Kingdom of Etruria

The Kingdom of Etruria (/ɪˈtrʊəriə/; Italian: Regno di Etruria) was an Italian kingdom between 1801 and 1807 which made up a large part of modern Tuscany. It took its name from Etruria, the old Roman name for the land of the Etruscans.[1]

Kingdom of Etruria Regno di Etruria
1801–1807
Flag Coats of arms
Status	Client state of the French Empire
Capital	Florence
Common languages	Italian
Religion	Christian (Roman Catholic)
Government	Enlightened despotism
King
• 1801–1803	Louis I
• 1803–1807	Louis II
Regent
• 1803–1807	Maria Luisa
Historical era	Napoleonic Wars
• Established	March 21, 1801
• Disestablished	December 10, 1807
Currency	Tuscan pound
Preceded by Succeeded by Grand Duchy of Tuscany State of the Presidi First French Empire

History

The kingdom was created by the Treaty of Aranjuez, signed at Aranjuez, Spain on 21 March 1801. In the context of a larger agreement between Napoleonic France and Spain, the Bourbons of Parma were compensated for the loss of their territory in northern Italy (which had been occupied by French troops since 1796). Ferdinand, Duke of Parma ceded his duchy to France, and in return his son Louis I was granted the Kingdom of Etruria (which was created from the Grand Duchy of Tuscany). To make way for the Bourbons, the Habsburg Grand Duke of Tuscany Ferdinand III was ousted and compensated with the Electorate of Salzburg. Originally the Grand Duchy of Tuscany, Etruria had been ceded to the Bourbons in 1801 in the person of Charles IV's eldest daughter and her Italian consort.[2]

Outside the Treaty of Aranjuez, Spain also secretly agreed to retrocede the Louisiana territory (over 2 million square kilometers) back to France in order to secure the Kingdom of Etruria as a client state for Spain; Louisiana was first ceded by France to Spain in 1763 at the end of the Seven Years' War. Louisiana was duly transferred to France on 15 October 1802, after the signing of the Treaty of Aranjuez. Napoleon subsequently sold Louisiana in the Louisiana Purchase on December 20, 1803, in order to pay for his French armies during the War of the Third Coalition.

The first king (Louis I) died young in 1803, and his underage son Charles Louis succeeded him. His mother, Maria Luisa of Spain, was appointed regent. However, since Etruria was troubled with smuggling and espionage Napoleon annexed the territory, thus becoming the last non-Bonaparte Italian kingdom on the Peninsula. Since Spain's only hope of compensation lay in Portugal, co-operation with the emperor became more important.[2]

In 1807, Napoleon dissolved the kingdom and integrated it into France, turning it into three French départements: Arno, Méditerranée and Ombrone. The king and his mother were promised the throne of a new Kingdom of Northern Lusitania (in northern Portugal), but this plan was never realized due to the break between Napoleon and the Spanish Bourbons in 1808. After his downfall in 1814, Tuscany was restored to its Habsburg Grand Dukes. In 1815, the Duchy of Lucca was carved out of Tuscany as compensation for the Bourbons of Parma until they resumed their rule in 1847.

Flags and coats of arms

• Flags
• 
  State flag with the greater coat of arms
• 
  State flag with the lesser coat of arms
• 
  Merchant flag with the lesser coat of arms
• 
  Merchant flag (used by little tonnage ships)

• Coat of arms
• 
  Greater coat of arms
• 
  Middle coat of arms
• 
  Lesser coat of arms

References

1. Norman Davies, Vanished Kingdoms: The History of Half-Forgotten Europe, Penguin, 2012, chapter 10, “Etruria: French Snake in the Tuscan Grass,(1801-1814)”.
2. Charles Esdaile (14 June 2003). The Peninsular War: A New History. Palgrave Macmillan. p. 7. ISBN 978-1-4039-6231-7. Retrieved 28 March 2013.