Princess Maria di Grazia of Bourbon-Two Sicilies


Princess Maria di Grazia was a princess of Bourbon-Two Sicilies and princess of Orléans-Braganza through her marriage to Prince Luiz of Orléans-Braganza.

Family

Maria was the daughter of Prince Alfonso of Bourbon-Two Sicilies, Count of Caserta and his wife Princess Antonietta of Bourbon-Two Sicilies. She was usually called “Maria Pia”. Her father, the third son of King Ferdinand II of the Two Sicilies, became Head of the Royal House of the Two Sicilies with the death of his elder brother, King Francis II, in 1894. At the time of his birth, however, the Sicilian Royal Family was already exiled in France due to Italian Unification, which took place in 1861.

Marriage and issue

Maria married Prince Luiz Maria of Orléans-Braganza, son of Prince Gaston of Orléans, Count of Eu and his wife Isabel, Princess Imperial of Brazil, on 4 November 1908 in Cannes, France. Maria and Luiz had three children:
Prince Luís died in 1920 leaving Maria a widow for the remainder of her life. In 1922, Maria accompanied the Brazilian Imperial Family to Brazil for the country's centennial celebrations of its independence. During the course of the trip, the Count of Eu died while recumbent upon her shoulder. Princess Maria preferred to live with her children in France, where they could have a better education.
She died at her country house in Mandelieu and was later buried at the Orléans Mausoleum at Dreux, with her husband. She was short of her ninety-fifth birthday.

Titles, styles, honours and arms

Titles