She is the widow of Vittorio Emanuele, Prince of Naples, the son of the last king and queen of Italy, Umberto II and Marie José.

[5] Ricolfi-Doria met Vittorio Emanuele, Prince of Naples in 1960 at the Société Nautique de Genève, where both were water-skiing.

They were married in a Catholic church in Tehran, Iran, in the autumn of 1971; their wedding had been announced during the 2,500-year celebration of the Persian Empire in Persepolis.

[7] As the spouse of the head of the House of Savoy, she was entitled to the Privilège du blanc, the ability to wear white garments when in an audience with the pope.

She exercised this privilege on 18 May 2003 during a Catholic mass marking the birth anniversary of Pope John Paul II.