José Osorio y Silva

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Marriage and other romantic relationships

Considered one of the most eligible bachelors of the time owing to his considerable fortune and noble titles, as a young man he was in love with María Francisca de Sales Portocarrero (daughter of Cipriano de Palafox, 8th Count of Montijo and María Manuela Kirkpatrick y Grivegnée) who would go on to marry Jacobo Fitz-James Stuart, 15th Duke of Alba in 1844. In order to get closer to her he became friends with her sister, Eugénie de Montijo (later Empress of the French through her marriage to Napoleon III of France), but she fell in love with him instead; on discovering the truth, she attempted to take her own life with a concoction of phosphorus and milk. In 1853, Eugénie wrote to the duke announcing her engagement to the Emperor of the French, and, met with his silence, sent him a telegram reading "The Emperor has asked for my hand, what should I do?" The duke's reply arrived days before the wedding, in a note that read only "May you be very happy." Another of his romantic attachments was said to be Josefa Peña Azcárate, known as Pepita Peña, who later married in Mexico Marshal François Achille Bazaine, noted for his role in the French defeat in the Franco-Prussian War.

Finally, in 1868, while in Deauville (France) accompanying the Spanish royal family in exile, he met the Russian princess Sophia Sergeyevna Trubetskaya, who had been widowed three years earlier by Charles, Duke of Morny, himself a half-brother of Napoleon III. Sophia's paternity was disputed between Prince Sergei Vasilyevich Trubetskoy and Tsar Nicholas I of Russia himself, who had admired her mother, Ekaterina Petrovna Musina-Pushkina, a fact of which she was proud. The couple fell in love at first sight and moved to Spain; on 20 February 1869 they obtained royal permission from Isabella II to marry, and the wedding was finally held in Vitoria on 21 March of the same year.

His wife, considered one of the most beautiful and elegant women in 19th-century Europe, dazzled the court with her cosmopolitan spirit and enthusiasm for the monarchy, as well as with her tastes in fashion and decoration, which were soon imitated just as they had been in France. A few years after the marriage, at Sophia's request, an important remodelling of the palace of Alcañices was carried out, adapting the family residence to her taste; it was there that Spain's first Christmas tree was set up, at the duchess's request, at Christmas 1870. She was appointed a lady of the Order of the Noble Ladies of Queen María Luisa, and Antonio Cánovas del Castillo made her his personal secretary; she supported her husband in the restoration of the monarchy, taking an active part in it: she made fashionable among aristocratic ladies a brooch bearing the emblem of the House of Bourbon, the fleur-de-lis, and she led the well-known "Rebellion of the Mantillas" to demonstrate the Spanish people's patriotism in opposition to Amadeo of Savoy and María Vittoria dal Pozzo.

The marriage produced no children. Sophia died on 27 July 1897, and Pepe outlived her by twelve years. Shortly before his death, he summoned his nephew Miguel, whom he named his heir, and asked him to burn, in his presence, the extensive correspondence he had kept with Paca de Portocarrero, whom he had loved; with Eugénie de Montijo, who had loved him; and with Sophia, his wife.

Mayor of Madrid

A few days before being removed from his post as President of the Council of Ministers as a result of the "Rigodón" crisis — on 16 October 1857, to be precise — Leopoldo O'Donnell appointed him Mayor of Madrid, a post he would hold until 1864; a year later, once again in power, O'Donnell extended his appointment by also naming him corregidor.

Considered one of the best mayors the city ever had, he devoted much of his term to trying to eradicate dirt and bad smells in order to create a clean, modern capital. To this end he installed public urinals and issued a proclamation forbidding people from relieving themselves in the street, on pain of a 20-peseta fine, an amount considered excessive for the time. This led to anonymous verses being painted next to the prohibition notices, mocking the new mayor: "Four duros to piss? Good heavens, how expensive! How much does the Duke of Sesto charge to shit?"

He created ten first-aid houses (casas de socorro), one for each of the districts into which the city was then divided, the first being that of the central district, which was housed in the building of the Royal Hospice of San Fernando. Wishing to preserve a record of the city's artistic heritage, he undertook an inventory and photographic archive of all its existing fountains, a project that was also meant to cover churches, convents, palaces and other notable buildings, but which he never completed.

The year 1860 saw a number of important events in both his private life and in politics. In April he obtained from the queen an amnesty for Francisco Cavero, a cousin of the Empress Eugénie, who had been a lieutenant general in the Carlist armies and had been condemned for taking part in the attempted uprising of San Carlos de la Rápita led by Jaime Ortega y Olleta. On 2 May he welcomed to the city the troops returning from the war in Africa after their victory at the Battle of Tétouan, and on 21 June, in his capacity as mayor-corregidor, he stood as witness at the baptism of the Infanta Mercedes, who would go on to become queen consort. That year ended with the death of Paca de Alba, one of the great loves of his youth, whose funeral he organised and which was held in Carabanchel.

He was president of the Provincial Council of Madrid between 8 December 1861 and 30 May 1863.

Following O'Donnell's fall and the turbulent change of power, he ended his term, handing over the mayoral staff of office to José Mesía Pando, Duke of Tamames. He was also Civil Governor of Madrid on three occasions, in 1861–1863, 1865–1866 and 1874–1875, during which periods he planned to create a photographic album of thieves, criminals and murderers so that witnesses could identify them. When Amadeo of Savoy visited Spain to meet the royal family, it was he who was tasked with receiving him and showing him the city's most picturesque spots, and he showed great efficiency in the aftermath of the 1865 cholera outbreak, in which he lost his mother. He finally resigned as governor after being appointed head of the royal household in 1875.

Education of the prince and exile

On 28 November 1857 Queen Isabella had given birth to a son, christened Alfonso, and the day after the birth he was named Gentleman of the Bedchamber and High Steward to the infant prince. Two hypotheses have been put forward for this appointment: either a reward for the loyalty shown by the family, and especially by his father Nicolás, who had served the monarchs, or as compensation for the murder, within the palace, of his brother Joaquín at the hands of Juan Antonio de Urbiztondo, in the presence of King Francisco himself, the appointment being intended to help keep the affair concealed. Throughout the prince's childhood he became his principal mentor, although the prince was also instructed in religious matters by Fernando de la Puente y Primo de Rivera, Archbishop of Burgos. At that time he also had in his charge the four children from his wife's previous marriage, his two nephews — the sons of his late brother Joaquín — and his cousin Julio Quesada-Cañaveral, son of the 5th Counts of Benalúa, who was orphaned in 1867 and whose custody was granted to him owing to their family relationship.

In 1866 news reached him of plans being made by members of the Liberal Union together with those of the Progressive Party, and he informed the queen of this; two years later, after the 1868 Revolution carried out by them, she would regret not having listened to him. On 19 September the revolution broke out which dethroned Queen Isabella, and, since she refused to accompany him, he left for Deauville with his family, where he had bought a large villa; he then returned to Spain in search of the royal family, and, having escorted them to the border, went back to Madrid to collect his belongings.

The royal family in exile was supported by an account of 500,000 francs which the duke had held open in Paris from 1871 until the Restoration, and which he had renewed through his general administrator, while the debts run up by the queen in Switzerland were covered by Sofía Troubetzkoy herself. The prince's education was entrusted to Pepe, who first enrolled him at the Collège Stanislas in Paris, and later transferred him to the Theresianum in Vienna to continue his studies, which were completed at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst in England.

Involvement in the Restoration

Observing the political landscape in which the country found itself, he concluded that the only possible way to restore the monarchy was for Isabella II to abdicate in favour of her son, and he discussed this with the queen until he succeeded in convincing her. The effort involved in bringing about the abdication is reflected in the contemporary account, which describes how one day the queen said to the prince: "Alfonso, shake Pepe's hand, for he has managed to make you king." The instrument of abdication was granted on 25 June 1870, and the Duke of Sesto himself was the first witness to sign it.

On learning of the impending arrival of the new king, Amadeo I of Spain, the duke's family returned to Madrid in full. Once in the capital, they set about socially isolating the new monarchs while co-operating with Antonio Cánovas del Castillo in everything he asked of them. The palace of Alcañices became the headquarters of Alfonsist meetings and parties, and was consequently targeted by their opponents, one of whose gangs (the partida de la porra) went so far as to detonate a device there. There the duchess, together with the Marchioness of Bedmar, the Marchioness of Torrecilla, the Countess of Castellar and the Countess of Tilly, organised the well-known Rebellion of the Mantillas (1871). The Count of Benalúa, who was then living with the family, recalled in his memoirs: "Our house was a constant hive of Alfonsist politics. My aunt Sofía held a constant salon: generals, politicians, ladies, diplomats and the most notable figures of Madrid society at the time."

The duke and duchess frequently travelled to France and Vienna to meet with the prince and the queen, keeping them informed of the situation in Spain: the civil war in the North, the Cantonalist struggles in the Levante and overseas, and the growing independence movement in Cuba. They also brought letters from Cánovas and other politicians, and took the opportunity to attend events and meetings that brought together supporters of the exiled monarchy. On one of these trips, they accompanied the royal family to the railway station as they set off for Rome to visit Pius IX. Finally, on 1 December 1874, the Prince of Asturias signed the Sandhurst Manifesto, a document declaring his willingness to become king under a parliamentary monarchy, which set in motion the political process of the Restoration.

The document had been drafted jointly by Cánovas and the prince himself, and the draft was written out in fair copy by Sofía, the Duchess of Sesto, who acted as Cánovas's secretary. The duke and duchess helped distribute the manifesto throughout the city, and Sofía secretly sent two copies to Russia so that the leading European nations might recognise the liberal monarchy then being established.

Final years at court

Alfonso XII died on 25 November 1885, and the following day he tendered his resignation as head of the royal household, although he did not withdraw from court life as has sometimes been suggested. He was also relieved of his posts as steward, Great Equerry, keeper of the seals, and Chief Huntsman to the late king. His resignation was accepted by the queen, who appointed José Álvarez de Toledo y Silva, Duke of Medina Sidonia, as his successor, while he himself was granted the High Stewardship of the household of the infantas María de las Mercedes, then Princess of Asturias, and María Teresa, Princess of Bavaria by marriage, in addition to retaining the direction of the royal stud. A year later he was given the post of gentleman-in-waiting to the king's posthumous son, Prince Alfonso, and some time afterwards accompanied the family on their summer stay in Comillas.

When the dowager queen began reviewing the accounts of the royal treasury, she noticed that for the past four years a series of sums had regularly been disbursed in his favour, and she summoned him to explain; these turned out to be small repayments that the late king had been making to his friend, treating as a loan the money that the Marquis of Alcañices had invested in supporting the royal family and the restoration of the monarchy. The marquis refused to give the queen any explanation, owing to the mutual dislike between them — she considered him responsible for her husband's escapades, while he had tried to keep the king away from them — and so he went to the palace and, when the queen asked him about it, offered her what remained of his diminished fortune, so that she might choose from it; in the end he gave up the Duchy of Sesto and all his properties in Italy, which had meant so much to him and by whose title he had been known, and which the queen sold years later. Following this episode, on 18 July 1889 he resigned from all his posts at the palace and withdrew from court for good.

Illness and death

On 10 December 1909 municipal elections were held for the mayoralty of Madrid, resulting in the departure of Alberto Aguilera and the arrival of José Francos Rodríguez. Despite his advanced age and a winter cold, and at his nephew Miguel's request, he went out to vote — the last time he left his house, as the cold turned into pneumonia over the following days. On 30 December he ate a bowl of broth and smoked a cigar in his armchair, dying at one in the afternoon — the same date on which the Bourbon Restoration had begun thirty-five years earlier.

On the very day of his death, the newspaper ABC reported on his state of health, informing its readers that "the respected Marquis of Alcañices, Duke of Sesto, is seriously ill. The illustrious patient's condition is not desperate, but his advanced age gives cause for concern. Late yesterday afternoon he had shown some improvement." The following day the same newspaper published his obituary, in which it described him as:

A man of clear intelligence, highly cultured, courteous and gentlemanly in his manner, of unwavering loyalty to the monarchs, whom he served with genuine devotion, and a jealous lover of his homeland like an old Castilian lord. A witty and entertaining conversationalist, a man of the world who had taken a direct part in scenes of the highest interest during the Restoration and the first years of the Regency, he must have carried in his mind an archive of the most fascinating dealings — memories which he sometimes recalled in conversation, though never overstepping the bounds of reserve and discretion, and from which more than one volume of stirring and moving memoirs could be made, memoirs that would shed light on certain transcendental episodes of contemporary history.

The chapelle ardente was set up in the main hall of his palace, over a tapestry embroidered by his widow. At his express wish, the Royal and Laureate Corps of Royal Halberdier Guards, to which he was entitled as a member of the Golden Fleece, did not attend the wake, and he was buried the following day at the Cemetery of San Isidro in Madrid, amid a great show of public mourning.

King Alfonso XIII was in Granada when he received the news, and asked his brother-in-law Ferdinand of Bavaria (husband of María Teresa de Borbón) to attend on his behalf. Owing to the great crowds, the mounted municipal guard had to take part; the funeral procession set out from his residence, crossing the Puerta del Sol and the Puente de Toledo, where a crowd of enthusiastic Madrilenians cheered the man who had been their mayor; moreover, by special privilege, the coffin was allowed to pass through the Royal Palace. He was accompanied by various representatives of the royal family, the entire government, the city council and the diplomatic corps, as well as by the ecclesiastical authorities. Various corps of the Royal Guard were also present, along with a large part of Madrid's most prominent aristocracy and the palace officials. The only flowers to adorn the coffin were a bouquet of violets sent by the queen mother María Cristina as a token of homage, and a bouquet of white flowers on behalf of Alfonso XIII himself.

His remains were later transferred to the family pantheon at the cemetery of La Almudena, where they rest today. The Madrid city government named a street after him, Calle Duque de Sesto, in his honour, located in the Salamanca district.

José Osorio y Silva

José Osorio y Silva

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Life

Childhood

Marriage and other romantic relationships

Titles, decorations and honours

Equestrian pursuits

Mayor of Madrid

Education of the prince and exile

Involvement in the Restoration

Re-establishment of the monarchy

Final years at court

Old age

Illness and death

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About José Osorio y Silva

About José Osorio y Silva

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Related journals

Live room · 1 here

Article

Life

Childhood

Marriage and other romantic relationships

Titles, decorations and honours

Equestrian pursuits

Mayor of Madrid

Education of the prince and exile

Involvement in the Restoration

Re-establishment of the monarchy

Final years at court

Old age

Illness and death

Related journals