Biography of Marie José of Belgium
Marie José of Belgium (Marie-José Charlotte Sophie Amélie Henriette Gabrielle; 4 August 1906 – 27 January 2001) was the last Queen of Italy. Her 35-day tenure as queen consort earned her the affectionate nickname "the May Queen".
Princess Marie-José was born in Ostend, the youngest child of King Albert I of the Belgians and his consort, Duchess Elisabeth of Bavaria. During the First World War she was evacuated to England where she attended a boarding school.
On 8 January 1930 in Rome, she married Prince Umberto of Italy from the House of Savoy and so became Princess of Piedmont (Principessa di Piemonte). The couple had four children, among whom is Vittorio Emanuele, Prince of Naples, the current pretender to the Italian throne
During the Second World War she was one of the very few diplomatic channels between the German/Italian camp and the other European countries involved in the war. She was the sister of Leopold III of Belgium (kept hostage by the German forces) while, at the same time, she was close to some of the ministers of Benito Mussolini's cabinet. A British diplomat in Rome recorded that the Princess of Piedmont was the only member of the Italian Royal Family with good political judgement. In 1943 the Crown Princess involved herself in vain attempts to arrange a separate peace treaty between Italy and the United States; her interlocutor from the Vatican was Monsignor Giovanni Battista Montini, a senior diplomat who later became Pope Paul VI. Her attempts were not sponsored by the king and Umberto was not (directly, at least) involved in them. After her failure (she never met the American agents), she was sent with her children to Sarre, in Aosta Valley, and isolated from the political life of the Royal House.
She sympathized with the partisans and, while she was a refugee in Switzerland, smuggled weapons, money and food for them. She was even nominated for appointment as chief of a partisan brigade, but declined.
Following Italy's defection to the Allied side in the war, her discredited father-in-law, King Vittorio Emanuele III, withdrew from government. Her husband became acting monarch under the title of Lieutenant General of the Realm. He and Marie José toured war-torn Italy where they made a positive impression. However, King Vittorio Emanuele III refused to abdicate until only weeks before the referendum.
Upon the eventual abdication on 9 May 1946 of her father-in-law, Marie-José became Queen consort of Italy, and remained such until the monarchy was abolished by plebiscite on 2 June 1946. Umberto and Marie-José had been widely praised for their performance over the last two years, and it has been argued that had Vittorio Emanuele abdicated sooner their relative popularity would have saved the monarchy. Following the monarchy's defeat (54–46%, a narrower margin than she had expected; she had feared that it might get as little as 10% support) she and her husband left the country for exile on 13 June 1946.
In exile the family gathered for a brief time in Portugal, but she and Umberto decided to separate. She and their four children soon left for Switzerland where she lived most of the rest of her life. Umberto remained in Portugal. However, the couple never divorced, partly for political reasons. The republican constitution not only forbade the restoration of the monarchy, but also barred all male members of the House of Savoy as well as former queens consort from returning to Italian soil. Nonetheless, Umberto lived in hope of returning to the throne. Both were devout Catholics and felt divorce was potentially damaging to a Catholic king.
For some time she lived in Mexico with her daughter, Princess Marie-Beatrice, and her grandchildren. Marie José returned to Italy only after her husband died in 1983. She died in a Geneva clinic of lung cancer at the age of 94, having survived her two brothers and some of her nieces and nephews. Marie José's death was instrumental in influencing the Italian government to amend its constitution to allow male members of the House of Savoy to visit Italy.
Her funeral was held in the south of France and was attended by 2000 guests. Among them were Albert II of Belgium, Juan Carlos I of Spain and Farah Pahlavi, the last Empress of Iran. Marie José was buried in Hautecombe Abbey, the traditional burial place of the House of Savoy, beside her husband.
Princess Marie-José was born in Ostend, the youngest child of King Albert I of the Belgians and his consort, Duchess Elisabeth of Bavaria. During the First World War she was evacuated to England where she attended a boarding school.
On 8 January 1930 in Rome, she married Prince Umberto of Italy from the House of Savoy and so became Princess of Piedmont (Principessa di Piemonte). The couple had four children, among whom is Vittorio Emanuele, Prince of Naples, the current pretender to the Italian throne
During the Second World War she was one of the very few diplomatic channels between the German/Italian camp and the other European countries involved in the war. She was the sister of Leopold III of Belgium (kept hostage by the German forces) while, at the same time, she was close to some of the ministers of Benito Mussolini's cabinet. A British diplomat in Rome recorded that the Princess of Piedmont was the only member of the Italian Royal Family with good political judgement. In 1943 the Crown Princess involved herself in vain attempts to arrange a separate peace treaty between Italy and the United States; her interlocutor from the Vatican was Monsignor Giovanni Battista Montini, a senior diplomat who later became Pope Paul VI. Her attempts were not sponsored by the king and Umberto was not (directly, at least) involved in them. After her failure (she never met the American agents), she was sent with her children to Sarre, in Aosta Valley, and isolated from the political life of the Royal House.
She sympathized with the partisans and, while she was a refugee in Switzerland, smuggled weapons, money and food for them. She was even nominated for appointment as chief of a partisan brigade, but declined.
Following Italy's defection to the Allied side in the war, her discredited father-in-law, King Vittorio Emanuele III, withdrew from government. Her husband became acting monarch under the title of Lieutenant General of the Realm. He and Marie José toured war-torn Italy where they made a positive impression. However, King Vittorio Emanuele III refused to abdicate until only weeks before the referendum.
Upon the eventual abdication on 9 May 1946 of her father-in-law, Marie-José became Queen consort of Italy, and remained such until the monarchy was abolished by plebiscite on 2 June 1946. Umberto and Marie-José had been widely praised for their performance over the last two years, and it has been argued that had Vittorio Emanuele abdicated sooner their relative popularity would have saved the monarchy. Following the monarchy's defeat (54–46%, a narrower margin than she had expected; she had feared that it might get as little as 10% support) she and her husband left the country for exile on 13 June 1946.
In exile the family gathered for a brief time in Portugal, but she and Umberto decided to separate. She and their four children soon left for Switzerland where she lived most of the rest of her life. Umberto remained in Portugal. However, the couple never divorced, partly for political reasons. The republican constitution not only forbade the restoration of the monarchy, but also barred all male members of the House of Savoy as well as former queens consort from returning to Italian soil. Nonetheless, Umberto lived in hope of returning to the throne. Both were devout Catholics and felt divorce was potentially damaging to a Catholic king.
For some time she lived in Mexico with her daughter, Princess Marie-Beatrice, and her grandchildren. Marie José returned to Italy only after her husband died in 1983. She died in a Geneva clinic of lung cancer at the age of 94, having survived her two brothers and some of her nieces and nephews. Marie José's death was instrumental in influencing the Italian government to amend its constitution to allow male members of the House of Savoy to visit Italy.
Her funeral was held in the south of France and was attended by 2000 guests. Among them were Albert II of Belgium, Juan Carlos I of Spain and Farah Pahlavi, the last Empress of Iran. Marie José was buried in Hautecombe Abbey, the traditional burial place of the House of Savoy, beside her husband.