Louis Alphonse de Bourbon | |
---|---|
Duke of Anjou (more) | |
Head of the Capetian dynasty | |
Tenure | 30 January 1989 – present |
Predecessor | Alfonso, Duke of Anjou and Cádiz |
Heir apparent | Louis [1]: 47 |
Born | Luis Alfonso Gonzalo Víctor Manuel Marco de Borbón y Martínez-Bordiú 25 April 1974 Madrid, Spain |
Spouse | |
Issue | |
House | Bourbon |
Father | Alfonso, Duke of Anjou and Cádiz |
Mother | Carmen Martínez-Bordiú |
Religion | Catholic Church |
Louis Alphonse de Bourbon[2] (Spanish: Luis Alfonso Gonzalo Víctor Manuel Marco de Borbón y Martínez-Bordiú;[3][4][5] born 25 April 1974) is the head of the House of Bourbon. Members of the family formerly ruled France and other countries. According to the Legitimists, Louis Alphonse is heir to the defunct throne of France.[6] Since the death of his father in 1989, he has used the courtesy title of Duke of Anjou.[2]
Louis Alphonse considers himself the senior heir of Hugh Capet, King of the Franks (reigned 987–996). His claim to the defunct French throne is based on his descent from Louis XIV (r. 1643–1715) through his grandson Philip V of Spain. Philip renounced his claim to the French throne under the Treaty of Utrecht in 1713. The rival Orleanist pretenders argue that this, as well as being born a Spanish citizen, makes Louis Alphonse ineligible for the throne.[7] They also question whether he truly is the heir-male of Louis XIV, given the rumors of illegitimacy surrounding Alfonso XII (his great-great-grandfather).[8]
Louis Alphonse is patrilineally the senior great-grandson of Alfonso XIII, King of Spain. However, his grandfather Infante Jaime, Duke of Segovia, renounced his rights to the Spanish throne for himself and his descendants owing to his deafness. The crown of Spain has descended to his second cousin, King Felipe VI of Spain. Through his mother, he is also a great-grandson of Spain's caudillo (dictator) General Francisco Franco; and through his father, a great-great-great-grandson of Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom.[3]