On the afternoon of Friday 5 April 2024, the conversation planned by the Delegation of Western Sicily of the Sacred Military Constantinian Order of Saint George entitled “The origins of the Two Sicilies and The Bourbons of the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies” took place at the church of San Giorgio dei Genovesi in Palermo. The discussion, looking at the historical events dispassionately, trying to understand them, addressed the theme of the historical and political aspects of the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies, referring to its origins as a political entity and therefore to the Bourbon Dynasty, with particular attention to its presence on the island of Sicily.

The conversation with Prof. Giacomo Fanale, Knight of Merit, was introduced by the Delegate of Western Sicily, Nob. Prof. Salvatore Bordonali, Knight Grand Cross of Justice, with the following words:

“Giacomo Fanale, our Confrère, certainly does not need an introduction: his commitment as an organizer of exhibitions and events not only in Italy is known to everyone. Engineer and architect – as all architects once were – he is a member of the ‘Settimana delle Culture’ Association, but above all we are grateful to him for the precious help he has given to the Delegation and the Constantinian Order in dedicating some sites to members and historical figures of the House of Bourbon, who were part of our national history even before political unification, people as to whom it would be anti-cultural to forget or deny: History which looks at events dispassionately, trying to understand them, is one thing, political propaganda is another, which accompanies the affirmation over time of the many movements, which must then be judged not only by the winner’s yardstick. This occasion also seems propitious to reiterate the value of the family as the primordial cell of civil society, which in the dynastic Constantinian Order is represented by that of our Grand Master, HRH Pedro of Bourbon-Two Sicilies, as it is in the family that the identifying values ​​of our civilization are passed down.

“The title of our conversation refers to the origins of the Two Sicilies, as a political entity.  It therefore refers to the Bourbon Dynasty and the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies, with particular reference to its presence on this island, to one of which (Dec. 1798) we owe the impressive flourishing of artefacts, including the ‘Chinese Building’ in the ‘Parco della Favorite,’ where Brother Fanale himself worked so hard to create the scenic apparatus.”

After the brief introduction, the Delegate passed the floor to the speaker on the topic “The origins of the Two Sicilies and the Bourbons of the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies”:

“Today’s conversation focuses on the historical political denomination of the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies from its origins. We analyze the evolution of the historical processes following the end of the Norman Swabian dynasty, and which led to that physical and political unification which only became concrete with Ferdinand I of the Two Sicilies in 1816, after his restoration resulting from the Congress of Vienna in 1815.

“The definition and distinction of the Two Sicilies is stated for the first time in the Papal Bull with which Pope Clement IV in 1265 invested Charles I of Anjou with the royal crown of the territories of Sicily Citra and Sicily Ultra del Faro, which delimited the possessions of the Norman Kingdom of Sicily, on both sides of the Messina lighthouse.  It extended largely into Southern Italy beyond Sicily.

“Charles I of Anjou, victorious in the battle of Benevento in 1265, invested with royal kingship over the Norman possessions, placed his capital in Naples. With the Sicilian Vespers of 1289, the French were expelled from Sicily, and the Sicilian Parliament identified Peter III of Aragon, husband of Constance, daughter of Manfred, as the legitimate heir of the Kingdom of Sicily. With the Peace of Caltabellotta in 1302, the borders of the two kingdoms were defined, that of Sicily Ultra Faro with Palermo as its capital, and that of Sicily Citra Faro with Naples as its capital. The two kingdoms remained separate in political and legislative terms until 1816, although the two crowns were held by the same sovereign on several occasions.

“With Alfonso V of Aragon, in fact, in 1442 the two crowns were brought back to the same sovereign, after the conquest of the Kingdom of Naples, but the two kingdoms remained separate, that of Sicily Ultra Faro with Palermo as its capital, and that of Sicily Citra with capital Naples. Upon his death and until the reign of Ferdinand II of Aragon, which then led to the establishment of the Kingdom of Spain with Isabella of Castile in 1504, both the Kingdom of Sicily and that of Naples would be part of the Spanish dominions, with the government entrusted respectively to two Viceroys.

“With the War of the Spanish Succession in 1700, and following the Treaty of Utrecht of 1713, the Kingdom of Sicily was ceded to Duke Vittorio Amedeo II of Savoy, who acquired the royal title, and the Kingdom of Naples was given to Charles VI of Habsburg. It would be with the Treaty of the Hague of 1720 that the Kingdom of Sicily is also granted to Charles VI of Habsburg, in exchange for the Kingdom of Sardinia ceded to the Savoys. Even in this circumstance the same ownership will occur in the two kingdoms. With the conquests in 1734 of the Kingdom of Naples, and in 1735 of the Kingdom of Sicily, by Spanish troops commanded by the twenty-year-old Infante Don Carlo of Bourbon, Duke of Parma and Piacenza, son of Philip V of Spain and Elizabeth Farnese, the two kingdoms returned into the political orbit of Spain, but they could not be annexed to the Kingdom of Spain following the peace treaties.  Therefore, Philip V granted his son Charles sovereignty over the two kingdoms. This would give rise to the Bourbon dynasty of Naples, who would retain sovereignty both of the Kingdom of Naples and of that of Sicily. Charles III was crowned in Palermo on 3 July 1735, and would be the last sovereign to be crowned in the cathedral of Palermo and to swear loyalty to the prerogatives of the Sicilian Parliament.

“In 1759 Charles III will be called to succeed his deceased brother as King of Spain, leaving the two kingdoms of Naples and Sicily to his still adolescent son.  This son, upon attaining his majority, assumed the title of Ferdinand IV of Naples and III of Sicily. With the vicissitudes resulting from the Napoleonic occupation, the Kingdom of Naples was assigned by Napoleon to his brother Joseph Bonaparte, and subsequently in 1808 to Joachim Murat, who proclaimed himself King of the Two Sicilies, having never conquered the island of Sicily, where the Bourbons continued to reign until Ferdinand’s definitive return to Naples after the restoration.

“Following the Congress of Vienna and upon the return of full powers to the sovereign, both in Naples and Palermo, King Ferdinand IV of Naples and Ferdinand III of Sicily abrogated the constitution granted to the Kingdom of Sicily and unified the two kingdoms into a single kingdom, that of the Two Sicilies, becoming King with the title of Ferdinand I of the Two Sicilies.

“The evolution of events saw the the descendants of Ferdinand I (Francis I, Ferdinand II and Francis II) hold the title of King of the Two Sicilies, a kingdom established in 1816 and which ended with the Garibaldi wars and ceased to exist on 27 January 1861, at the opening of the new Italian parliament after the plebiscite annexation to the Kingdom of Italy.”

Once the speaker had finished, the Delegate responded to what he termed these interesting “provocations” and concluded the meeting with the recitation of the Prayer of the Constantinian Knight.

Giacomo Fanale

Engineer and architect, freelancer, he deals with architectural building design, interior design and exhibition setups.

Curator of exhibitions, large artistic events and installations for art exhibitions, for foundations, public and private bodies and institutions, both in Italy and abroad, and on several occasions in Germany, Spain, and Thailand.

Expert in art history, in particular contemporary art, and in the history of architecture and urban planning, for which he has been a speaker at conferences, and author of prefaces to essays on the topic.

Editor of numerous catalogs of contemporary artists, whose exhibitions he also curated in Italy and abroad.

His critical presentations in monographic contemporary art publications, published by Mondadori and Silvana editore, are significant.

Already a teacher of architecture, furniture, design and stagecraft, and for years an instructor of Technical Architecture at the University of Palermo.

Coordinator of the event “Christmas in Palermo. Cultural itinerary between art, architecture and music” and other events on behalf of private agencies and public bodies.

Member of the Board of Directors of the “Settimana delle Culture” Association, member of the Rotary Club Palermo Est, of which he was President in the 2013-2014 Rotary year, and of other cultural associations. Knight of Merit of the Sacred Military Constantinian Order of Saint George.