She was a niece of Henri, comte de Chambord, disputedly King of France and Navarre from 2 to 9 August 1830 and afterwards the Legitimist Pretender to the throne of France from 1844 to 1883.
Through her marriage to Carlos, Duke of Madrid, Carlist claimant to the Spanish throne, Margherita was titular Queen consort of Spain, France, and Navarre.