Maria Christina of the Two Sicilies

Vincente López Portaña
Spanish 1772–1850
Maria Cristina de Bourbon, Queen of Spain (fourth wife of Fernando VII) 1830
oil on canvas
96.0 x 74.0 cm
Museo Nacional del Prado, Madrid (P00865)

Lived: 27 April 1806 – 22 August 1878

Fourth wife and niece of Ferdinand VII.

Ferdinand was so anxious to produce an heir after the death of his third wife that he married Maria Christina only seven months later. She rapidly gave birth to two daughters, the eldest becoming the future Queen Isabella II, before Ferdinand died in 1833. Maria Christina then assumed the position of Regent for Isabella. She secretly married a commoner three months later, which led to upheaval in the line of succession.