Francis II succeeds Ferdinand II in Naples (1859)

Ferdinand II, King of the Two Sicilies, died on 22 May 1859, shortly after the outbreak of war between the Austrian Empire and the Franco-Sardinian alliance. His only son, Francis II, immediately succeeded him as the last Bourbon king of Naples. This transition occurred amidst diplomatic isolation and the looming threat of invasion, setting the stage for the kingdom's eventual annexation.

Episodes

Background and detail

Succession. Francis II, born in Naples in 1836, was the only son and heir of Ferdinand II by his first wife, Maria Christina of Savoy. He was the last of the Bourbon kings of Naples. Following his father's death, Francis II took the throne on 22 May 1859, becoming the last king of the Two Sicilies before the Italian unification process began.

Political Context. The succession occurred shortly after the Second French Empire and the Kingdom of Sardinia declared war against the Austrian Empire. The kingdom's diplomatic isolation, which Gladstone's letters had helped cause, later facilitated its invasion and annexation by the Savoyard Kingdom of Sardinia. Francis II later rejected Cavour's proposal to divide the Papal States between Piedmont and Naples, viewing the idea as heresy.

People involved

Sources

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