Isabel, Princess Imperial of Brazil

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Pretender Isabel, Empress of Brazil
Born	July 29, 1846(1846-07-29) Palácio Imperial, Rio de Janeiro
Died	November 14, 1921 (aged 75) Château d’Eu, Eu
Title(s)	Princess Imperial of Brazil
Throne(s) claimed	Brazil
Pretend from	5 December 1891 - 14 November 1921
Monarchy abolished	1889
Last monarch	Pedro II
Connection with	daughter
Royal House	Braganza
Father	Pedro II
Mother	Teresa of the Two Sicilies
Spouse	Gaston, comte d'Eu
Children	Prince Pedro, Prince Luis, Prince Antônio
Predecessor	Pedro II
Successor	Prince Pedro Henrique

Isabel The Redeemer, Princess Imperial of Brazil, de jure Empress D. Isabel I of Brazil (Isabel Cristina Leopoldina Augusta Micaela Gabriela Rafaela Gonzaga de Bragança; 29 July 1846 – 14 November 1921), nicknamed the Redeemer, was the heir to the throne of Brazil, with the title of Princess Imperial during the last decades of the reign of her father Pedro II, and sometime Regent. After the end of the monarchy, she became Head of the Brazilian Imperial House and 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 14 November 1921 while living in Chateau d'Eu, France.

Contents 1 Personal life 2 Political role 3 Belated return from exile 4 Ancestry 5 Notes 6 References

[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 29 July 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 15 October 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 to marry Leopoldina, but the girls decided otherwise and the emperor, having himself experienced the unhappiness 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 Grão Pará. The sons: Dom Pedro de Alcântara Orléans e Bragança (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 13 May 1888, whereby Isabel got the sobriquet Isabel the Redeemer. For the act of signing the Golden Law, she was awarded the Golden Rose 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. Isabel accompanied the other members of her family into exile in France.

When the deposed Emperor Pedro II died on 5 December 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 Grão Pará, wanted to marry a noblewoman whom Isabel regarded not royal; as a result, the son renounced his rights in order to marry. From that point onwards, her heir was her second son, Dom Luiz. However, Dom Luiz died just before his mother did.

Isabel 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 and the present House of Ligne.

[edit] Ancestry

16. Peter III of Portugal

8. John VI of Portugal

17. Maria I of Portugal

4. Pedro I of Brazil

18. Charles IV of Spain (=14)

9. Charlotte of Spain

19. Maria Luisa of Parma (=15)

2. Pedro II of Brazil

20. Leopold II, Holy Roman Emperor

10. Francis II, Holy Roman Emperor

21. Maria Louisa of Spain

5. Maria Leopoldina of Austria

22. Ferdinand I of the Two Sicilies (=12)

11. Maria Teresa of the Two Sicilies

23. Marie Caroline of Austria (=13)

1. Isabel, Princess Imperial of Brazil

24. Charles III of Spain

12. Ferdinand I of the Two Sicilies

25. Maria Amalia of Saxony

6. Francis I of the Two Sicilies

26. Francis I, Holy Roman Emperor

13. Marie Caroline of Austria

27. Maria Theresa of Austria

3. Teresa of the Two Sicilies

28. Charles III of Spain (=24)

14. Charles IV of Spain

29. Maria Amalia of Saxony (=25)

7. Maria Isabella of Spain

30. Philip, Duke of Parma

15. Maria Luisa of Parma

31. Princess Louise-Élisabeth of France

[edit] Notes

[edit] References

• Princess Isabel of Brazil: Gender and Power in the Nineteenth Century, by Roderick J. Barman (2002).
• D. Isabel I, The Redeemeress Cultural Intitute
• Fotos da Princesa Isabel (Portuguese)

Isabel, Princess Imperial of Brazil House of Braganza Cadet branch of the House of Aviz Born: July 29 1846 Died: November 14 1921
Titles in pretence
Preceded by Emperor Pedro II	— TITULAR — Empress of Brazil December 5, 1891 – November 14, 1921 Reason for succession failure: Empire abolished in 1889	Succeeded by Prince Pedro Henrique

Pretenders to the Brazilian throne since 1889
Empire of Brazil
Emperor Pedro II (1889-1891) Princess Imperial Isabel (1891-1921) Vassouras Prince Pedro Henrique (1921-1981) Prince Luís (1981-) Petrópolis Prince Pedro Gastão (1940-2007) Prince Pedro Carlos (2007-)
See also Brazilian Imperial House

v • d • e The Brazilian Imperial Family Main Line Forefathers - John VI of Portugal  · Queen Charlotte (née Infanta of Spain) First generation - Emperor Pedro I  · Empress Leopoldina (née Archduchess of Austria)  · Empress Amélie (née Princess of Leuchtenberg) Second Generation - Emperor Pedro II  · Empress Teresa Cristina (née Princess of the Two Sicilies)  · Maria II of Portugal  · Januária, Princess Imperial of Brazil  · Princess Francisca of Brazil, Princess of Joinville Third generation - Isabel, Princess Imperial of Brazil  · Prince Gaston of Orléans, Count of Eu  · Princess Leopoldina of Brazil, Princess of Koháry Fourth generation - Prince Pedro de Alcantara of Orléans-Braganza  · Princess Elisabeth of Orléans-Braganza (née Countess Dobrzensky)  · Prince Luís of Orléans-Braganza  · Princess Maria Pia of Orléans-Braganza (née Princess of the Two Sicilies)  · Prince Antônio Gastão of Orléans-Braganza The Vassouras Branch Fifth generation - Prince Pedro Henrique of Orléans-Braganza  · Princess Maria Elisabeth of Orléans-Braganza (née Princess of Bavaria) Sixth generation - Prince Luís of Orléans-Braganza  · Prince Bertrand of Orléans-Braganza  · Prince Antônio of Orléans-Braganza  · Princess Christine of Orléans-Braganza (née Princess of Ligne) Seventh generation - Prince Pedro Luís of Orléans-Braganza  · Prince Rafael of Orléans-Braganza  · Princess Amélia of Orléans-Braganza  · Princess Maria Gabriela Fernanda of Orléans-Braganza The Petrópolis Branch Fifth generation - Prince Pedro Gastão of Orléans-Braganza  · Princess Isabel of Orléans-Braganza, Countess of Paris  · Princess Francisca of Orléans-Braganza  · Prince João of Orléans-Braganza Sixth generation - Prince Pedro Carlos of Orléans-Braganza  · Princess Maria da Gloria of Orléans-Braganza  · Princess Cristina of Orléans-Braganza Seventh generation - Prince Pedro Thiago of Orléans-Braganza  · Prince Filipe of Orléans-Braganza