His Royal Highness the Grand Master Appoints Ambassador Pasquale Quito Terracciano as Grand Chancellor of the Constantinian Order
On Friday, 23 October 2026, the Grand Master of the Sacred Military Constantinian Order of Saint George, His Royal Highness Prince Don Pedro de Borbón-Dos Sicilias y Orléans, Duke of Calabria, Count of Caserta, Head of the Royal House of the Two Sicilies, appointed His Excellency Ambassador Don Pasquale Quito Terracciano, Knight Grand Cross of Justice, as Grand Chancellor of the Constantinian Order.
The new Grand Chancellor succeeds His Excellency Ambassador Don Carlos Bárcena y Portolés, Bailiff Knight Grand Cross of Justice decorated with the Collar, who held the office for almost eight years. In the Communiqué of the Grand Magistry announcing the appointment, published today, His Royal Highness the Grand Master expresses his gratitude to the outgoing Grand Chancellor, together with that of the entire Sacred Militia, for the loyalty, dedication and sense of responsibility with which he carried out his service.
Born in Naples in 1956 and a graduate in law from the University of Naples Federico II, Ambassador Terracciano has gathered extensive experience in international relations over almost forty-two years of diplomatic career. He served as Ambassador of Italy to Spain, the United Kingdom and the Russian Federation, and held important positions at the Farnesina and at the Presidency of the Council of Ministers. He concluded his service in the administration as the first Director General for Public and Cultural Diplomacy at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation.
Below follow the Declaration of the Grand Magistry and biographical notes on the new Grand Chancellor of the Constantinian Order and on his predecessor, reflecting their respective professional paths and their service to the institutions and to the Sacred Militia.
Communiqué of the Grand Magistry, 24 October 2026
The official text is reproduced below unchanged, in the original Spanish.
GRAN MAESTRAZGO
SAGRADA MILITAR ORDEN CONSTANTINIANA DE SAN JORGE
COMUNICADO
El viernes 23 de octubre de 2026, el Gran Maestre de la Sagrada Orden Militar Constantiniana de San Jorge, S.A.R. el Príncipe Don Pedro de Borbón-Dos Sicilias y Orléans, Duque de Calabria, Conde de Caserta, Jefe de la Casa Real de las Dos Sicilias, nombró a S.E. el Embajador Don Pasquale Quito Terracciano, Caballero Gran Cruz de Justicia, como Gran Canciller de la Orden Constantiniana.
Nacido en Nápoles el 4 de mayo de 1956 y licenciado en Derecho por la Universidad de Nápoles Federico II, el embajador Terracciano inició su carrera diplomática en 1981, ejerciendo durante casi cuarenta y dos años. Fue embajador de Italia en España de 2006 a 2010, en el Reino Unido de 2013 a 2018 y en la Federación Rusa de 2018 a 2021. En la Farnesina, ocupó los cargos de portavoz del Ministro de Asuntos Exteriores, jefe del Servicio de Prensa e Información y jefe de gabinete del Ministro. De 2011 a 2013, fue asesor diplomático del Primer Ministro y su representante personal ante el G8 y el G20. De enero de 2022 a mayo de 2023, fue el primer director general de Diplomacia Pública y Cultural del Ministerio de Asuntos Exteriores y Cooperación Internacional. Es el representante de la Soberana Orden Militar de Malta en el Reino Unido.
Su ingreso en la Sagrada Milicia se remonta al 18 de mayo de 2007, por decreto del entonces Gran Maestrazgo, Su Alteza Real el Infante Don Carlos de Borbón, Dos Sicilias y Borbón-Parma: Duque de Calabria, Conde de Caserta, Jefe de la Casa Real de las Dos Sicilias.
Al término del mandato de casi ocho años del Gran Canciller saliente, Su Excelencia el Embajador Don Carlos Bárcena y Portolés, Baylío Gran Cruz de Justicia condecorado con el Collar, Su Alteza Real el Gran Maestre expresa su profundo agradecimiento, junto con el de toda la Sagrada Milicia, por la lealtad, la dedicación y el elevado sentido de la responsabilidad con que ha desempeñado sus funciones. Su vasta experiencia diplomática y su constante dedicación al servicio de la Orden Constantiniana y su Gran Maestrazgo han constituido una valiosa contribución a la actividad y la misión de la Orden.
Madrid, 24 de octubre de 2026
Photo Gallery
His Excellency Ambassador Don Pasquale Quito Terracciano with His Royal Highness the Grand Master.
His Excellency Ambassador Don Pasquale Quito Terracciano
His Excellency Ambassador Don Pasquale Quito Terracciano, Knight Grand Cross of Justice, was born in Naples on 4 May 1956. He graduated in law from the University of Naples Federico II on 14 December 1978 and began a legal career before entering the diplomatic service, following a competitive examination, on 1 August 1981.
After completing his training at the Diplomatic Institute, he served in the Directorate General for Personnel, where he became Head of Cabinet in February 1984. On 7 February 1985 he was posted to Rio de Janeiro as Consul. From January 1989 he served at the Permanent Mission of Italy to NATO in Brussels, initially as First Secretary and subsequently as Counsellor.
Returning to the Farnesina in December 1992, he was assigned to the Directorate General for Economic Affairs and attended the advanced professional course of the Diplomatic Institute. In February 1995 he joined the Cabinet of the Minister of Foreign Affairs.
From September 1996 to August 2000 he served at the Embassy of Italy in London, initially as Counsellor and, from February 1998, as First Counsellor. During the same period he was Alternate Executive Director for Italy at the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development. In September 2000 he returned to Brussels as First Counsellor at the Permanent Representation of Italy to the North Atlantic Council.
On 31 August 2001 he was appointed Deputy Head of Cabinet of the Minister of Foreign Affairs. Promoted to Minister Plenipotentiary on 2 January 2003, on 27 October 2004 he took over the direction of the Press and Information Service of the Farnesina, also serving as Spokesman for the Minister.
From July 2006 to July 2010 he served as Ambassador of Italy to the Kingdom of Spain, also accredited to the Principality of Andorra. On 2 January 2010 he was promoted to Ambassador. On 21 July of the same year he took up the post of Head of Cabinet of the Minister of Foreign Affairs.
From 21 November 2011 he served as Diplomatic Adviser to the Prime Minister and his Personal Representative, or Sherpa, for the G8 and the G20. On 27 March 2013 he also assumed the office of Head of Cabinet of the acting Minister of Foreign Affairs.
From 1 May 2013 to January 2018 he served as Ambassador of Italy to the United Kingdom, also accredited to the International Maritime Organization. His tenure included the 2016 British referendum on membership of the European Union and the subsequent opening of the withdrawal process.
From 29 January 2018 to September 2021 he was Ambassador of Italy to the Russian Federation.
After returning to Rome in October 2021, he was subsequently seconded to the Presidency of the Council of Ministers to serve at the National School of Administration. On 4 January 2022 he took up the post of first Director General for Public and Cultural Diplomacy at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, leading the new structure devoted to communication, cultural diplomacy, strategic planning and Italy’s presence in international organisations.
He concluded his service in the administration on 1 June 2023, after a diplomatic career of almost forty-two years.
He is the representative of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta in the United Kingdom.
He has been Knight Grand Cross of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic since 2 June 2013, having been promoted to Officer on 2 June 2000 and to Grand Officer on 27 December 2010.
He has been Knight Grand Cross of Justice of the Sacred Military Constantinian Order of Saint George since 18 May 2007, by decree of the then Grand Master, His Royal Highness Infante Don Carlos de Borbón, Dos Sicilias y Borbón-Parma, Duke of Calabria, Count of Caserta, Head of the Royal House of the Two Sicilies.
His Excellency Don Carlos Bárcena y Portolés
His Excellency Ambassador Don Carlos Bárcena y Portolés, Knight Grand Cross of Justice decorated with the Collar, was born in Zaragoza on 25 January 1945. A graduate in law, he began his diplomatic career in 1974. In the course of his career he served at the Spanish diplomatic missions in France, Chile, Morocco and Belgium, and also held important positions at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, among them those of Inspector of Services and Deputy Director General for Cultural Action and Cooperation.
He was Ambassador of Spain to Nigeria, with accreditation to Benin and Sierra Leone, and subsequently to Lebanon, Israel and Denmark. He also served as Minister Counsellor at the Embassy of Spain to the Holy See, where he gained valuable experience in relations with the Church and in international affairs.
Within the Order, His Excellency Don Carlos Bárcena served as Counsellor of the Royal Delegation before being appointed Grand Chancellor of the Constantinian Order on 11 December 2018. As part of the reorganisation of the Royal Delegation, His Royal Highness the Grand Master entrusted him with one of the highest responsibilities of the Sacred Militia.
His Excellency Don Carlos Bárcena, a veteran diplomat and a figure of great international standing, embodied throughout his career the highest values of service to the State, institutional loyalty and dialogue between peoples. These same qualities characterised his work in the Constantinian Order, where he combined rigour, balance and a spirit of service, contributing to the strengthening of the Order’s activities and international presence.
From December 2018 to October 2026, for almost eight years, he accompanied a significant phase in the life of the Sacred Military Constantinian Order of Saint George, marked by the consolidation of its international structures, the strengthening of the work of the Royal Commissions and Delegations, and the growing presence of the Order in the religious, cultural and charitable spheres.
From the first months of his mandate he took part in the institutional activities promoted by His Royal Highness the Grand Master, accompanying him to meetings with civil, military, religious and chivalric authorities. His participation in the international activities of the Order rests on a commitment that began before his appointment as Grand Chancellor, when he accompanied the Grand Master on several journeys to Italy, France and Portugal. Throughout his mandate he continued to attend ceremonies, meetings and initiatives of the national Royal Commissions.
In the following years he took part in significant events of Constantinian life. Among them were the national training days of the Commission for the Kingdom of Spain in Valencia in March 2022, and the days held in Guadalupe in September of the same year, on the occasion of the offering of the Gold Plaque of the Grand Cross of Justice to the Most Holy Virgin of Guadalupe, in the presence of the Grand Master.
In Italy his service was particularly linked to the Magistral Visits to Naples, a city emblematic of the Constantinian tradition and of the history of the Royal House of the Two Sicilies. On 9 March 2020 he accompanied the Grand Master at the reopening of the Royal Bourbon Chapel in the Monumental Complex of Santa Chiara. In April 2026 he also took part in the programme of institutional, religious and charitable visits organised on the occasion of the Pontifical Mass of Saint George in Naples and the celebration in the Basilica of San Giovanni Maggiore, chosen as the Magistral Chapel of the Order. These occasions helped to strengthen the bond between the Sacred Militia and the territories of the former Kingdom of the Two Sicilies.
During his Grand Chancellorship the Order promoted humanitarian and social assistance initiatives in support of people and communities in need. This commitment was complemented by the Grand Chancellor’s participation in the institutional and charitable meetings of the Grand Master. Among those documented is the audience of April 2026 with the Metropolitan Archbishop of Naples, which also focused on cooperation with the diocesan Caritas and on projects supporting the most vulnerable communities in the area. In this context he placed his diplomatic experience and his knowledge of civil and ecclesiastical institutions at the service of the Sacred Militia.
The years of his Grand Chancellorship were marked by significant growth in the spiritual, cultural and charitable activities of the Order, as well as by a further consolidation of institutional relations and of the international reach of the Sacred Militia. In this context the Grand Chancellor carried out his duties with discretion, a sense of the institution and deep fidelity to Constantinian ideals, offering a valuable contribution to the attainment of the specific aims of the Order: the glorification of the Holy Cross, the propagation of the Faith and service to the Holy Church.
The work of His Excellency Don Carlos Bárcena y Portolés has always been characterised by discretion, balance and a deep sense of the institution, qualities that enabled him to exercise with authority one of the highest offices of the Order, accompanying the Grand Master in promoting Constantinian values and contributing to the strengthening of the unity and cohesion of the Constantinian family throughout the world.
At the conclusion of this important service, the whole Constantinian family looks with gratitude upon the work accomplished and upon the testimony of dedication, wisdom and balance that he offered over the years.
We express to him our sincere gratitude and respectful appreciation for the work he has carried out, together with our warmest wishes for the future, in the certainty that his bond with the Sacred Military Constantinian Order of Saint George will continue to represent a valuable testimony of fidelity to its values and mission.
As his service as Grand Chancellor comes to an end, the Order preserves a living memory of the work he accomplished and of the dedication with which he served the Sacred Militia, leaving a legacy of competence, loyalty and authentic Constantinian spirit.
