[September 29] Ferdinand VII, king of Spain

Surnamed: "The Desired"
Parents: Charles IV, king of Spain, and Maria Luisa of Parma
Date of Birth: 14 October 1784
House: Capet-Bourbon
Spouse(s): (1) Maria Antonietta, daughter of Ferdinand I, king of the Two Sicilies, and Marie Caroline of Austria, then (2) Maria Isabel, daughter of João VI, king of Portugal, and Carlota Joaquina of Spain, then (3) Maria Josepha Amalia, daughter of Maximilian of Saxony and Caroline of Bourbon-Parma, then (4) Maria Christina, daughter of Francis I, king of the Two Sicilies, and Maria Isabella of Spain
Predecessor: Charles IV

Reign: 1808, 1813 – 1833
Brief: Ferdinand ascended the throne in the wake of his father's forced abdication. Few supported him and the new king turned to Napoleon for help. Instead, Napoleon deposed the king and imprisoned him at the Chateau of Valençay in France for six years. The Peninsular War was the direct result of his abdication and governments throughout the Spanish colonies in the New World began rebelling against French control. Napoleon installed his brother, Joseph, on the Spanish throne and only acknowledged Ferdinand VII as king again in 1813 after signing the Treaty of Valençay. Once king again, Ferdinand became an autocrat, prompting a large-scale revolt in 1820. As he approached death, he changed the order of succession to favor his daughter, Isabella, over his nephews, angering a segment of the royal family that would soon rise up and begin the Carlist Wars.

Date of Death: 29 September 1833

Successor: Isabella II

Other Monarchs Who Died Today:

• Lothair I, emperor of the Romans (855)
• Charles, duke of Brittany (1364)
• Gustav I, king of Sweden (1560)

[April 10] Isabella II, queen of Spain

Parents: Ferdinand VII, king of Spain, and Maria Christina of the Two Sicilies

Date of Birth: 10 October 1830

House: Capet-Bourbon

Spouse: Francis, duke of Cadiz

Predecessor: Ferdinand VII

Reign: 1833 – 1868

Date of Death: 10 April 1904

Successor: Amadeus

Other Monarchs Who Died Today:

Louis II, king of the West Franks (879)

Hugh, king of Italy

Frederick I, king of Denmark

Gregory XIII, pope of Rome (1585)

[January 4] Ferdinand I, king of the Two Sicilies

Parents: Charles III, king of Spain, and Maria Amalia of Saxony

Date of birth: 12 January 1751

Royal House: Bourbon-Two Sicilies

Spouse: Maria Carolina of Austria, then Lucia Migliaccio of Floridia
Predecessor: Charles VII/V, king of Naples and Sicily

Reign: 1759 – 1825

Summary: Charles was not born to be a king. He was the third surviving son of his parents and his elder brother, Charles, was to be his father's heir. When his grandfather died in 1759, his father declined the Sicilian and Neapolitan thrones in favor of Ferdinand in an effort to divide the realm between his children. Charles would inherit Spain much later in 1888. Ferdinand was far too young to rule, so both countries were ruled by regents until 1767.

For the first three decades of his reign, Ferdinand was a simple and just ruler. His wife, Maria Carolina, held a place on his councils and fought strongly to increase both kingdoms' standing in the world. During the French Revolutionary Wars and the Napoleonic Wars, the two Italian kingdoms joined the Allies against France, though they did not do so until the executions of Louis XIV and Marie Antoinette (Maria Carolina's sister). From 1799 until 1815, Naples was under enemy occupation as first the Parthenopaean Republic, then under King Joseph, and finally under King Joachim Murat. When Ferdinand returned to Naples, he took advantage of the political confusion in Europe and merged his two kingdoms into the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies. He reigned as absolute monarch after this proclamation, having overturned both the Sicilian and Neapolitan constitutions in his union. His alliance with Austria ensured complete political obedience within his realm and his final days were marked with utter political and physical savagery on his Neapolitan populace.

Date of Death: 4 January 1825

Successor: Francis I, king of the Two Sicilies

Other Monarchs Who Died Today:

• Sancho II, king of Portugal (1248)
• Frederick I, elector of Saxony (1428)