Isabella Maria of Portugal
Isabella Maria of Portugal ( Portuguese : D. Isabel Maria da Conceição Joana Gualberta Ana Francisca de Assis Xavier de Paula de Alcântara Antónia Rafaela Micaela Gabriela Joaquina Gonzaga de Bragança) (born July 4, 1801 in Lisbon ; † April 22, 1876 ibid) was a Portuguese Infanta from the House of Braganza . From 1826 to 1828 she was regent of Portugal , first for her brother, King Peter IV , who was in Brazil , and then for her underage niece Maria II.
Life
Isabella Maria was the younger daughter of King John VI. and his wife, Queen Charlotte Joachime of Spain . Her brother Peter, the Portuguese Crown Prince, had declared Brazilian independence in 1822 and proclaimed himself, Peter I, Emperor of Brazil. As John VI. In 1826, Peter inherited the Portuguese throne as well as the Brazilian throne. However, he was not ready to leave Brazil to take power in Portugal. That is why he appointed Isabella Maria as regent there.
As regent, Isabella followed reactionary policies. The main question of the political discussion in Portugal was whether the country should be governed as an absolutist or a constitutional monarchy . Isabella was a believer in absolutism and also surrounded herself with advisers and ministers who shared the same view.
In Portugal, a first attempt to introduce a constitutional monarchy had failed when John VI. 1824 had revoked the first constitution of the country from the year 1821 (see Liberal Revolution ). Since then the country no longer had a constitution. In 1826, Peter IV therefore issued a new constitution, the so-called Charter, and sent corresponding documents from Rio de Janeiro to Lisbon, instructing Isabella to have them come into force in Portugal. Isabella and her advisors, who did not want to be restricted by a constitution, then tried to prevent the document from coming into force. It was only when the liberal general and later Duke of Saldanha put pressure on the regent from Porto that she finally gave in and swore the government to the new constitution. Those of their ministers who did not want to swear the oath on the new constitution resigned. The regent then had to accept Saldanha as Minister of War in her government, he formed a kind of liberal antipole in the reign led by Isabella. After a short time, however, the reactionary forces had regained the upper hand, and Saldanha was unable to oppose this development, as he was weakened by illness at the decisive moments.
On May 5, 1826, after only two months of reign as the Portuguese king , Peter abdicated in favor of his daughter Maria II . Peter drew the consequence from the fact that it was not possible to rule Brazil and Portugal at the same time and that the Portuguese would not tolerate a king living abroad. Maria II was, however, still a child at this time, so that a regency was still necessary, which was initially also led by Isabella.
Isabella had another brother, Prince Michael , who fought against John VI in vain in 1824. had asked and since then stayed in exile in Austria . Politically, Michael shared Isabella's views, so he was also a supporter of absolutism. Peter IV intended to reunite the two lines of the House of Braganza. For this purpose his daughter Maria II was to marry her uncle Michael later, when she was of marriageable age. Before that, Michael was supposed to rule for them. Michael swore allegiance to the charter and his niece as queen and returned to Lisbon. There he allied himself with Isabella, called a traditional meeting of the estates, was proclaimed king by this in 1828 and dethroned his niece and fiancée Maria.
With King Michael's accession to the throne, the reign of Infanta Isabella also ended. This withdrew completely from Portuguese politics.
Their reign is mostly viewed critically. The regent was obviously overwhelmed with her role in Portugal. By unilaterally supporting the reactionary and conservative forces in the kingdom, she allowed the opposition to the liberals to intensify. Since she did nothing to prevent her brother Michael from taking power, she is partly to blame for the result that later developed, the Miguelistenkrieg .
Isabella Maria was never married and had no children. She died in Benfica near Lisbon in 1876.
See also
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Isabella Maria of Portugal |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | Portuguese princess, regent of Portugal |
| DATE OF BIRTH | July 4, 1801 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Lisbon |
| DATE OF DEATH | April 22, 1876 |
| Place of death | Lisbon |