Map of the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies

In 1443 the Kingdom of Naples was conquered, as we said, by Alfonso V of Aragon (1443-1458). His son Ferdinand I (1458-1494) – the famous Ferrante – succeeded him and remained King of Naples only (he never reigned over Sicily). His son Alfonso II (1494-1495), was temporarily dethroned by Charles VIII of France; but the Kingdom immediately came back to the Aragoneses with Ferdinand II (1495-96) and Frederic (1496-1501), until, in 1504, Ferdinand the Catholic (King of Aragon, Sicily and Spain – after his marriage with Isabel of Castile), united the Kingdom of Naples to that of Spain and Sicily. From this moment on, the Kingdom of Naples (and that of Sicily) became in all respects part of the kingdom of Spain and were ruled by a Viceroy for about two centuries.

 
The Kingdom of Sicily under the Aragoneses

In Sicily, James II (1285-1296), Frederic II (1296-1336), Peter II (1336-1342), Louis (1342-1355), Frederic III (1355-1377), Martin I (1377-1409), Martin II (1409) succeeded Peter III as kings of Sicily. In 1412 the Kingdom of Sicily was united to the Kingdom of Aragon: the following kings ruled over this new kingdom: Ferdinand I (1412-1416), Alfonso the Generous (1416-1458), John (1458-1479), Ferdinand the Catholic (1479-1516). Under Ferdinand the Catholic, who married Isabel of Castile and founded with her the Kingdom of Spain, Sicily became integral part of the Kingdom of Naples and of Spain.

The Vice-royalty

From 1504 to 1713 the Kingdom of Naples was united to the Kingdom of Spain. As everybody knows, when Ferdinand the Catholic died, Charles I of Hapsburg became king of Spain, , and in 1519 also Emperor of the Sacred Roman Empire with the name of Charles V. Therefore he was also King of Naples and Sicily in all respects. His son Philip II (1556-1598) succeeded him as King of Spain; and after him Spain (and therefore Naples and Sicily, which were ruled by a viceroy appointed by the King) was ruled by: Philip III (1598-1621), Philip IV (1621-1665), Charles II (1665-1700). Charles II of Hapsburg-Spain died without heirs and appointed Philip of Anjou as his successor. Philip of Anjou was nephew of Louis XIV, and was preferred to Charles of Hapsburg-Austria; he took the name of Philip V of Bourbon, King of Spain; this caused the War of the Spanish Succession (1700-1713), whose winner was Philip V, who, in exchange for his international acknowledgement as lawful king of Spain, had to give the Kingdom of Naples and of Sicily to the Hapsburg. So, from 1713 the "Vice-royalty" was again under Hapsburg rule, although this time the Hapsburgs of Austria were the rulers: it therefore became an integral part of the Sacred Roman Empire and was ruled by Emperor Charles VI. Moreover, from 1714 to 1720 Sicily was given to King Victor Amadeus of Savoy, but afterwards it came back to the Hapsburg.

The Bourbon Two Sicilies, restorers of the Kingdom

Charles of Bourbon Francis II of Bourbon

In 1734, due to some historical events that we will better describe in the page dedicated to Charles of Bourbon (King of Naples and Sicily from 1734 to 1759), he, son of Philip V of Spain and Elisabeth Farnese, conquered the Crowns of Naples and Sicily, and restored a united and independent kingdom. After two centuries of political dependence, the "Kingdom" became again an independent State under the lead of the Bourbon of Naples and Sicily. The other pages of the historical area of this website, following this one, shortly but clearly describe how Charles and his descendants were able to rule, reform and modernize their kingdom and thus conquer the love of their subjects as no other dynasty had conquered over the centuries (if not to a lesser extent), and that was openly expressed during the years of the Napoleonic invasion and after the fall of the Kingdom in the hands of the Savoy. After Charles of Bourbon, the kingdom was ruled by: Ferdinand IV (1759-1825), from 1814 Ferdinand I of the Two Sicilies; Francis I (1825-1830), Ferdinand II (1830-1859), Francis II, who lost the kingdom in 1860, when Victor Emanuel II of Savoy conquered it and the independent Kingdom ceased to exist as such.