Last modified: 2003-07-05 by dov gutterman
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State Flag and Naval Ensign (1829-1861)
by Jaume Olle', 23 April 2003
Land Flag
by Jaume Olle and Jorge Candeias, 5 January
1999
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Sicily and Naples (i.e. all of the southern Italian peninsula)
were a joint kingdom during many periods: 1130-1282, 1435-1458,
1503-1713, and 1720-1860 (except for the Napoleonic interlude).
Naples was often the dominant power, and the terms "Kingdom
of Naples" and "Kingdom of the Two Sicilies" are
often interchangeable. How Naples came to be known as a second
Sicily is a mystery to me too. During much of its history the Two
Sicilies were under Spanish (Bourbon) domination. After the war
of the Spanish Succession, Naples was ceded in 1713 to Austria,
and Sicily to Savoy. In 1720 Austria exchanged Sardinia for
Sicily (politics were different then!), and after the war of the
Polish Succession in 1735 Austria ceded the Two Sicilies back to
Spain under condition that they should never be united with Spain
as a single kingdom. In 1860 Garibaldi invaded Sicily with a
Piedmontese army, and then crossed the straits and defeated the
Neapolitan army. Naples and Sicily voted by plebiscite to join
the north, and in 1861 the Kingdom of Italy was proclaimed with
Piedmontese Victor Emmanuel as its first king.
T. F. Mills, 5 August 1997
Naples and Sicily were in Angevin hands when Charles I
(1268-1282) lost Sicily in the war of the "Sicilian
Vespers". Sicily offered its crown to Peter III of Aragon in
1282 (husband of Constance, Hohenstaufen heiress). Peter repulsed
the Angevins, and then Frederick (1295-1337) married the daughter
of Charles I Angevin and promised that Sicily would return to the
Angevins at his death. The promise was not kept and the war
resumed. In 1373 Giovanna I of Naples surrendered the Sicilian
claim in return for tribute, and Sicily was ruled as a
viceroyalty of Naples. In 1409 Sicily was reunited with Aragon,
and Alfonso (1435-58) reunited it with Naples. In 1504 Spain
conquered Naples, and held it until the war of the Spanish
Succession, when Austria occupied it (1707). Austria ceded Naples
& Sicily to Spain in 1735 on condition that they never be
united with Spain under the same crown.
T. F. Mills, 24 March 1999
The roots of the conundrum go back to the Norman conquest of
Sicily, by which the Muslim Arab rulers of not only Sicily and
Malta but also of southern peninsular Italy were expelled by a
band of Norman adventurers seeking to emulate William of
Normandy's conquest of England. The Norman kingdom eventually
covered roughly the same territory as the Muslim conquest, but it
posed too much of a threat to both the Pope and the Emperor to be
allowed to continue at its full territorial extent. The result
was that when the first king died, leaving only daughters, the
descendants of both daughters laid claim to the inheritance,
which eventually devolved on the House of Aragon and the House of
Anjou. The Angevins were for the most part reasonably secure in
their possession of Naples, but although their realm was often
called the Kingdom of Naples, it derived its right to exist from
the Norman conquest, a conquest which was always associated with
Sicily. So the king in Naples bore the title King of Sicily, and
when Naples and Sicily were united, it was seen as a
reunification of the Sicilian realm - hence the Two Sicilies. It
is nonetheless interesting that out of the two rival houses, only
the Aragonese continued the arms of the Norman king of Sicily: a
black eagle on silver, which was quartered per saltire with the
arms of Barcelona to create the arms of the Aragonese kingdom of
Sicily. Incidentally, when the Spanish prince Felipe went to
England to woo
Queen Mary Tudor, his father made sure that Felipe would be of
equal rank with Mary by creating him King of Sicily. They were
married, but she was unable to bear him children - probably the
result of the syphilis she inherited from her father, Henry VIII.
If there had been offspring from that marriage, they would have
been heirs to Spain, Sicily, the Duchy of Burgundy (including
present-day Belgium and the Netherlands), England, Ireland and
South and Central America.
An interesting side-effect of the Norman conquest was that after
it was secured, two bands of adventurers broke away from it to
conquer parts of Greece, so creating the dukedoms of Corinth and
of Athens. Only in this period of history have there been
dukedoms in Greece.
Mike Oettle, 7 March 2002
The Kingdom of Naples (later of the Two Sicilies), didn't have
its own flag until 1735, when it become fully independent. The
State flag was, from that time on, the white Bourbon flag charged
with the Kingdom coat of arms. These arms were very complex and
some of the details, expecially for the collars, changed during
the times.
The State flag, as already said, was white, in the proportions of
2:3, with the coat of arms, while the Royal flag,
in the proportion of 6:7, was deep crimson with the same coat of
arms in the middle.
mario fabretto, 29 March 1997
If I am not wrong,the first flag of Dos Sicilias (1734) was
white with full arms. I believe that the first designs were
differents from the latest ones. I saw an image without collars
dated c. 1750. I don't know if the royal standart (red with full
arms) was the same design in the first years , but I assume that
the arms in both flag are the same.
Borbon Dinasty was restored in Naples after 1815 and white and
dark red flag with full arms was in use. The image posted by
Mario is according flag introduced after 1829 in use until 1860,
except for 1848-49
I dont know when the blue and white land flag was adopted, but
perhaps it was after 1849. After this date the Royal
Flag had narrow bordered (or fringed?) of white or gold
except at hoist.
The white flag was abolished on 23 June 1860 when a Italian flag
was adopted. In the central white stripe the full arms (the same
that was on the white flag) were added (1860 Flag).
This flag flow until March 1861 when the last Borbonic fortress
surrended.
Jaume Olle , 16 October 1998
At J.W Norie - J.S. Hobbs: Flaggen aller seefahrenden
Nationen, 1971[ nor71] (original
print 1848):
224 Naples War & Merchant - As the above state flag, but
centered and with the orders and the crown (and the sinister most
field of the shield) yellow. The orders are drawn in slightly
wider arcs which allows following which chain goes where.
Peter Hans van den Muijzenberg, 12 November 2001
1738-1829
by Jaume Olle', 23 April 2003
1829-1861 (except for 1948-49)
by Jaume Olle', 23 April 2003
State and Naval ensign - I can't establish yet with security
what medals were changed in 1829, but except for two medals the
flag must remian unchanged from 1829-48 and 1849-1860.
Jaume Olle', 23 April 2003
1829-1861
by Jaume Olle', 26 April 2003
1849-1861 (probably variants)
by Jaume Olle', 26 April 2003
by Jaume Olle', 26 April 2003
At J.W Norie - J.S. Hobbs: Flaggen aller seefahrenden
Nationen, 1971[ nor71] (original
print 1848):
223 Standard of Napels -
As 224 (Naples War & Merchant,see above), but a red flag.
That's probably meant as the Royal Flag, though it's (more)
rectangular.
Peter Hans van den Muijzenberg, 12 November 2001
Royal Standart - from 1825 (?) to 1829 with two medals,
changed 1829-1849, and then reported with white border and also
with yellow border, probably no new flags but variants.
Jaume Olle', 26 April 2003
by Jaume Olle', 26 April 2003
Two Sicilies flag from June 1848 to April 1849.
Jaume Olle , 16 October 1998
by Jaume Olle
Adopted: 21 June 1860. Abolished: March 1861
by Jaume Ollé, 1 May 2003
No. 525 - Naples (Two Sicilies) State, Navy and merchantmen.
Steenberg say: "Ancient (before 1860), is still used by the
exiled royal family and their party".
Source: [stb62]
Jaume Ollé, 1 May 2003
At <story.news.yahoo.com>
there is a photo of the state flag of the Kingdom of the Two
Sicilies with the text: "Demonstrators burn a House of Savoy
flag in front of Naples' Duomo where Victor Emmanuel, the son of
Italy's last king, his son Emmanuel Filiberto and his wife Marina
Doria were scheduled to attend a Mass, southern Italy, on
Saturday, March 15, 2003. Italy's former royal family got a mixed
reception Saturday on a return visit to the nation they once
reigned, due to the House of Savoy's support for Fascist dictator
Benito Mussolini. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)". The use of
this flag is explained in another photo at <story.news.yahoo.com>,
with the text: "A supporter of rival royal dynasty, the
Bourbons, burns a Savoy flag in protest against Prince Vittorio
Emanuele of the Savoy royal family and son of Italy's last king,
in Naples, March 15, 2003. Scuffles broke out between the two
groups of supporters outside Naples cathedral on Saturday,
forcing the heirs to the Italian throne to cancel attending a
mass there on their first visit to the city after 57 years in
exile. (REUTERS/Mario Laporta)."
Mark Sensen, 17 March 2003
The Kings of the Two Sicilies (current pretender one Charles,
Duke of Calabria, b. 1938 and his son Peter, b. 1968) are
descendants of the offspring of Maria Theresa, a Spanish
Hapsburg, with Louis XIV of France (a Bourbon). The last king was
Francis II, who was offered a split of Italy by Victor Emanuel of
Savoy (who, with the French, had driven the Austrians out of the
north), and who turned it down. In 1860 Garibaldi landed at
Marsala (in Sicily) and took over the south. Victor Emanuel was
proclaimed king the next year; Francis never renounced his claim,
hence the scuffles, apparently.....
Al Kirsch, 17 March 2003
At the photo the arms are centered, and above the arms are
towerds the hoist.
Zachary Harden, 17 March 2003
Some Kingdom of the Two Sicilies supporters say that Savoy
kingdom destroyed Southern Italy economy and society. So they are
called "Neoborbonici" (= New bourbonists), because the
royal family ruling the K2S was in fact the Bourbon one. They
protested against the decision of Vittorio Emanuele and Emanuele
Filiberto to choose Naples to come back to Italy after a long
exile and waved Bourbon flags last Saturday. Some news say that
two or three Savoy flag were burned or trampled on. However I
don't trust them.
Paolo Monatnelli, 17 March 2003