Ferdinand VII

Ferdinand VII (1784-1833), King of Spain (1808 and 1814-1833), whose reign was one of the most disastrous in Spanish history.

Born in the Escorial, near Madrid, on October 14, 1784, Ferdinand was the son of Charles IV. He opposed the powerful Spanish minister Manuel de Godoy, who, after the death of Ferdinand's first wife in 1806, tried to force the marriage of the prince to a daughter of the late Louis XVI of France. When Ferdinand instead proposed to a niece of Napoleon, Godoy persuaded Charles to arrest his son for plotting to overthrow him. Exploiting the situation, Napoleon invaded Spain. When a mob stormed the royal palace, demanding the death of Godoy, the king, wholly dependent on his minister, abdicated in favour of Ferdinand. Napoleon, however, had other plans. Intending the Spanish crown for his brother, Joseph Bonaparte, he invited Ferdinand to France, where he imprisoned him and forced him to return the throne to his father. Charles IV then obsequiously presented the Spanish crown to the French emperor. Ferdinand remained a prisoner until 1814, when Napoleon, after the Peninsular War, realized that Spain was lost to him. He then released Ferdinand, who reascended the throne in 1814.

Ferdinand's rule was harsh and oppressive. In 1820, after several revolts, a full-scale revolution broke out, instigated by liberal elements and aided by the army. The liberal constitution of 1812, which the king had set aside, was restored, and Ferdinand was imprisoned. In 1823, however, the Holy Alliance sent a powerful French army to Spain, which restored Ferdinand to the throne. In 1829 Ferdinand married his fourth wife, Maria Christina of Naples. Under her influence he abolished (1830) the Salic Law, which passed succession to the Spanish throne through males of the royal family. This act deprived Ferdinand's brother, Don Carlos, of the throne and later led to years of civil war. On Ferdinand's death in Madrid on September 29, 1833, his daughter, Isabella II, was proclaimed queen, with her mother, Maria Christina, as regent.

During Ferdinand's reign, Spain lost its colonies in North and South America (except for Cuba and Puerto Rico) and suffered great loss of prestige as a European power.