Princess Maria Francesca of Savoy (Maria Francesca Anna Romana; 26 December 1914 – 4 December 2001) was the youngest daughter of

Victor Emmanuel III of Italy Victor Emmanuel III (; 11 November 1869 – 28 December 1947) was King of Italy from 29 July 1900 until his abdication on 9 May 1946. A member of the House of Savoy, he also reigned as Emperor of Ethiopia from 1936 to 1941 and King of the Albania ...

and

Elena of Montenegro Elena of Montenegro (; 8 January 1873 – 28 November 1952) was Queen of Italy from 29 July 1900 until 9 May 1946 as the wife of King Victor Emmanuel III. As Victor Emmanuel's wife, she briefly claimed the titles Empress of Ethiopia and Quee ...

. In 1939, she married Prince Luigi of Bourbon-Parma. She was the sister of

Umberto II of Italy Umberto II (; 15 September 190418 March 1983) was the last King of Italy. Umberto's reign lasted for 34 days, from 9 May 1946 until his formal deposition on 12 June 1946, although he had been the ''de facto'' head of state since 1944. Due to hi ...

and Tsaritsa Giovanna of Bulgaria.

Biography

Maria Francesca of Savoy and Luigi Carlo of Bourbon-Parma wedding 1939-01-23

Born on 26 December 1914, Maria Francesca was born in Rome as the fifth and youngest child of her parents. She had three elder sisters, Yolanda,

Giovanna Giovanna is an Italian feminine first name. It is the feminine counterpart of the masculine Giovanni (name), Giovanni, which in turn is the Italian form of John (given name), John; it is thus the Italian equivalent of Joan (given name), Joan, etc. ...

Mafalda ''Mafalda'' () is an Argentina, Argentine Argentine comics, comic strip written and drawn by cartoonist Quino. The strip features a six-year-old girl named Mafalda, who reflects the Argentine middle class and progressive youth, is concerned abou ...

, and a brother,

Umberto Umberto is a masculine Italian given name. It is the Italian form of Humbert. People with the name include: * King Umberto I of Italy (1844–1900) * King Umberto II of Italy (1904–1983) * Prince Umberto, Count of Salemi (1889–1918) * Umberto ...

. On 23 January 1939, in the Pauline Chapel of the

Quirinal Palace The Quirinal Palace ( ) is a historic building in Rome, Italy, the main official residence of the President of Italy, President of the Italian Republic, together with Villa Rosebery in Naples and the Tenuta di Castelporziano, an estate on the outs ...

in Rome, Maria Francesca married Prince Luigi of Bourbon-Parma (1899–1967), a younger son of

Robert I, Duke of Parma Robert I (Italian: ''Roberto Carlo Luigi Maria'') (French: ''Robert Charles Louis Marie''); 9 July 1848 – 16 November 1907) was the last sovereign Duke of Parma, Duke of Parma and Piacenza from 1854 until 1859, when the duchy was annexed to Kin ...

, and

Infanta Maria Antonia of Portugal 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 ...

.''Genealogisches Handbuch des Adels, Fürstliche Häuser, XII''. "Haus Bourbon". C.A. Starke Verlag, 1984, p. 19. (German). Her husband was a brother of Zita, Empress of Austria, the last Empress of Austria and Queen of Hungary. The couple moved to

Cannes Cannes (, ; , ; ) is a city located on the French Riviera. It is a communes of France, commune located in the Alpes-Maritimes departments of France, department, and host city of the annual Cannes Film Festival, Midem, and Cannes Lions Internatio ...

, where all four of their children were born. Maria was

interned Internment is the imprisonment of people, commonly in large groups, without Criminal charge, charges or Indictment, intent to file charges. The term is especially used for the confinement "of enemy citizens in wartime or of terrorism suspects ...

with her husband and two sons by the Nazis during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

.de Badts de Cugnac, Chantal. Coutant de Saisseval, Guy. Nouvelle Imprimerie Laballery. Paris. 2002. pp. 597-598, 619. (French) In 1945 the Anglo-Americans freed them and they returned to Italy. After the war, they lived in Italy for a while, then returned to France. She took up permanent residence in Mandelieu, near Cannes, after her husband's death in 1967. They had four children: *Prince Guy of Bourbon-Parma (7 August 1940,

– 10 March 1991,

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 ...

); married Brigitte Peu-Duvallon on 11 November 1964, divorced on 17 September 1981, with issue. * Prince Rémy of Bourbon-Parma (born 14 July 1942, Cannes); married firstly Laurence Dufresne d'Arganchy 10 February 1973, divorced 1983, with issue. He married secondly Elisabeth Tardif on 5 July 2003. * Princess Chantal of Bourbon-Parma (born 24 November 1946, Cannes); married firstly Panayotis Skinas on 1 July 1977, divorced in 1987, with issue. She married secondly Francois-Henri Georges on 24 September 1988. * Prince Jean of Bourbon-Parma (born 15 October 1961, Cannes); married Virginia Roatta on 26 March 1988, with issue. Jean is the youngest grandchild of

Honours

House of Savoy The House of Savoy (, ) is a royal house (formally a dynasty) of Franco-Italian origin that was established in 1003 in the historical region of Savoy, which was originally part of the Kingdom of Burgundy and now lies mostly within southeastern F ...

: Dame Grand Cross of the Order of Saints Maurice and Lazarusgenmarenostrum.com
page with the Italian Royal family members' honours
/ref> * : Dame Grand Cross of Honour and Devotion of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta, 3rd First Class * Austrian Imperial and Royal Family: Dame of the Order of the Starry Cross, 2nd Class

Ancestry

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Maria Francesca Of Savoy, Princess 1914 births 2001 deaths 20th-century Italian people 21st-century Italian people 20th-century Italian women 21st-century Italian women 20th-century Roman Catholics 21st-century Roman Catholics Princesses of Savoy Knights Grand Cross of the Order of Saints Maurice and Lazarus Knights of Malta Italian Roman Catholics Nobility from Rome Italian people of Montenegrin descent Italian exiles Daughters of emperors Daughters of kings Children of Victor Emmanuel III