Charles III of Spain

Charles III
Portrait by Anton Raphael Mengs, c. 1761
King of Spain (more...)
Reign	10 August 1759 – 14 December 1788
Predecessor	Ferdinand VI
Successor	Charles IV
Regent	Elisabeth Farnese (1759–1760)
Chief Ministers	See list Ricardo Wall The Duke of Grimaldi The Count of Floridablanca
King of Naples and Sicily as Charles VII of Naples and III of Sicily
Reign	3 July 1735 – 6 October 1759
Coronation	3 July 1735, Palermo Cathedral
Predecessor	Charles VI & IV
Successor	Ferdinand IV & III
Duke of Parma and Piacenza as Charles I
Reign	26 February 1731 – 3 October 1735
Predecessor	Antonio Farnese
Successor	Charles VI, Holy Roman Emperor
Regent	Dorothea Sophie of Palatinate-Neuburg (1731-1735)
Born	20 January 1716 Royal Alcazar of Madrid, Spain
Died	14 December 1788(1788-12-14) (aged 72) Royal Palace of Madrid, Spain
Burial	El Escorial
Spouse	Maria Amalia of Saxony ​ ​ (m. 1738; died 1760)​
Issue Detail	Princess Maria Isabel Ana Infanta Maria Josefa Maria Luisa, Holy Roman Empress Infante Philip, Duke of Calabria Charles IV, King of Spain Ferdinand I, King of the Two Sicilies Infante Gabriel Infante Antonio Pascual Infante Francisco Javier
Names Spanish: Carlos Sebastián de Borbón y Farnesio Italian: Carlo Sebastiano di Borbone e Farnese
House	Bourbon
Father	Philip V of Spain
Mother	Elisabeth Farnese
Religion	Roman Catholicism
Signature

Charles III (Spanish: Carlos Sebastián de Borbón y Farnesio;^[a] 20 January 1716 – 14 December 1788) was King of Spain in the years 1759 to 1788. He was also Duke of Parma and Piacenza, as Charles I (1731–1735); King of Naples, as Charles VII; and King of Sicily, as Charles III (1735–1759). He was the fourth son of Philip V of Spain and the eldest son of Philip's second wife, Elisabeth Farnese. He was a proponent of enlightened absolutism and regalism.

In 1731, the 15-year-old Charles became Duke of Parma and Piacenza following the death of his childless grand-uncle Antonio Farnese. In 1734, at the age of 18, he led Spanish troops in a bold and almost entirely bloodless march down Italy to seize the Kingdom of Naples and Kingdom of Sicily and enforce the Spanish claim to their thrones. In 1738, he married the Princess Maria Amalia of Saxony, daughter of Augustus III of Poland, who was an educated, cultured woman. The couple had 13 children, eight of whom reached adulthood. They resided in Naples for 19 years. Charles gained valuable experience in his 25-year rule in Italy, so that he was well prepared as the monarch of the Spanish Empire. His policies in Italy prefigured ones he would put in place in his 30-year rule of Spain.^[1]

Charles succeeded to the Spanish throne in 1759 upon the death of his childless half-brother Ferdinand VI. As king of Spain, Charles III made far-reaching reforms to increase the flow of funds to the crown and defend against foreign incursions on the empire. He facilitated trade and commerce, modernized agriculture and land tenure, and promoted science and university research. He implemented regalist policies to increase the power of the state regarding the church. During his reign, he expelled the Jesuits from the Spanish Empire^[2] and fostered the Enlightenment in Spain. Charles launched enquiries into the Iberian Peninsula's Muslim past, even after succeeding to the Spanish throne. He strengthened the Spanish Army and the Spanish Navy. Although he did not achieve complete control over Spain's finances, and was sometimes obliged to borrow to meet expenses, most of his reforms proved successful in providing increased revenue to the crown and expanding state power, leaving a lasting legacy.^[3]

In the Spanish Empire his regime enacted a series of sweeping reforms with the aim of bringing the overseas territories under firmer control by the central government, reversing the trend toward local autonomy, and gaining more control over the Church. Reforms including the establishment of two new viceroyalties, realignment of administration into intendancies, creating a standing military, establishing new monopolies, revitalizing silver mining, excluding American-born Spaniards (criollos) from high civil and ecclesiastical offices, and eliminating many privileges (fueros) of clergy.^[4]

Historian Stanley Payne writes that Charles "was probably the most successful European ruler of his generation. He had provided firm, consistent, intelligent leadership. He had chosen capable ministers....[his] personal life had won the respect of the people."^[5] John Lynch's assessment is that in Bourbon Spain "Spaniards had to wait half a century before their government was rescued by Charles III."^[6]

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