List of Sicilian monarchs

The monarchs of Sicily ruled from the establishment of the Kingdom of Sicily in 1130 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 named the County of Sicily. The House of Hauteville completed their conquest of Sicily in 1091.

In 1130, the County of Sicily and the County of Apulia, ruled by different branches of the House of Hauteville, merged as the Kingdom of Sicily, and Count Roger II was crowned king by Antipope Anacletus II. In 1282, after the Sicilian Vespers, the kingdom split into separate states: the properly named "Ultra Sicily" (Siciliae ultra Pharum, Latin for "Sicily over the Strait") and "Hither Sicily" (Siciliae citra, commonly called "the Kingdom of Naples").^[1] Definitive unification occurred in 1816, when Ferdinand IV and III made the two entities into a single state, the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies.^[2]^[3]

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, 1130–1198

Name	Birth	Marriage(s)	Death	Claim
Roger II 1130–1154	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 1154–1166	1121 son of Roger II and Elvira of Castile	Margaret of Navarre 4 children	7 May 1166 Palermo aged 45	Son of Roger II Agnatic primogeniture
William II the Good 1166–1189	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 1189–1194 (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 married	1198 aged 8	Son of Tancred I Agnatic primogeniture
Constance I 1194–1198	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, 1194–1266

Name	Birth	Marriage(s)	Death	Claim
Henry I 1194–1197	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 1198–1250 (joint rule)	26 December 1194 Jesi son of Henry I and Constance I	Constance of Aragon 15 August 1209 1 child Isabella II 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 1212–1217 (joint rule)	1211 Sicily son of Frederick II 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 1250–1254	25 April 1228 Andria son of Frederick II and Isabella II 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 aka Conradin 1254–1258	25 March 1252 Wolfstein son of Conrad I and Elisabeth of Bavaria	never married	29 October 1268 Naples aged 16 (executed)	Son of Conrad I Agnatic primogeniture
Manfred 1258–1266	1232 Illegitimate son of Frederick II	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.

House of Plantagenet

Edmund Crouchback, son of King Henry III of England, claimed the Crown of Sicily between 1254 and 1263. Both he and his father took the claim very seriously, but it was completely ineffectual.

Capetian House of Anjou, 1266–1282

Name	Portrait	Birth	Marriage(s)	Death
Charles I 1266–1282		21 March 1227 son of Louis VIII of France and Blanche of Castile	Beatrice of Provence 31 January 1246 6 children Margaret of Nevers 18 November 1268 childless	7 January 1285 Foggia aged 57

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, 1282–1410

Name	Birth	Marriage(s)	Death	Claim
Constance II 1268/1282–1285 (joint rule)	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 1282–1285 (joint rule)	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 1285–1295	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 1295–1337	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 1337–1342	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 1342–1355	1337 Catania son of Peter II and Elisabeth of Carinthia	Never married	16 October 1355 Aci Castello aged 18	Son of Peter II Agnatic primogeniture
Frederick III the Simple 1355–1377	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 1377–1401 (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 1390–1409 (joint rule)	1374 son of Martin I of Aragon (Martin II of Sicily) 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 1409–1410	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 II of Sicily died without an heir in 1410 and the kingdom was inherited by his nephew.

House of Trastámara, 1412–1516

Name	Birth	Marriage(s)	Death
Ferdinand I the Honest 1412–1416	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 1416–1458	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 1458–1468	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 1468–1516	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 1516–1555	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

Joanna was confined under alleged insanity during her whole reign.

House of Habsburg, 1516-1700

Name	Birth	Marriage(s)	Death
Charles I 1516–1556	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 I 1554–1598	21 May 1527 Valladolid son of Charles I 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 1598–1621	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 1621–1665	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 II 1665–1700	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

Name	Portrait	Birth	Marriage(s)	Death
Philip IV 1700–1713		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, 1713–1720

Name	Portrait	Birth	Marriage(s)	Death
Victor Amadeus 1713–1720		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, 1720–1735

Name	Portrait	Birth	Marriage(s)	Death
Charles III 1720–1735		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 him as Charles III of Sicily.

House of Bourbon 1735–1816

Name	Portrait	Birth	Marriage(s)	Death
Charles III 1735–1759		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 1759–1816		12 January 1751 Naples son of Charles III 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 1816–1861

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)

Heads of the Royal House of Two Sicilies

House of Bourbon-Two Sicilies

Portrait	Coat of arms	Name	Reign		Relationship with predecessor(s)	Title
		Prince Alfonso of Bourbon-Two Sicilies	27 December 1894	26 May 1934	• Brother of King Francis II	Count of Caserta
		Prince Ferdinand Pius of Bourbon-Two Sicilies	26 May 1934	7 January 1960	• 1st Son of Prince Alfonso, Count of Caserta	Duke of Calabria

Name	Reign		Relationship with predecessor(s)	Title
Prince Alfonso of Bourbon-Two Sicilies	7 January 1960	3 February 1964	• Son of Prince Carlos of Bourbon-Two Sicilies, 2nd son of Prince Alfonso, Count of Caserta	Infante of Spain Duke of Calabria Count of Caserta
Prince Carlos of Bourbon-Two Sicilies	3 February 1964	5 October 2015	• Son of Infante Alfonso, Duke of Calabria	Infante of Spain Duke of Calabria Count of Caserta
Prince Pedro of Bourbon-Two Sicilies	5 October 2015		• Son of Infante Carlos, Duke of Calabria	Grandee of Spain Duke of Calabria Count of Caserta

Name	Reign		Relationship with predecessor(s)	Title
Prince Ranieri of Bourbon-Two Sicilies	7 January 1960	13 January 1973	• 3rd Son of Prince Alfonso, Count of Caserta	Duke of Castro
Prince Ferdinand of Bourbon-Two Sicilies	13 January 1973	20 March 2008	• Son of Prince Ranieri, Duke of Castro	Duke of Castro
Prince Carlo of Bourbon-Two Sicilies	20 March 2008		• Son of Prince Ferdinand, Duke of Castro	Duke of Castro

Family tree

References

^ "Vespri siciliani nell'Enciclopedia Treccani". www.treccani.it (in Italian). Retrieved 20 July 2021.
^ "Ferdinand I | king of the Two Sicilies". Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved 20 July 2021.
^ "Due Sicilie, regno delle in "Dizionario di Storia"". www.treccani.it (in Italian). Retrieved 20 July 2021.

[1] "Vespri siciliani nell'Enciclopedia Treccani". www.treccani.it (in Italian). Retrieved 20 July 2021.

[2] "Ferdinand I | king of the Two Sicilies". Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved 20 July 2021.

[3] "Due Sicilie, regno delle in "Dizionario di Storia"". www.treccani.it (in Italian). Retrieved 20 July 2021.

[1]

[2]

[3]