Antonio was the only surviving son of Prince Antoine of Orléans, Duke of Montpensier, and his wife Infanta Luisa Fernanda of Spain.

In December 1874, the coup of General Arsenio Martínez Campos allowed for the restoration of the Spanish monarchy and the young Alfonso XII was made king following the renunciation of his mother.

In 1878, King Alfonso XII married Antonio's older sister Mercedes, and the reconciliation of the Spanish Orléans and Bourbons was complete.

In 1892, he participated in his wife's trip to Cuba and the United States for the celebrations of the 400th anniversary of the discovery of America by Christopher Columbus.

Antonio, however, was fickle and extravagant, while his wife was a strong and cultured woman who refused to bear the humiliations caused by her husband.

Immediately seduced by the young Breton, Antonio began a new love affair, public in London, Paris and Seville.