Isabel, Princess Imperial of Brazil
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Isabel, Princess Imperial of Brazil (July 29, 1846 – November 14, 1921), nicknamed the Redeemer, was heir to the throne of Brazil (with the title of Princess Imperial) during the last decades of the reign of her father Pedro II of Brazil, and sometime Regent. After the end of the monarchy, she became Head of the Brazilian Imperial House and, according to legitimist claims, de jure Empress of Brazil.
She acted as regent of Brazil three times while her father was away from the country. In the political history of Brazil she was the first female ruler in the post-colonial period. In 1888 she signed the Law establishing the total abolition of slavery in the Empire. For her pious character and her role in the abolition of slavery in Brazil, Pope Leo XIII bestowed the Golden Rose upon her. In 1889 the Brazilian military overthrew Pedro II along with the monarchy ending her chance at a permanent succession. She died on November 14, 1921 while living in Chateau d'Eu, France.
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[edit] Personal life
Isabel was born as the eldest surviving child of Emperor Dom Pedro II and Princess Teresa of the Two Sicilies, herself the youngest daughter of King Francis I of the Two Sicilies, in the Paço de São Cristóvão, Quinta da Boa Vista, Rio de Janeiro, on July 29, 1846. Her elder brother had died as an infant before Isabel's birth, and a younger brother also died as an infant. As the imperial couple had only daughters living, dom Pedro designated Isabel, the heir presumptive as the official heiress (although she was not heir apparent in the strictest sense of that concept) whereby she received the titles Princess Imperial and Princess of Brazil already in the lifetime of her father.
Isabel married on October 15, 1864, Prince Gastão d' Orléans, Count of Eu (1842–1922) - Louis Philippe Marie Ferdinand Gaston, Prince d'Orleans, comte d'Eu, son of Louis Charles Philippe Raphael, duc de Nemours, a cadet prince of the house of Orleans.
Her only surviving sibling, her younger sister Princess Leopoldina of Brazil married Prince August of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha. Originally, the two princes were imported to Brazil in order for August to marry Isabel and Gaston Leopoldina, but the girls decided otherwise and the emperor, having himself experienced unhappinesses of an arranged dynastic marriage, agreed to their wishes.
She was styled "Her Imperial Highness" all her life, except for the brief period during which her younger brother was alive, during which time she bore the style "Her Highness". Her title was Princess Imperial, except during the lifetime of her brother, when she was titled Princess, given that the style of HIH and the title of Prince/Princess Imperial were reserved to the heir to the Throne. During her three periods as Regent of the Empire in the absence of her father from the country, Isabel was known as The Princess Imperial Regent. However, she passed to history simply as Princess Isabel, or The Redeemer.
Isabel's marriage with Gaston produced three sons, the eldest of whom, her father's namesake, was designated as the next heir of Brazil, and accordingly given the title Prince of Grao Para. The sons: Dom Pedro de Alcântara Orléans e Bragança (b. 1875–1940), Dom Luís de Orléans e Bragança (1878–1920), and Dom Antônio Orléans e Bragança (1881–1918).
[edit] Political Role
Isabel was regent of the empire three times while her father, Emperor Dom Pedro II (1825-1891), traveled abroad. In his reign, Pedro II who was regarded as liberal, took steps to industrialize Brazil and to end slavery. Isabel, acting as the Regent, signed the final abolition of slavery edict (the "Lei Áurea", Golden Law, effectively banning slavery), on May 13, 1888, whereby Isabel got the sobriquet Isabel the Redeemer. For the act of signing the Golden Law, she was awarded the "Rose of Gold" by Pope Leo XIII.
This progressive stance, however, brought the imperial government into conflict with the more conservative elements of Brazilian society. At the same time, the liberal elements, which they encouraged, eventually decided that Pedro was not willing to make reforms fast enough, so they also rejected the imperial rule. Although the emperor was still popular among the people, he was deposed on November 15, 1889 by a military coup, and the imperial family was exiled. When the monarchy fell in 1889, Isabel accompanied the other members of the royal family into exile in France.
When the deposed Emperor Pedro II died on December 5, 1891 in Paris, France, his daughter Isabel ascended as the Titular Empress of Brazil, according to monarchists.
In 1908 her eldest son Dom Pedro, Prince Imperial, Prince of Grao Para, wanted to marry a noblewoman whom Isabel regarded not royal, and as result, the son renounced his rights in order to marry. From that onwards, her heir was her second son Dom Luiz, who however died just before her. She died in 1921 in France.
[edit] Belated Return from Exile
In 1920, the Brazilian government rescinded the exile law imposed by the new Republican government in 1889 and allowed the imperial family to return[1]. Isabel died before returning, and her husband Gaston, having embarked on a ship to Brazil, died onboard. The remains of Pedro II and his wife were brought to Brazil in 1921[2], and were reinterred in Petrópolis, their former summer residence, in 1939.
Isabel was part of the House of Orleans-Bragança. The family includes royal heirs of deposed monarchies of France and Portugal, in addition to the Empire of Brazil.
[edit] Notes
[edit] References
- Princess Isabel of Brazil: Gender and Power in the Nineteenth Century, by Roderick J. Barman (2002).
- The Redeemeress
| House of Braganza Born: 29 July 1846 Died: 14 November 1921 |
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| Preceded by Emperor Pedro II |
* NOT REIGNING * Empress of Brazil (1891-1921) * Reason for Succession Failure: * Empire abolished in 1889 |
Succeeded by Prince Pedro Henrique |
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Forefathers - John VI of Portugal - Queen Carlota Joaquina First generation - Pedro I - Empress Leopoldina - Princess Amélie of Leuchtenberg Fourth generation - Prince Luiz of Orleans-Braganza - Princess Maria Pia Fourth generation - Prince Pedro de Alcantara of Orléans-Braganza - Countess Elisabeth Dobrzensky |
