The marriage, however, was childless, leading to the succession of Charles of Spain, whose mother, Elisabeth Farnese, was Antonio's niece, to the ducal throne.

At the age of 18, Prince Antonio embarked on a Grand Tour of Europe with the intention of establishing contacts in courts across the continent; however, he simply dissipated 1,580,000 lire on galas.

[2] His life of hedonism continued unperturbed: he stayed up all night, sat for dinner one hour before dawn, played faro and basset and attended Countess Bori's salons on a daily basis.

[4] As there was no heir to the duchy, the secretary of state, Count Anvidi, and Bori coerced an unwilling Antonio to marry Enrichetta d'Este, the sister of his friend the Hereditary Prince of Modena.

Six days after his death on 20 January 1731, Austrian troops marched into the Duchy of Parma and Piacenza, intent on staying there until Spain re-subscribed to the terms of the Treaty of London.