Princess Marie Isabelle of Orléans (María Isabel de Orleans y Borbón; 21 September 1848 – 23 April 1919) was born an

infanta 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 ...

of Spain and a Princess of Orléans and became the Countess of Paris by marriage.

Biography

She was born in

Seville Seville ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Spain, Spanish autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Andalusia and the province of Seville. It is situated on the lower reaches of the Guadalquivir, River Guadalquivir, ...

to Prince Antoine, Duke of Montpensier and Infanta Luisa Fernanda of Spain. Antoine was the youngest son of

Louis-Philippe I Louis Philippe I (6 October 1773 – 26 August 1850), nicknamed the Citizen King, was King of the French from 1830 to 1848, the penultimate monarch of France, and the last French monarch to bear the title "King". He abdicated from his thron ...

, the last King of France, and

Maria Amalia of Naples and Sicily Maria Amalia of Naples and Sicily (Maria Amalia Teresa; 26 April 1782 – 24 March 1866) was List of French royal consorts, Queen of the French by marriage to Louis Philippe I, King of the French. She was the last Queen of France. Among ...

. Infanta Luisa was the daughter of

Ferdinand VII of Spain Ferdinand VII (; 14 October 1784 – 29 September 1833) was Monarchy of Spain, King of Spain during the early 19th century. He reigned briefly in 1808 and then again from 1813 to his death in 1833. Before 1813 he was known as ''el Deseado'' (t ...

and his fourth wife

Maria Christina of the Two Sicilies Maria Christina of the Two Sicilies (, ; 27 April 1806 – 22 August 1878) was the queen consort of Spain, Queen of Spain from 1829 to 1833 and Queen regent of the kingdom from 1833, when her daughter became queen at age two, to 1840. By virtue ...

. All four of her grandparents and seven of her eight great-grandparents were members of the French Royal

House of Bourbon The House of Bourbon (, also ; ) is a dynasty that originated in the Kingdom of France as a branch of the Capetian dynasty, the royal House of France. Bourbon kings first ruled France and Kingdom of Navarre, Navarre in the 16th century. A br ...

Marriage and issue

On 30 May 1864 at St. Raphael's Church in Kingston upon Thames, England, when she was only fifteen, Isabelle married her cousin Philippe d'Orléans, claimant to the French throne as Philippe VII. They had eight children: * Princess Amélie d'Orléans (1865–1951). She married

Carlos I of Portugal Dom (title), ''Dom'' Carlos I (; 28 September 1863 – 1 February 1908), known as "the Diplomat" (), "the Oceanographer" () among many other names, was List of Portuguese monarchs, King of Portugal from 1889 until his Lisbon Regicide, assassin ...

in 1886. * Prince Philippe, Duke of Orléans (1869–1926). Married Archduchess Maria Dorothea of Austria daughter of Archduke Joseph Karl of Austria in 1896, * Princess Hélène of Orléans (1871–1951). She married Emmanuel Philibert, 2nd Duke of Aosta in 1895. * Prince Charles d'Orléans (1875–1875). * Princess Isabelle d'Orléans (1878–1961). She married Prince

Jean, Duke of Guise Jean d'Orléans (Jean Pierre Clément Marie; 4 September 1874 – 25 August 1940) was Orléanist pretender to the defunct French throne as Jean III. He used the courtesy title of Duke of Guise. He was the third son and youngest child of P ...

in 1899. * Prince Jacques d'Orléans (1880–1881). * Princess Louise d'Orléans (1882–1958). She married Carlos of Bourbon-Two Sicilies, Infante of Spain in 1907. Through her daughter

Maria Mercedes of Bourbon-Two Sicilies Maria may refer to: People * Mary, mother of Jesus * Maria (given name), a popular given name in many languages Place names Extraterrestrial *170 Maria, a Main belt S-type asteroid discovered in 1877 *Lunar maria (plural of ''mare''), large, da ...

, she was the great-grandmother of King

Felipe VI of Spain Felipe VI (; Felipe Juan Pablo Alfonso de Todos los Santos de Borbón y Grecia; born 30 January 1968) is King of Spain. In accordance with the Spanish Constitution, as monarch, he is head of state and commander-in-chief of the Spanish Armed For ...

. * Ferdinand d'Orléans, Duke of Montpensier (1884–1924). He married Marie Isabelle Gonzales de Olañeta et Ibaretta, Marquesa de Valdeterrazo in 1921. As the French royal family had been in exile since their grandfather King Louis Philippe abdicated in 1848, Marie Isabelle and her husband first lived at York House, Twickenham in England. In 1871 the family was allowed to return to France, where they lived in the

Hôtel Matignon The Hôtel Matignon (, ) is the official residence of the Prime Minister of France. It is located in the 7th arrondissement of Paris, at 57 Rue de Varenne. The name Matignon is often used as a metonym for the governmental action of the French p ...

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

and in the Château d'Eu in

Normandy Normandy (; or ) is a geographical and cultural region in northwestern Europe, roughly coextensive with the historical Duchy of Normandy. Normandy comprises Normandy (administrative region), mainland Normandy (a part of France) and insular N ...

. The Countess of Paris was known for her rather masculine habits of smoking cigars and participating in field sports, especially shooting, yet could surprise people with her elegance on formal occasions.Hanson, The Wandering Princess, 30, 32 In 1886, they were forced to leave France for a second time. In 1894, her husband died in exile at

Stowe House Stowe House is a grade I listed building, listed country house in Stowe, Buckinghamshire, Stowe, Buckinghamshire, England. It is the home of the Private schools in the United Kingdom, private Stowe School and is owned by the Stowe House Preserv ...

in Buckinghamshire. Marie Isabelle lived in the Château de Randan in France, and died in 1919 at her palace in

Villamanrique de la Condesa Villamanrique de la Condesa is a city located in the province of Seville, Spain. Twin towns * Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer, France See also * List of municipalities in Seville Province of Seville, Seville is a provinces of Spain, province in t ...

, near

Ancestry

References

* ''Généalogie des rois et des princes'' by Jean-Charles Volkmann Edit. Jean-Paul Gisserot (1998) * "The Wandering Princess: Princess Hélène of France, Duchess of Aosta (1871-1951), by Edward Hanson. Fonthill, 2017.

External links

* The museum in the château d'Eu , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Marie Isabelle, Princess of Orleans 1848 births 1919 deaths Spanish infantas Princesses of France (Orléans) Countesses of Paris House of Orléans-Galliera People from Seville Burials at the Chapelle royale de Dreux Dames of the Order of Saint Isabel