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Amadeo I of Spain

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Amadeo I
Duke of Aosta
Amadeo I, c. 1870-73
King of Spain
Reign16 November 1870 – 11 February 1873
PredecessorIsabella II
as Queen of Spain
SuccessorEstanislao Figueras
as President of the Republic
Alfonso XII
as King of Spain
Prime Ministers
See list
Born(1845-05-30)30 May 1845
Royal Palace, Turin, Kingdom of Sardinia
Died18 January 1890(1890-01-18) (aged 44)
Royal Palace, Turin, Kingdom of Italy
Burial
Basilica of Superga, Italy
Spouses
​
​
(m. 1867; died 1876)​
​
​
(m. 1888)​
Issue
Names
  • Italian: Amedeo Ferdinando Maria
  • Spanish: Amadeo Fernando María
  • English: Amadeus Ferdinand Mary
HouseSavoy
FatherVictor Emmanuel II of Italy
MotherAdelaide of Austria
ReligionCatholicism
SignatureAmadeo I's signature

Amadeo I (Italian: Amedeo Ferdinando Maria di Savoia; 30 May 1845 – 18 January 1890), also known as Amadeus, was an Italian prince who reigned as King of Spain from 1870 to 1873. The only king of Spain to come from the House of Savoy, he was the second son of Victor Emmanuel II of Italy and was known for most of his life as the Duke of Aosta, the usual title for a second son in the Savoyard dynasty.

He was elected by the Cortes Generales as Spain's monarch in 1870, following the deposition of Isabel II, and was sworn in the following year. Amadeo's reign was fraught with growing republicanism, Carlist rebellions in the north, and the Cuban independence movement. After three tumultuous years on the throne, he abdicated and returned to Italy in 1873, and the First Spanish Republic was declared as a result.

He founded the Aosta branch of Italy's royal House of Savoy, which is junior in agnatic descent to the branch descended from King Umberto I that reigned in Italy until 1946, but senior to the branch of the dukes of Genoa.

Early life and first marriage

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The Duke of Aosta with his first wife, Maria Vittoria dal Pozzo.
Amadeo painted by Vicente Palmaroli

Prince Amadeo of Savoy was born in Turin, then part of the Kingdom of Sardinia. He was the third child and second son of King Victor Emmanuel II, who would later become the first King of a unified Italy, and of Archduchess Adelaide of Austria. He was granted the hereditary title of Duke of Aosta from birth.

Entering the Royal Sardinian Army as captain in 1859, he fought through the Third Italian War of Independence in 1866 with the rank of major-general. He led his brigade into action at the Battle of Custoza and was wounded at Monte Croce. In 1868, after his marriage, he was made vice admiral of the Italian Royal Navy, but the position ended when he ascended the Spanish throne.[1]

In 1867, his father yielded to the entreaties of the parliamentary deputy Francesco Cassins, and on 30 May of that year, Amedeo was married to Donna Maria Vittoria dal Pozzo. The King initially opposed the match on the grounds that her family was of insufficient rank and that he hoped for his son to marry a German princess.[2] Despite her princely title, Donna Maria Vittoria was not of royal birth and belonged rather to the Piedmontese nobility. She was, however, the sole heir to her father's vast fortune,[2] which subsequent Dukes of Aosta inherited, thereby obtaining wealth independent of their dynastic appanage and allowances from Italy's kings.[2] The wedding day of Prince Amedeo and Donna Maria Vittoria was marred by the death of a station master, who was crushed under the wheels of the honeymoon train.[3]

In March 1870, Maria Vittoria appealed to the King to remonstrate with her husband for marital infidelities, which caused her hurt and embarrassment. However, the King wrote in reply that he understood her feelings, but he considered that she had no right to dictate her husband's behaviour, and her jealousy was unbecoming.[2]

King of Spain

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Main article: Provisional Government (1868–1871)
Reino de España
1871–1873
Coat of arms of Reign of Spain
Coat of arms

Spanish possessions around the world between 1821 and 1898.
Anthem
Marcha Real
CapitalMadrid
Government
 • TypeConstitutional monarchy
 • MottoPlus Ultra (latin): Further beyond
LegislatureCortes
Historical eraContemporary history of Spain
2 January 1871
10 February 1873
Preceded by		 Succeeded by
Provisional Government (1868–1871)
First Spanish Republic

After the Glorious Revolution deposed Isabella II in September 1868, the new Cortes began the task of searching for a suitable liberal-leaning candidate from a new dynasty to replace her. Eventually the Duke of Aosta was taken into consideration. His father was a descendant of King Philip II of Spain through his daughter Infanta Catalina Micaela of Spain and her son Thomas Francis, Prince of Carignano, while his mother was a descendant of King Charles III of Spain through his daughter Infanta Maria Luisa of Spain. The Savoyard prince was elected king as Amadeo I on 16 November 1870 and swore to uphold the Constitution in Madrid on 2 January 1871. While the new king was on his way to Spain, General Juan Prim, his chief supporter, was assassinated and Amadeo took the oath in the presence of Prim's corpse.[4]

This event deprived Amadeo I of indispensable support, particularly in the critical early days, and proved decisive considering that the progressive faction ultimately split between Prim’s two successors, Práxedes Mateo Sagasta and Manuel Ruiz Zorrilla.[5] The new king entered Madrid on January 2, 1871, and that same day he swore allegiance to the 1869 Constitution before the Cortes.[6] Later, he visited the Church of the Virgin of Atocha [es], where General Prim’s funeral chapel had been set up-

Amadeo as King of Spain on a coin from 1871.

First year

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Government of General Serrano: Failure of "Conciliation"

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Amadeo I, King of Spain.

At Prim’s deathbed request, a "conciliation" government formed under Admiral Topete, transitioning to General Serrano as President of the Council of Ministers. Amadeo endorsed Serrano, a former regent, to unite the coalition, including Progressives Sagasta (Interior) and Ruiz Zorrilla (Public Works), monarchist democrat Cristino Martos, and unionist Adelardo López de Ayala (Overseas).[7][8] Serrano’s government aimed to secure a majority in the 1871 elections via a district-based voting law, winning 235 seats (130 Progressives, 80 unionists, 20 democrats). However, opposition—52 republicans, 51 Carlists, and others—exposed coalition fragility.[9][10] Tensions arose over reforms like juries and church-state separation, with Sagasta favoring order and Ruiz Zorrilla pushing radical change, deepening divisions.[11]

King Amadeo and Queen Maria Vittoria dal Pozzo.

The nobility and Church rejected Amadeo as a foreign king tied to the 1868 Revolution, boycotting the court—epitomized by the "Rebellion of the Mantillas."[12] Carlists, led by Carlos VII, and republicans, advocating a federal republic, opposed him fiercely, with Carlists gaining 51 seats in 1871.[13][14]

Ruiz Zorrilla’s Government: Progressive Split

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Amadeo I reviewing troops in Madrid, 1871, by Daniel Vierge.

On July 15, 1871, Ruiz Zorrilla and radical allies resigned from Serrano’s cabinet, forcing Amadeo to appoint him president on July 24. Forming a radical-democrat government, Ruiz Zorrilla’s reformist agenda clashed with Sagasta’s conservatives, who refused to join.[15] A failed attempt to reunify Progressives in October—culminating in Sagasta’s election as Congress president over democrat Nicolás María Rivero—led to Ruiz Zorrilla’s resignation.[16]

Malcampo Government: Further Division

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Amadeo appointed José Malcampo on October 5, 1871, as a transitional leader, but the Progressive Party split irreparably into Sagasta’s conservatives and Ruiz Zorrilla’s Radical Party.[17] Malcampo resigned on December 19 after failing to unify the party, succeeded by Sagasta on December 21.[18]

Second year

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In 1872, relentless government crises deepened political instability, accelerating the decline of Amadeo I’s monarchy. Historian Ángel Bahamonde notes, "If in 1871 there had been a succession of government crises, in 1872 the persistence of the same crises led to a progressive deterioration of political and parliamentary life," with dire consequences for the Savoy dynasty.[19]

Sagasta’s Government: Constitutional Conservatives in Power

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Práxedes Mateo Sagasta.

On December 21, 1871, Práxedes Mateo Sagasta became president of the Council of Ministers, initially offering Manuel Ruiz Zorrilla’s Radicals four of eight cabinet posts—half the government—to unify Progressives. The Radicals declined, unwilling to break their alliance with Democrats and their “benevolent pact” with Republicans. Ruiz Zorrilla told Sagasta, “I am more than a progressive, I am a radical.” Sagasta then turned to General Serrano’s Unionists, who joined with one portfolio—Admiral Topete as Minister of Overseas Territories. The rest were “historical” Progressives: José Malcampo (War and Navy), Bonifacio de Blas (Interior), and others like Santiago de Angulo and Alonso Colmenares.[20]

Cartoon by Josep Lluís Pellicer, Preparing for the 22nd, January 1872, showing Francesc Pi i Margall and Sagasta.

On January 22, 1872, Sagasta presented his government to the Cortes, defining it as “progressive-conservative,” aiming to balance the 1869 Constitution’s rights with order. He defended the monarchy as “the essential foundation of public liberties” and proposed a system of two loyal, conciliatory parties—one more progressive, one less so, but both liberal-conservative. The Cortes rejected it, but with more dynastic votes in favor, Amadeo upheld his promise and granted Sagasta a decree to dissolve the Cortes for new elections. Radicals rallied with “Radicals defend yourselves!” and “God save the dynasty! God save freedom!” while Republicans declared, “The King has broken with Parliament, today the Savoy dynasty ends.”[21] Radicals accused a palace camarilla—including Italian advisers Dragonetti and Nicolás Ronchi [es], conservatives, and Queen Maria Vittoria’s neo-Catholic allies—of thwarting their power, fueling distrust in the Crown. Radical leaders boycotted palace lunches, and newspapers like El Imparcial equated Amadeo’s rule with Isabella II’s, calling Sagasta’s ministry “reactionary.”[22]

Birth of the Constitutional Party and “National Coalition”
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Caricature by Josep Lluís Pellicer, La coalición nacional, March 1872.

Sagasta’s Progressives and Unionists formed an electoral committee, issuing a manifesto on January 22, 1872. Amadeo, struggling with Spanish, urged Unionist José Luis Albareda to draft a plan for a Conservative Party to alternate with Radicals. Sagasta resisted a full merger, hoping for a “third party,” but relented under royal pressure. On February 21, the Constitutional Party emerged, blending Progressives and Unionists to defend “Liberty, the Constitution of 1869, the dynasty of Amadeo I, and territorial integrity.”[23] Meanwhile, Radicals, Republicans, Carlists, and Alfonsist Moderates formed a “National Coalition” to oust the government, using patriotic slogans like “Spain for the Spaniards” and fielding unified candidates.[24]

April 1872 Elections
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Satirical cartoon, Triunfo electoral, April 1872, mocking Sagasta’s electoral fraud.

The April 2 elections gave the Constitutionalists over 200 seats, bolstered by Sagasta’s “moral influence”—manipulated voting via bought votes and police intimidation—despite Amadeo’s plea for clean elections. Sagasta quipped they’d be “as pure as they can be in Spain.” The National Coalition secured nearly 150 seats (Radicals 42, Republicans, Carlists, Alfonsists), but high abstention and unrest in Carlist and Federalist regions underscored the victory’s fragility. The Progressive Party split permanently, with Sagasta’s faction joining Unionists and Ruiz Zorrilla leading the Radical Party with Democrats.[25][26]

Carlos María de Borbón y Austria-Este, the Carlist pretender to Carlos VII.

Carlist Uprising

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Opening of the Cortes [es] in Madrid, at the end of the King's speech the deputies shout 'Death to the Carlists', Le Monde Illustré, May 1872.

After losing seats (51 to 38), Carlists abandoned the legal path. On April 14, 1872, Charles VII launched the Third Carlist War, entering Spain on May 2 with cries of “Down with the foreigner!” Defeated at the Battle of Oroquieta [es] (May 4), he fled to France. Serrano’s Amorebieta Convention [es] (May 24) granted amnesty, ending Basque fighting, though Catalonia remained active.[27]

Fall of Sagasta and Serrano’s Brief Government

[edit]
General Serrano.

In May 1872, Sagasta resigned after a scandal over two million reales diverted for electoral corruption, including lázaros (votes cast by the dead). No clear explanation emerged, and his majority denied him confidence. Serrano assumed power on May 26 with a Unionist-heavy cabinet, promising stability. Ruiz Zorrilla offered “loyal opposition,” but resigned his seat on May 31 after party dissent, retiring to Soria. On June 11, facing radical-Republican unrest, Serrano sought to suspend constitutional guarantees, but Amadeo refused, prompting Serrano’s resignation on June 12 after less than 20 days.[28][29]

Ruiz Zorrilla’s Second Government

[edit]

Ruiz Zorrilla returned June 13, 1872, demanding an unconstitutional Cortes dissolution. Amadeo acquiesced, aligning with the Radicals. His cabinet—Martos (State), Echegaray (Public Works), and others—won the August elections (274 seats) amid Constitutionalist abstention and a Radical-Republican pact. Reforms included jury trials and Puerto Rican slavery abolition (passed December 24), but alienated conservatives. On July 18, Amadeo and Queen Maria Vittoria survived an assassination attempt on Calle del Arenal [es], deepening his isolation.[30] [31]

Abdication and Proclamation of the Republic

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Departure of Amadeo and Maria Vittoria dal Pozzo from the country, illustration by Vierge published in Le Monde Illustré on February 22, 1873.

In January 1873, a clash over artillery corps reorganization—opposed by officers but enforced by Ruiz Zorrilla—escalated tensions. Officers resigned en masse, appealing to Amadeo for a coup, which he rejected. On February 8, he signed the decree under pressure, then proposed a reconciliation government. When Radicals refused, he abdicated on February 10, declaring Spain ungovernable amid internal strife, Carlist and Cuban wars, and lost support. On February 11, the Cortes, with 258 votes, proclaimed the First Spanish Republic, naming Estanislao Figueras president.[32][33]

Later life

[edit]

Completely disgusted, the ex-monarch left Spain and returned to Italy, where he resumed the title of Duke of Aosta. The First Spanish Republic lasted less than two years, and in November 1874 Alfonso XII, the son of Isabella II, was proclaimed king, with Antonio Cánovas del Castillo, Spanish intermittent prime minister from 1873 until his assassination in 1897, briefly serving as regent.

Amadeo's first wife died in 1876. In 1888 he married his French niece, Princess Maria Letizia Bonaparte, Duchess of Aosta (20 November 1866 – 25 October 1926), daughter of his sister Maria Clotilde and of Prince Napoléon Bonaparte, a nephew of Napoleon I. They had one child, Umberto (1889–1918), who died of the Spanish flu during the First World War.

Amadeo remained in Turin, Italy until his death on 18 January 1890. His friend Puccini composed the famous elegy for string quartet Crisantemi in his memory.[34]

Legacy

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The municipality of Amadeo, in the province of Cavite, in the Philippines, which was a colony of Spain, was named after Amadeo I when it was established on 15 July 1872, during his reign.

A large salt lake, Lake Amadeus, and the subsequently-named Amadeus Basin, where it lies in central Australia, is also named after Amadeo I by the explorer Ernest Giles, who was the first European to encounter the lake, in 1872.

Honours and arms

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National

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Foreign

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Arms

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Coat of arms as Duke of Aosta (1845–1890) Coat of arms as King of Spain (1871–1873)

Issue

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By Maria Vittoria dal Pozzo:

  1. Prince Emanuele Filiberto, Duke of Aosta (13 January 1869 – 4 July 1931), Marshal of Italy, married to Princess Hélène of Orléans and had issue, including Prince Aimone who was briefly King Tomislav II of Croatia.
  2. Prince Vittorio Emanuele, Count of Turin (24 November 1870 – 10 October 1946), died unmarried.
  3. Prince Luigi Amedeo, Duke of the Abruzzi (29 January 1873 – 18 March 1933), Vice Admiral in the Italian Royal Navy, died unmarried.

By Maria Letizia Bonaparte:

  1. Prince Umberto, Count of Salemi (22 June 1889 – 19 October 1918), died of the Spanish flu during World War I.

Ancestry

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References

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  1. ^  Steed, H. Wickham (1911). "Amedeo Ferdinando Maria di Savoia". In Chisholm, Hugh (ed.). Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 1 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 804.
  2. ^ a b c d Pollock, Sabrina (August 2006). "Spain's Forgotten Queen". European Royal History Journal. 9.4 (LII): 25–26.
  3. ^ Roger L. Williams, Gaslight and Shadow: The World of Napoleon III, 1851–1870 (NY: Macmillan, 1957), 156–57
  4. ^ Pio Zabala y Leera, España bajo los Borbones, Biblioteca de Iniciacion Cultural, 1955 (5th edition), p. 421–425.
  5. ^ López-Cordón 1976, pp. 40–41.
  6. ^ Fontana 2007, p. 367.
  7. ^ Vilches 2001, p. 147.
  8. ^ Bahamonde 1996, pp. 74–75.
  9. ^ López-Cordón 1976, pp. 41–42.
  10. ^ Vilches 2001, p. 152.
  11. ^ Vilches 2001, p. 153.
  12. ^ Bahamonde 1996, pp. 76–78.
  13. ^ López-Cordón 1976, p. 45.
  14. ^ Bahamonde 1996, pp. 78–80.
  15. ^ Vilches 2001, pp. 162–168.
  16. ^ Vilches 2001, pp. 172–178.
  17. ^ Vilches 2001, pp. 179–183.
  18. ^ Bahamonde 1996, p. 76.
  19. ^ Bahamonde 1996, p. 80.
  20. ^ Vilches 2001, pp. 222–223, 226.
  21. ^ Vilches 2001, pp. 232–235.
  22. ^ Vilches 2001, pp. 285–287.
  23. ^ Vilches 2001, pp. 237–244.
  24. ^ Vilches 2001, pp. 287–291.
  25. ^ Vilches 2001, pp. 244–246.
  26. ^ Fontana 2007, p. 369.
  27. ^ Vilches 2001, pp. 254–256.
  28. ^ Vilches 2001, pp. 248–263.
  29. ^ Fontana 2007, pp. 369–370.
  30. ^ Vilches 2001, pp. 304–321.
  31. ^ Bahamonde 1996, p. 86.
  32. ^ Vilches 2001, pp. 326–344.
  33. ^ Fontana 2007, p. 371.
  34. ^ The Cambridge Companion to the String Quartet, p. 260
  35. ^ a b c Italia : Ministero dell'interno (1889). Calendario generale del Regno d'Italia. Unione tipografico-editrice. pp. 50, 53, 65.
  36. ^ "Savoia Amedeo Ferdinando Duca D'Aosta" (in Italian), Il sito ufficiale della Presidenza della Repubblica. Retrieved 2018-08-13.
  37. ^ "Real y distinguida orden de Carlos III". Guía Oficial de España. 1887. p. 148. Retrieved 21 March 2019.
  38. ^ "A Szent István Rend tagjai" Archived 22 December 2010 at the Wayback Machine
  39. ^ "Liste des Membres de l'Ordre de Léopold", Almanach Royal Officiel (in French), 1864, p. 54 – via Archives de Bruxelles
  40. ^ Jørgen Pedersen (2009). Riddere af Elefantordenen, 1559–2009 (in Danish). Syddansk Universitetsforlag. p. 466. ISBN 978-87-7674-434-2.
  41. ^ 刑部芳則 (2017). 明治時代の勲章外交儀礼 (PDF) (in Japanese). 明治聖徳記念学会紀要. p. 143.
  42. ^ Sovereign Ordonnance of 27 April 1875
  43. ^ "Königlich Preussische Ordensliste", Preussische Ordens-Liste (in German), 1, Berlin: 6, 936, 1886
  44. ^ Sergey Semenovich Levin (2003). "Lists of Knights and Ladies". Order of the Holy Apostle Andrew the First-called (1699–1917). Order of the Holy Great Martyr Catherine (1714–1917). Moscow.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  45. ^ Sveriges Statskalender (in Swedish), 1881, p. 377, retrieved 6 January 2018 – via runeberg.org
  46. ^ Norges Statskalender (in Norwegian), 1890, pp. 593–594, retrieved 6 January 2018 – via runeberg.org

Bibliography

[edit]
  • Bahamonde, Ángel (1996). España en democracia. El Sexenio, 1868-1874 [Spain in Democracy. The Sexenio, 1868-1874] (in Spanish). Madrid: Historia 16-Temas de Hoy. ISBN 84-7679-316-2.
  • Fontana, Josep (2007). La época del liberalismo. Vol. 6 de la Historia de España, dirigida por Josep Fontana y Ramón Villares [The Era of Liberalism. Vol. 6 of the History of Spain, directed by Josep Fontana and Ramón Villares] (in Spanish). Barcelona: Crítica/Marcial Pons. ISBN 978-84-8432-876-6.
  • López-Cordón, María Victoria (1976). La revolución de 1868 y la I República [The Revolution of 1868 and the First Republic] (in Spanish). Madrid: Siglo XXI. ISBN 84-323-0238-4.
  • Nieto, Alejandro (2021). La Primera República Española. La Asamblea Nacional: febrero-mayo 1873 [First Spanish Republic. The National Assembly: 1873 February-May] (in Spanish). Granada: Comares. ISBN 978-84-1369-237-1.
  • Vilches, Jorge (2001). Progreso y Libertad. El Partido Progresista en la Revolución Liberal Española [Progress and Liberty: The Progressive Party in the Spanish Liberal Revolution] (in Spanish). Madrid: Alianza Editorial. ISBN 84-206-6768-4.
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Amadeo I of Spain.
Amadeo I of Spain
Born: 30 May 1845 Died: 18 January 1890
Regnal titles
Preceded byas Regent King of Spain
1870–1873 		Vacant
Title next held by
Alfonso XII
Italian nobility
Vacant
Title last held by
Vittorio Emanuele 		Duke of Aosta
1845–1890 		Succeeded by
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