WI: D. Juan of Austria (the Younger) Marries?

Since I've revived my Prince's Survival TL, I've been wondering about the younger of the D. Juan d'Austrias. Born in 1627, he sincerely seems to have entertained hopes of succeeding father dear as king of Spain if something were to have happened to Carlos II (probably the reason Mariana of Austria didn't like him). Although he seems to have made a suggestion to his father about marrying his half-sister on that man's deathbed (something that Felipe IV got up and whacked him with a cane for), and his father had spoken rather vaguely of D. Juan José marrying a Mazarinette, nothing concrete was ever decided on.

So, who would be the most likely candidates for a missus? And what might happen if the royal bastard sires a family?
 
Inspired by Velasco's TL, Prospero's Prosperity, I've come up with one or two possibilities:


  • Maria Caterina/Maria Maddalena Farnese (both would be approaching spinsterhood by the 1660s and there weren't really princes for them to marry OTL)
  • Eleonora d'Este (OTL a nun, ICR if there were any offers of marriage for her OTL, but it might do well in attempting to detach Modena/Reggio from France)
  • Marie Anne de la Croix (OTL Cardinal Infante Ferdinand's bastard, posthumous daughter, became a nun OTL)
  • Marie Jeanne Baptiste de Savoie-Nemours (sister of the OTL queen of Portugal, might do well to open a correllary avenue with France)
  • any suggestions for a Spanish/Portuguese/Neapolitan/Flemish heiress (perhaps he marries while he's Viceroy of Naples or Governor of the Netherlands)?
 
Being a bastard is going to make it very difficult, even with a wife and kids(I'd still love to see it done). Could he ever be considered as a compromise candidate to stop the War of spanish succession if he lived longer?
 
Does JJ get a title along with his marriage? Or does marriage to an heiress mean that his dad/brother not have to give him one, since his kids would have the mother's title?
 
The idea of Don Juan José marrying and producing children is very interesting, though I'm not sure who would be a good match. Realistically he'd marry an heiress within the Spanish Monarchy, not a Foreign Princess. Maybe a Princess/Lady of the House of Belmonte? They were after all one of the great noble houses of the Spanish Empire, so they would be a good choice. However, any match has to happen before Felipe IV's death or Mariana would torpedo it.

As for the succession, arguably Juan José or his child(ren) would have a good claim to the throne; a legitimized, Spanish direct male line vs female foreign lines. Remember that the House of Trastámara itself was a bastard line and that Portugal enthroned João I, the bastard son of Pedro I, to keep the country form losing its independence to the Castilian Crown. So there is precedence to do so.

Really though, it just depends on who dominates Carlos II during his last few years. If its his half-brother or nephew, chances are we'd see an illegitimate branch of the Habsburgs on the throne.
 
For the intents of my TL, Mariana's already dead, so the only person who MIGHT and that's a big MAYBE, stand in D. Juan's way, is Felipe's new wife, Anna de Medici, or his new daughter-in-law, perhaps with the support of some of the older noble houses who see the bastard being showered with favors: viceregent of Naples etc, they feel should be given to one of their own.

On a side note: would Felipe's treatment of D. Juan overflow to some of his other bastards? Like Juan's sister, D. Ana Maria/Maria Luisa (she has different names in different sources) but all agree she became a nun.
 
Does JJ get a title along with his marriage? Or does marriage to an heiress mean that his dad/brother not have to give him one, since his kids would have the mother's title?

An interesting idea. Perhaps as a way of preventing him from becoming TOO powerful he only gets a title in one kingdom (like Philippa of Lancaster was only given dower lands in Sweden, or Constantine/Valena have in A&D, that the FitzJameses are given titles in the Scots peerage and the FitzRuperts in the Irish)?
 
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