Quick Facts
GeminiBiography
Maria Cristina, Infanta of Portugal and Spain (5 June 1833 – 19 January 1902) was a daughter of Infante Francisco de Paula of Spain and his wife Princess Luisa Carlotta of Bourbon-Two Sicilies. She became an Infanta of Portugal by her marriage to Infante Sebastian of Portugal and Spain.
Family
Maria Cristina was one of eleven children born to Infante Francisco de Paula of Spain and Princess Luisa Carlotta of Bourbon-Two Sicilies in Madrid. Her father was in turn a younger son of Charles IV of Spain. Her mother was a daughter of Francis I of the Two Sicilies.
Maria Cristina was a sister of Francis, Duke of Cádiz, the king-consort of Isabella II of Spain, and Amelia Philippina, Princess of Bavaria.
Marriage and children
On 19 November 1860, Maria Cristina became the second wife of the much older Infante Sebastian of Portugal and Spain, who was a paternal great grandson of Charles III of Spain and a maternal grandson of John VI of Portugal. Sebastian and his immediate family had been in conflict with the Queen Regent Maria Cristina, losing all of his titles and claims to the Spanish throne in 1837. He was restored to his Spanish titles upon his second marriage to Maria Cristina, who was both a cousin and a sister-in-law of Queen Isabella.
The nuptials took place in the Royal Palace of Madrid. In the spirit of reconciliation, the celebration was attended by Isabella II of Spain and her husband, among other members of the Spanish royal family. They had five children:
| Name | Birth | Death | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Francisco, Duke of Marchena | 20 August 1861 | 17 November 1923 | Married Maria del Pilar de Muguiro y Beruete, duchess of Villafranca |
| Pedro d'Alcantara, Duke of Dúrcal | 1862 | 1892 | Married Maria de la Caridad de Madan i Uriondo |
| Luíz, Duke of Ansola | 17 January 1864 | 24 January 1889 | Married Maria Anna Bernaldo de Quiros, Marquise of Atarfe |
| Infante Alfonso of Spain and Portugal | 15 November 1866 | 28 April 1934 | |
| Infante Gabriel of Spain and Portugal | 22 March 1869 | 15 July 1889 |
Later life
After the overthrow of the monarchy in 1868, Maria Cristina and her family had to leave Spain and take refuge in France. Sebastian died there in 1875. Maria Cristina later returned to Spain, and was able to live calmly until her 1902 death in Madrid. She is buried at the San Lorenzo de El Escorial.
Heraldry
| Heraldry of Maria Cristina of Spain | ||||
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Ancestry
Maria Cristina's ancestors in three generations
| Ancestors of María Cristina of Spain | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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