Charles II, Duke of Parma
Encyclopedia
Charles Louis of Bourbon-Parma (Carlo Ludovico di Borbone Parma) (22 December 1799 – 16 April 1883) was King of Etruria
(1803–1807), Duke of Lucca
(1824–1847), and Duke of Parma
(1847–1849).
as the only son of Louis, Prince of Piacenza
, son and heir of Ferdinand, Duke of Parma
, and his wife Infanta Maria Louisa of Spain, daughter of King Charles IV of Spain
.
In 1801, Charles Louis became Crown Prince
of the newly-created Kingdom of Etruria
as heir to his father, whom Napoleon
had made King of Etruria. After his father's death in 1803, Charles Louis succeeded as King Charles Louis under the regency of his mother Maria Louisa. In 1807, Napoleon dissolved the kingdom and had Charles Louis and his mother brought to France
. Charles Louis was promised the throne of a new Kingdom of Northern Lusitania
(in the North of Portugal
), but this plan never materialized, due to the break
between Napoleon and the Spanish Bourbons in 1808.
After Napoleon's downfall in 1815, the House of Bourbon
was not restored to the Duchy of Parma, which was instead given to Napoleon's wife, the Empress Marie Louise
. The Congress of Vienna
compensated the Bourbons with the Duchy of Lucca
, which was given to Charles Louis' mother, with Charles Louis as her heir with the title Prince of Lucca. He was also promised the right of succession to Parma upon Empress Marie Louise's death.
On September 5, 1820, in Lucca, Charles Louis married Princess Maria Teresa of Savoy (1803–1879), daughter of King Victor Emmanuel I of Sardinia
. They had two children:
They were a mismatched couple who lived most of their married life apart from each other.
).
In the early 1830s Charles Louis began to take an increased interest in state affairs. In 1833 he granted a general amnesty in Lucca.
In foreign relations, Charles Louis recognised the King Louis Philippe of France, who had come to power in the July Revolution
of 1830. He was also allied with the Carlists
in Spain
. In 1834, his uncle the Carlist claimant Carlos V
made Charles Louis an Infante of Spain.
but acquired Lunigiana
.
In 1848, revolution broke out in Parma. On 19 April 1848 Charles abdicated in favor of his son, who had himself escaped. Later, Austrian troops led by Marshall Radetzki
occupied the duchy and restored Charles II, but a second offensive by the Kingdom of Sardinia
obliged Charles' final resignation on May 17, 1849. He lived the rest of his life in France
, where he used the title Count of Villafranca
. He died at Nice
.
Trebiliani, M.L. "Carlo II di Borbone", Dizionario biografico degli italiani, 20: 251-258. Rome: Istituto della Enciclopedia Italiana. Text also available in the Dizionario biografico degli Parmigiani.
Kingdom of Etruria
The Kingdom of Etruria was a kingdom comprising the larger part of Tuscany which existed between 1801 and 1807. It took its name from Etruria, the old Roman name for the land of the Etruscans.It was created by the Treaty of Aranjuez, signed on 21 March 1801...
(1803–1807), Duke of Lucca
Duchy of Lucca
The Duchy of Lucca was an Italian state existing from 1815 to 1847. It was centered on the city of Lucca.The Duchy was formed in 1815 by the Congress of Vienna, out of the former Republic of Lucca and the Principality of Lucca and Piombino, which had been ruled by Elisa Bonaparte...
(1824–1847), and Duke of Parma
Duchy of Parma
The Duchy of Parma was created in 1545 from that part of the Duchy of Milan south of the Po River, as a fief for Pope Paul III's illegitimate son, Pier Luigi Farnese, centered on the city of Parma....
(1847–1849).
Early life and marriage
Charles Louis was born in MadridMadrid
Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan...
as the only son of Louis, Prince of Piacenza
Louis of Etruria
Louis was the first of only two Kings of Etruria.Louis was the son of Ferdinand, Duke of Parma and Maria Amalia of Austria, the second surviving daughter of Maria Theresa of Austria and Francis I, Holy Roman Emperor....
, son and heir of Ferdinand, Duke of Parma
Ferdinand, Duke of Parma
Ferdinand Maria Philip Louis Sebastian Francis James of Parma was Duke of Parma from 1765 to 1802. He was the second child and only son of Philip, Duke of Parma and Princess Louise-Élisabeth of France, eldest daughter of Louis XV of France and Maria Leszczyńska...
, and his wife Infanta Maria Louisa of Spain, daughter of King Charles IV of Spain
Charles IV of Spain
Charles IV was King of Spain from 14 December 1788 until his abdication on 19 March 1808.-Early life:...
.
In 1801, Charles Louis became Crown Prince
Crown Prince
A crown prince or crown princess is the heir or heiress apparent to the throne in a royal or imperial monarchy. The wife of a crown prince is also titled crown princess....
of the newly-created Kingdom of Etruria
Kingdom of Etruria
The Kingdom of Etruria was a kingdom comprising the larger part of Tuscany which existed between 1801 and 1807. It took its name from Etruria, the old Roman name for the land of the Etruscans.It was created by the Treaty of Aranjuez, signed on 21 March 1801...
as heir to his father, whom Napoleon
Napoleon I of France
Napoleon Bonaparte was a French military and political leader during the latter stages of the French Revolution.As Napoleon I, he was Emperor of the French from 1804 to 1815...
had made King of Etruria. After his father's death in 1803, Charles Louis succeeded as King Charles Louis under the regency of his mother Maria Louisa. In 1807, Napoleon dissolved the kingdom and had Charles Louis and his mother brought to France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
. Charles Louis was promised the throne of a new Kingdom of Northern Lusitania
Kingdom of Northern Lusitania
The Kingdom of Northern Lusitania was a kingdom proposed by Napoleon in 1807 for the Monarch of Etruria, Charles II of Parma, located in the North of Portugal....
(in the North of Portugal
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
), but this plan never materialized, due to the break
Peninsular War
The Peninsular War was a war between France and the allied powers of Spain, the United Kingdom, and Portugal for control of the Iberian Peninsula during the Napoleonic Wars. The war began when French and Spanish armies crossed Spain and invaded Portugal in 1807. Then, in 1808, France turned on its...
between Napoleon and the Spanish Bourbons in 1808.
After Napoleon's downfall in 1815, the House of Bourbon
House of Bourbon
The House of Bourbon is a European royal house, a branch of the Capetian dynasty . Bourbon kings first ruled Navarre and France in the 16th century. By the 18th century, members of the Bourbon dynasty also held thrones in Spain, Naples, Sicily, and Parma...
was not restored to the Duchy of Parma, which was instead given to Napoleon's wife, the Empress Marie Louise
Marie Louise, Duchess of Parma
Marie Louise of Austria was the second wife of Napoleon I, Emperor of the French and later Duchess of Parma...
. The Congress of Vienna
Congress of Vienna
The Congress of Vienna was a conference of ambassadors of European states chaired by Klemens Wenzel von Metternich, and held in Vienna from September, 1814 to June, 1815. The objective of the Congress was to settle the many issues arising from the French Revolutionary Wars, the Napoleonic Wars,...
compensated the Bourbons with the Duchy of Lucca
Duchy of Lucca
The Duchy of Lucca was an Italian state existing from 1815 to 1847. It was centered on the city of Lucca.The Duchy was formed in 1815 by the Congress of Vienna, out of the former Republic of Lucca and the Principality of Lucca and Piombino, which had been ruled by Elisa Bonaparte...
, which was given to Charles Louis' mother, with Charles Louis as her heir with the title Prince of Lucca. He was also promised the right of succession to Parma upon Empress Marie Louise's death.
On September 5, 1820, in Lucca, Charles Louis married Princess Maria Teresa of Savoy (1803–1879), daughter of King Victor Emmanuel I of Sardinia
Victor Emmanuel I of Sardinia
Victor Emmanuel I was the Duke of Savoy and King of Sardinia from 1802 to 1821, and Jacobite Pretender from 1819 until his death.-Biography:...
. They had two children:
- Luisa Francesca di Paola Teresa Maria Anna Clothilde Beatrice (October 29, 1821 – September 8, 1823)
- Carlo Giuseppe Maria Vittorio Baldasarre, Duke of ParmaCharles III, Duke of Parma-Early life:Charles III was born at the Villa delle Pianore near Lucca, the only son of Charles Louis, Prince of Lucca and his wife Princess Maria-Theresa of Savoy . He was given the baptismal names Ferdinando Carlo Vittorio Giuseppe Maria Baldassarre...
(1823–1854)
They were a mismatched couple who lived most of their married life apart from each other.
Duke of Lucca
On March 13, 1824 Charles Louis' mother died and he succeeded her as Charles I, Duke of Lucca. For the first few years of his reign he was largely absent from the duchy, leaving its government to his ministers led by Ascanio Mansi. From 1824 to 1827 Charles Louis travelled throughout Italy. From 1827 to 1833 he travelled in Germany where he owned two castles: Uchendorff and Weisstropp (near DresdenDresden
Dresden is the capital city of the Free State of Saxony in Germany. It is situated in a valley on the River Elbe, near the Czech border. The Dresden conurbation is part of the Saxon Triangle metropolitan area....
).
In the early 1830s Charles Louis began to take an increased interest in state affairs. In 1833 he granted a general amnesty in Lucca.
In foreign relations, Charles Louis recognised the King Louis Philippe of France, who had come to power in the July Revolution
July Revolution
The French Revolution of 1830, also known as the July Revolution or in French, saw the overthrow of King Charles X of France, the French Bourbon monarch, and the ascent of his cousin Louis-Philippe, Duke of Orléans, who himself, after 18 precarious years on the throne, would in turn be overthrown...
of 1830. He was also allied with the Carlists
Carlism
Carlism is a traditionalist and legitimist political movement in Spain seeking the establishment of a separate line of the Bourbon family on the Spanish throne. This line descended from Infante Carlos, Count of Molina , and was founded due to dispute over the succession laws and widespread...
in Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
. In 1834, his uncle the Carlist claimant Carlos V
Infante Carlos, Count of Molina
The Infante Carlos of Spain was the second surviving son of King Charles IV of Spain and of his wife, Maria Luisa of Parma. As Carlos V he was the first of the Carlist claimants to the throne of Spain...
made Charles Louis an Infante of Spain.
Duke of Parma and abdication
In 1847, the Empress Marie Louise died. Charles Louis succeeded as Charles II, Duke of Parma. The Duchy of Lucca was incorporated into the Grand Duchy of Tuscany, while Parma lost GuastallaDuchy of Guastalla
The Duchy of Guastalla was an Italian state which existed between 1621 to 1748. It was bordered by the Duchy of Modena and Reggio and the Po River to the north, on the opposite bank of the Duchy of Mantua.-History:...
but acquired Lunigiana
Lunigiana
The Lunigiana is an historical territory of Italy, which today falls within the provinces of La Spezia and Massa Carrara. Its borders derive from the ancient Roman settlement, later the medieval diocese of Luni, which no longer exists....
.
In 1848, revolution broke out in Parma. On 19 April 1848 Charles abdicated in favor of his son, who had himself escaped. Later, Austrian troops led by Marshall Radetzki
Joseph Radetzky von Radetz
Johann Josef Wenzel Graf Radetzky von Radetz was a Czech nobleman and Austrian general, immortalised by Johann Strauss I's Radetzky March...
occupied the duchy and restored Charles II, but a second offensive by the Kingdom of Sardinia
Kingdom of Sardinia
The Kingdom of Sardinia consisted of the island of Sardinia first as a part of the Crown of Aragon and subsequently the Spanish Empire , and second as a part of the composite state of the House of Savoy . Its capital was originally Cagliari, in the south of the island, and later Turin, on the...
obliged Charles' final resignation on May 17, 1849. He lived the rest of his life in France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, where he used the title Count of Villafranca
Villafranca
Villafranca is a town and municipality located in the province and the autonomous community of Navarre, northern Spain.-External links:*...
. He died at Nice
Nice
Nice is the fifth most populous city in France, after Paris, Marseille, Lyon and Toulouse, with a population of 348,721 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Nice extends beyond the administrative city limits with a population of more than 955,000 on an area of...
.
Ancestry
Further reading
Lucarelli, Giuliano. Lo sconcertante duca di Lucca: Carlo Ludovico di Borbone Parma. Lucca: Fazzi, 1986.Trebiliani, M.L. "Carlo II di Borbone", Dizionario biografico degli italiani, 20: 251-258. Rome: Istituto della Enciclopedia Italiana. Text also available in the Dizionario biografico degli Parmigiani.