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Princess Urraca of Bourbon-Two Sicilies

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Princess Urraca
Born(1913-07-14)14 July 1913
Nymphenburg Palace, Munich, Kingdom of Bavaria
Died3 May 1999(1999-05-03) (aged 85)
Sigmaringen, Baden-Württemberg, Germany
Burial
Filialkirche St. Peter und Paul, Rieden, Swabia, Bavaria, Germany
Names
Italian: Urraca Maria Isabella Carolina Aldegonda Carmela
HouseBourbon-Two Sicilies
FatherPrince Ferdinand Pius, Duke of Castro
MotherPrincess Maria Ludwiga Theresia of Bavaria

Princess Urraca of Bourbon-Two Sicilies (Italian: Urraca Maria Isabella Carolina Aldegonda Carmela, Principessa di Borbone delle Due Sicilie; 14 July 1913, Nymphenburg Palace, Munich, Kingdom of Bavaria – 3 May 1999, Sigmaringen, Baden-Württemberg, Germany) was a member of the House of Bourbon-Two Sicilies and a Princess of Bourbon-Two Sicilies.

Early life and family

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Princess Urraca with her mother

Princess Urraca of Bourbon-Two Sicilies was born on 14 July 1913, at Nymphenburg Palace in Munich, Kingdom of Bavaria. She was the sixth and youngest child of Prince Ferdinand Pius of Bourbon-Two Sicilies, Duke of Castro (1869–1960) and his wife Princess Maria Ludwiga Theresia of Bavaria (1872–1954). Ferdinand Pius was the Head of the House of Bourbon-Two Sicilies and pretender to the defunct throne of the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies from 26 May 1934 to 7 January 1960. Urraca had five older siblings, four sisters and one brother: Princess Maria Antonietta (1898–1957), Princess Maria Cristina (1899–1985), Prince Ruggiero Maria, Duke of Noto (1901–1914), Princess Barbara Maria (1902–1927), and Princess Lucia (1908–2001).[1]

Through her father, Urraca was a granddaughter of Prince Alfonso of Bourbon-Two Sicilies, Count of Caserta (1841–1934) and his wife Princess Maria Antonietta of Bourbon-Two Sicilies (1851–1938). Urraca was descended from King Francis I of the Two Sicilies (1777–1830) through her paternal great-grandfathers, King Ferdinand II of the Two Sicilies (1810–1859) and Prince Francis of Bourbon-Two Sicilies, Count of Trapani (1827–1892). Through her mother, she was a granddaughter of King Ludwig III of Bavaria (1845– 1921) and his wife Archduchess Maria Theresa of Austria-Este (1849–1919).[1]

Urraca chose not to celebrate her birthday, stating: "How can a Bourbon celebrate on the day of the Bastille's taking?"[citation needed]

Adult life

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As the daughter of the heir-apparent, then head of the House of Bourbon-Two Sicilies, Urraca regularly represented her family at royal and aristocratic functions and charitable events. She attended the funeral of her great uncle Prince Leopold of Bavaria on 3 October 1930, at St. Michael's Church in Munich.[2] Urraca, her mother, and her sister Lucia attended an afternoon dance tea at the Hotel Vier Jahreszeiten and the Hungarian Aid Association's Hungarian Ball in Munich in January 1934.[3] She also took part in the closing events of Munich's Carnival celebrations in February 1936.[4] On 16 April 1936, Urraca attended the wedding of her first cousin Infante Alfonso of Spain, Prince of Bourbon-Two Sicilies to Princess Alicia of Bourbon-Parma at the Minoritenkirche in Vienna.[5][6] She was a guest of honor at the Austrian Armed Forces' Spring Parade in April 1936, along with Alfonso XIII of Spain, Princess Maria Anna of Bourbon-Parma, and Prince Elias of Bourbon-Parma.[7] Urraca attended the Baltic Red Cross Ball and the ball of Countess Adelheid Arco-Valley in the Cherubinsälen of the Hotel Vier Jahreszeiten in February 1938.[8] On 23 October 1957, she attended the wedding of her first cousin Princess Marie Gabrielle of Bavaria and Georg, Prince of Waldburg zu Zeil und Trauchburg in Munich.[9]

On the night of 10 January 1957, Urraca was driving her eldest sister Maria Antonietta to her home in Lindau, Germany when their automobile collided with a truck that had skid on ice near Winterthur, Switzerland. Maria Antonietta was killed in the accident and Urraca was seriously injured.[10][11]

Urraca was also an active supporter of Duosicilian historical societies and other royalty and nobility organizations. In October 1993, she attended a conference of over 200 Italian nobles and aristocrats at the Palazzo Pallavicini-Rospigliosi in Rome, which advocated for the nobility's renewed leadership in the defense of Catholic principles in political and cultural institutions.[12] Her first cousin once removed and claimant to the Duosicilian throne, Infante Carlos, Duke of Calabria, was also in attendance.[12] In February 1994, Urraca traveled to Gaeta where she participated in a tribute to the centenary of the death of Francis II, King of the Two Sicilies and an observation of the 133rd anniversary of the conclusion of the Siege of Gaeta which marked the victory of the Kingdom of Sardinia over Two Sicilies.[13]

Death

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Filialkirche St. Peter und Paul cemetery

Urraca died on 3 May 1999, in Sigmaringen, Baden-Württemberg, Germany.[1]

Honours

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Ancestry

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References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f Royal House of Bourbon-Two Sicilies. "Genealogy of the Royal House of Bourbon – Two Sicilies" (PDF). Royal House of Bourbon-Two Sicilies. p. 5. Archived from the original (PDF) on 29 October 2017. Retrieved 28 October 2017.
  2. ^ "Todesfälle". Wiener Salonblatt (in German). Vienna. 12 October 1930. pp. 13–14. Retrieved 4 November 2017 – via Austrian National Library.
  3. ^ "Münchner Fasching". Wiener Salonblatt (in German). Vienna. 11 February 1934. pp. 9–10. Retrieved 3 November 2017 – via Austrian National Library.
  4. ^ "Münchner Karneval". Wiener Salonblatt (in German). Vienna. 7 March 1930. pp. 7–9. Retrieved 5 November 2017 – via Austrian National Library.
  5. ^ "Mariage de S.A.R. l'Infant Alphonse de Bourbon avec S.A.R. la Princesse Alice de Bourbon-Parme". Le Figaro (in French). Paris. 17 April 1936. p. 2. Archived from the original on 7 November 2017. Retrieved 2 November 2017 – via European Library.
  6. ^ "Die Vermählung der Prinzessin Älice von Bourbon von Parma mit Infanten Alfons von Spanien Prinzen von Bourbon-Sizilien". Wiener Salonblatt (in German). Vienna. 19 April 1936. pp. 6–7. Retrieved 5 November 2017 – via Austrian National Library.
  7. ^ "Ehrengäste bei der Frühjahrsparade des Bundesheeres". Wiener Salonblatt (in German). Vienna. 3 May 1936. p. 13. Retrieved 4 November 2017 – via Austrian National Library.
  8. ^ "München". Wiener Salonblatt (in German). Vienna. 6 March 1938. pp. 10–11. Retrieved 3 November 2017 – via Austrian National Library.
  9. ^ "Princess Maria And Prince Georg Wed In Munich". The Times Record. Troy, New York. 23 October 1957. p. 69. Archived from the original on 29 October 2017. Retrieved 28 October 2017 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. ^ "Princess Dies in Car Crash in Switzerland". Chicago Tribune. Chicago. 13 January 1957. p. 38F. Archived from the original on 29 October 2017. Retrieved 28 October 2017 – via Newspapers.com.
  11. ^ "Princess Killed in Accident". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. St. Louis. 13 January 1957. p. 16A. Archived from the original on 29 October 2017. Retrieved 28 October 2017 – via Newspapers.com.
  12. ^ a b "L'Ultima Aristocrazia 'Ora L'Italia Ci Chiama'". la Repubblica (in Italian). Rome. 31 October 1993. Retrieved 30 October 2017.
  13. ^ "Viva Il Re Franceshiello' A Gaeta in PIazza". la Repubblica (in Italian). Rome. 13 February 1994. Retrieved 30 October 2017.
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