Dom Pedro II he was emperor of Brazil between 1840 and 1889, a period in which the country underwent many transformations. The great events of his reign were the Paraguay War and the abolition of slave labor. He was deposed in November 1889 in a coup that resulted in the proclamation of the Republic. He died in exile in 1891.
read more: Praiera Revolution - only provincial rebellion that took place in the reign of d. Pedro II
birth and youth
Dom Pedro II, baptized Pedro de Alcântara João Carlos Leopoldo Salvador Bibiano Francisco Xavier de Paula Leocádio Miguel Gabriel Rafael Gonzaga, was born in Rio de Janeiro, on January 2, 1825. He was part of the Brazilian royal family and, therefore, he was the son of d. Peter I it's from d. Maria Leopoldine.
![Portrait of d. Pedro II when he was around 20 years old.[1]](/f/5dacb4234d47ea3b8bc32d2928de8072.jpg)
His father was emperor of Brazil between 1822 and 1831, and his mother was empress between 1822 and 1826. Pedro de Alcantara grew up without the company of parents, since his mother died in 1826 and his father left Brazil in 1831, passing away in Europe in 1834. Young Pedro, however, was raised with the greatest possible care, as he was the
heir to the Brazilian throne.Pedro de Alcantara was the youngest son of the royal couple, but he had the priority in succession to the throne because his two older brothers had died as children. Her sisters had the right to assume the throne, but the Constitution of 1824 determined that women would do this only if there was no male heir.
Young Pedro's education was very good, and he devoted many hours of his day to studies. His education was also based on morality, and the purpose of this was to prevent him from repeating the examples of his father, d. Peter I. The extramarital affairs of d. Pedro I were a big scandal in the first reign and shook the image of monarchy Brazilian.
The person responsible for the education of Pedro de Alcântara was chosen by d. Pedro I and his name was d. Mariana Carlota de Verna. She was the heir's maid and remained close to him all her life. Pedro de Alcântara nurtured great affection and admiration for her, considering her his second mother and calling her affectionate nicknames.
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Coming of Age coup
Pedro de Alcântara's training took place during the Time course Regential, in which Brazil was ruled by regents. This structure would be maintained until the heir reached the age of majority, which would happen at the end of 1843. The Regency Period was great. instabilitysocial and political in the history of the monarchy.
During the Regency Period, Brazil experienced a first experience of decentralized government, and this decentralization, added to local political disputes and social and economic problems, led to a series of rebellionsin the provinces, which put Brazil's territorial integrity at risk.
Political disputes between liberals and conservatives they were also a big problem for Brazil during the regency. This dispute even led the liberals to take to the Senate the proposal to bring Pedro de Alcântara up to age so that he could be crowned emperor sooner than expected.
The possibility of anticipating the majority of the heir to the throne gained strength, he himself accepted it, and in July 23, 1840, his adulthood was brought forward. This event was known as the Coup of Majority, and, at the time, Pedro de Alcântara was only 14 years old. His coronation took place on July 18, 1841, an occasion that officially transformed him into d. Pedro II. To learn more about one of the Second Reign's opening events, read: Coming of Age coup.
Personal life
![Teresa Cristina Maria married d. Pedro II, in 1843, and remained married to him until his death in 1889.[1]](/f/c26d10c6dc5a25e99bfd2224a2133f5f.jpg)
One of the most unusual moments in the life of d. Pedro II was his marriage. As soon as he became emperor of Brazil, his marriage became a matter of state. Despite d's shyness. Pedro II in dealing with the matter, soon emissaries from the country went to the European continent in search of a princess to marry the emperor.
The issue was not very easy, mainly because the Brazilian royal family had its image damaged after d. Peter I. Finally, the emissaries of d. Pedro II got the princess of the kingdom of the Two Sicilies, TeresaCristinaMaria, as a possible wife for the emperor. A portrait of her was sent to d. Pedro II, and he approved the union.
O marriage was performed, by proxy, in the city of Naples, in Italy, on May 30, 1843, and the empress only arrived in the country on September 3 of the same year. She was aboard the frigate Constitution, and d. Pedro II, on meeting his wife, was so great that he got aboard the vessel.
The two performed the entire ritual for that day, but much was said about the Emperor's reaction to meeting the Empress. The accounts of the time show the frustration of d. Pedro II in relation to his wife. They mention that Teresa was not pretty and that she was still overweight and a little lame. This would have displeased d. Pedro II, who felt cheated.
Even grudgingly, d. Pedro II fulfilled his obligation in marriage. Their domestic life was stable, and they remained married until the empress's death in late 1889. They had four children together: Alphonsus, Isabel, Leopoldine and PeterAlphonsus. Of them, the two boys died still in infancy.
Despite the stable relationship with his wife, d. Pedro II also had casesextramarital, just like his father. The difference is that the son managed to be discreet in relation to these relationships outside of marriage. It is said that the greatest love of her life was Luísa Margarida de Barros Portugal, the countess of Barral, known for having been the mistress of the emperor's two daughters.
There are dozens of letters sent by him to the countess that hint at the emperor's passion for her. Another of his cases, which is known by letters, was with Ana de Villeneuve, the Countess of Villeneuve, wife of the owner of the Jornal do Commercio. Letters from d. Pedro II to the countess clearly demonstrated the content of the relationship between them:
Dear Ana
How many crazy things we did about the big bed with the two pillows. I love you more and more, and I cannot express enough how I feel about you. Thank you, with a thousand caresses, for the photograph of your room. […]
I keep thinking about you. And how many dreams at night! When will the delicious moment come when we can throw ourselves into each other's arms?
If I could, I would always be close to your home to make you enjoy my unlimited passion, at least once a day.
Accessalso: Marquesa de Santos, the best known mistress of d. Peter I
second reign
D. Pedro II reigned over Brazil from 1840, year of the Coup of Majority, until 1889, year of proclamation of the republic. In these 49 years of reign, a series of remarkable events took place in the country, with emphasis on:
- Prohibition of the slave trade;
- Paraguay War;
- Abolition of slavery.
A landmark in the government of d. Pedro II went to Paraguay War, a conflict that lasted from 1864 to 1870, marking the end of the height of his reign and the startgivesyour decay. From then on, the Brazilian monarchy started to be questioned, the republicanism began to gain strength, and the image of d. Pedro II began to wear out.
To make matters worse, from the 1870s onwards, the emperor apparently lost the will to rule, and personal and health reasons made him absent himself on three great journeys in the 1870s and 1880s. One conspiracy, started in the last decade, it sealed the fate of the remaining years of d. Peter II. If you want to go deeper into this period of Brazil Empire, read: second reign.
Last years
The 1880s were crisispolitics in Brazil. The monarchy was losing its political support, and the large groups that acted against this form of government in this period were the republicans and, above all, the military (counted in large number).
On November 15, 1889, the coup was initiated by the action of the marshal Deodoro da Fonseca. During that day, the republic was proclaimed by JosephofSponsorship. D. Pedro II and the royal family were in Petropolis, and the emperor was confident that he would resolve the situation as soon as he arrived in Rio de Janeiro.
However, on November 16, he received the notice that his family should abandon Brazil within 24 hours. At dawn on the 17th of November, d. Pedro II and his family boarded towards Portugal. D. Pedro II never returned to Brazil, and died of pneumonia, in France, on December 5, 1891.
Image credit
[1] commons
By Daniel Neves
History teacher
