Maria Cristina of Savoy, Queen of the Two Sicilies
Queen Consort of the Two Sicilies (1812-1836) and Blessed
Feast: 31 January (not on the universal Roman calendar; kept in the Roman Martyrology or local calendars)
The Vatican record
- 2 May 2013 — Miracle through their intercession approved (decree list, 2013)
Who they were
Maria Cristina of Savoy was born in Cagliari, Sardinia, on 14 November 1812, a princess of the House of Savoy. She became Queen of the Two Sicilies as the wife of King Ferdinand II, and died in Naples on 31 January 1836, aged 23. She is buried in the Basilica of Santa Chiara in Naples.
The miracles
Maria Vallarino — Genoa, Italy — 1866–1867
A domestic servant in Genoa found a lump in her right breast that doctors diagnosed as a malignant, incurable tumour. She was given a small relic from the Queen's clothing, placed it on the tumour and prayed the words Maria Cristina herself used to repeat: 'Jesus, good Jesus, glorify your servant.' Within about five days the growth had almost entirely gone. Doctors examined her repeatedly over the following years and confirmed it had not returned; the Vatican called the healing very rapid, complete, lasting and medically inexplicable.
The healing happened some 150 years before it was approved: the evidence gathered at the time was kept and examined again for the modern cause. She was beatified in the Basilica of Santa Chiara in Naples on 25 January 2014.
Why that counted as sanctity
The case of Maria Vallarino was examined by the Church's doctors and theologians and approved as a miracle on 2 May 2013, opening the way to beatification. Beatification followed on 25 January 2014 by Cardinal Crescenzio Sepe, for Pope Francis.
Connected on this site
- Francis II of the Two Sicilies Servant of God Child
- Dicastery for the Causes of Saints - decree of 2 May 2013
- Marie de Nazareth, 'Un saint, un miracle' - a servant healed through her intercession
- Sacred Military Constantinian Order - the beatification of Queen Maria Cristina
- Wikipedia - Maria Cristina of Savoy
- Dicastery for the Causes of Saints — promulgated decrees (causesanti.va), summarised in our own words
- Wikidata Q14451 — dates, feast day and identifiers (CC0)
- English Wikipedia — Maria Cristina of Savoy (CC BY-SA)
Checked against the sources listed on 21 September 2026. Corrections welcome.