Infante Luis, Count of Chinchón (Luis Antonio Jaime de Borbón y Farnesio; 25 July 1727 – 7 August 1785), known as the Cardinal Infante, was a Spanish

infante Infante (, ; f. ''infanta''), also anglicised as "infant" or translated as "prince", is the title and rank given in the Iberian kingdoms of Spain (including the predecessor kingdoms of Aragon, Castile, Navarre, and León) and Portugal to the ...

and clergyman. He was a son of

Philip V of Spain Philip V (; 19 December 1683 – 9 July 1746) was List of Spanish monarchs, King of Spain from 1 November 1700 to 14 January 1724 and again from 6 September 1724 to his death in 1746. His total reign (45 years and 16 days) is the longest in the ...

and his second wife, Elisabeth Farnese. He was cardinal deacon of the

titular church In the Catholic Church, a titular church () is a Churches in Rome, church in Rome that is assigned to a member of the Holy orders in the Catholic Church, clergy who is created a Cardinal (Catholic Church), cardinal. These are Catholic churches in ...

of Santa Maria della Scala in Rome,

archbishop of Toledo The Archdiocese of Toledo () is a Latin Church archdiocese of the Catholic Church located in Spain.

and as such primate of Spain. He is listed in the

Guinness Book of World Records ''Guinness World Records'', known from its inception in 1955 until 1999 as ''The Guinness Book of Records'' and in previous United States editions as ''The Guinness Book of World Records'', is a British reference book published annually, listi ...

as the youngest-ever cardinal.McWhirter, Ross, McFarlan, Donald, Boehm, David A., and McWhirter, Norris. ''1990 Guinness Book of World Records''. Sterling Pub. Co. p. 270.

Life

Early years

Luis Antonio Jaime de Borbón y Farnesio was born the youngest son of Philip V, King of Spain, and his second wife, Elisabeth Farnese. While barely eight years of age, Luis was created 699th

Knight A knight is a person granted an honorary title of a knighthood by a head of state (including the pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church, or the country, especially in a military capacity. The concept of a knighthood ...

of the

Order of the Golden Fleece The Distinguished Order of the Golden Fleece (, ) is a Catholic order of chivalry founded in 1430 in Brugge by Philip the Good, Duke of Burgundy, to celebrate his marriage to Isabella of Portugal, Duchess of Burgundy, Isabella of Portugal. T ...

in 1735 and ordained Archbishop of Toledo and Primate of Spain on 9 September 1735, and subsequently named

Cardinal-Priest A cardinal is a senior member of the clergy of the Catholic Church. As titular members of the clergy of the Diocese of Rome, they serve as advisors to the pope, who is the bishop of Rome and the visible head of the worldwide Catholic Church. ...

of the Title of the church of '' Santa Maria della Scala'' (

pro hac vice Pro is an abbreviation meaning "professional". Pro, PRO or variants thereof might also refer to: People * Miguel Pro (1891–1927), Mexican priest * Pro Hart (1928–2006), Australian painter * Mlungisi Mdluli (born 1980), South African retire ...

) in Rome on 19 December. On 18 December 1754 he abandoned the ecclesiastical life for lack of vocation, renounced his ecclesiastical titles and dignities and assumed the title of 13th ''Conde de Chinchón'' ( Count of Chinchón) granted by his brother Infante Felipe. When his older half-brother King Ferdinand VI died without issue in 1759, Luis claimed the throne on the grounds that, he was the only surviving son of Philip V still residing in Spain (his older brothers were

Charles Charles is a masculine given name predominantly found in English language, English and French language, French speaking countries. It is from the French form ''Charles'' of the Proto-Germanic, Proto-Germanic name (in runic alphabet) or ''* ...

, King of Naples and Sicily, and Philip, Duke of Parma, both reigning in Italy). However valid his claim, Luis lost the succession to his oldest brother Charles, while Charles's third son became

Ferdinand I of the Two Sicilies Ferdinand I (Italian language, Italian: ''Ferdinando I''; 12 January 1751 – 4 January 1825) was Kingdom of the Two Sicilies, King of the Two Sicilies from 1816 until his death. Before that he had been, since 1759, King of Naples as Ferdinand I ...

. Infante Luis was a patron of the arts and culture, and admirer of musician Luigi Boccherini, architect Ventura Rodríguez and painters Francisco de Goya, Luis Paret y Alcázar, and Charles Joseph Flipart.

Marriage

King Charles III, fearful of his brother, exiled Luis far away from the Court of Madrid. In 1776 at Olias del Rey Luis contracted a

morganatic Morganatic marriage, sometimes called a left-handed marriage, is a marriage between people of unequal social rank, which in the context of royalty or other inherited title prevents the principal's position or privileges being passed to the spous ...

marriage with an

Aragon Aragon ( , ; Spanish and ; ) is an autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community in Spain, coextensive with the medieval Kingdom of Aragon. In northeastern Spain, the Aragonese autonomous community comprises three provinces of Spain, ...

ese aristocrat, María Teresa de Vallabriga.Academy of History website, ''Luis María de Borbón y Vallabriga''
/ref> This was much to the liking of Charles, because Luis now could not have children with a better claim to the throne.

Children

Since Luis's children had been born of a

morganatic marriage Morganatic marriage, sometimes called a left-handed marriage, is a marriage between people of unequal social rank, which in the context of royalty or other inherited title prevents the principal's position or privileges being passed to the spou ...

, they could not receive royal titles, and thus the descendants of Charles were the legitimate Spanish heirs (even though the children of Charles had been born in Naples). The couple had four children:Boadilla website, ''Cardinal Luis María de Borbón y Vallabriga''
/ref> # Luis María de Borbón y Vallabriga, 14th Count of Chinchón ( Cadalso de los Vidrios, 1777 –

Madrid Madrid ( ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in Spain, most populous municipality of Spain. It has almost 3.5 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 7 million. It i ...

, 1823), he renounced his title and became Cardinal, Archbishop of Toledo; # a stillborn; # María Teresa de Borbón y Vallabriga, 15th Countess of Chinchón; married in the Escorial, Madrid, 2 October 1797 Manuel de Godoy y Álvarez de Faria, 1st Principe de la Paz, 1st Duque de Alcúdia and 1st Duque de Sueca (Badajoz, 12 May 1767 – Paris, 4 October 1851), and had issue, an only daughter Carlota Luisa Manuela. # María Luisa de Borbón y Vallabriga ( Toledo, 21 March 1780 – Paris, 1 December 1846), 98th Noble

Dame ''Dame'' is a traditionally British honorific title given to women who have been admitted to certain orders of chivalry. It is the female equivalent of ''Sir'', the title used by knights. Baronet, Baronetesses Suo jure, in their own right also u ...

of the Royal Order of Queen María Luisa on 10 October 1800, married in 1817 Joaquín José de Melgarejo y Saurín, de Rojas y Ruíz-Dávalos ( Cox, Alicante, 23 January 1780 –

, 9 April 1835), 3rd Marqués de Melgarejo and 1st Duke of San Fernando de Quiroga

Grandee of Spain Grandee (; , ) is an official royal and noble ranks, aristocratic title conferred on some Spanish nobility. Holders of this dignity enjoyed similar privileges to those of the peerage of France during the , though in neither country did they ha ...

First Class with a

Coat of Arms A coat of arms is a heraldry, heraldic communication design, visual design on an escutcheon (heraldry), escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the last two being outer garments), originating in Europe. The coat of arms on an escutcheon f ...

of de Melgarejo, 39th Minister of External Affairs of Spain (12 September 1819 – 18 March 1820), without issue. She was the last surviving grandchild of Philip V of Spain. Charles had a great deal of appreciation and devotion to his younger brother, and even during his exile, Luis was treated quite well by the Spanish court. Luis loved his brother equally as much, which is why Luis later accepted Charles as king and accepted his exile. Despite this, Luis remained bitter and saddened by the fact that he lost the opportunity to be king. Luis died disgraced and in internal exile in 1785. File:Coat of Arms Infante Louis of Spain, as Cardinal and Archbishop of Toledo.svg, Arms of the Infante Luis of Spain, as Cardinal and Archbishop of Toledo File:Coat of Arms of Infante Louis of Spain, Count of Chinchón-After he abandoned the ecclesiastical life.svg, Coat of Arms of the Infante Luis after he abandoned the ecclesiastical life File:Retrato de la condesa de Chinchón.jpg, ''Dona'' María Teresa – eldest daughter Image:La familia del infante don Luis.jpg, The family of Infante ''Don'' Luis, as painted by Goya in 1784

Ancestors

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Luis of Spain 1727 births 1785 deaths 18th-century Spanish cardinals 18th-century Roman Catholic archbishops in Spain Archbishops of Toledo House of Bourbon (Spain) Grandees of Spain Spanish infantes Spanish royalty Luis 13 Knights of the Golden Fleece of Spain Burials in the Pantheon of Infantes at El Escorial Resigned cardinals Sons of kings Children of Philip V of Spain Sons of dukes Sons of counts