Ferdinand I (1751-1825) - Find a Grave Memorial

Italian Monarch. He succeeded to the thrones of Naples, as Ferdinand IV, and Sicily, as Ferdinand III, on October 6, 1759 at the age of eight when his father became King Charles III of Spain. He held little influence both under his regency and later after his marriage to Maria Carolina of Austria who assumed the position of "de facto" ruler after the birth of their son Carlo, Duke of Calabria in 1775. His reign saw two exiles from Naples in which he fled to Sicily to escape French aggression. With British influence he regained his power in Naples and in 1816 united his kingdoms as the Two Sicilies, but was forced to seek Austrian aid in maintaining his influence in Sicily in 1821. His kingdom of the Two Sicilies remained independent until the 1861 unification of the Kingdom of Italy.

Bio by: Samuel Taylor Geer