The forgotten infantas: Isabella Clara Eugenia and Catherine Michelle of Spain

Today when I woke up I remembered this two very special infantas. They are almost forgotten by historians and most monarchists in Spain, and however they are very important because of a series of reasons that I will expose next.

This two girls were the only surviving daughters from the marriage between Philip II of Spain and his third wife, Elizabeth of France (Daughter of Henry II of France, and thus a member of the Royal House of Valois-Angouléme, exposed in the last entry of this blog), Isabella Claura Eugenia was the eldest to survive, (before her a set of female twis was miscarriaged) and after her came the Infanta Catherine Michelle, their mother Elizabeth then gave birth to a son, both mother and son died the very same day.

Philip II had already a male heir Don Carlos, Prince of Asturias a son by his first marriage with Maria Manuela of Portugal, however he died in 1568 leaving Philip heirless, he then married the fiance of his own deceased son, the archduchess Anne of Austria (Even he was her own uncle). From this marriage Philip II finally could produce new male heirs, the only surviving would become the next king of Spain: Philip III.


Well, in this circumstances grew older the poor infantas, however their father, the always ambicious Philip II had great plans and vission for their daughters, specially for the eldest, Isabella Clara Eugenia. When in 1558 Elizabeth I came to the throne of England, the devout Roman Catholic Philip II could not simply accept a protestand in the throne of the Island, indeed Philip II wanted Isabella Clara Eugenia to become the next monarch of England (The only claim she could have to the throne was that his father Philip II had been indeed King of England in the right of his second wife, Queen Mary I of England, however Isabella Clara Eugenia was not her descendant).



Of course this failed, and all hopes were beaten after the defeat of the "Armada Invencible" of Spain. Then Philip II sought another throne for her daughter in that of France, indeed she was the nearest blood relative (And also the most senior) to the last kings of the House of Valois-Angoulême in France), however she was barred from the throne because of the Salic Law, in 1589 when her last Valois uncle died heirless the throne went to the Premier Prince du Sang, the King of Navarre, Henry IV.

At the end in 1598 Isabella Clara Eugenia was declared Sovereign of the Spanish Netherlands in a co-regency with her husband, the archduke Albert VII of Austria, finally she could reign over her own realm in the right of his nephew the King Philip III of Spain.

The times of Isabella Clara Eugenia as co-sovereign of the Spanish Netherlands are remembered as a Golden Age.

Catherine Michele the youngest had a much shorter life, however she succeeded were his sister failed, while Isabella Clara Eugenia failed to produce heirs (She gave birth to three siblings, however all they died very young), Catherine Michele gave birth to his spouse, Charles Emmanuel I Duke of Savoy, ten children.



Catherine Michele died shortly after turning thirty years old, however all their descendants succeeded to built the Royal House of Savoy, first as dukes of Savoy, then as Kings of Sardinia and finally as Kings of Italy. Her descendants were the main line of the Savoy and also the junior line of Savoy-Carignano that at the extinction of the former became the most senior and the one that succeeded to the throne of Italy.

Then as you can see both infantas have indeed a very special place in history, Isabella Clara Eugenia as a potential pretender to very important thrones and as a ruler of the Spanish Netherlands, and Catherine Michele as the matriarch of the Royal Hoyse of Savoy.