Editing Charles III of Spain (section)

===Conquest of Naples and Sicily===
{{further|War of the Polish Succession}}
In 1733, the death of [[Augustus II the Strong|Augustus II]], King of [[Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth|Poland]], sparked a succession crisis in Poland. France supported one pretender, and Austria and [[Russia]] another. France and Savoy formed an alliance to acquire territory from Austria. Spain, which had allied with France in late 1733 (the [[Bourbon Compact]]), also entered the conflict. Charles's mother, as regent, saw the opportunity to regain the Kingdoms of Naples and Sicily, which Spain had lost in the [[Treaty of Utrecht]].

[[File:El Futuro Carlos III de España a caballo en Nápoles.jpg|250px|thumb|Charles of Bourbon near Naples (1734)]]

On 20 January 1734, Charles, now 18, reached his majority, and was "free to govern and to manage in a manner independent its states".<ref name="Acton">Acton, Harold. ''I Borboni di Napoli (1734–1825)'' Florence, Giunti, 1997 p. 20</ref> He was also named commander of all Spanish troops in Italy, a position he shared with the [[José Carrillo de Albornoz, 1st Duke of Montemar|Duke of Montemar]]. On 27 February, King Philip declared his intention to capture the Kingdom of Naples, claiming he would free it of "excessive violence by the Austrian Viceroy of Naples, oppression, and tyranny".<ref>Gleijeses, Vittorio. ''Don Carlos'' Naples, Edizioni Agea, 1988. p. 49</ref> Charles, now "Charles I of Parma", was to be in charge. Charles inspected the Spanish troops at [[Perugia]], and marched toward Naples on 5 March. The army passed through the [[Papal States]] then ruled by [[Pope Clement XII|Clement XII]].<ref name="Acton"/>

The Austrians, already fighting the French and Savoyard armies to retain [[Milan]], had only limited resources for the defense of Naples and were divided on how best to oppose the Spanish. The Emperor wanted to keep Naples, but most of the Neapolitan nobility was against him, and some conspired against his viceroy. They hoped that Philip would give the kingdom to Charles, who would be more likely to live and rule there, rather than having a viceroy and serve a foreign power. On 9 March the Spanish took [[Procida]] and [[Ischia]], two islands in the [[Bay of Naples]]. A week later they defeated the Austrians at sea. On 31 March, his army closed in on the Austrians in Naples. The Spanish flanked the defensive position of the Austrians under General [[Otto Ferdinand von Abensberg und Traun|von Traun]] and forced them to withdraw to [[Capua]]. This allowed Charles and his troops to advance on to the city of Naples itself.

The Austrian viceroy, Giulio Borromeo Visconti, and the commander of his army, Giovanni Carafa, left some garrisons holding the city's fortresses and withdrew to [[Apulia]]. There they awaited reinforcements sufficient to defeat the Spanish. The Spanish entered Naples and laid siege to the Austrian-held fortresses. During that interval, Charles received the compliments of the local nobility, and the city keys and the ''privilege book'' from a delegation of the city's elected officials.<ref>Vittorio Gleijeses, Don Carlos, Naples, Edizioni Agea, 1988. p. 50-53</ref> Chronicles of the time reported that Naples was captured "with humanity" and that the combat was only due to a general climate of courtesy between the two armies, often under the eyes of the Neapolitans that approached with curiosity

The Spanish took the [[Carmine Castle]] on 10 April; [[Castel Sant'Elmo, Naples|Castel Sant'Elmo]] fell on 27 April; the [[Castel dell'Ovo]] on 4 May, and finally the [[Castel Nuovo]] on 6 May. This all occurred even though Charles had no military experience, seldom wore uniforms, and could only with difficulty be persuaded to witness a review.