Francisco de Borbón y Escasany, 5th Duke of Seville

In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is Borbón and the second or maternal family name is Escasany.
The Most Excellent
The Duke of Seville
Grandee of Spain
Pictured in 2015
5th Duke of Seville
In office
1968–present
Preceded byEnriqueta de Borbón y Parade, 4th Duchess of Seville
Personal details
Born (1943-11-16) 16 November 1943 (age 81)
Madrid, Spain
Spouses
  • Countess Beatrice von Hardenberg (div.)
  • Isabelle Karanitsch (div.)
  • María de los Ángeles de Vargas-Zúñiga
Children3
Parent

Francisco de Paula Enrique de Borbón y Escasany, 5th Duke of Seville, Grandee of Spain (born 16 November 1943), is the current Duke of Seville and a distant relative of the Spanish royal family.[1] He is a businessman and has been involved in banking, real estate and other commercial activities.[2][3][4] He is not a Carlist pretender because of morganatic ancestry.

Early life

He was born in Madrid as the eldest child of Francisco de Borbón y Borbón (1912–1995),[5] who was the younger son of Francisco de Borbón y de la Torre and Enriqueta de Borbón y Parade, 4th Duchess of Seville.[1] His mother was Enriqueta Escasany y Miquel (1925–1962), daughter of Ignacio Escasany y Ancell and Enriqueta de Miquel y Mas, 2nd Marquesa de Pobla de Claramunt [es].[1]

His paternal grandparents were first cousins, both being grandchildren of Infante Enrique of Spain.[1] The Duke of Seville is a member of the Spanish branch of the House of Bourbon and is a relative of King Felipe VI of Spain, since both are descendants of King Charles IV of Spain.

Duke of Seville

After the death of his grandmother, Enriqueta de Borbón y Parade, he inherited the title of Duke of Seville.[6] His father had renounced his own rights to succeed to the title in 1968.[1]

Marriages and children

He was married on 7 July 1973 at Baden-Baden to Countess Beatrice Wilhelmine Paula von Hardenberg (28 June 1947 in Donaueschingen – 14 March 2020 in Marbella),[7] daughter of Count Günther von Hardenberg [ de ] and his wife, Princess Maria Josepha of Fürstenberg (granddaughter of Maximilian Egon II, Prince of Fürstenberg).[8] The couple had three children and divorced on 30 June 1989 in Madrid.[1]

They had two daughters and one son:[1]

  • Olivia Enriqueta María Josefa de Borbón y Hardenberg (born 6 April 1974 in London), entrepreneur and PR for jewelry brands; married to Julián Porras-Figueroa y Toledano (born 1982), with two children.
  • Cristina Elena de Borbón y Hardenberg (2 September 1975 in Madrid – 13 February 2020 in Madrid), chef and catering service operator.
  • Francisco de Paula Joaquín de Borbón y Hardenberg [cs] (born 21 January 1979 in Madrid), entrepreneur and also appeared on the first season of TLC's reality television series, Secret Princes.[9] In 2018, he was elected as 50th Grand Master of the Order of Saint Lazarus (Malta-Paris obedience).[10] On 9 October 2021, he married Sophie Elizabeth Karoly, with whom he has a son, Francisco Máximo de Borbón y Karoly (born 2017).[11]

He married for the second time on 19 October 1991 at Vienna to Isabelle Eugénie Karanitsch (born 23 November 1959 in Vienna), daughter of Franz M. Karanitsch and Tatjana Cimlov Karacevcev. They had no children and divorced on 17 June 1993 in Madrid.

He married for the third time on 2 September 2000 at Marbella to María de los Ángeles de Vargas-Zúñiga y Juanes (born 19 November 1954), daughter of Manuel de Vargas-Zúñiga y la Calzada and María de los Ángeles de Juanes y Lago. They have no children together.

The Order of Saint Lazarus

The Duke of Seville performing the accolade with a knighting sword during an investiture ceremony in 2007
Coat of arms as Grand Master of the Order of Saint Lazarus

The Duke of Seville was elected as 48th Grand Master of the Order of Saint Lazarus (Malta obedience) on 5 October 1996 at Santa Maria della Passione in Milan, Italy. He succeeded his father, who had been Grand Master of the Order since 1956.

He retired from his position of Grand Master in 2008 and was succeeded by his cousin, Carlos Gereda y de Borbón, Marqués de Almazán. The Duke of Seville was then given the title of Grand Master Emeritus. In 2018, the Duke of Seville's son was elected as 50th Grand Master of the Order of Saint Lazarus (Malta-Paris obedience), succeeding Carlos Gereda y de Borbón.[10]

Distinctions

Titles and styles

  • 16 November 1943 – 22 October 1968: Don Francisco de Borbón y Escasany
  • 22 October 1968 – present: The Most Excellent The Duke of Seville[6]

Honours

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g Enache, Nicolas. La Descendance de Marie-Therese de Habsburg. ICC, Paris, 1996. pp. 550-554. (French). ISBN 2-908003-04-X
  2. ^ Bloomberg profile
  3. ^ "Francisco de Borbón". Crédit des Alpes. Archived from the original on 2 October 2018. Retrieved 17 April 2014.
  4. ^ "Francisco de Borbón Escasany". Neftan. Retrieved 7 November 2021.
  5. ^ "Quién es el duque de Sevilla, representante de Felipe VI en la última reunión de borbones". Monarquia Confidencial. 25 September 2015. Retrieved 12 October 2021.
  6. ^ a b "Carta de Sucesión en el título de Duque de Sevilla, con Grandeza de España, a favor de don Francisco de Paula de Borbón y Escasany" (PDF). Boletín Oficial del Estado. Retrieved 5 March 2020.
  7. ^ "Death of Beatrice von Hardenberg". St-lazarus.net. Retrieved 10 June 2021.
  8. ^ Genealogisches Handbuch des Adels, Gräfliche Häuser, Band V. "Hardenberg". C.A. Starke Verlag, 1967, pp. 175-176.
  9. ^ "TLC television show info". Archived from the original on 7 January 2015. Retrieved 16 April 2014.
  10. ^ a b "The Military and Hospitaller Order of Saint Lazarus of Jerusalem – Grand Master". St-lazarus.net. Archived from the original on 12 December 2019. Retrieved 10 January 2020.
  11. ^ Montón, Lorena (9 October 2021). "Francisco de Borbón contrae matrimonio con Sophie Karoly". La Vanguardia (in Spanish). Retrieved 10 October 2021.
  12. ^ Cuerpo de la Nobleza del Principado de Asturias
  13. ^ Consejero Magistral – el Duque de Sevilla, Francisco de Borbón
  • The Royal House of Stuart, London, 1969, 1971, 1976, Addington, A. C., Reference: II 97
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Spanish nobility
Preceded by Duke of Seville
1968–present 		Incumbent
Heir:
Olivia de Borbón y Hardenberg