Preceded by Felipe V |
Rey de España 1746-1759 |
Succeeded by Carlos III |
Ferdinand VI (Spanish: Fernando VI; 23 September 1713 – 10 August 1759), called the Learned, was King of Spain from 9 July 1746 until his death. He was the fourth son of the previous monarch Philip V and his first wife Maria Luisa of Savoy. Ferdinand, the third member of the Spanish Bourbon dynasty, was born in Madrid on 23 September 1713.
Born at the Royal Alcázar of Madrid, his youth was a time of sadness for Ferdinand. His father's second wife, Elisabeth of Parma, was a domineering woman, who had no affection except for her own children, and who looked upon her stepson as an obstacle to their fortunes. The hypochondria of his father left Elisabeth mistress of the palace.
Ferdinand was by temperament melancholy, shy and distrustful of his own abilities. When complimented on his shooting, he replied, "It would be hard if there were not something I could do."
Shooting and music were his only pleasures, and he was the generous patron of the famous singer Farinelli, whose voice soothed his melancholy.
When he came to the throne, Spain found itself in the War of the Austrian Succession which ended without any benefit to Spain. He started his reign by eliminating the influence of the widow Queen Elisabeth of Parma and her group of Italian courtiers. As king he followed a steady policy of neutrality in the conflict between France and Britain, and refused to be tempted by the offers of either into declaring war on the other.
Prominent figures during his reign were the Marquis of Ensenada, a Francophile; and José de Carvajal y Lancaster, a supporter of the alliance with Great Britain. The fight between both ended in 1754 with the death of Carvajal and the fall of Ensenada, after which Ricardo Wall became the most powerful advisor to the monarch.
The death of his wife Barbara, who had been devoted to him, and who carefully abstained from political intrigue, broke his heart. Between the date of her death in August 1758 and his own on 10 August 1759, he fell into a state of prostration in which he would not even dress, but wandered unshaven, unwashed and in a nightgown about his park. The memoirs of the count of Fernán Núñez give a shocking picture of his deathbed.[1]
Have you taken a DNA test? If so, login to add it. If not, see our friends at Ancestry DNA.
Fernando VI is 28 degrees from Zendaya Coleman, 27 degrees from Sting Sumner, 20 degrees from Josh Brolin, 26 degrees from Timothée Chalamet, 22 degrees from José Ferrer, 23 degrees from Frank Herbert, 17 degrees from Richard Jordan, 24 degrees from David Lynch, 16 degrees from Virginia Madsen, 23 degrees from Charlotte Rampling, 27 degrees from Patrick Stewart and 18 degrees from Denis Villeneuve on our single family tree. Login to find your connection.
B > Bourbon | D > de España > Ferdinand (Bourbon) de España
Categories: House of Bourbon | Spanish Nobility | Spain, Monarchs