List of Sicilian monarchs

The monarchs of Sicily ruled from the establishment of the County of Sicily in 1071 until the "perfect fusion" in the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies in 1816.

The origins of the Sicilian monarchy lie in the Norman conquest of southern Italy which occurred between the 11th and 12th century. Sicily, which was ruled as an Islamic emirate for at least two centuries, was invaded in 1071 by Norman House of Hauteville, who conquered Palermo and established a feudal county. The House of Hauteville completed their conquest of Sicily in 1091.

In 1130 the County of Sicily and the County of Apulia, both led by two distinct branches of the House of Hauteville, merged in the Kingdom of Sicily, and Count Roger II was crowned king by Antipope Anacletus II. Over the centuries Sicily passed through the hands of several foreign authorities: from 1194 to 1254 it was in personal union with the Holy Roman Empire; from 1282 to 1714 it came into a personal union with the Crown of Aragon; from 1713 to 1720 it was in a personal union with the Duchy of Savoy and finally, from 1720 to 1735, was one of the crowns of the Habsburg Monarchy.

In 1282, after the Sicilian Vespers, the kingdom split in two separated states: the properly named Ultra Sicily (Siciliae ultra Pharum, what means "Sicily over the Strait") and the Hither Sicily (Siciliae citra) or commonly named Kingdom of Naples. The two states stylized themselves always as "Kingdom of Sicily", until the partial unification in 1516 when Charles I of Spain inherited both lands as "King of Naples and Sicily". The definitive unification occurred in 1816 when Ferdinand IV and III unified the two entities into a single state, the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies.

Emirs of Sicily

Counts of Sicily

Sicily was granted, pending its Christian reconquest, to Robert Guiscard as "duke" in 1059 by Pope Nicholas II. Then Guiscard granted it as a county to his brother Roger.

House of Hauteville, 1071-1130

NamePortraitBirthMarriagesDeath
Roger I
10711101
1031
son of Tancred of Hauteville and Fredisenda
Judith of Évreux
1061
4 children

Eremburga of Mortain
1077
8 children

Adelaide del Vasto
1087
4 children
1101
Mileto
aged 70
Simon
11011105
1093
son of Roger I of Sicily and Adelaide del Vasto
never married1105
Mileto
aged 12
Roger II
11051130
22 December 1095
Mileto
son of Roger I of Sicily and Adelaide del Vasto
Elvira of Castile
1117
6 children

Sibyl of Burgundy
1149
2 children

Beatrix of Rethel
1151
1 child
26 February 1154
Palermo
aged 58

Kings of Sicily

Roger II received royal investiture from Antipope Anacletus II in 1130 and recognition from Pope Innocent II in 1139. The Kingdom of Sicily, which by then comprised not only the island, but also the southern third of the Italian peninsula, rapidly expanded itself to include Malta and the Mahdia, the latter if only briefly.

House of Hauteville, 11301198

NamePortraitBirthMarriagesDeathClaim
Roger II
11301154
22 December 1095
Mileto
son of Roger I of Sicily and Adelaide del Vasto
Elvira of Castile
1117
6 children

Sibyl of Burgundy
1149
2 children

Beatrix of Rethel
1151
1 child
26 February 1154
Palermo
aged 58
Papal bull by
Antipope Anacletus II
William I the Bad
11541166
1131
son of Roger II and Elvira of Castile
Margaret of Navarre
4 children
7 May 1166
Palermo
aged 35
Son of Roger II
Agnatic primogeniture
William II the Good
11661189
1155
son of William I and Margaret of Navarre
Joan of England
February 1177
1 child
11 November 1189
Palermo
aged 34
Son of William I
Agnatic primogeniture
Tancred I
11891194
(joint rule)
1138
illegitimate son of Roger III, Duke of Apulia
Sibylla of Acerra
6 children
20 February 1194
Palermo
aged 56
Illegitimate grandson of
Roger II
Seizure
Roger III
1193
(joint rule)
1175
son of Tancred of Sicily and Sibylla of Acerra
Irene Angelina
no children
24 December 1193
aged 18
Son of Tancred I
Agnatic primogeniture
William III
1194
1190
son of Tancred and Sibylla of Acerra
never married1198
aged 8
Son of Tancred I
Agnatic primogeniture
Constance I
11941198
2 November 1154
daughter of Roger II and Beatrix of Rethel
Henry VI, Holy Roman Emperor
1184
1 child
27 November 1198
Palermo
aged 44
Posthumous daughter of
Roger II
Right of Conquest

Constance was married to the Emperor Henry VI and he pressed his claim to the kingdom from William II's death, but only succeeded in displacing his wife's family in 1194.

There is evidence that, during the baronial revolt of 1197, there was an attempt to make Count Jordan Lupin of Bovino king in opposition to Henry VI. He may even have been crowned and seems to have had the support of Constance, who had turned against her husband. In the end he was captured and executed. He is accepted as a pretender to the throne by modern historians Evelyn Jamison and Thomas Curtis Van Cleve.

House of Hohenstaufen, 11941266

NamePortraitBirthMarriagesDeathClaim
Henry I
11941197
November 1165
Nijmegen
son of Frederick I, Holy Roman Emperor and Beatrix of Burgundy
Constance of Sicily
1184
1 child
28 September 1197
Messina
aged 32
Husband of Constance
Jure uxoris
Frederick I
11981250
(joint rule)
26 December 1194
Jesi
son of Henry I and Constance I
Constance of Aragon
15 August 1209
1 child

Yolande of Jerusalem
9 November 1225
2 children

Isabella of England
15 July 1235
4 children
13 December 1250
Torremaggiore
aged 55
Son of Constance
Jure matris
Henry II
12121217
(joint rule)
1211
Sicily
son of Frederick I and Constance of Aragon
Margaret of Austria
29 November 1225
2 children
12 February 1242
Martirano
aged 30
Son of Frederick I
Agnatic primogeniture
Conrad I
12501254
25 April 1228
Andria
son of Frederick I and Yolande of Jerusalem
Elisabeth of Bavaria
1 September 1246
1 child
21 May 1254
Lavello
aged 26
Son of Frederick I
Agnatic primogeniture
Conrad II the Younger
12541258
25 March 1252
Wolfstein
son of Conrad I and Elisabeth of Bavaria
never married29 October 1268
Naples
aged 16
(executed)
Son of Conrad I
Agnatic primogeniture
Manfred
12581266
1232
Illegitimate son of Frederick I
Beatrice of Savoy
21 April 1247
1 child

Helena Angelina Doukaina
9 November 1255
5 children
26 February 1266
Battle of Benevento
aged 34
(killed in action)
Illegitimate son of Frederick I
Seizure

Manfred was regent of Sicily for his nephew, the child Conrad II ("Conradin"), but took the crown in 1258, and continued to fight to keep the kingdom under the Hohenstaufen. In 1254 the pope, having declared the kingdom a papal possession, offered the crown to the King of England's son, Edmund Crouchback, but the English never succeeded in taking the kingdom. In 1262 the pope reversed his previous decision and granted the kingdom to the King of France's brother, Charles of Anjou, who succeeded in dispossessing Manfred in 1266. Conradin continued his claim to the throne until his death by decapitation perpetrated by Charles of Anjou in 1268.

Plantagenet Dynasty

Edmund Crouchback, son of King Henry III of England, claimed the Crown of Sicily between 1254 and 1263; the claim was taken very seriously by both him and his father, but was completely ineffectual.

Capetian House of Anjou, 12661282

NamePortraitBirthMarriagesDeath
Charles I
12661282
21 March 1226
son of Louis VIII of France and Blanche of Castile
Beatrice of Provence
31 January 1246
7 children

Margaret of Burgundy
18 November 1268
1 child
7 January 1285
Foggia
aged 58

Peter III of Aragon, Manfred's son in law, of the House of Barcelona, conquered the island of Sicily from Charles I in 1282 and had himself crowned King of Sicily. Thereafter the old Kingdom of Sicily was centred on the mainland, with capital at Naples, and although informally called Kingdom of Naples it was still known formally as "Kingdom of Sicily". Thus, there were two "Sicilies" — the island kingdom, however, was often called "Sicily beyond the Lighthouse" or "Trinacria", by terms of a treaty between the two states.

House of Barcelona, 12821410

NamePortraitBirthMarriagesDeathClaim
Constance II (joint rule)
12761285
1249
Sicily
daughter of Manfred of Sicily and Beatrice of Savoy
Peter I the Great
13 June 1262
6 children
9 April 1302
Barcelona, Spain
aged 52 or 53
Daughter of Manfred of Sicily
Right of conquest
Peter I the Great (joint rule)
12821285
1240
Valencia
son of James I of Aragon and Yolanda of Hungary
Constance of Sicily
13 June 1262
6 children
2 November 1285
Vilafranca del Penedès
aged 45
Husband of Constance II
Jure uxoris
James the Just
12851295
10 August 1267
Valencia
son of Peter I and Constance of Sicily
Isabella of Castile
1 December 1291
No children

Blanche of Anjou
29 October 1295
10 children

Marie de Lusignan
15 June 1315
No children

Elisenda de Montcada
25 December 1322
No children
5 November 1327
Barcelona
aged 60
Son of Peter I and Constance II
Salic patrimony
Frederick II
12951337
13 December 1272
Barcelona
son of Peter I and Constance of Sicily
Eleanor of Anjou
17 May 1302
9 children
25 June 1337
Palermo
aged 65
Regent brother of James
Election
Peter II
13371342
July 1305
son of Frederick II and Eleanor of Anjou
Elisabeth of Carinthia
23 April 1322
9 children
15 August 1342
Calascibetta
aged 37
Son of Frederick II
Agnatic primogeniture
Louis
13421355
1337
Catania
son of Peter II and Elisabeth of Carinthia
Never married16 October 1355
Aci Castello
aged 18
Son of Peter II
Agnatic primogeniture
Frederick III the Simple
13551377
1 September 1341
Catania
son of Peter II and Elisabeth of Carinthia
Constance of Aragon
11 April 1361
1 child

Antonia of Balzo
17 January 1372
No children
27 January 1377
Messina
aged 36
Son of Peter II
Brother of Louis
Agnatic primogeniture
Maria
13771401
(joint rule)
1363
Catania
daughter of Frederick III and Constance of Aragon
Martin I of Sicily
1390
1 child
25 May 1401
Lentini
aged 38
Daughter of Frederick III
Cognatic primogeniture
Martin I the Younger
13901409
(joint rule)
1374
son of Martin I of Aragon and Maria of Luna
Maria of Sicily
1390
1 child
25 July 1409
Cagliari
aged 35
Husband of Maria
Jure uxoris
Martin II the Elder
14091410
1356
Girona
son of Peter IV of Aragon and Eleanor of Sicily
Maria de Luna
13 June 1372
4 children

Margarita of Aragon-Prades
1409
No children
31 May 1410
Barcelona
aged 54
Maternal grandson of Peter II
Cognatic primogeniture

Martin I died heirless in 1409 and the kingdom was inherited by his father who united it to the Crown of Aragon.

House of Trastámara, 14121516

NamePortraitBirthMarriagesDeath
Ferdinand I the Honest
14121416
27 November 1380
Medina del Campo
son of John I of Castile and Eleanor of Aragon
Eleanor of Alburquerque
1394
8 children
2 April 1416
Igualada
aged 36
Alfonso the Magnanimous
14161458
1396
Medina del Campo
son of Ferdinand I and Eleanor of Alburquerque
Maria of Castile
1415
No children
27 June 1458
Naples
aged 52
John the Great
14581479
29 June 1397
Medina del Campo
son of Ferdinand I and Eleanor of Alburquerque
Blanche I of Navarre
6 November 1419
4 children

Juana Enríquez
2 children
20 January 1479
Barcelona
aged 81
Ferdinand II the Catholic
14791516
10 March 1452
son of John II of Aragon and Juana Enriquez
Isabella I of Castile
19 October 1469
5 children

Germaine of Foix
1505
No children
23 January 1516
Madrigalejo
aged 63
Joanna the Mad
15161555
6 November 1479
daughter of Ferdinand II of Aragon and Isabella I of Castile
Philip IV of Burgundy
1496
6 children
12 April 1555
Madrigalejo
aged 75

House of Habsburg, 1516-1700

NamePortraitBirthMarriagesDeath
Charles II
15161554
24 February 1500
Ghent
son of Philip I of Castile and Joanna of Castile
Isabella of Portugal
10 March 1526
3 children
21 September 1558
Yuste
aged 58
Philip II of Spain
15541598
21 May 1527
Valladolid
son of Charles II and Isabella of Portugal
Maria of Portugal
1543
1 child

Mary I of England
1554
No children

Elisabeth of Valois
1559
2 children

Anna of Austria
4 May 1570
5 children
13 September 1598
Madrid
aged 71
Philip II
15981621
14 April 1578
Madrid
son of Philip I and Anna of Austria
Margaret of Austria
18 April 1599
5 children
31 March 1621
Madrid
aged 42
Philip III
16211665
8 April 1605
Valladolid
son of Philip II and Margaret of Austria
Elisabeth of Bourbon
1615
7 children

Mariana of Austria
1649
5 children

17 September 1665
Madrid
aged 60
Charles III
16651700
6 November 1661
Madrid
son of Philip III and Mariana of Austria
Maria Luisa of Orléans
19 November 1679
No children

Maria Anna of Neuburg
14 May 1690
No children

1 November 1700
Madrid
aged 38

House of Bourbon, 1700-1713, during War of the Spanish Succession

NamePortraitBirthMarriagesDeath
Philip IV
17001713
19 December 1683
Versailles
son of Louis, Dauphin of France and Maria Anna of Bavaria
Maria Luisa of Savoy
2 November 1701
4 children

Elisabeth of Parma
24 December 1714
7 children

9 July 1746
Madrid
aged 62

At the end of the War of the Spanish Succession, by the Treaty of Utrecht, Sicily was ceded to the Duke of Savoy.

House of Savoy, 17131720

NamePortraitBirthMarriagesDeath
Victor Amadeus
17131720
14 May 1666
Turin
son of Charles Emmanuel II, Duke of Savoy and Marie Jeanne Baptiste de Savoie-Nemours
Anne Marie of Orléans
10 April 1684
6 children
31 October 1732
Moncalieri
aged 66

The Spanish invaded the kingdom in 1718 during the War of the Quadruple Alliance. The Duke of Savoy ceded it to Austria in 1720 by the Treaty of The Hague.

House of Habsburg, 17201735

NamePortraitBirthMarriagesDeath
Charles IV
17201735
1 October 1685
Vienna
son of Leopold I, Holy Roman Emperor and Eleonore-Magdalena of Pfalz-Neuburg
Elisabeth Christine
1 August 1708
4 children
20 October 1740
Vienna
aged 55

Charles I, Duke of Parma conquered the kingdom during the War of the Polish Succession. At the end of the war Sicily was ceded to the new Charles V of Sicily.

House of Bourbon 17351816

NamePortraitBirthMarriagesDeath
Charles V
17351759
20 January 1716
Madrid
son of Philip IV and Elizabeth of Parma
Maria Amalia of Saxony
1738
13 children
14 December 1788
Madrid
aged 72
Ferdinand III
17591816
12 January 1751
Naples
son of Charles V and Maria Amalia of Saxony
Marie Caroline of Austria
12 May 1768
17 children

Lucia Migliaccio of Floridia
27 November 1814
No children
4 January 1825
Naples
aged 73

In 1816 the Kingdom of Naples and the Kingdom of Sicily were merged as the new Kingdom of the Two Sicilies.

House of Bourbon-Two Sicilies 18161861

Portrait Coat of arms Name Reign Relationship with predecessor(s) Title
Ferdinand I
(Ferdinando I)
12 December 1816 4 January 1825   Son of Charles III of Spain King of the Two Sicilies
(Rè delle Due Sicilie)
Francis I
(Francesco I)
4 January 1825 8 November 1830   Son of Ferdinand I King of the Two Sicilies
(Rè delle Due Sicilie)
Ferdinand II
(Ferdinando II)
8 November 1830 22 May 1859   Son of Francis I King of the Two Sicilies
(Rè delle Due Sicilie)
Francis II
(Francesco II)
22 May 1859 20 March 1861   Son of Ferdinand II King of the Two Sicilies
(Rè delle Due Sicilie)

Family tree

See also

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