Princess of Asturias

This is a list of women who held the title Princess of Asturias (Spanish: Princesa de Asturias, Asturian: Princesa d'Asturies) by marriage.

The title was created in 1388 for the future Henry III of Castile and Catherine of Lancaster. A part of the pact ("Accord of Bayonne") was to grant the young couple the title of Prince and Princess of Asturias, which was modelled after that of Prince of Wales in the Kingdom of England. The title was to belong to the official successor of the Castilian throne. Thus the first holder of the princedom was the young Henry of Castile and the first woman to hold the title by marriage was his wife, Catherine of Lancaster.

The current holder of the title is Leonor, Princess of Asturias, elder daughter of King Felipe VI of Spain, who holds the title in her own right.

Princess of Asturias

This is a list of Princesses of Asturias who held the title by their marriage to the Prince of Asturias:

See also

Asturias

Asturias (English /ɑːˈstʊəriəsˌ ə-/; Spanish: [asˈtuɾjas]; Asturian: Asturies [asˈtuɾjes]), officially the Principality of Asturias (Spanish: Principado de Asturias; Asturian: Principáu d'Asturies), is an autonomous community in north-west Spain. It is coextensive with the province of Asturias, and contains some of the territory that was part of the larger Kingdom of Asturias in the Middle Ages. Divided into eight comarcas (counties), the autonomous community of Asturias is bordered by Cantabria to the east, by Castile and León to the south, by Galicia to the west, and by the Bay of Biscay to the north.

The most important cities are the communal capital, Oviedo (Uviéu or Uvieo), the seaport and largest city Gijón (Xixón), and the industrial town of Avilés. Other municipalities in Asturias include Cangas de Onís (Cangues d'Onís), Cangas del Narcea, Gozón, Grado (Grau or Grao), Langreo (Llangréu), Llanera, Laviana (Llaviana), Lena (Ḷḷena), Llanes, Mieres, Siero, Valdés, Vegadeo (A Veiga) and Villaviciosa (see also List of municipalities and comarcas in Asturias).

Princess of Asturias Awards

The Princess of Asturias Awards (Spanish: Premios Princesa de Asturias, Asturian: Premios Princesa d'Asturies), previously known as Prince of Asturias Awards from 1981–2014 (Spanish: Premios Príncipe de Asturias, Asturian: Premios Príncipe d'Asturies) are a series of annual prizes awarded in Spain by the Princess of Asturias Foundation (previously the Prince of Asturias Foundation) to individuals, entities or organizations from around the world who make notable achievements in the sciences, humanities, and public affairs.

The prize was established on 24 September 1980 by the then twelve-year-old Felipe, Prince of Asturias, heir to the throne of Spain, "to consolidate links between the Principality and the Prince of Asturias, and to contribute to encouraging and promoting scientific, cultural and humanistic values that form part of mankind's universal heritage." The awards are presented at the Campoamor Theatre in Oviedo, the capital of the Principality of Asturias. A sculpture, expressly created for the prize by Spanish sculptor Joan Miró, is presented yearly to the recipients of the prize.

Prince of Asturias

Prince or Princess of Asturias (Spanish: Príncipe de Asturias, Asturian: Príncipe d'Asturies) under the Spanish Constitution of 1978, is the historical and official title given to the heir to the Spanish throne. It was also the title under the earlier Crown of Castile. The current heir to the Spanish throne, therefore Princess of Asturias is Leonor, Princess of Asturias, daughter of King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia of Spain. Other associated titles originate from some of the other kingdoms that formed Spain: Prince of Viana (for Navarre), Prince of Girona (for Aragon), Duke of Montblanc (for Catalonia), Count of Cervera (for Valencia) and Lord of Balaguer (for Majorca).

Military dictator Francisco Franco appointed Juan Carlos de Borbón as his "successor with the title of King" but gave him the new title of Prince of Spain instead of Prince of Asturias.

King Felipe VI, during his tenure as Prince of Asturias, instituted what is now called the Princess of Asturias Awards, since the incumbent heir to the Spanish throne is Princess Leonor.

Princess

Princess is a regal rank and the feminine equivalent of prince (from Latin princeps, meaning principal citizen). Most often, the term has been used for the consort of a prince or for the daughters of a king or sovereign prince.

Princess as a substantive title

The titles of some princesses hold their titles are reigning monarchs of principalities. There have been fewer instances of reigning princesses than reigning princes as most principalities excluded women from inheriting the throne. Examples of princesses regnant have included Constance of Antioch, princess regnant of Antioch in the 12th century. As the President of France, an office for which women are eligible, is ex-officio co-Prince of Andorra, Andorra could theoretically be ruled by a co-Princess.

Princess as a courtesy title

Descendants of monarchs

For many centuries, the title "princess" was not regularly used for a monarch's daughter, who, In English, might simply be called "Lady". Old English had no female equivalent of "prince", "earl", or any royal or noble title aside from queen. Royal women were simply addressed or referred to as "The Lady [Firstname]". For example, Elizabeth and Mary, daughters of Henry VIII of England were often simply referred to as "the Ladies Elizabeth and Mary". This practice, however, was not consistent. In the marriage contract between Prince George of Denmark and Anne, daughter of James I of Great Britain, Anne is referred to as "The Princess Anne".