her son,Alfonso. In 1874, theFirst Spanish Republic was overthrown in a coup. TheBourbon monarchy was restored, and Alfonso ascended the throne as King Alfonso XII. Isabella returned to Spain two years later but soon again left for France, where she resided until her death in 1904.
Isabella succeeded to the throne because Ferdinand VII had induced theCortes Generales to help him set aside theSalic law, introduced by the Bourbons in the early 18th century, and to reestablish the older succession law of Spain. The firstpretender to the throne, Ferdinand's brotherInfante Carlos, Count of Molina, fought for seven years during Isabella's minority to dispute her title (seeFirst Carlist War). The supporters of Carlos and his descendants were known asCarlists, and the fight over the succession was the subject of a number ofCarlist Wars in the 19th century.
Isabella's reign was maintained only through the support of the army. The Cortes and theModerate Liberals andProgressives reestablished constitutional and parliamentary government, dissolved the religious orders and confiscated their property (including that of theJesuits), and tried to restore order to Spain's finances. After the Carlist war, the regent, Maria Christina, resigned to make way forBaldomero Espartero, Prince of Vergara, the most successful and most popular Isabelline general. Espartero, a Progressive, remained regent for only two years.
Baldomero Espartero was deposed in 1843 by a military and politicalpronunciamiento led by GeneralsLeopoldo O'Donnell andRamón María Narváez. They formed a cabinet, presided over byJoaquín María López y López. This government induced the Cortes to declare Isabella of age at 13. Between the beginning of her reign in 1833, and theabdication ofMargrethe II of Denmark in 2024, at any given time, there was a queen regnant in Europe.
Isabella was declared of age and swore the1837 Constitution on 10 November 1843,[3] age thirteen. Despite the alleged parliamentary supremacy, in practice, the "double trust" led to Isabella having a role in the making and toppling of governments, undermining the progressives.[4] The uneasy alliance between moderates and progressives that had toppled Espartero in July 1843 was already disintegrating by the time of the coming of age of the queen.[5] Following a brief government led by progressiveSalustiano de Olózaga, the moderates elected their candidate,Pedro José Pidal, to the presidency of the Cortes.[5] After the subsequent decision to dissolve the hostile Cortes by Olózaga on 28 November, rumours about an alleged forcing of the queen to sign the royal decree spread. As a result, Olózaga was prosecuted, removed from political office, and forced to exile, with the Progressive Party already being beheaded, in what was the starting point of their growing disaffection from the Isabelline monarchy.[5]
Dominated by the figure ofMarshal Narváez, theEspadón ("Big Sword") of Loja, the so-called "Moderate decade" began in 1844. The constitutional reforms devised by Narváez moved away from the 1837 Constitution by rejecting national sovereignty and reinforcing the power of the monarch, to the point of a "co-sovereignty" between the Cortes and the Queen.[6]
On 10 October 1846, the Moderate Party made their sixteen-year-old queen marry her double-first cousinFrancisco de Asís, Duke of Cádiz (1822–1902), the same day that her younger sister,Infanta Luisa Fernanda, marriedAntoine d'Orléans, Duke of Montpensier.[n. 2] Disgusted by her marriage, Isabella reportedly commented later to one of her intimates: "what shall I tell you about a man whom I saw wearing more lace than I was wearing on our wedding night?"[8]
The marriages suitedFrance andLouis Philippe, King of the French, who as a result bitterly quarrelled with Britain.[9] However, the marriages were not happy; persistent rumour had it that few if any of Isabella's children were fathered by herKing Consort, rumoured to be a homosexual. The Carlist party asserted that the heir-apparent to the throne, who later became Alfonso XII, had been fathered by a captain of the guard, Enrique Puigmoltó y Mayans.[10]
Baptism of the Princess of Asturias in December 1851, byRafael Benjumea [es]
In 1847, a major scandal took place when Isabella, age seventeen, publicly showed her love forGeneral Serrano and her willingness to divorce from her husband Francisco de Asís;[11] though Narváez and Isabella's motherMaria Christina solved the problem posed to the monarchical institution—Serrano was shifted away from the capital to the post of Captain General of Granada in 1848—,[12] the deterioration of the public image of the queen increased from then on.[11] Following thenear-revolution of 1848, Narváez was authorised to rule as dictator to repress insurrectionary attempts up until 1849.[13]
On 2 February 1852, Isabella and the Royal Guard were caught by surprise while the Queen was leaving the Chapel of theRoyal Palace intending to go with her parade to theBasilica of Nuestra Señora de Atocha:Martín Merino y Gómez [es], an ordained priest and liberal activist approached the queen giving the impression of wanting to deliver her a message,[16] and stabbed her. The impact was reduced by the gold embroidery of her dress and by thebaleen stays of hercorset, and what was intended to be a stab wound to the chest only resulted in a minor incision at the right side of the belly.[17] Merino, quickly seized by the halberdiers of the Royal Guard (with help from the dukes of Osuna and Tamames, the Marquis of Alcañices and the Count of Pinohermoso),[18] was removed from sacerdocy and executed bygarrote.[19]
July 1854 revolution in Madrid
Under the government of theCount of San Luis (whose ascension to premiership had been solely founded on the support from the networks of the royal court),[20] the system was in a critical state by June 1854.[21] On 28 June 1854 a militarypronunciamiento intending to force the queen to oust the government of the Count of San Luis, featuringLeopoldo O'Donnell (a "puritan" moderate), took place inVicálvaro, the so-calledVicalvarada.[22] The military coup (rather dominated by the moderates themselves) had a mixed result and O'Donnell (advised byÁngel Fernández de los Ríos andAntonio Cánovas del Castillo) proceeded then to seek for civilian support, promising new reforms not in the initial plans in order to appeal to progressives, by bringing a "liberal regeneration", as proclaimed in theManifesto of Manzanares, drafted by Antonio Cánovas del Castillo and issued on 7 July 1854.[23]
Days later, the situation was followed by a full-scale people's revolution, with revolutionary juntas organised on 17 July in Madrid,[24] and barricades erected in the streets. With the prospect of a civil war on the horizon, Isabella was advised to appoint General Espartero (who enjoyed charisma and popular support) as prime minister.[25][26] This renewed ascension of Espartero marked the beginning of thebienio progresista.
Espartero entered the capital of Spain on 28 July,[27] and proceeded to separate again Isabella from the influence of María Christina.[28] In any case, though Isabella accepted advice from María Christina, she was not characterised for displaying a profound filial love towards her mother.[28]
By virtue of a royal decree, the port ofIloílo in then-Spanish Philippines was opened to world trade on 29 September 1855, mainly to export sugar and other products to America, Australia and Europe.[29][30]
ALiberal Constitution ("the Unborn One") was drafted in 1856, yet it was never enacted as the counter-revolutionary coup by O'Donnell seized power.
On 28 November 1857, Isabella II gave birth to a male heir,[31] who was baptised on 7 December 1857 asAlfonso Francisco de Asís Fernando Pío Juan María Gregorio y Pelagio.[32] Assumed by historians to be the biological son ofEnrique Puigmoltó y Mayans [es],[15] the toddler, who replaced infanta Isabella asPrince of Asturias upon his birth, was known under the monikerel Puigmoltejo, in reference to the rumours about his presumed biological parenthood.[33] Isabella II showed a special affection for the child, greater than that shown to her daughters.[33]
In August 1866, exiled forces comprising both elements from theDemocratic and theProgressive Party met secretly in Belgium and subscribed to thePact of Ostend under the initiative ofMarshal Prim, seeking to topple Isabella.[34] On 7 July 1868, Isabella banished her sister and brother-in-law from Spain, as they were linked to a conspiracy against the Crown in connivance with generals from theLiberal Union.[35]
Since the late summer, Isabella II had been enjoying her traditional holiday on the coast atLekeitio, Biscay.[36] The royal entourage moved toSan Sebastián to hold a meeting withNapoleon III andEugenia de Montijo, scheduled for 18 September, but it did not take place, as the French royals did not arrive in time and it was subsequently aborted.[37]
On that day, apronunciamento took place inCádiz. Led by Marshal Prim and theAdmiral Topete (himself an unconditional follower of the Duke of Montpensier),[35] it marked the beginning of theGlorious Revolution.[34] The Democratic Party provided the insurrection with popular support, making it transcend the nature of a simple military statement into an actual revolution.[38]
Factors for the revolution included the weariness of the moderates alienated by the Crown and the progressives barely having even the chance to rule. Both developed avis-à-vis with the Isabelline monarchy.[39] Other factors were the personal behaviour of the queen, the corruption, the abortion of the possibility of political reform and the economic crisis alienating thebourgeoisie.[39] Historians looking at social roots for the revolution highlight thatpeasantry,small bourgeoisie, and theproletariat formed an alternative to bourgeoisie proper, articulated through the progressive and federal republican forces.[40]
To France!, a caricature byFrancisco Ortego depicting the exile of Isabella published inGil Blas on 4 October 1868
By September 1868 Isabella was a repudiated monarch, and, during the early stages of the revolution, instances of politicaliconoclasm carried out by the masses took place, leading to the destruction of many symbols and emblems of the Bourbon dynasty, aDamnatio memoriae.[41]
The defeat of the Isabelline forces commanded byManuel Pavía y Lacy by the revolutionary forces led byMarshal Serrano at the 28 September 1868Battle of Alcolea led to the definitive demise of Isabella II's 35-year reign. In the light of the news, Isabella and her entourage left San Sebastián and went to exile taking a train toBiarritz (France) on 30 September.[42] As Isabella entered France after her abdication, her train passed a group of homecoming exiles who taunted her with cries of "Down with the Bourbons!", "Long Live Liberty!" and "Long Live the Republic!".[43]
Prim—leader of the liberal progressives—was received in a festive mood by the Madrilenian people at his arrival in the capital in early October. He pronounced his famous speech of the "three nevers" directed against the Bourbons.[44] At thePuerta del Sol, he gave a highly symbolic hug to Serrano, the leader of the revolutionary forces triumphant in the bridge of Alcolea.[45]
Following the crossing of theFrench–Spanish border by train on 30 September, the Queen and King spent 5 weeks in theChâteau de Pau organising their Parisian future. They went to the French capital and arrived on 8 November, settling in theRue de Rivoli 172.[46] Isabella was forced to renounce to her dynastic rights in Paris in favour of her sonAlfonso on 25 June 1870, officially "freely and spontaneously".[47] Involving an economic settling, the formal separation between Isabella and Francisco had pended on the passing of the former queen's dynastic rights to her son.[48]
The former queen in Paris
Following the election to the Spanish throne ofAmadeo of Savoy (second son ofVictor Emmanuel II of Italy) in November 1870, Isabella reconciled in 1871 with her brother-in-law, the Duke of Montpensier, who assumed the political management of the family.[49]
TheFirst Spanish Republic that followed Amadeo's short reign was overthrown by a military coup started inSagunto by GeneralArsenio Martínez Campos on 29 December 1874 that proclaimed the restoration of the monarchy and theBourbon dynasty in the person of Isabella's son Alfonso XII,[50] who landed in Barcelona on 9 January 1875.[51]
Cánovas del Castillo, the dominant figure of the new regime, became convinced that the figure of Isabella had become an issue for the Crown and wrote her a letter bluntly stating "Your Majesty is not a person, it is a reign, it is a historical time, and what the country needs is another reign, a different time", hellbent on avoiding the former queen stepping onto the Spanish capital before the proclamation of thenew constitution in June 1876.[53]
She returned to Spain in July 1876, stayed inSantander andEl Escorial and was only allowed to visit Madrid for barely hours on 13 October.[53] She moved toSeville, where she remained for a longer time and left for France in 1877.[53] Isabella's son would marryMercedes of Orléans (first cousin of Alfonso and daughter of the Dukes of Montpensier) in 1878, only for the latter to die five months after the wedding.[49]
Isabella mostly lived in Paris for the rest of her life, based at thePalacio Castilla. She paid some visits to Seville.[53]
She wrote hertestament in Paris in June 1901, making her will to be entombed inEl Escorial.[54] Less than a month after passing through a cold categorised as "flu" by the physicians, she died on 9 April 1904, at 8:45 AM.[55] Her corpse was moved from the Palacio Castilla to theGare d'Orsay,[56] and arrived to El Escorial on 15 April.[57] The funeral took place on the next day atSan Francisco el Grande.[58]
Infante Francisco de Asis Leopoldo Maria Enrique (24 January 1866 - 14 February 1866).
There has been considerable speculation that some or all of Isabella's children were not fathered by Francisco de Asís; this has been bolstered by rumours that Francisco de Asís was eitherhomosexual or impotent. Francisco de Asís recognised all of them: he played the offended, proceeding to blackmail the queen to receive money in exchange for keeping his mouth shut.[59] The extortion by her husband would continue and intensify during Isabella's exile.[61]
She came to be known by thesobriquets ofthe Traditional Queen (Spanish:la Reina Castiza),[n. 3] andthe Queen of Sad Mischance (Spanish:la de los Tristes Destinos).[n. 4]
Isabel II: barrio-pueblo (referred to as Isabel Segunda in Spanish) is a barrio and the administrative center (seat) in the downtown area in the island-municipality ofVieques, Puerto Rico.
Philip V of Spain – monarch who implemented a Salic Law in the country
Carl Schurz, who was U.S. ambassador to Spain for a brief time at the beginning ofLincoln'spresidency, in hisReminiscences (New York, McClure's Publ. Co., 1907, Volume II, Chapter VI) describes Isabel II and her court.
^She was formally Queen of Spain, unlikeIsabella I, who was proclaimed Queen of Castile, although the latter is nevertheless sometimes considered to have also been Queen of Spain.[2]
^Isabella and Francisco de Asís were rather caustically described by 1866 by an English contemporary thus:
… The Queen is large in stature, but rather what might be called bulky than stately. There is no dignity either in her face or figure, and the graces of majesty are altogether wanting. The countenance is cold and expressionless, with traces of an unchastened, unrefined, and impulsive character, and the indifference it betrays is not redeemed by any regularity or beauty of feature.
The King Consort is much smaller in figure than his royal two-thirds, and certainly is not a type that could be admired for its manly qualifications; but we have to remember that in Spain aristocratic birth is designated rather by a diminutive stature and sickly complexion than by those attributes of height, muscular power, open expression, and florid hue, which in England constitute the ideal of ‘race.’[7]
^Núñez García, Víctor Manuel; Calero Delgado, María Luisa (2018)."Corrupción y redes de poder en la Corte Isabelina"(PDF).La corrupción política en la España contemporánea: un enfoque interdisciplinar. Archived fromthe original(PDF) on 2022-02-23. Retrieved2020-08-22.
^Demy Sonza."The Port of Iloilo: 1855–2005".Graciano Lopez-Jaena Life and Works and Iloilo History Online Resource. Dr. Graciano Lopez-Jaena (DGLJ) Foundation, Inc. Archived from the original on 2016-01-19.
^abcdefghijklmnopq, VV. AA., Boletín de la Real Academia de la Historia, Tomo CLXXVI, Cuaderno I, 1979, Real Academia de la Historia, Madrid, España, páginas = 211 & 220, español, 6 de junio de 2010 Information Containing the Orders and Decorations received by Isabella II of her European tour after her coming of age to reign as Queen
^Staatshandbuch für das Großherzogtum Sachsen / Sachsen-Weimar-Eisenach (1864), "Großherzogliche Hausorden" p.13Archived 2019-08-30 at theWayback Machine
Burdiel, Isabel (2012). "El descenso de los reyes y la nación moral. A propósito de Los Borbones en pelota".Los borbones en pelota(PDF). Zaragoza: Institución Fernando el Católico. pp. 7–74.ISBN978-84-9911-196-4.
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