The Shocking Tale of Spain’s Hated Queen | Maria Luisa of Parma

Explore the controversial life of Maria Louisa of Parma, Queen consort of Spain, known for scandal, political influence, and tragedy.

Key Takeaways

Maria Louisa was a powerful yet controversial queen consort who influenced Spanish politics.
Her personal life was marred by tragedy and scandal, impacting her reputation.
She contributed to Spanish culture through patronage of the arts.
Her life reflects the challenges faced by royal women in male-dominated courts.
The political turmoil of her era shaped her legacy and Spain's history.

What the video covers

Maria Louisa of Parma was Queen consort of Spain from 1788 to 1808, infamous for rumors of infidelity and poisoning.
Born in 1751 in Parma, Italy, to the Bourbon family, she was closely connected to French and Spanish royalty.
Her marriage to Charles IV of Spain was arranged early and marked by difficulties and high child mortality.
She endured 24 pregnancies with many miscarriages and infant deaths, fueling rumors of a curse.
Maria Louisa played a significant political role behind the throne during Charles IV's weak reign.
She was a patron of the arts, notably supporting the painter Francisco Goya.
Rumors of her affairs, including with prime minister Manuel Godoy, circulated widely at court.
She was accused of poisoning rivals and disliked family members, including her daughter-in-law.
Her reign saw Spain's political struggles during the French Revolutionary Wars and Napoleonic invasions.
After deposition, Maria Louisa and Charles lived under political detention in France until her death.

Chapters

Who was Maria Louisa of Parma?

Maria Louisa of Parma was Queen consort of Spain from 1788 to 1808, married to King Charles IV. She was known for her political influence and controversial reputation.

What rumors surrounded Maria Louisa during her life?

She was rumored to have engaged in serial infidelity, including an affair with Manuel Godoy, and was accused of poisoning enemies and rivals at court.

How did Maria Louisa impact Spanish culture?

Maria Louisa was a major patron of the arts, most notably supporting Francisco Goya, who became the official court painter during her time as queen.

Full Transcript — Download SRT & Markdown

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[Music] For two decades, between 1788 and 1808, Maria Louisa of Parma was Queen consort of Spain. Yet dark accusations abounded during her life, from serial infidelity to poisoning her enemies. Whether any of these rumors were true remains a source of debate today.

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But in any case, she was extremely unpopular in her country. Join me as we explore her life. Maria Louisa of Parma was born on the 9th of December 1751 in the city of Parma in Northern Italy. At the time, Italy was divided into

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numerous small states, and in 1748 the Duchy of Parma had been awarded to the Royal House of Bourbon. This was thanks to the Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle, which brought the War of Austrian Succession to an end. Different branches

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of the Bourbons ruled France and Spain, and it was determined that Maria Louisa's father, Philip, the second son of King Philip V of Spain, would acquire the dukedom. Thus, Maria was born in the Italian city just over two years after her

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father had arrived there as Duke of Parma. Maria Louisa's mother was Louise Élisabeth, the eldest daughter of King Louis XV of France. She was closely related to Philip, whom she married in 1739, continuing a tradition of marriage

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between near cousins amongst Europe's royal families. She and Philip had three children who lived into their adult years. Isabella was born in 1741, not long after they were married. Ten years later, in January 1751, a boy, Ferdinand, was born. Just a few

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weeks later, Louise Élisabeth fell pregnant again, and so Maria Louisa was born 11 months later. The three children and their parents lived in the Ducal Palace of Colorno in Parma, a fine edifice which had been refurbished and expanded into

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an 18th-century palace from an imposing medieval edifice several decades earlier. Maria Louisa and her two siblings were alleged to have been educated by Étienne Bonnot de Condillac, a prominent French Enlightenment scholar, but there is no evidence to substantiate this.

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Well, Condillac is known to have arrived in Parma in 1768, and by then Maria Louisa had already left Italy. Before that, the family had experienced some tragedy when Maria Louisa's mother died in 1759, followed by her sister Isabella in

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died in 1759, there had already been considerable thought given to who she would marry, with Prince Louis, Duke of Burgundy in France, considered as a possible match. Yet he died of tuberculosis in 1761 when he was just nine. Thereafter, a

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marriage to Prince Charles, the son and heir of King Charles III of Spain, was proposed. Negotiations followed, and on the 4th of September 1765, the marriage was consecrated at La Granja Palace in Segovia, north of Madrid. Maria Louisa was just 13

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years old, while Charles was 16, and the pair were first cousins. The marriage was a difficult one in its early years for Maria Louisa. Charles's mother, Maria Amalia, had died some years earlier, and with Charles as heir to the Spanish throne, Maria Louisa

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became the first lady of the Spanish court. Several of her relatives took a dislike to her, in large part owing to her perceived domineering attitude towards her husband, an impressionable young man who never emerged as a strong heir or

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ruler. Maria Louisa's marriage did not result in children for several years, and when it did, it was overshadowed by miscarriages and the death of several of her and Charles's children. This was not an uncommon development. Infant and child mortality

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were extremely high in early modern times, with 30 to 35% of children dying before they reached their 10th year. Furthermore, infant and child mortality was especially severe among some of Europe's royal lines, a product of the close intermarriage of the royal houses.

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Queen Anne of Britain, for instance, had been pregnant 14 times in the late 17th century and had lost all of her children through miscarriages or death in infancy or childhood. Maria Louisa was slightly better off than Anne. She's believed to

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have experienced 24 different pregnancies. Ten of these resulted in miscarriages, but 14 went to full term. Of the 14 children that she gave birth to, seven would survive to become adults. Seven others died in infancy or childhood. And owing to this, gossip

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started to circulate at the Spanish court that Maria Louisa was cursed. Her and Charles's firstborn, a boy named Charles Clemente, born in September 1771, died when just two and a half years old in March 1774. A daughter named Maria Louisa, after

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her mother, died at four and a half years in the summer of 1782. Twins named Charles and Felipe, or Carlos and Felipe to use the Hispanic versions of their names, were born in September 1783, but they were sickly from birth, and

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both died within three and a half weeks of each other in 1784. The seven children who lived into their adult years were Carlota, born in 1775; Maria Amelia, born in 1779; Maria Louisa, born in 1782; Ferdinand, born in

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1784; Carlos, born in 1788; Maria Isabel, born in 1789; and Francisco, born in 1794. Several of these would become kings and queens of various European states. Curiously, Maria Louisa is said to have experienced a miscarriage as late as

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1799, by which time she was into her late 40s and might have been expected to be postmenopausal by then. Her torturous natal history had taken its toll. Though noted as being an attractive woman in the 1770s when she was in her 20s, by the

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1780s Maria Louisa was prematurely aged, with many noticing that there was a jaundiced yellow tinge to her skin by her 30s, a product perhaps of her seemingly endless pregnancies and many miscarriages. Maria Louisa's father-in-law, King Charles III, died in

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the winter of 1788, and her husband succeeded as King Charles IV. He would rule for the next 20 years. Maria Louisa became Queen consort. In tandem, she was soon understood to be a major figure behind the throne. Her

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husband was not a strong ruler and was imposed upon by his wife. For instance, she attended the first meeting with the senior councilors of state in 1788 and made it clear that she intended to play a role in the governance of the

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country, something which continued throughout the reign. Charles was content to allow this, as his passions primarily lay in hunting and other leisure pursuits of the aristocracy. For her part, Maria Louisa played a much greater role in state affairs and in particular in promoting

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education and culture in Spain. Also, she was the primary patron of Francisco Goya, who became the official court painter in the 1790s. During Maria Louisa's life at court, there were endless accusations whispered behind closed doors that she engaged in

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serial infidelity, taking many different lovers. One specific rumor alleged that she was having an affair with Manuel Godoy, a young man who in the 1790s rose to become the prime minister of Spain as Secretary of State. His youth,

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quick rise to power, and patronage by the queen, along with his close relationship with her, gave rise to intense suspicion.

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times such as when she lost her children and the depression caused by her menopause godo was also rumored to be the biological father of several of her children and the Queen's Confessor wrote in his last will that none none of her

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sons and daughters none was of the legitimate marriage although many historians think that the relationship was likely we actually have very little concrete evidence that confirms this these accusations seem to have been so prevalent owing to the jealousy amongst

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G Rivals for power and because the queen was exceeding the constraints which were imposed on women in a male dominated world the malicious Rumor Mill also extended to Maria Louis's relationships with several other senior female Aristocrats at the Spanish court for

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example it was suspected that she had poisoned Maria kayatan the Silva 13th Duchess of Alba the duess of Alba had married The Marquis of franka and this Union of two prominent Spanish aristocratic lines had made them extremely senior at the Spanish Royal

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Court second only to the royal family and the house of OA Maria Louisa was seen as a rival to both The Duchess of Alba and Osuna as a result thus when the Duchess of Alba suddenly died in the summer of 1802 at

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just 40 years of age her passing was viewed as suspicious and accusation that the queen had organized for her rival to be poison circulated these allegations were completely spous and nearly all historians agree that Alba died from tuberculosis Complicated by severe

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fever nevertheless this wasn't the only woman Maria Louisa was rumored to have poisoned in 1802 her son Prince Ferdinand married Maria Antonia of Naples in Sicily Maria Louisa disliked daughter-in-law once writing to uel godo what shall we do with that diabolical

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Serpent of my daughter-in-law and that cowardly mongel of a son of mine the animosity between the two and the fact that she was just 21 led to accusations that she was poisoned but there is no evidence to support this and Maria

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Antonia actually died from tuberculosis by the 1800s those at the center of power in Spain had great issues to worry about than the perceived infidelities of the queen consort or a fabricated story about a possible poisoning a much more real and tangible

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threat had emerged in Western Europe in 1789 the French Revolution had begun leading eventually in the early 1790s to the deposition and execution of King Louis the 16th of France Maria Louise's cousin in the French Revolutionary Wars which followed King Charles and his

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govern government had understandably joined an anti-french Coalition along with Britain and Austria against the French but when the French began to gain the upper hand over their enemies in 1794 Charles Maria Louisa Godoy and others in charge in Madrid surprisingly

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changed course an alliance was entered into with a new French Republic one which saw Spain become France's foremost Ally amongst the European powers the Franco Spanish Alliance was always an uneven one Spain was a second tier power in Europe by the late 18th

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century and France was ascendant as the dominant Continental power under the Republic but this became even more acute under Napoleon bonapart as emperor of the French from 1804 onwards in 1807 Maria Louisa Charles angoy attempted to take advantage of

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French expansion by agreeing to the Treaty of fonton BL which would allow Spain to effectively invade and Annex Portugal a power which was closely Allied to France's main enemy Britain What followed was a period of pronounced intervention in Spanish

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Affairs by the French culminating eventually in the deposition of Charles and the brief accession as King Charles and Maria Louisa's eldest son Ferdinand a figure who had become increasingly opposed to his weak willed father over the years Maria Louise C and Charles

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appealed to Napoleon about this new Arrangement but their protestations had an even worse outcome when Napoleon decided to dispense with the Spanish royal family all together in the summer of 1808 he imposed his brother Joseph bonapart as the new king of

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Spain with this Maria Louis's time at the center of power in Madrid came to an end though the new Arrangement was a disaster for Napoleon with a long running Guerilla War breaking out in Spain one which swallowed up so many

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French res sources in the late 1800s and early 1810s that it became known as the Spanish Ula with Charles's abdication and then the deposition of Ferdinand in favor of Joseph in 1808 Maria Louisa her husband and Godoy left Spain and spent March of

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the late 1800s and early 1810s as quasi prisoners in France they lived in Pleasant conditions in Exxon provance and in marsill but they were under a form of political detention at the same time to prevent them becoming a source of political

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discontent should they return to Spain in 1812 the former king and queen and their followers were allowed to relocate to Italy where they lived for a time in Rome under the patronage of the papacy events were shifting rapidly by then and

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as Napoleon's empire crumbled in the mid 1810s following a disastrous military invasion of Russia ferdan returned to Spain and reclaimed the throne there he prohibited his parents from returning to Madrid thus Maria Louisa and her husband spent their remaining years living in

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Rome it was a hardly unpleasant retirement one spent as close confidence of the papacy and amassing a valuable art collection she died in the Eternal City on the 2nd of January 1819 at 67 years of age Charles died

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just 2 and 1 half weeks later God meanwhile would live for over three decades longer Maria Louisa had named him as a primary beneficiary of her will and Charles had quickly asked him to vacate their Court in Exile after her death

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perhaps the rumors were true after all we may never know for sure thank you so much everyone for watching this video on Maria Louis of palm I hope you found it interesting let me know what you thought of a life down below in the comments and

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if you have any other suggestions also be sure to leave them in the comments I've recently made it to 300K subscribers so thanks to all of you who made that possible and I hope you guys have notifications turned on and are

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subscribed to get all my videos as soon as I upload them anyway that's all for me so I'll see all of you in the next forgotten life thanks

Topics:Maria Louisa of ParmaQueen consort of SpainCharles IV of SpainSpanish monarchyManuel GodoyFrancisco Goyaroyal scandals18th century SpainNapoleonic Warsroyal family history

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