Infante Carlos | |
---|---|
Duke of Madrid | |
Carlist pretender to the Spanish throne as Carlos VII |
|
Pretendence | 3 October 1868 – 18 July 1909 |
Predecessor | Juan III |
Successor | Jaime III |
Legitimist pretender to the French throne as Charles XI |
|
Pretendence | 21 November 1887 – 18 July 1909 |
Predecessor | Jean III |
Successor | Jacques I |
Born |
Ljubljana, Carniola |
March 30, 1848
Died | 18 July 1909 Varese, Italy |
(aged 61)
Burial | Trieste Cathedral |
Spouse |
Princess Margherita of Bourbon-Parma Berthe de Rohan |
Issue |
Infanta Blanca Jaime, Duke of Madrid Infanta Elvira Infanta Beatriz Infanta Alicia |
House | Bourbon |
Father | Juan, Count of Montizón |
Mother | Maria Beatrix of Austria-Este |
Don Carlos, Duke of Madrid (30 March 1848 – 18 July 1909) was the senior member of the House of Bourbon from 1887 until his death. He was the Carlist claimant to the throne of Spain under the name Carlos VII from 1868 (his father's Spanish abdication), and the Legitimist claimant to the throne of France under the name Charles XI after the death of his father in 1887.
Carlos was born in Ljubljana, the capital of Carniola in what is now Slovenia, the elder son of Juan, Count of Montizón and of his wife Archduchess Maria Beatrix of Austria-Este. His name in full was Carlos María de los Dolores Juan Isidro José Francisco, Quirico Antonio Miguel Gabriel Rafael. As an infant he lived with his family briefly in London where his younger brother Alfonso was born. After their father, considered too liberal for Carlist tastes, left their mother, the boys lived with her in Modena. Her brother Duke Francis V of Modena was largely responsible for the education of the boys and was the chief influence in their early lives. Carlos was known for his traditionalist views, much different from those of his father.
On February 4, 1867, at Frohsdorf in Austria, Carlos married Princess Margherita of Bourbon-Parma, daughter of Duke Charles III of Parma and of his wife, Louise Marie Thérèse of France. The couple had five children: