Honestly, if you saw her in her later years—with that shock of white frizzy hair, the bohemian floral dresses, and the face that launched a thousand plastic surgery rumors—you probably wouldn't have guessed she could trace her lineage back to King James II of England.
But Cayetana Fitz-James Stuart wasn't just another eccentric rich lady. She was a walking, breathing history book who happened to have more noble titles than the King of Spain himself. In fact, according to the Guinness World Records, she was the most titled person on the planet. We're talking 57 titles. She was a Duchess five times over, a Marchioness 18 times, and a Count-Duchess just for good measure.
People loved her. People judged her. But mostly, people were just fascinated by her.
The Myth of the Royal Bow
You've probably heard that famous "fact" that used to make the rounds on the internet: that Cayetana was so high-ranking that Queen Elizabeth II would have had to curtsey to her.
It’s a great story. It's also totally wrong.
Protocol is a funny thing in the world of old-school aristocracy. While Cayetana did have an absurd number of titles, none of them outranked a reigning monarch. When she met the Queen of England, or the King of Spain, she was the one doing the dipping. In fact, there's a famous photo of her greeting the British Queen with a deep, respectful curtsey.
What's actually true, though, is that her status gave her some pretty wild privileges. She was one of the few people allowed to enter the Cathedral of Seville on horseback. She didn't have to kneel before the Pope. These are the kinds of perks you get when your family has been "important" since the 1400s.
Growing Up in Palaces and War
Cayetana was born in 1926 in the Liria Palace in Madrid. It’s one of those houses that isn't really a house—it’s a museum with bedrooms. Her childhood was kinda lonely, though. Her mother died of tuberculosis when she was only eight. To keep the little girl from getting sick, her mother would literally throw objects at her to keep her from coming too close to the bed. Imagine that being your primary memory of your mom.
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Then the Spanish Civil War hit. Her family fled to London, where her father served as an ambassador. This is where she spent her teen years, hanging out with the future Queen Elizabeth II. They were basically childhood playmates. While London was being bombed, Cayetana was learning how to be a "proper" royal, though she never quite took to the "proper" part.
She was always a bit of a rebel. She loved flamenco. She loved bullfighting. She famously refused to let Pablo Picasso paint her because she thought being a model was "boring." Can you imagine saying no to Picasso? She did.
Three Marriages and a Flamenco Dance
Her love life was the fuel for Spanish tabloids for sixty years.
Her first wedding in 1947 was billed as the "most expensive wedding in the world." She married Luis Martínez de Irujo, an aristocrat, and they had six kids. It was all very traditional, very "Alba."
But then Luis died.
Six years later, she shocked everyone by marrying Jesús Aguirre. Why was it a scandal? Because he was a former Jesuit priest. And he was 11 years younger than her. People whispered that he was a social climber, but by all accounts, they were genuinely happy until he passed away in 2001.
Then came the big one.
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At age 85, Cayetana decided she wanted to marry again. The lucky guy was Alfonso Díez, a civil servant who was 24 years her junior. Her children were, predictably, losing their minds. They thought he was after the money. To prove them wrong, Alfonso signed a legal document renouncing any claim to the Alba fortune. Cayetana even went a step further: she gave her kids their inheritance early just to shut them up so she could get married in peace.
On her wedding day in 2011, she did something that basically defined her spirit. She stepped out of the palace in Seville, kicked off her shoes, and danced flamenco barefoot in the street in front of the crowds.
She was 85. It was legendary.
The "Poor" Billionaire
Cayetana was worth billions. Some estimates put her net worth at $5 billion at the time of her death in 2014. She owned tens of thousands of acres of land across Spain.
But she famously said, "I have a lot of artworks, but I can't eat them, can I?"
She wasn't lying. The House of Alba holds one of the most significant private art collections in the world. We’re talking:
- Original letters written by Christopher Columbus.
- A first-edition copy of Don Quixote.
- Masterpieces by Goya, Velázquez, and Titian.
- Palaces like the Palacio de las Dueñas in Seville, which is practically a botanical garden with walls.
Because these items are "National Heritage," she couldn't just sell a Goya to buy a yacht. She was the custodian of Spanish history, which meant she was incredibly "asset rich" but lived a life that was more about maintaining the past than spending cash like a tech mogul.
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The Changing Face of a Legend
We have to talk about the elephant in the room: her face.
In her youth, Cayetana was a stunner. She had this classic, elegant beauty that landed her on the covers of Time and Harper’s Bazaar. But as the decades rolled on, her appearance changed drastically. While she never explicitly detailed every procedure, it was widely accepted that she’d had extensive plastic surgery.
The puffy lips and the altered nose became a bit of a punchline for people who didn't know her history. But she didn't seem to care. She kept wearing her bright colors, her ankle bracelets, and her messy hair until her final breath.
She died in 2014 at the age of 88 in her beloved Seville. Thousands of people lined the streets to say goodbye. Not because she was a "Great Lady" in the stuffy sense, but because she was their Duchess—the one who danced in the street and lived exactly how she wanted.
Actionable Insights for the History Obsessed
If you want to understand the Duchess of Alba beyond the headlines, here is how you can actually experience her world today:
- Visit the Liria Palace (Madrid): You can book guided tours of the palace where she was born. It’s one of the best ways to see the Goya portraits and the Columbus letters.
- Explore Las Dueñas (Seville): This was her favorite residence. You can walk through the gardens where she practiced flamenco. It feels much more personal than the Madrid palace.
- Check the Guinness Archives: Look up her record. While Princess Victoria of Hohenlohe-Langenburg now holds the title for most titles, Cayetana’s era was the peak of 20th-century aristocratic celebrity.
- Read her memoirs: She wrote Yo, Cayetana (I, Cayetana). If you can find a translation or read Spanish, it’s a wild ride that sounds exactly like she’s talking to you over a glass of sherry.
The House of Alba continues under her son, Carlos, but the "rebel" energy she brought to the title died with her. She proved that you can have 50 titles and still be a human being who just wants to dance.