Carlos I of Portugal

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Carlos I of Portugal

Portuguese Royalty
House of Saxe-Coburg-Braganza

Pedro V
Image:Royport.JPG
Luís I
Children
Carlos, Prince Royal of Portugal, Duke of Braganza (future Carlos I)
Infante Afonso, Duke of Porto
Carlos I
Children
Luís Filipe, Prince Royal of Portugal, Duke of Braganza
Infante Manuel, Duke of Beja (future Manuel II)
Manuel II

Carlos I, King of Portugal KG pron. IPA ['kaɾɫuʃ]; Eng. Charles), the Martyrized (Port. o Martirizado) - (Lisbon, September 28, 1863 - Lisbon, February 1, 1908) named Carlos Fernando Luís Maria Victor Miguel Rafael Gabriel Gonzaga Xavier Francisco de Assis José Simão de Bragança was the 33rd (or 34th according to some historians) and second last King of Portugal and Algarves.

1 Family
2 King of Portugal
3 Marriage and children
4 Ancestors

[edit] Family

He was born in Lisbon, Portugal, the son of King Luís Filipe and Princess Maria Pia of Savoy, daughter of Victor Emmanuel II, King of Italy.

He was an older brother of Infante Afonso, Duke of Porto. His paternal first cousins included (among others) Frederick Augustus III of Saxony, Princess Maria Josepha of Saxony, Prince Wilhelm of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen and Ferdinand I of Romania.

His maternal first cousins included (among others) Napoléon Victor Bonaparte, Victor Emmanuel III of Italy, Emanuele Filiberto, 2nd Duke of Aosta, Vittorio Emanuele, Count of Turin, Luigi Amedeo, Duke of the Abruzzi, Umberto, Count of Salemi

[edit] King of Portugal

Carlos became King on October 10, 1889. An intelligent but vastly extravagant man, Carlos's policies, misperceived wastefulness and extramarital affairs effectively sealed the fate of the Portuguese monarchy. Colonial treaties with the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland (one signed in August 1890 that defined their African borders along the Zambezi and Congo rivers and another signed on October 14, 1899, that confirmed colonial treaties of the 17th Century) stabilised the situation in Africa. Domestically, Portugal was twice declared bankrupt - on June 14, 1892, and again on May 10, 1902 - causing industrial disturbances, socialist and republican antagonism and press criticism of the monarchy. Carlos responded by appointing João Franco as prime minister and subsequently accepting parliament's dissolution.

On February 1, 1908 the royal family returned from the palace of Vila Viçosa to Lisbon. They travelled by coach to Almada and from then took a boat to cross the Tagus River and disembarked in Cais do Sodré in downtown Lisbon. On their way to the royal palace, the carriage with Carlos I and his family passed through Terreiro do Paço. While crossing the square, shots were fired from the crowd by at least two men: Alfredo Costa and Manuel Buiça. The king died immediately, his heir Luís Filipe was mortally wounded, and Prince Manuel was hit in the arm. The assassins were shot at the spot by members of the bodyguard and later recognized as members of the Republican Party. About twenty minutes later, Prince Luis Filipe died and days later, Manuel was acclaimed king of Portugal, the last one of the Braganza dynasty.

[edit] Marriage and children

Carlos was married to Princess Amélie of Orléans in 1886. She was daughter of Philippe, Comte de Paris and Marie Isabelle d'Orléans. Their children were

Luis Filipe, Duke of Braganza (1887-1908)
Manuel II, king of Portugal between 1908 and 1910 (1889-1932)
Maria Anna of Braganza, princess of Portugal (1887–1887).

A woman known as Hilda Toldano claimed (many years after his death) that she was the illegitimate and adluertine daughter of Carlos I by Maria Amelia Laredo e Murca. However her claims are generally regarded as a hoax.