Exhibit 99.1

[XL Capital Logo Omitted]


                                                         XL Capital Ltd
                                                         XL House
                                                         One Bermudiana Road
                                                         P. O. Box HM 2245
                                                         Hamilton HM JX
                                                         Bermuda

                                                         Phone: (441) 292-8515
                                                         Fax:   (441) 292-5280
Press Release

IMMEDIATE

Contact:     David Radulski                   Roger R. Scotton
             Investor Relations               Media Relations
             (441) 294-7460                   (441) 294-7165


 XL CAPITAL LTD ANNOUNCES THAT UNDERWRITERS EXERCISED THEIR OPTION TO PURCHASE
                           ADDITIONAL ORDINARY SHARES

Hamilton, Bermuda (December 8, 2005) - XL Capital Ltd ("XL" or the "Company")
(NYSE: XL) announced today that the underwriters exercised their option to
purchase an additional 5,076,900 ordinary shares in connection with XL's
previously announced plans to sell 33,846,000 of ordinary shares and
$745,000,000 of equity security units.

Following closing of both offerings tomorrow, total gross proceeds to XL are
expected to be approximately $3.2 billion.

The joint book-running managers for the offerings are Goldman, Sachs & Co. and
Citigroup Corporate and Investment Banking. A copy of the prospectuses meeting
the requirements of Section 10 of the Securities Act of 1933 may be obtained
from either (i) Citigroup Corporate and Investment Banking, Attn:  Prospectus
Department, Brooklyn Army Terminal, 140 58th Street, 8th Floor, Brooklyn, New
York 11220 or by calling (718) 765-6732; or (ii) Goldman, Sachs & Co., Attn:
Prospectus Department, 85 Broad St., New York, NY 10004 or by faxing
212-902-9316 or by emailing prospectus-ny@ny.email.gs.com.

This press release does not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of
an offer to buy any of the ordinary shares, equity security units or any other
securities, nor will there be any sale of the ordinary shares, equity security
units or any other securities in any state or jurisdiction in which such offer,
solicitation or



sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the
securities laws of any such state or jurisdiction.

XL Capital Ltd, through its operating subsidiaries, is a leading provider of
insurance and reinsurance coverages and financial products and services to
industrial, commercial and professional service firms, insurance companies and
other enterprises on a worldwide basis.  As of September 30, 2005, XL Capital
Ltd had consolidated assets of approximately $54.9 billion and consolidated
shareholders' equity of approximately $7.0 billion.  More information about XL
Capital Ltd is available at www.xlcapital.com.

                                    #   #   #

This press release contains forward-looking statements. Statements that are not
historical facts, including statements about XL's beliefs, plans or
expectations, are forward-looking statements. These statements are based on
current plans, estimates, and expectations. Actual results may differ materially
from those included in such forward-looking statements and therefore you should
not place undue reliance on them. A non-exclusive list of the important factors
that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in such
forward-looking statements includes the following: (a) changes in the size of
XL's claims relating to the hurricane and other natural catastrophe losses due
to the preliminary nature of some of the reports and estimates of loss and
damage to date; (b) the timely and full recoverability of reinsurance placed by
XL with third parties, or other amounts due to XL, including, without
limitation, amounts due to XL from Winterthur Swiss Insurance Company (i) in
connection with the independent actuarial process or (ii) under other
contractual arrangements; (c) greater frequency or severity of claims and loss
activity than XL's underwriting, reserving or investment practices anticipate
based on historical experience or industry data; (d) trends in rates for
property and casualty insurance and reinsurance;  (e) developments in the
world's financial and capital markets that adversely affect the performance of
XL's investments or access to such markets; (f) changes in general economic
conditions, including foreign currency exchange rates, inflation and other
factors; and (g) the other factors set forth in XL's most recent reports on Form
10-K, Form 10-Q, and other documents on file with the Securities and Exchange
Commission, as well as management's response to any of the aforementioned
factors.  XL undertakes no obligation to update or revise publicly any
forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future
developments or otherwise.