Kings of Naples

Charles I of Anjou (1226-1285)

Figlio del Re di Francia Luigi VIII il Leone e di Bianca di Castiglia. Sposò Beatrice, figlia del conte di Provenza e di Forcalquier Raimondo Berengario IV, ereditando dal 1246 i titoli del suocero. Nel 1247 suo fratello Luigi IX il Santo, Re di Francia, lo rese conte d’Angiò e del Maine, fondando così un nuovo ramo cadetto dei Capetingi: gli Angevins.

Charles I of Anjou was King of Sicily from 1266 until 1282, when he was driven from the island following the rebellion movements known as the Sicilian Vespers. Until his death, however, he continued to rule as King of Naples over the peninsular territories of the Kingdom.

And right on the facade of the Royal Palace of Naples, in the third niche from the left is a famous statue of him, sculpted by Tommaso Solari in the 19th century.

Charles II "the lame" (1254-1309)

Son of Charles I of Anjou and Beatrice of Provence. He went down in history as "the lame man" because of a congenital impairment, which, however, did not prevent him from always fighting valiantly. He inherited his father's titles and in 1285 succeeded him as King of Naples, ruling until 1309 (the year of his death). A year later, his body was transported to Aix, Provence, the land of his ancestors, which is perhaps why there are no important monuments or other works named after him in Naples, except for a couple of portraits of uncertain attribution. Moreover, as did his father before him, Charles II had the carlins minted in the Mint of Naples: gold and silver coins that featured on the obverse the Angevin coat of arms (a shield party with the fleur-de-lis of France and the Cross of Jerusalem), and on the reverse the scene of the Annunciation.

Robert of Anjou "the Wise" (1277-1343)

Son of Charles II of Anjou and Queen Mary of Hungary, he was first Duke of Calabria from 1296 to 1309, the year of his coronation as King of Naples. He also inherited all his father's other titles, retaining them until his death. Having no legitimate heirs still living, he was succeeded by his niece Giovanna, daughter of his son Charles, Duke of Calabria.

Robert of Anjou was called "the Wise One" or even "the Peacemaker": first of all because, soon after being elected, he actively participated in the reconciliation between Guelphs and Ghibellines. Moreover, with him, the Kingdom of Naples experienced a long period of peace after having long been plagued by bloody wars. His court was frequented by important writers, such as Petrarch and Boccaccio, and artists including Simone Martini, Tino di Camaino, and Giotto. It is precisely to Simone Martini that the 1317 painting (now preserved at the National Museum of Capodimonte) depicting the coronation of King Robert by his brother St. Louis of Toulouse (the latter, born in the castle of the Nocera Inferiore Park).

Joan I of Anjou (1327-1382)

Divenne Regina di Napoli nel 1343. Fu anche contessa di Provenza e di Forcalquier, Principessa d’Acaia e Regina titolare di Gerusalemme e di Sicilia. Era una donna colta e raffinata, di cui ricordiamo un’effigie tratta da un manoscritto del De mulieribus claris di Giovanni Boccaccio, oltre ad alcuni ritratti di incerta attribuzione (per lo più di artisti provenzali).

Nel 1380, essendo priva di eredi, Giovanna nominò Luigi I d’Angiò-Valois (1339-1384) come suo legittimo erede al trono di Napoli. Ma nel 1381 Carlo d’Angiò-Durazzo, cugino di lei, che era stato designato erede per primo, entrò a Napoli facendola incarcerare ed assassinare nella fortezza di Lucanian Wall Basilicata, and proclaimed himself king. Louis I was nevertheless king of Naples until his death.

Charles III "the Short" (1345-1386)

Carlo d’Angiò-Durazzo divenne Re di Napoli nel 1382 con il nome di Carlo III, e Re d’Ungheria nel 1385 con il nome di Carlo II detto “il breve”. Fu anche principe d’Acaia e Re titolare di Gerusalemme, come i suoi predecessori. Fu il primo membro degli Angiò-Durazzo ad insediarsi sul trono di Napoli, spodestando ed assassinando la cugina Giovanna I. Venne anch’egli assassinato nel 1386 a Visegrád (Ungheria), in una congiura organizzata dalla Regina Elisabetta di Bosnia, moglie di Luigi I e madre della Regina d’Ungheria spodestata da Carlo. Alla sua morte gli successero i suoi figli, prima Ladislao e poi Giovanna II. Entrambi però morirono senza eredi legittimi, determinando in questo modo la fine del dominio angioino sul Regno di Napoli.

Ladislaus I (1377-1414)

Noto anche come Ladislao d’Angiò-Durazzo o Ladislao di Durazzo, fu Re di Napoli dal 1386 al 1414, anno della sua morte. Detenne inoltre molti altri titoli, per lo più ereditati dai suoi predecessori. Spietato e sanguinario (il suo motto era Aut Caesar auti Nihil, “O Cesare o niente!”), fu l’ultimo erede maschio legittimo degli Angiò-Durazzo. Si sposò tre volte: la sua prima moglie Costanza di Chiaromonte, ripudiata dopo soli tre anni, visse nel Marigliano Palace (also known as Palazzo di Capua), in what is now Via San Biagio dei Librai in Naples, now the headquarters of the Archival and Bibliographic Superintendence of Campania.

A Ladislao I successe la sorella Giovanna II.

Joan II (1373-1435)

Giovanna II d’Angiò-Durazzo fu Regina di Napoli dal 1414 al 1435, anno della sua morte.

There are many legends about Joan II, most of them centering on her many vices: in fact, it seems that she hosted numerous lovers of all kinds and walks of life in her alcove, whom she got rid of immediately after satisfying her cravings. It is said that she even had a trapdoor built in her chamber at New Castle (now better known as Angevin Male), into which she threw her lovers, destining them to be devoured by sea monsters. This fiery and violent nature of her lover often earned her the nickname "Queen Mantis."

The queen also gave vent to her lechery (and crimes) at her summer residence at Capo di Sorrento, of which all that remains today are a few ruins and a secluded beach (the famous Queen Joan's Baths).

Morendo ella senza eredi legittimi, la casata degli Angiò-Durazzo si estinse, sancendo definitivamente la fine della dinastia degli Angioini.

Renatus I "the Good" (1409-1480)

A Giovanna II successe Renato di Valois-Angiò, fratello di Luigi III (l’erede designato dalla Regina, che però morì prima di lei). Luigi III e suo fratello Renato erano membri della famiglia dei Valois-Angiò, che dal 1380 rivendicavano il trono di Napoli e si fregiavano del titolo di Re di Napoli, in virtù del diritto ereditario che la Regina Giovanna I d’Angiò aveva concesso a Luigi I di Valois-Angiò prima di essere spodestata da Carlo III.

Renato I fu Re di Napoli dal 1435 al 1442 anno in cui fu deposto e cacciato dal Regno da Alfonso V re d’Aragona. Fu il primo e l’ultimo Re di Napoli della dinastia dei Valois-Angiò.

He was a patron of the arts, and under his reign so many plates and miniatures were made.

Alfonso I "the Magnanimous" (1396-1458)

Alfonso V di Aragona (in origine Alfonso di Trastámara) fu il capostipite del ramo aragonese di Napoli. Era stato precedentemente nominato erede titolare da Luigi III, ma nonostante fosse stato sconfessato da Giovanna II, il debole regno di Renato I e l’improvvisa povertà del suo casato gli fornirono la base giuridica per rivendicare il Mezzogiorno continentale ai danni del legittimo re napoletano. Conquistò militarmente il Regno di Sicilia Citeriore e, una volta congiunto al suo Regno di Sicilia Ulteriore, assunse il titolo di Rex Utriusque Siciliae, unificando formalmente i due regni.

Tuttavia, alla sua morte lasciò Napoli al suo figlio naturale Ferdinando I, mentre la corona di Aragona e la Sicilia andarono al fratello Giovanni II d’Aragona, separando così nuovamente i due regni.

Alfonso the Magnanimous is represented in the statue housed in the fourth niche from the left on the facade of the Royal Palace of Naples. The work, executed by Achille d'Orsi at the end of the 19th century, is presented as a combination of classicism and verismo; however, it has been little acclaimed by critics due to its "poor placement within its niche."

Alfonso I also had the Maschio Angioino rebuilt, after destroying it during his final siege of the city of Naples in 1441, and changed its name to Castel Nuovo. The entrance portal of the main facade is dedicated precisely to the "triumph of Alfonso I," in a style reminiscent of the triumphs of ancient Rome.

Ferdinand I (1423-1494)

Fu Re di Napoli dal 1458 al 1494. Meglio conosciuto come Ferrante I e detto anche Don Ferrante, era l’unico figlio maschio, illegittimo, di Alfonso I di Napoli: la madre, Gueraldona Carlino, era infatti una nobildonna di origine probabilmente napoletana, amante del re Alfonso V d’Aragona.

Ferdinand I married twice, producing six sons from the first marriage and one daughter from the second marriage, respectively--as well as a large number of illegitimate children.

Ferdinand I is portrayed on many Neapolitan coins of the period (Neapolitan armellini, horses, and crowns). The Capodimonte Museum also houses a bust, attributed to Guido Mazzoni and dated circa 1491, which depicts him with rather weighted features, the wrinkles of mature age, and the collar of the Order of the Ermine (which he founded in 1465). However, it has recently been thought that the bust actually depicts his successor Alfonso II of Naples, the eldest son he had from his first wife Isabella di Chiaromonte.

Alfonso II (1448-1495)

Fu Duca di Calabria e poi Re di Napoli per circa un anno, dal 25 gennaio 1494 al 23 gennaio 1495. Come detto in precedenza, è oggi in dubbio se il busto conservato al Museo di Capodimonte e attribuito a Guido Mazzoni (datato 1491 circa), raffiguri Alfonso II o il suo predecessore Ferdinando I.

Alfonso II had three children by his first wife Ippolita Maria Sforza and two illegitimate children by his mistress Trogia Gazzella. He was succeeded by his eldest son Ferdinand.

Among the various works promoted by Alfonso II was the purchase of a farm outside the walls of Naples to build an extra moenia residence: what would become the famous Villa di Poggioreale, one of the most important buildings of the Neapolitan Renaissance.

Ferdinand II "Ferrandino" (1469-1496)

When he was still a general he chose as his home the current Petrucci Palace, inglobandolo insieme ad altri beni confiscati ai nobili durante la cosiddetta “congiura dei baroni” (1487). Fu Re di Napoli per meno di due anni, dal 23 gennaio 1495 al 7 settembre 1496 (giorno della sua morte). Dal febbraio al luglio del 1495 fu spodestato da Carlo VIII di Francia, sceso in Italia per rivendicare l’eredità angioina facendo leva su un lontano diritto ereditario al trono di Napoli. Ma grazie all’assistenza del cugino Ferdinando II d’Aragona (Re di Sicilia e di Spagna) e alla lealtà del popolo, Ferrandino riuscì a riconquistare il Regno di Napoli in seguito alla battaglia di Seminara.

Having no direct heirs, upon his death (which occurred early at the age of 28) the crown was inherited by his uncle Frederick (Alfonso II's legitimate brother), who ascended the throne as Frederick I.

Charles IV (1470-1498)

Charles VIII of Valois was King of France from 1482 to 1498 and King of Naples in 1495 under the name Charles IV. His descent into Italy to oust Ferdinand II was unsuccessful, but it inaugurated the so-called "Italian Wars": eight long conflicts that profoundly changed the political geography of Italy (the great European powers disputed control of the peninsula) and ended only in 1559 with the Peace of Cateau-Cambrésis. Charles IV's entry into Naples is recorded in a 15th-century Figurative Chronicle by the Neapolitan chronicler Melchiorre Ferraiolo.

Frederick I (1452-1504)

Fu Re di Napoli dal 1496 al 1501. Si sposò due volte: la prima volta con Anna di Savoia (figlia del Duca Amedeo IX di Savoia), dalla quale ebbe una figlia, Carlotta; la seconda volta con Isabella del Balzo, figlia del Duca d’Andria, dalla quale ebbe cinque figli.

Frederick I was the last King of Naples of the Angevin dynasty.

Louis II (1462-1515)

Luigi XII di Valois-Orléans, detto “il padre del Popolo”, conquistò Napoli nell’estate del 1501, grazie anche al Trattato di Granada (che prevedeva una spartizione delle conquiste tra Francia e Spagna) e si fece incoronare col nome di Luigi II di Sicilia. Dopo quasi due anni di repressione l’esercito francese fu sconfitto prima nella battaglia di Cerignola e poi presso il Garigliano, nel 1503. L’armistizio di Lione del 1504 segnò la fine del secondo dominio capetingio sul regno partenopeo, e Napoli fu riconquistata. Non venne però rispettata la linea di successione antecedente all’invasione, e Ferdinando III si fece incoronare a discapito del cugino Ferdinando Duca di Calabria (legittimo titolare della Corona siciliana), che fu invece imprigionato e deportato in Spagna.

Ferdinand III "the Catholic" (1452-1516)

Ferdinando di Trastámara fu Re di Sicilia (1468-1516) col nome di Ferdinando II; Re consorte di Castiglia (1474-1504) col nome di Ferdinando V; Re d’Aragona, Valencia, Sardegna, Maiorca e titolare di Corsica, Conte di Barcellona e delle Contee Catalane (1479-1516) come Ferdinando II; Re di Napoli (1504-1516) come Ferdinando III; reggente di Castiglia (1507-1516) e Re dell’Alta Navarra (1512-1516). Il Papa Alessandro VI lo soprannominò Ferdinando il Cattolico per il suo impegno nel difendere la fede cattolica all’interno dei propri regni. Sposò Isabella di Castiglia, Regina di Castiglia e León, anch’ella denominata “La Cattolica”. Dopo la morte di lei (1504) Ferdinando sposò Germana de Foix (secondogenita dell’infante di Navarra), con la quale nel 1506 venne in visita a Napoli per la prima volta: nella sala del refettorio del Convent of San Lorenzo expressed his joy at the crown of Naples and received the oath of allegiance and loyal homage.

Joan III "the Mad" (1479-1555)

Joan of Trastámara (or Joan of Castile and Aragon) was the third child of Ferdinand of Aragon and Isabella of Castile, los Reyes Católicos, whose many titles she inherited. From 1506 she was confined to the monastery-castle of Tordesillas for her -true or alleged?- madness: she is in fact sadly known as "Joan the Mad" (Juana la Loca). The marriage policy of the time meant that Joan was given in marriage to Philip of Habsburg (Philip I known as "the Handsome," 1527-1598), second son of Emperor Maximilian I. They had six children, including Charles of Ghent (future emperor of the Holy Roman Empire under the name Charles V) and Catherine of Aragon (the ill-fated first wife of English ruler Henry VIII).

With the death of first Ferdinand III, and then his daughter Joan, the territories attached to the Crowns of Aragon and Castile then passed to the House of Habsburg, which handed down the Kingdom of Naples through its Spanish line (initiated by Charles V).

Stories and legends of the Kingdom of Naples are often attributed to Joan the Mad, actually relating to her contemporary Joan of Aragon (granddaughter of Ferrante I of Aragon) but especially to Joan II, the "mantis queen."

Charles V of Habsburg (1500-1558)

Upon the death of his maternal grandfather Ferdinand of Aragon, Charles of Ghent was appointed King of Spain in 1516, finding himself at the head of a vast empire that included the Netherlands, Castile and Aragon, southern Italy, and the lands discovered by Christopher Columbus in America.

Moreover, upon the death of his paternal grandfather Maximilian of Habsburg, Charles became a candidate for the crown, but to become emperor of the Holy Roman Empire he needed the support of the seven great electors designated by the Golden Bull. To gain their favor he decided to pay them with resources from the Americas.

On June 27, 1519, he was proclaimed emperor of an empire over which "the sun never set."

His dream was to build an immense empire of the Christian religion. In line with his universalist project, Charles V traveled a great deal during his lifetime, but without ever settling in a single capital city.

In 1555 he abdicated as Duke of Burgundy in favor of his son Philip II, and in 1556 he also ceded to him the crowns of Spain, Castile, Sicily and the New Indies, the Netherlands and Franche-Comté, and finally the Aragonese crown. Also in 1556 he ceded the imperial crown to his brother Ferdinand and then left for Spain, where he spent the last two years of his life in the monastery of San Jerónimo in Yuste (Extremadura).

Charles V is depicted in the fifth statue on the facade of the Royal Palace of Naples (by Raffaele Esposito) and in some very famous portraits by Titian, many of which are kept at the Prado Museum in Madrid. An entire room on the second floor of the Maschio Angioino (Castel Nuovo) is also named after him: the Charles V Room, in fact.

Philip II (1527-1598)

Noto anche come Filippo il Prudente, figlio di Carlo V ed Elisabetta di Portogallo. Ereditò da suo padre i vasti domini in Europa e nelle Americhe, tranne il titolo di imperatore ed il trono asburgico. Si assicurò il predominio sull’Europa con la Pace di Cateau-Cambrésis (1559), prendendo possesso delle Fiandre e di buona parte dell’Italia. Occupò il Portogallo nel 1580, unificò la Penisola Iberica e fronteggiò la rivolta delle Fiandre nel 1581. Fervente sostenitore del più rigoroso cattolicesimo, intervenne contro l’Inghilterra dopo l’esecuzione di Maria Stuarda, ma fu battuto nel 1588 e la potenza marittima spagnola crollò. In Spagna attuò una feroce repressione di ebrei ed arabi, in nome dei principi più rigidi della Controriforma.

After the death of his first wife Maria Emanuela of Aviz, Philip remarried Mary I of England. They had no children, so upon Mary's death Philip lost his rights to the English throne, which passed to Elizabeth I (daughter of Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn). His successor was Philip III, the last son he had with his fourth wife Anne, Archduchess of Austria.

Philip III (1578-1621)

Also known as "Philip the Pious," he succeeded his father Philip II in 1598, leaving to rule the Duke of Lerma F. Gómez Sandoval y Rojas, and later the Duke of Uceda. During his reign Spain continued the war against England and the Netherlands and found itself implicated against Charles Emmanuel I of Savoy in the dispute over the succession of Monferrato and in the early events of the Thirty Years' War.

Philip III permanently moved the court to Madrid, expelling all Moors from Spain in 1609, severely damaging the national economy. He was succeeded by his son Philip IV.

On the facade of the Royal Palace of Naples is a marble sculpture executed by Domenico Fontana and depicting the Coat of Arms of Philip III: a coat of arms divided into four parts (each depicting the emblems of the territories he ruled) and decorated at the top with three helmets, surmounted by as many dragons.

Philip IV (1605-1665)

Detto anche Filippo il Grande o Il Re Pianeta, fu Re di Spagna dal 1621 fino alla morte, sovrano dei Paesi Bassi spagnoli e Re del Portogallo e di Algarve come Filippo III fino al 1640. Con lui l’Impero spagnolo raggiunse la sua massima estensione territoriale (12,2 milioni di chilometri quadrati!), pur essendo ormai in declino. E la situazione poté solo peggiorare, a causa dell’incostanza di Filippo e delle mancate riforme della politica interna e di quella militare.

Philip IV is remembered as a great lover of the arts and theater, and great artists (including Velázquez) worked under his reign. The king also invested much capital in court ritual and the construction of new palaces in Spain to demonstrate his power.

On October 22, 1647, La Neapolitan Republic, un’entità politica di breve durata nata in chiave antispagnola dopo la repressione della rivolta di Masaniello. Sotto la guida di Gennaro Annese i napoletani scacciarono le truppe spagnole dalla città, proclamando la repubblica ed affidandone la guida ad Enrico II (1614-1664) Duca di Guisa, con la carica di Doge di Napoli. In seguito ad alcuni contrasti, la Repubblica crollò il 5 aprile 1648, e Don Giovanni d’Austria entrò a Napoli con le sue truppe ripristinando il governo vicereale spagnolo.

Philip IV was succeeded by his son Charles II, who became King of Naples under the name Charles V.

Charles V of Naples (1661-1700)

He was King of Spain (the last Habsburg, under the name Charles II) and of the overseas empire of Spain, Sicily and Sardinia, Duke of Milan, ruler of the Spanish Netherlands, Count Palatine of Burgundy and King of Naples under the name Charles V. He was nicknamed "Charles the Bewitched," as he suffered from very strong attacks of migraine, epilepsy and continuous flu-like illnesses, which popular belief attributed to a curse.

The famous Fountain of Monteoliveto in the square of the same name (for years a meeting place for young Neapolitans) is named after him and features a bronze statue of him on top.

Carlo V si sposò prima con Maria Luisa d’Orléans e poi con Maria Anna del Palatinato-Neuburg, ma morì senza eredi. A ciò seguì una fase di tensione dinastica in Europa che portò alla Guerra di Successione spagnola (1702-1714). La corona passò dunque alla dinastia dei Borbone con Filippo II Duca d’Angiò, secondogenito di Luigi di Francia (figlio di Luigi XIV e di Maria Teresa d’Asburgo, sorella di Carlo II).

Philip V of Bourbon (1683-1746)

Philip V of Spain was thus the first King of Spain of the Bourbon dynasty. His accession to the throne gave rise to the long Spanish war of succession, in which his rival Charles of Austria succeeded in being crowned king in Madrid in 1706. However, the war of succession ended with Philip's final victory, although he was forced to renounce all the dominions of the Spanish crown in Italy and Flanders.

Philip married Maria Luisa Gabriella of Savoy but, widowed in 1714, later married Elisabetta Farnese. From that time he left the queen and ministers (including Francesco Alberoni) to deal with politics. He abdicated in 1724 in favor of his eldest son Louis, but following the latter's death a few months later, he had to resume the crown.

Under the Treaty of Utrecht of 1713, the Kingdom of Sicily Citeriore passed to Charles VI, Holy Roman Emperor.

Charles VI (1685-1740)

Second son of Leopold I and his third wife, Eleanor of the Palatinate. He inherited the Spanish crown in 1703 as Charles III, and with the help of the anti-French coalition managed to establish himself temporarily in Catalonia and Madrid; after the death of his brother Joseph I he became King of Hungary under the name Charles III.

With the Peace of Rastadt he strengthened Austria's power over Spain in the Flemish and Italian possessions (Milan, Naples), and became King of Naples under the name Charles VI. He obtained numerous other territories, including Sicily in exchange for Sardinia (which went to Victor Amadeus II). In the War of Polish Succession he lost Naples and Sicily, and his son-in-law Francis Stephen of Lorraine exchanged the Duchy of Lorraine for Tuscany. He finally lost almost all the territories conquered in 1718 in the war against the Turks (1737-1739).

Basically, he was a king with a mediocre personality, little capable of implementing remarkable reforms and civil works and confronting the "states" and the nobility.

Once conquered by the Spanish armies in 1734 during the War of Polish Succession, the Kingdom of Naples and the Kingdom of Sicily were recognized as independent, and assigned to a cadet branch of the Bourbons of Spain by the Treaty of Vienna (1738), beginning the Sicilian-Napolitan branch of the Bourbons.

Charles III (1716-1788)

Charles Sebastian of Bourbon was Duke of Parma and Piacenza under the name Charles I (1731-1735), King of Naples without numbering (1734-1759), King of Sicily under the name Charles III (1735-1759) and King of Spain until his death (1759) as Charles III.

He was the eldest son of the second marriage of Philip V of Spain to Elizabeth Farnese. In 1734, during the War of Polish Succession, he removed the Kingdom of Naples from Austrian rule, and the following year also the Kingdom of Sicily. In 1735 he was crowned King of the Two Sicilies in Palermo, and three years later he was recognized as ruler of the two kingdoms in exchange for renouncing the Farnese and Medici states in favor of the Habsburgs and Lorraine.

He was the progenitor of the dynasty of the Bourbon of Naples and ushered in an important period of political, economic and cultural revival.

Upon the death of his half-brother Ferdinand VI (1759), he was called to succeed him on the Spanish throne, where he promoted a reformist policy that earned him a reputation as an "enlightened monarch."

Among the various works he promoted were the construction of the Palace of Portici and of the Palace of Capodimonte: the former, work on which began in 1738, had essentially a residential function; the latter was initially intended to be a "hunting lodge," being surrounded by a large green area, but soon the sculptures from the Farnese Collection found in Rome, which the king had inherited from his mother Elizabeth, were housed there.

Also the Royal Palace of Caserta was desired by Charles III, who entrusted its design to Luigi Vanvitelli: the latter was also charged with arranging the surrounding urban layout by installing a new aqueduct (Carolino aqueduct) that passed through the adjoining complex of San Leucio.

Charles III is also represented in the third-to-last statue on the facade of the Royal Palace of Naples, as well as the famous square at the end of Via Foria: Charles III Square precisely, formerly Reclusory Square.

It also appears that Charles, who was very devoted to St. Gennaro, had taken some of the saint's blood with him when he left to sit on the throne of Spain, removing it from the larger ampulla (which in fact is not completely full). He then had the ampulla kept in the Escorial chapel, having a mass celebrated for St. Gennaro every September 19.

Ferdinand IV of Naples (Ferdinand I of the Two Sicilies, 1751-1825)

The third son of Charles III of Spain and Mary Amalia of Saxony, he was the first ruler born in the kingdom of the Bourbon line of Naples, and the third Bourbon to rule over the Two Sicilies (under the name Ferdinand I) after his father Charles and grandfather Philip. He inherited the throne of Naples in 1759, when he was only eight years old.

His reign, which lasted more than 65 years, is one of the longest in the history of the Italian Pre-Unitarian States, and ranks ninth in the list of the longest reigns in history. It was, however, characterized by uneven attitudes and positions, as Ferdinand was always influenced by the politicians around him, relations with family members, and complex international events.

Initially Ferdinand seemed rather in line with the enlightened despotism of the time, going along with or even promoting Enlightenment-style changes and reforms; however, with the revolutionary and Napoleonic danger, reactionary and revengeful positions prevailed in him. He was then entrusted to a Regency Council that was to take charge of his education and the government of the country until he came of age. During this period Ferdinand resided in the royal palaces of Portici, Caserta and Naples, in a policy of economy and in an atmosphere of intrigue, jealousy and bigotry fomented by his preceptors.

In the following years Ferdinand adopted a rather unscrupulous domestic and foreign policy (ecclesiastical, feudal, school reforms, etc.) until the French Revolution. In 1799 he lost Naples, but soon regained it, only to lose it again in 1806 at the hands of Napoleon. From 1808 to 1815 the King of Naples was Joachim Murat (1767-1815), former French general and Marshal of the Empire under Napoleon Bonaparte (depicted in the penultimate statue on the facade of the Royal Palace of Naples).

During the period when Joachim Murat was King of Naples (under the name Joachim Napoleon), Ferdinand IV took refuge in Sicily, leaving his son Francis as vicar to rule the island. In 1814 he resumed power in Sicily and the following year regained the Kingdom of Naples. After the Congress of Vienna he created the United Kingdom of the Two Sicilies, specifically in 1816.

Under his reign a number of projects started by his father were completed, such as the Archaeological Excavations of Pompeii and Herculaneum, the manufacture of Capodimonte Porcelain and the Royal Palace of Caserta.

Ferdinand IV of Naples has been somewhat condemned by historiography because of his attitudes unbecoming of a monarch (which earned him the attribute "King Lazzarone"), but he was a man of good character and loved his people very much. He also went down in history as "King Nasone," for reasons that are easy to guess: just look at one of his many portraits, many of which are preserved in the Museum of the Historical Apartment of the Royal Palace.

Some of the works he promoted include the Vanvitellian Casina at Lake Fusaro (Bacoli), which he commissioned from Luigi Vanvitelli in 1782: initially conceived as a lakeside hunting lodge, it was later used as a residence for distinguished guests who came to visit royalty in the capital.