Prince Ferdinand Pius, Duke of Calabria

Prince Ferdinand Pius
Duke of Calabria
Head of the House of Bourbon-Two Sicilies
Tenure	26 May 1934 – 7 January 1960
Predecessor	Prince Alfonso
Successor	Disputed: Prince Ranieri (brother) Infante Alfonso (nephew)
Born	(1869-07-25)25 July 1869 Rome, Italy
Died	7 January 1960(1960-01-07) (aged 90) Lindau, Bavaria, Germany
Burial	Filialkirche St. Peter und Paul, Rieden, Swabia, Germany
Spouse	Princess Maria Ludwiga Theresia of Bavaria
Issue	Princess Maria Antonietta Princess Maria Cristina Prince Ruggiero Maria, Duke of Noto Princess Barbara Maria Princess Lucia, Duchess of Genoa Princess Urraca Maria
Full name Italian: Ferdinando Pio Maria
House	Bourbon-Two Sicilies
Father	Prince Alfonso, Count of Caserta
Mother	Princess Maria Antonietta of Bourbon-Two Sicilies
Religion	Roman Catholicism

Prince Ferdinand Pius (Ferdinando Pio Maria), Duke of Calabria (25 July 1869, Rome – 7 January 1960, Lindau), was head of the House of Bourbon-Two Sicilies and pretender to the throne of the extinct Kingdom of the Two Sicilies from 1934 to 1960.

Family

Ferdinand was the eldest child and son of Prince Alfonso, Count of Caserta and his wife Princess Maria Antonietta of Bourbon-Two Sicilies. He was a grandson of Ferdinand II of the Two Sicilies and an older brother of Prince Carlos of Bourbon-Two Sicilies, Maria Immaculata, Princess Johann Georg of Saxony, Maria Cristina, Archduchess Peter Ferdinand of Austria, Maria di Grazia, Princess Imperial of Brazil, Prince Ranieri, Duke of Castro, Prince Philip of Bourbon-Two Sicilies, and Prince Gabriel of Bourbon-Two Sicilies.

Marriage and issue

Ferdinand married Princess Maria Ludwiga Theresia of Bavaria, daughter of King Ludwig III of Bavaria on 31 May 1897. They had six children: ^{[1] [2]}

• Princess Maria Antonietta (1898–1957)
• Princess Maria Cristina (1899–1985), married in 1948 to Manuel Sotomayor-Luna, Vice President of Ecuador
• Prince Ruggiero Maria, Duke of Noto (1901–1914)
• Princess Barbara Maria Antonietta Luitpolda (1902–1927), married in 1922 to Count Franz Xaver zu Stolberg-Wernigerode
• Princess Lucia Maria Raniera (1908–2001), married in 1938 to Prince Eugenio, Duke of Ancona
• Princess Urraca Maria Isabella Carolina Aldegonda (1913–1999)

Ferdinand and Maria lived for many years at Villa Amsee, Lindau. It was there that he died in 1960.

Following Ferdinand's death, the headship of the House of Bourbon-Two Sicilies was claimed by both his nephew Alfonso and his brother Ranieri. It remains disputed between the descendants of Alfonso and Ranieri today.

Honours

• Grand Master of the Sacred Military Constantinian Order of Saint George
• Grand Master of the Order of Saint Januarius
• Grand Master of the Order of Saint Ferdinand and of Merit
• Grand Master of the Royal Order of Francis I
• Grand Master of the Order of Saint George and Reunion
• Knight of the Spanish Order of the Golden Fleece
• Knight of the Order of Saint Hubert of Bavaria
• Knight of the Supreme Order of the Most Holy Annunciation
• Bailiff Grand Cross of Honor and Devotion of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta
• Knight Grand Cross of the Order of Charles III

Arms

• Heraldry of Prince Ferdinand Pius
• 
  Prince Ferdinand's arms
  Until 1894
• 
  Prince Ferdinand's arms as titular heir to the throne
  1894-1934
• 
  Prince Ferdinand's arms as head of the Royal House
  1934-1960

Ancestry

References