Infanta Isabel, Countess of Girgenti

Born at the Royal Palace of Madrid on December 20, 1851, she was the eldest surviving daughter of Queen Isabella II and her husband and king consort, Francis of Spain. Her birth was eagerly awaited since her mother had previously given birth to two children who had died in infancy. In the tumultuous age of Carlist uprisings and sporadic civil war, Isabella was immediately recognized as the heir to her mother's throne and was granted the traditional crown-princely title of Asturias.

Isabella was baptized by the archbishop of Toledo with the names María Isabel Francisca de Asís Cristina Francisca de Paula Fernanda Luisa Josefa Trinidad Joaquina Ana Melchora Gaspara Baltasara María del Olvido Dolores Pilar Concepción Carmen Desamparados Filomena Micaela Rafaela Gabriela Dominga de la Cogolla Tomasa Teresa Rita Lucía Águeda Bárbara Bibiana María de la Cabeza Isidra Rosalía Polonia Lugarda Ramona de Cosme Damiana Antonia de San Antón Juana Bautista Vicenta de Ferrer Genara Francisca de Borja Blasa Jacoba de Roque Caralampia y de Todos los Santos de Borbón y Borbón. After her birth, her mother gave birth to two daughters who lived only briefly and two still born sons. There was a six-year gap between Isabella and her next sibling the future king Alfonso XII, three more sisters later completed the family. Isabella lost her title as Princess of Asturias upon the birth of her brother, Prince Alfonso on November 28, 1857. Infanta Isabella was raised separately from the rest of her siblings.

The marriage of her parents was troublesome. At age sixteen Queen Isabella II had been married against her will to Francis, Duke of Cádiz, who was twice her fist cousin. The Queen never overcame the antipathy towards her effeminate husband. She found an outlet for her passionate nature by taking lovers. Historians and biographers had attributed Infanta Isabella's paternity to Juan de Arana, a young and handsome Spanish aristocratic who was Queen Isabella's favorite at the time. It was with some reluctance that King Francis recognized Isabella as his daughter as he would do subsequently with all the children Queen Isabella II bore during their troubled marriage.

When her younger brother, the future Alfonso XII of Spain, was born in 1857, young Isabella became second-in-line to the throne and consequently lost the Asturias title to her brother; he became Prince of Asturias, and she took the royal title and rank of Infanta of Spain.

When Alfonso XII ascended the throne on December 29, 1874, and had not yet had any children, the 23-year old Isabella once again became the heir presumptive and regained the title Princess of Asturias. However, she lost the title in 1880 upon the birth of Alfonso's first child, Mercedes, Princess of Asturias. Isabella once again took the royal title and rank of Infanta of Spain.

Infanta Isabella was popularly known by the affectionate nickname "La Chata" - a reference to her snub or "button" nose. The relationship between King Francis and his reputed children was cold and formal. Isabella II was preoccupied with her turbulent reign and her private life alternated between periods of great affection towards her children and the distant approach to childhood that was the custom of the time.She received a much better education than her mother and was the only one among her siblings to be educated and raised during her mother's troubled reign. Emphasis was put on languages and the young Infanta was very interested in music and horsemanship; hobbies she enjoyed throughout her life.

As heir presumptive to the crown, and with only a brother of delicate health that separated her from the throne, there was great interest in arranging an early marriage for Infanta Isabella that would provide descendants. Antonio Cánovas del Castillo, Isabella II's prime minister, conceived the idea to marry her to Prince Amadeo of Savoy whose sister, Maria Pia, had recently married Luis I of Portugal. Queen Isabella was not thrilled with the proposal, but agreed to an interview between her daughter and the Savoy prince. The project failed. For political reason, Isabella II had to recognize the unification of Italy under the Savoy crown, and in order to compensate her cousins from the Bourbon Two Sicilies dynasty who were upset at this recognition, the Queen arranged her eldest daughter's marriage with one of the half siblings of the recently deposed King Francis II of the Two Sicilies, Prince Gaetan, Count of Girgenti (1846–71), son of King Ferdinand II of the Two Sicilies and Archduchess Maria Theresa of Austria. Prince Gaetan had recently lost his mother and one of his younger brothers and his family was in financial straits. Gaetan was a first cousin of both Isabella's mother and father.

In April 1868, Prince Gaetan arrived in Spain and the wedding was quickly arranged to take place a few weeks later. Neither Infanta Isabella nor Gaetan were thrilled with the project. Gaetan was tall, good-hearted and handsome, but penniless and plagued by ill health. He was known for his lack of intellect. Infanta Isabella was short, blond, with clear blue eyes and with a small up turned nose. She was dutiful, conservative and headstrong.

The marriage took place amidst great pomp on May 13, 1868. Upon this marriage, Isabella II bestowed upon Gaetan the title Infante Cayetano of Spain (Cayetano being the Spanish translation of Gaetan). After the wedding the young couple embarked a long honeymoon that took them first to visit her new family-in-law residing at the Austrian court. On their way back to Spain, while visiting Napoleon III and Empress Eugénie in Fontainebleau, they received the news of the revolution that cost Isabella II her throne. Gaetan rushed to enter Spain and fought defending the monarchy in the battle of Alcolea, which defeat marked the end of the reign of Isabella II, who crossed the border into France with the royal family. In exile the deposed Queen settled in Paris where Infanta Isabella was waiting for her mother. Initially Infanta Isabella and Gaetan lived also in Paris in a house that belonged to Gaetan’s uncle the Count of Aquila. Gaetan was plagued by ill health and depression.

For two years the couple embarked on a series of trips through Europe visiting Austria, Germany and England, looking in vain to improve Gaetan’s health. With the help of his two aides de camp, Gaetan managed to conceal from his wife for as long as he could the true nature of his illness. He was an epileptic. One day he had a seizure in front of his wife, who had no prior warnings about the true nature of Gaetan’s illness. Early in a pregnancy, Infanta Isabella suffered a miscarriage. The loss of their child, the loss of the Spanish crown, and his declining health contributed to Gaetano sinking into a deep depression and he attempted suicide. After that, he was never allowed to be alone and between Isabella and Gaetan’s adjutants Gaetan was constantly supervised. However, on November 26, 1871 while they were staying in a hotel in Lucerne, Switzerland Gaetan managed to lock himself in a room and shot himself in the head. He was found still alive, but died shortly thereafter.

A young widow barely twenty years old, Infanta Isabella, who had become greatly attached to her husband, mourned his tragic death. She moved to the Palace of Castille in Paris with her mother the ex-Queen Isabella.

On December 29, 1874, Infanta Isabella's brother, Alfonso XII, was installed on the Spanish throne in place of their mother. Shortly thereafter, Infanta Isabella was called by the government to come back to Spain as the first lady at court and as heir presumptive to the throne. She was once again Princess of Asturias as heir to the Spanish crown. During this period, there were different projects presented to her to remarry. Archduke Ludwig Salvator of Austria, who was already living in Spain, was the government's first choice, but once his eccentric behavior became known the project was abandoned. Another candidate was Prince Arnulf of Bavaria, but Isabella did not wish to remarry, and her brother—to whom she was very attached—ultimately respected her wishes.

During the first years of her brother's reign, Isabella worked constantly to promote the cause of the monarchy and was a great asset to her brother. After their mother Queen Isabella returned to live permanently in France, Isabella’s three youngest sisters were placed under her care and she provided a good education for them. The two eldest sisters, Infantas Pilar and Paz, were pliable and did not give her trouble, but Isabella clashed with the youngest sister, the spirited Infanta Eulalia.

Isabella also served as a guide to her young cousin, Queen Mercedes, who had married her brother in 1880 and who had, incidentally, replaced her as the first lady of the kingdom. The marriage of her brother allowed her more time for her hobbies and travelling. Following Queen Mercedes' early death, Isabella chose Archduchess Maria Christina of Austria as her new sister-in-law and promoted her as a wife to her brother. She was a niece of Isabella's good friend Archduchess Maria Carolina of Austria, who had been a second mother to Gaetan and his siblings.

The early death of her brother was a terrible blow to Isabella who had treasured their relationship. She was an influential figure throughout the regency of Maria Christina of Austria and gave her widowed sister-in-law support; she became a second mother to the children of her late brother.

Isabella was reportedly very popular and respected in Spain. In 1885, a cruiser of the Spanish Navy, the Infanta Isabel, was named after her. One of the most significant public activities undertaken by her was her 1910 trip to Buenos Aires, Argentina, representing the Spanish Crown on the occasion of the centennial celebration of Argentina's May Revolution which is considered the starting point of the Argentine War of Independence. A street in Buenos Aires, the Paseo de la Infanta Isabel, was named after her. There is also a similarly named street in Madrid.

Isabella died on April 22, 1931, at the age of 79, in exile in France. Curiously she died five days after her nephew King Alfonso XIII of Spain had lost the Spanish throne and the entire Spanish royal family had gone into exile. Following the republican victory in Spain, Isabella was informed by the republican authorities that there was no need for her to go into exile—a testament to her popularity—but she voluntarily chose to exile herself with the rest of her family. She left most of her jewels to Alfonso XIII, and her famous Mellerio Shell Tiara subsequently descended to the current Spanish royal family and is frequently worn by Queen Sofía of Spain. In 1991, King Juan Carlos of Spain ordered the transfer of her remains to Spain from France; her remains were then entombed in the chapel of the Royal Palace of La Granja de San Ildefonso near Segovia, and a salon in the Palace was subsequently renamed in her honor. Picture of Tomb

In Parque del Oeste, a public park in Madrid, there stands a monumental sculpture of Infanta Isabella. Picture Moreover, in the palace park grounds of the Royal Palace of La Granja de San Ildefonso, there stands another full-size marble sculpture of Isabella with a bouquet of roses. Picture

• Rubio, María José. La Chata: La Infanta Isabel de Borbón y la Corona de España. Madrid, La Esfera de los Libros, 2003

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