Stará Ľubovňa is a town located in the northeastern part of Slovakia. Overlooking the town is Ľubovňa Castle, and below it lies a manor house that now serves as the Ľubovňa Museum. These places take pride in having once been home to the de Bourbon princesses and the noble Zamoyski family.
The castle was purchased from the town on January 3, 1882, by Polish aristocrat Count Andrzej Przemysław Zamoyski. That same year, he also bought the Vyšné Ružbachy spa, forests near Vyšné Ružbachy, Podolínec, and Mníšek nad Popradom, along with several buildings, such as the manor in Mníšek. This is how the Ľubovňa estate came under the control of two generations of Polish nobility – the Zamoyski family – for 62 years.
Andrzej Przemysław Zamoyski
He was born on July 10, 1852, in Warsaw into one of Poland’s five most influential families. From boyhood, his father involved him in managing the family estate. After graduating from high school, he enrolled at the College of Agriculture in Dublany near Lviv, which was among the most prestigious agricultural schools in Poland. Due to health reasons, he was advised to stay in spa towns or near the sea. He became very fond of Cannes, where he met the love of his life – Carolina de Bourbon-Two Sicilies.
Carolina de Bourbon
Maria Carolina Josepha Ferdinanda de Bourbon-Two Sicilies was born on March 20, 1856, to Royal Highness Francis of Paula and Maria Isabella of Habsburg at the royal court in Naples. She was the granddaughter of Francis I, King of the Two Sicilies. At age five, after the fall of the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies, Maria Carolina and her family were forced to move to the Vatican, where they lived under the protection of Pope Pius IX. Later, after the Vatican was invaded by the troops of King Victor Emmanuel II of Italy, the family fled to France. The beginnings of her relationship with Andrzej were not easy – his chosen one was a princess, and he was “just a count,” one rank lower in the social hierarchy. Andrzej courted the princess for many years until her strong-willed mother eventually agreed to let him show Maria Carolina the Ľubovňa estate – a move that proved wise. After that, the princess's parents allowed the marriage.
Life with a princess
The civil wedding took place at the town hall in Élysée on November 18, 1885, followed by a church ceremony the next day. The couple settled in the manor house below Ľubovňa Castle. Managing the castle estate was not easy – expenses related to its operation were offset by revenues from the spa. Count Andrzej Zamoyski thus began investing in the Vyšné Ružbachy spa to restore its former glory. His family ties to the Bourbons opened doors to extensive contacts with aristocratic and political elites across Western Europe. He attended papal audiences and met with figures from Vatican, Italian, and French diplomacy. Andrzej died in 1927, and Maria Carolina became a full-time grandmother. Due to her kind nature, she was beloved by all. She died in occupied Warsaw in 1941.
The second generation
Jan Kanty, son of Count Andrzej and Princess Maria Carolina, was born on August 17, 1900, in Krakow as the youngest of eight children. He graduated from a Catholic high school in Tarnów and later studied economics at the School of Political Science in Paris. In 1926, he inherited the Ľubovňa estate, the Vyšné Ružbachy spa, and the Magnuszew estate in Poland. At his sister Karolina’s wedding, he met Princess Isabel Alfonsa de Bourbon.
Wedding photograph of Count Jan Kanty and Isabel Alfonsa de Bourbon.
Isabel Alfonsa de Bourbon
She was born on October 16, 1904, at the royal palace in Madrid. Her mother, Doña María Mercedes, was the daughter of King Alfonso XII. Infanta Isabel spent her childhood in the royal palace, raised by her father and grandmother, as her mother had died the day after giving birth. As Isabel grew up, her official duties and foreign travels increased. She met her future husband at her uncle’s wedding. Their mutual affection developed into a serious relationship, and they were married in the chapel of the royal palace on March 9, 1929.
Princess Isabel with her children.
Happiness interrupted by war
Between 1929 and 1932, Jan Kanty began making a name for himself as an important estate manager. The years spent in Stará Ľubovňa and Vyšné Ružbachy were happy ones – the couple gradually had four children. But their happiness was interrupted by the outbreak of war. As German troops retreated, the family was advised to flee. They spent the winter in the palace of the Spanish queen. Later, under the regime of General Franco, they were forced to live in Seville. The luggage that had been sent from Slovakia was lost during the hurried escape, and their wealth and property remained in what was then Czechoslovakia. With the help of her father, Countess Isabel purchased a farm near Seville. Count Jan, however, completely lost his will to live. The pain of exile and the worsening financial situation drained his strength. He was unable to find work or engage in business. Their once happy marriage could not withstand the strain of this difficult period and ended in an amicable separation. The Count moved to the French city of Cannes. Princess Isabel supported him financially until his death in 1961 at the age of 61. Over time, the princess relocated to a smaller home with a modest garden. She spent the final years of her life in a retirement home in Pozuelo, where she died in 1985.
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