About María Isabella of Spain
Maria Isabella of Spain (Spanish: María Isabel de Borbón y Borbón-Parma; 6 July 1789 – 13 September 1848) was Queen of the Two Sicilies from 4 January 1825 until 8 November 1830 as the wife of Francis I of the Two Sicilies. Maria Isabella was the youngest daughter of King Charles IV of Spain and Maria Luisa of Parma, the second daughter of Philip, Duke of Parma, and Louise-Élisabeth of France, and thus a granddaughter of King Louis XV and Queen Marie Leszczyńska. Maria Isabella's siblings included King Ferdinand VII of Spain, Carlota Joaquina, Queen of Portugal, and the Count of Molina. Maria Isabella was born into political turmoil, coinciding with the events of the French Revolution and the rise of Manuel Godoy. She received a rudimentary education and was featured in the painting Charles IV of Spain and His Family, painted by the famed Goya. Considered by her mother as a potential Empress of France, Maria Isabella instead married her cousin Prince Francesco, Duke of Calabria, later King Francis I of the Two Sicilies, and had many children. The family was forced to flee to Sicily in early 1806 when after several attempted invasions by Joachim Murat, brother-in-law of Emperor Napoleon, who had already succeeded in becoming King of Naples. However, they were returned to the mainland in Naples with the intervention of the British military. In 1812, her husband was appointed regent for his elderly father and in 1825, the old king died, making Maria Isabella Queen consort of the Two Sicilies. She was known for her frivolity, and kept an active correspondence with her family in Spain, later marrying a young nobleman of the House of Baux. She died in 1848 at the age of 59; many of her children making marriages to their Spanish and Portuguese relatives. The youngest surviving daughter in a large family, María Isabel was spoilt by both of her parents and her education was rudimentary. Court rumour attributed María Isabel's paternity not to the king, but to the young Godoy, who became Spain's prime minister in 1792.
Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.