Legitimists

Legitimists are Royalists in France who believe that the King of France and Navarre must be chosen according to the simple application of the Salic Law. They are adherents of the elder branch of the Bourbon dynasty, overthrown in the Revolution of 1830. Famous historian René Rémond analyse the legitimist as one of the main three right-wing families in France, which was principally characterized by their counterrevolutionary opinions (they rejected the 1789 French Revolution, the Republic and every thing that went with it; thus, they progressively became a far-right movement, close to traditionalist Catholics). The other two right-wing families are, according to Rémond, the orleanists and the bonapartists.

Legitimists under the July monarchy (1830-1848)

During the July Monarchy of 1830 to 1848, when the junior Orléanist branch held the throne, the Legitimists were largely politically marginalized, with many withdrawing from active participation in political life. The situation was complicated before 1844 by the question of who the legitimate king was - Charles X and his son the Dauphin had abdicated during the 1830 Revolution in favor of Charles's young grandson, the Comte de Chambord, but before the death of Charles X and his son, in 1836 an 1844, respectively, many Legitimists continued to recognize them as rightful kings ahead of Chambord.

Legitimists under the Second Republic and the Empire (1848-1871)

The fall of Louis Philippe in 1848 led to a strengthening of the Legitimist position. Legitimists came back into political prominence during the Second Republic, and through much of this time there was discussion of a "Fusion" with the Orleanist Party. Fusionism reached the point where several sons of Louis Philippe declared their support for Chambord, but was never actually achieved, and after 1850 the two parties were again separated. The period of the Second Empire saw the Legitimists once again cast out of active political life. Furthermore, the childlessness of Chambord, whose wife was widely known to be barren, weakened the hand of the Legitimists.

Legitimists under the Third Republic (1871-1940)

Nevertheless, the Legitimists remained a significant party within elite opinion, attracting the support of the larger part of the old aristocracy. After the French defeat in the Franco-Prussian War and the fall of Napoleon III's dynasty, the Legitimists returned for one final time to political prominence. The National Assembly elected in 1871 contained a monarchist majority, and this time, the two monarchist groups were able to agree on a program of fusion, largely because of the increased likelihood that Chambord would die without children. The Orleanists agreed to recognize Chambord as king, and the Orleanist claimant himself, Philippe, Comte de Paris, recognized Chambord as head of the French royal house. In return, Legitimists agreed that, should Chambord die childless, Paris would succeed him as King. Unfortunately for French monarchism, Chambord's refusal to accept the Tricolor as the flag of France made restoration impossible until after his death, by which time the monarchists had long lost their parliamentary majority. The death of the comte de Chambord in 1883 effectively dissolved the parti légitimiste as a political entity in France.

Legitimists under Vichy and after World War II (1940-today)

However, they returned to prominence during Vichy France, according to historian René Rémond's studies on the right-wing families in France. Some would also support during the Algerian War (1954-62) the OAS. Marcel Lefebvre's Society of St. Pius X, founded in 1970, is an example of the evolution of the legitimist movement, according to Rémond.

As of 2006, they remain strongly attached to the traditionalist wing of the Catholic Church and are particularly encouraged by theological conservatism of Pope Benedict XVI. Such Legitimists are strongly opposed to the proposed European Constitution and anything else which threatens the national integrity of France. Amongst French Legitimists, there is diversity of sensitivities. Some are closer to the mainstream Royalists, similarly admirers of Francaise, founded by Maurras. Others, totally committed to devotion to the Bourbon dynasty and the memory of the ^*, tend to gather around Traditionalist Catholic places, such as Saint-Nicolas du Chardonnet church in Paris, or around far-right parties such as Jean-Marie Le Pen's Front National or de Villiers' Mouvement pour la France. There are small but active Legitimist circles throughout France.

After Chambord's death, with only the descendants of Philip V of Spain, who had been obliged, by the of Utrecht, to renounce his and his descendants' claims to the French throne at the time of his death in 1713, senior to the Orleanist branch, most French royalists recognized the Comte de Paris as the legitimate pretender.

Carlism

A remnant, known as the Blancs d'Espagne, by repudiating Philip V's renunciation of the French throne as ultra vires and contrary to the French monarchical constitution, upheld the rights of the eldest branch of the Bourbons, then represented by the Carlist pretender to the Spanish throne. This group was initially minuscule, but began to grow larger after World War II due both to the political leftism of the Orleanist Pretender, Henri, Comte de Paris, and to the active efforts of the claimants of the elder line - Jaime, Duke of Segovia, the disinherited second son of Alfonso XIII of Spain and his son, Alfonso, Duke of Anjou and Cádiz, to secure legitimist support, such that by the 1980s, the elder line had fully reclaimed for its supporters the title of "Legitimists." This means that the current legitimist claimant is the Spanish-born Louis-Alphonse de Bourbon (Luis-Alfonso de Borbón), styled duc d'Anjou. An attempt by the Orleanist claimant to contest the right of Louis-Alphonse to this latter title was dismissed by the French courts. Thus, the Duc d'Anjou, who is also a French citizen, was recognised as the senior living representative of the House of Capet.

Legitimist claimants to the throne of France

Charles X, King of France (1757-1836), deprived of the throne in 1830
Louis, Count of Marnes (1775-1844), "Louis XIX"
Henri, Count of Chambord (1820-1883), "Henri V"

In the 1870s the rival Orleanist and Legitimist claimists agreed, for the sake of the French Monarchy, to end their rivalry. The Comte de Paris accepted the prior claim to the throne of the Comte de Chambord. Chambord who was childless, in turn recognised the Comte de Paris as his heir. Since then, many Legitimists have accepted the descendants of the Comte de Paris as the joint Legitimist-Orleanist pretender.

According to those Legitimists, who accept the Orleanist succession following the death of the Comte de Chambord, the list of claims is as follows.

Louis-Philippe, Comte de Paris (1838-1894), "Louis-Philippe II" (or Philippe VII since he recognised the Comte de Chambord as Henri V in 1873)
Jean, Duc de Guise (1874-1940), "Jean III"
Henri, Comte de Paris (1908-1999), "Henri VI" (or Henri V in direct succession from Louis Philippe)
Henri, Comte de Paris, "Duc de France" (b. 1933), "Henri VII" (or Henri VI)

However, those Legitimists with a profound sense of Bourbon dynastic law, refused to accept Chambord's designation of Paris as being his heir. They insist the succession is as follows:

Juan, Count of Montizón (1822-1887), "Jean III" (male heir of Philip V of Spain)
Carlos, Duke of Madrid (1848-1903), "Charles XI"
Jacques, Duke of Anjou and Madrid (1870-1931), "Jacques I"
Alfonso Carlos, Duke of San Jaime (1849-1936), "Alphonse I"
Alfonso XIII, King of Spain (1886-1941), "Alphonse II"
Jacques Henri, Duke of Anjou and Segovia (1908-1975), "Jacques II"
Alphonse, Duke of Anjou and Cádiz (1936-1989), "Alphonse III"
Louis, Duke of Anjou (b. 1974), "Louis XX"