Prince Ranieri to become a priest

February 14, 1906

Prince Ranieri of Bourbon-Two-Scilies, son of the Count of  Caserta, claimant to the throne of Two-Sicilies, has joined the Jesuits and "has entered upon his novitiate," writes the Marquise de Fontenoy in her latest dispatch.  

The prince is also a younger brother of Prince Carlos, Infante of Spain, the widower of the Princess of Asturias.  Like his older brother, Ranieri was brought up in Spain, at "the expense, and under the direction of the queen mother, Maria Cristina, who has been extremely kind" to the family of the Count and Countess of Caserta.

It has been difficult for the 23-year-old prince, who holds a commission as a cavalry officer in the Spanish army, to persuade his family "to permit him to join the order of the Jesuits."

There are "several royal and imperial princes" who have joined holy orders, including the brother of the King of Saxony, who is a priest and professor of theology at Friburg University in Switzerland.  But Prince Ranieri is the first member of a royal family to join the Jesuits.

One can understand the Count and Countess of Caserta's reluctance to allow their son to join the order, which "extracts to such an extent not merely the allegiance but also the the complete devotion of its members."

Prince Ranieri is the 9th of twelve children.  He was born in December 1883.