Order of the Golden Fleece (Spain)

The Distinguished Order of the Golden Fleece is a Catholic order of chivalry founded in 1430 in Bruges by Philip the Good, Duke of Burgundy, to celebrate his marriage to Isabella of Portugal. Today, two branches of the order exist: the Spanish Fleece and the Austrian Fleece. The current grand masters are King Felipe VI of Spain, head of the House of Bourbon-Anjou and Karl von Habsburg, head of the House of Habsburg-Lorraine. The Grand Chaplain of the Austrian branch is Cardinal Christoph Schönborn, Archbishop of Vienna.

The separation of the two existing branches took place as a result of the War of the Spanish Succession of 1701–1714. The grand master of the order, Charles II of Spain (a Habsburg), had died childless in 1700, and so the right to succeed to the throne of Spain (and incidentally to become the Sovereign of the Order of the Golden Fleece) initiated a continental conflict. On one hand, Charles, brother of Holy Roman Emperor Joseph I, claimed the Spanish crown as an agnatic member of the House of Habsburg, which had inherited the Burgundian titles and had held the Spanish throne for almost two centuries.