Prince Carlos, Duke of Parma

Prince Carlos, Duke of Parma and Piacenza (Carlos Xavier Bernardo Sixto Marie; born 27 January 1970), is the current (since 2010) Head of the Royal and Ducal House of Bourbon-Parma, who ruled the Duchy of Parma and Piacenza from 1748 to 1802 and from 1847 to 1859 (which includes the Grand Ducal Family of Luxembourg). From 1970, he is a member of the Dutch royal family, and since 1996 incorporated into the Dutch nobility (based upon the Dutch Nobility Act of 1994) with the style of "His Royal Highness" and the title of Prince Carlos de Bourbon de Parme. He is also considered as the legitimate King of Spain and Head of the Carlist Royal Family by the Carlists with the name of Don Carlos Javier, Rey de las Españas, since 2010, succeeding his father. In Spain, he uses also the title of Duke of Madrid (Duque de Madrid).

The eldest son of Carlos Hugo, Duke of Parma and Princess Irene of the Netherlands, he is also titled as Prince de Bourbon in the French nobility.

He is the Grand Master of the Parmesan Sacred Military Constantinian Order of Saint George, the Order of Saint Louis for Civil Merit, the Order of Prohibited Legitimacy and the Order of St. George for Military Merit.

Early life
Prince Carlos Xavier Bernardo Sixto Marie was born in Nijmegen, The Netherlands on 27 January 1970 as the elder child and son of Carlos Hugo, Duke of Parma, and his wife Princess Irene of the Netherlands. At the time, his parents were expelled from Spain by the Franco regime on 20 December 1968, as Franco already did with his grandfather Prince Xavier of Bourbon-Parma and some members of his family on 25 November 1937.

He has two younger sisters, Princess Margarita and Princess Carolina, and a younger brother, Prince Jaime. He was baptized in the Catholic faith on 10 February 1970 by Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre, at that time in full communion with Rome. Carlos spent his youth in several countries including the Netherlands, Spain, France, England, and the United States.

In 1981, when he was eleven, his parents divorced. Together with his mother and his siblings, he then moved to Soestdijk Palace (Baarn) in the Netherlands. He lived at the palace for a number of years with his grandparents, Queen Juliana of the Netherlands and Prince Bernhard of the Netherlands.

Education and career
Carlos studied political science at Wesleyan University in Connecticut and demography and philosophy at Cambridge University in England.

After completing his studies, Carlos worked for the company ABN AMRO in Amsterdam, where he was involved with preparations for the introduction of the euro. He then worked for a period in Brussels as a public affairs consultant for the company European Public Policy Advisors (EPPA).

Since 2007, he has been engaged in projects concerning sustainability in the business world, advising projects worldwide focused on the circular economy, with alternative and environmentally friendly production methods and on the energy transition towards clean energies.

He has chaired the Foundation for Cooperation for the Economic Development of Latin America, was a member for eight years of the Council of CSR Netherlands, which ensures corporate social responsibility.

He was a non-executive director of ASN Vermogensbeheer and a member of the advisory board of PGGM Responsible Investing. He belongs to the Investment Committee of the Energiiq Fund of South Holland, is president of the Short Supply Chains Advisory Panel of the Dutch agricultural sector, and a collaborator of the think-tank The Ex'tax Project.

He is also director of Compazz, an independent foundation whose objective is to promote innovation and sustainability in the economic sector, acting as a bridge between the public, academic and private sectors, supported by its knowledge in Communication and management of conflict situations.

In 2021 he has published ''Nothing in excess. Re-evaluating Nature, Economy and Life post Corona''.

Dutch Royal House
Carlos is sometimes present at representative occasions concerning the Royal House of the Netherlands. In 2003, he was involved, together with his aunt, Queen Beatrix, in the inauguration of the "Prince Claus Leerstoel", a professorship named after the Queen's husband, Prince Claus. During special events of the Royal House, he is regularly present. For example, he was one of the organizers of the wedding celebration of Prince Constantijn and Princess Laurentien.

Relationship with Brigitte Klynstra and son
Prince Carlos had a relationship with Brigitte Klynstra (born 10 January 1959), the stepdaughter of Count Adolph Roderik van Rechteren Limpurg. During this relationship he fathered a son:


 * Carlos Hugo Roderik Sybren Klynstra (born 20 January 1997 in Nijmegen).

In December 2015, the then 18-year-old Carlos Klynstra started the legal procedure to attempt to change his surname to that of his biological father which would also allow him to use the title of "Prince". The Duke of Parma opposed this on the basis that it was in contravention of the traditions of the House of Bourbon-Parma. On 9 March 2016 the Minister of Security and Justice declared his family name request valid. Later that year a court in The Hague concurred with the minister in declaring the claim valid under Dutch law.

According to the judgement, Carlos Hugo will be entitled to be known as "Zijne Koninklijke Hoogheid Carlos Hugo Roderik Sybren prins de Bourbon de Parme" (His Royal Highness Prince Carlos Hugo Roderik Sybren of Bourbon-Parma); this will come only into effect once the Dutch king has signed the royal decree. According to the press release of the Council of State of 28 February 2018, the name change does not mean that Klynstra is now also a member of the Royal House of Bourbon-Parma. That is a private matter of the House itself and this is outside the jurisdiction of the Dutch Nobility Law.

Marriage to Annemarie Gualthérie van Weezel
On 7 October 2009, it was announced through his mother's private secretary that Prince Carlos would marry Annemarie Cecilia Gualthérie van Weezel. The civil marriage took place on 12 June 2010 at Wijk bij Duurstede. The church wedding was to have taken place at the La Cambre Abbey in Ixelles on 28 August, but it was postponed owing to his father's illness. Prince Carlos Hugo died shortly afterwards.

Annemarie (born The Hague, 18 December 1977) is the daughter of Johan (Hans) Stephan Leonard Gualthérie van Weezel and Gerarda Gezine Jolande (Ank) de Visser. Her father was a member of the House of Representatives of the Netherlands for the Christian Democratic party, the Dutch ambassador to the Council of Europe in Strasbourg, and the ambassador to Luxembourg. Gualthérie van Weezel's paternal grandfather was Jan Hans Gualthérie van Weezel, who was the head of the police in The Hague and member of the Dutch resistance during the Second World War. Annemarie Gualthérie van Weezel went to secondary school in Strasbourg and obtained a Master of Laws degree at the University of Utrecht. Subsequently, she completed a post-graduate study in Radio and Television journalism at the University of Groningen. Gualthérie van Weezel works as a parliamentary journalist in The Hague and Brussels for the Dutch public channel NOS. In Brussels, she met Prince Carlos for the first time.

On 2 August 2010, it was revealed that the health of his father, the Duke of Parma, was quickly deteriorating due to cancer. As a consequence, the church wedding of the prince Carlos and his fiancée was delayed. In a final announcement about his condition, the Duke confirmed Carlos as the next Head of the House of Bourbon-Parma. Just before his death the old Duke of Parma named Annemarie as "Condesa de Molina" (Countess of Molina). Prince Carlos's father died on 18 August 2010 in Barcelona, Spain, at the age of 80; Carlos subsequently became the next head of the House of Bourbon-Parma.

The new Duke of Parma and Annemarie were married on 20 November 2010 in La Cambre Abbey. Together, they have two daughters and a son:


 * Her Royal Highness Princess Luisa Irene Constance Anna Maria of Bourbon-Parma, Marchioness of Castell'Arquato (born on 9 May 2012 in The Hague);
 * Her Royal Highness Princess Cecilia Maria Johanna Beatrix of Bourbon-Parma, Countess of Berceto (born 17 October 2013 in The Hague);
 * His Royal Highness Prince Carlos Enrique Leonard of Bourbon-Parma, Prince of Piacenza (born 24 April 2016 in The Hague).

In 2016, at the baptism of Prince Carlos Enrique, Prince Carlo conferred on his son the title of "Principe di Piacenza" (Prince of Piacenza), which is the traditional title assigned to a crown prince of the House of Bourbon Parma, the continuer of the dynasty, and future Duke of Parma and Piacenza. In September 2017, the Duke of Parma named his daughter Luisa as "Marchesa di Castell'Arquato" (Marquise of Castell'Arquato), and her younger sister Cecilia was named as "Contessa di Berceto" (Countess of Berceto).

His rights as the Carlist pretender
Carlos Xavier, in an interview with the newspaper La Vanguardia, said:

"I don't set out dynastic lawsuits."

Titles and styles

 * 2 September 1996 – 18 August 2010: His Royal Highness The Prince of Piacenza
 * 18 August 2010 – present: His Royal Highness The Duke of Parma and Piacenza
 * Officially in the Netherlands: 15 May 1996 – present: His Royal Highness Prince Carlos de Bourbon de Parme

National

 * 🇳🇱 Netherlands
 * Recipient of the King Willem-Alexander Investiture Medal
 * Recipient of the Wedding Medal 2002 (The Prince of Orange and Miss Máxima Zorreguieta)

International

 * 🇸🇲 San Marino: Grand Cross Order of San Marino
 * Sovereign Military Order of Malta: Knight of Honour and Devotion of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta

Dynastic
As Head of the House of Bourbon-Parma, Carlos is Grand Master of four dynastic orders:
 * Grand Master of the Parmese Sacred Military Constantinian Order of Saint George (Sacro Angelico Imperiale Ordine Costantiniano di San Giorgio)
 * Grand Master of the Order of Saint Louis for Civil Merit (Real Ordine del Merito sotto il titolo di San Lodovico)
 * Grand Master of the Order of St. George for Military Merit (Ordine al merito militare di San Giorgio di Lucca)
 * Grand Master of the Order of the Legitimidad Proscrita (Orden de la Legitimidad Proscrita)