Agustín de Iturbide y Green (2 April 1863 – 3 March 1925) was the grandson of

Agustín de Iturbide Agustín Cosme Damián de Iturbide y Arámburu (; 27 September 178319 July 1824), commonly known as Agustín de Iturbide and later by his regnal name Agustín I, was the first Emperor of Mexico from 1822 until his abdication in 1823. An offi ...

, the first emperor of independent

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

, and his consort

Ana María Huarte Ana María Josefa Ramona Juana Nepomucena Marcelina Huarte y Muñiz (17 January 178621 March 1861) was the first Empress of Mexico. Noted for her beauty, grace and education, she married Agustín de Iturbide, who ruled briefly as Emperor in 182 ...

. In April 1864,

Maximilian I of Mexico Maximilian I (; ; 6 July 1832 – 19 June 1867) was an Austrian Empire, Austrian archduke who became Emperor of Mexico, emperor of the Second Mexican Empire from 10 April 1864 until his execution by the Restored Republic (Mexico), Mexican Republ ...

renounced all his incidental Austrian succession rights and later adopted Agustín de Iturbide y Green and Salvador de Iturbide y Marzán, two grandsons of Emperor Agustín I whom he appointed Prince of Iturbide and at the same time heir apparent. Iturbide's claim passed to Maria Josepha Sophia de Iturbide, the daughter of his cousin, Salvador.

Family

Iturbide was the son of Emperor Agustin's second son, Prince Don Ángel María de Iturbide y Huarte (2 October 1816 – 21 July 1872). His mother was Alice Green (–1892), daughter of Captain John Nathaniel Green, granddaughter of United States congressman and Revolutionary War General Uriah Forrest, and great-granddaughter of

George Plater George Plater III (November 8, 1735 – February 10, 1792) was an Americans, American planter, lawyer, and statesman from Saint Mary's County, Maryland. He represented Maryland in the Continental Congress from 1778 to 1780, and briefly served as ...

, Governor of Maryland.

Possible Mexican royal heir

When Maximilian and Carlota ascended the throne of Mexico in 1863 with the support of the French troops of

Napoleon III Napoleon III (Charles-Louis Napoléon Bonaparte; 20 April 18089 January 1873) was President of France from 1848 to 1852 and then Emperor of the French from 1852 until his deposition in 1870. He was the first president, second emperor, and last ...

, the childless new monarchs invited the Iturbide family back to

. As it was clear several years into their marriage that Maximilian and Carlota could have no children together, they offered to adopt Iturbide, which was agreed to with enthusiasm by his father and reluctance by his mother. Iturbide and his cousin were granted the ''vitalicio'' (meaning non-hereditary) title of ''Prince de Iturbide'' and style of ''

Highness Highness (abbreviation HH, oral address Your Highness) is a formal style used to address (in second person) or refer to (in third person) certain members of a reigning or formerly reigning dynasty. It is typically used with a possessive adjec ...

'' by imperial decree of 16 September 1865 and were ranked after the reigning family. Apparently, the royal couple intended to groom Agustín as heir to the throne. Maximilian never really intended to give the crown to the Iturbides because he believed that they were not of royal blood. It was all a charade directed at his younger brother Archduke Karl Ludwig of Austria, as Maximilian explained himself: either Karl would give him one of his sons as an heir, or else he would bequeath everything to the Iturbide children.

Post-monarchy

With the overthrow of the

second Mexican Empire The Second Mexican Empire (; ), officially known as the Mexican Empire (), was a constitutional monarchy established in Mexico by Mexican monarchists with the support of the Second French Empire. This period is often referred to as the Second ...

in 1867, Iturbide's biological parents took him first to

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

and then back to the United States, where they settled in Washington, DC. When he came of age, Iturbide, who had graduated from

Georgetown University Georgetown University is a private university, private Jesuit research university in Washington, D.C., United States. Founded by Bishop John Carroll (archbishop of Baltimore), John Carroll in 1789, it is the oldest Catholic higher education, Ca ...

, renounced his claim to the throne and title and returned to Mexico. He then served as an officer in the Mexican army. But in 1890, after publishing articles critical of President

Porfirio Díaz José de la Cruz Porfirio Díaz Mori (; ; 15 September 1830 – 2 July 1915) was a General (Mexico), Mexican general and politician who was the dictator of Mexico from 1876 until Mexican Revolution, his overthrow in 1911 seizing power in a Plan ...

, he was arrested on charges of sedition and sentenced to fourteen months of imprisonment. After release from prison, Iturbide was sent into

exile Exile or banishment is primarily penal expulsion from one's native country, and secondarily expatriation or prolonged absence from one's homeland under either the compulsion of circumstance or the rigors of some high purpose. Usually persons ...

, where he had two severe nervous breakdowns that resulted in his believing that he would be assassinated. Eventually, he returned to Georgetown University, as a professor of the

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...

and

French language French ( or ) is a Romance languages, Romance language of the Indo-European languages, Indo-European family. Like all other Romance languages, it descended from the Vulgar Latin of the Roman Empire. French evolved from Northern Old Gallo-R ...

s. For some years before his marriage, Iturbide lived at a monastery near Washington, DC, where he worked as a translator.

Marriage

In 1894, he married Lucy Eleanor Jackson (1 January 1862 – 11 May 1940), daughter of the Rev. William Jackson, by his wife Lucy Catherine Hatchett, of

Yealmpton Yealmpton () is a village and civil parishes in England, civil parish in the England, English county of Devon. It is located in the South Hams on the A379 road, A379 Plymouth to Kingsbridge road and is about from Plymouth. Its name derives fr ...

Devon Devon ( ; historically also known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel to the north, Somerset and Dorset to the east, the English Channel to the south, and Cornwall to the west ...

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

. She died in

Epsom Epsom is a town in the borough of Epsom and Ewell in Surrey, England, about south of central London. The town is first recorded as ''Ebesham'' in the 10th century and its name probably derives from that of a Anglo-Saxon settlement of Britain ...

Surrey Surrey () is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Greater London to the northeast, Kent to the east, East Sussex, East and West Sussex to the south, and Hampshire and Berkshire to the wes ...

, United Kingdom. On 5 July 1915, he married Mary Louise Kearney (25 September 1872 – September 1967), a D.C.-born granddaughter of Brigadier General James Kearney of the United States Army.

Death

Agustín de Iturbide y Green died on 3 March 1925 in Washington, D.C. after following a serious nervous and physical breakdown. He was buried at the Church of St John the Evangelist, in

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

— alongside his paternal grandmother, Empress Ana María of Mexico.

In popular culture

Mickey Kuhn Theodore Matthew Michael Kuhn Jr. (September 21, 1932 – November 20, 2022) was an American actor. He started his career as a child actor, active on-screen during the Golden Age of Hollywood from the 1930s until the early 1950s. He is noted for ...

portrayed De Iturbide y Green in '' Juarez'' (1939).

References

External links

Imperial House of Mexico
*

{{DEFAULTSORT:Iturbide, Agustin de Agustin Mexican princes Agustin Heirs apparent who never acceded 1863 births 1925 deaths 19th-century Mexican people People from Mexico City Mexican people of American descent American people of Basque descent Georgetown University alumni Modern Mexico Philodemic Society members Child pretenders Mexican emigrants to the United States