Prince of Beira
Encyclopedia
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
, normally given to the second heirs to the throne and/or to the eldest daughter of the monarch. It was thus attributed to persons of the royal family especially esteemed by the sovereign. The name has its origins in the Beira
Beira, Portugal
Beira was one of the six traditional provinces or "comarcas" of Portugal.-Administrative history:The medieval province of Beira was divided in 1832 into* Beira Alta Province* Beira Baixa ProvinceBeira Litoral...
, a region in central Portugal.
History
The title was presumably created (no records of its earlier existence or grants) by King John IV of PortugalJohn IV of Portugal
|-|John IV was the King of Portugal and the Algarves from 1640 to his death. He was the grandson of Catherine, Duchess of Braganza, who had in 1580 claimed the Portuguese crown and sparked the struggle for the throne of Portugal. John was nicknamed John the Restorer...
, the new monarch, first of the Braganza dynasty
House of Braganza
The Most Serene House of Braganza , an important Portuguese noble family, ruled the Kingdom of Portugal and its colonial Empire, from 1640 to 1910...
, sometime in 1640's. It was firstly given to his eldest surviving daughter, Infanta Joanna of Portugal, 1st Princess of Beira. It was king John's intention that the male heir apparent would be Prince of Brazil
Prince of Brazil
Prince of Brazil was a title used in the Kingdom of Portugal, for the heir of the royal House of Braganza.The title was created by King John IV of Portugal on 27 October 1645 in favor of his eldest son and heir prince Teodósio, soon after Portugal had got rid of its Spanish rulers...
and later also Duke of Braganza, whereas Princess of Beira was originally quite similar to that of Madame Royale
Madame Royale
Madame Royale was a style customarily used for the eldest living unmarried daughter of a reigning French monarch.It was similar to the style Monsieur, which was typically used by the King's second son...
in the French kingdom and Princess Royal
Princess Royal
Princess Royal is a style customarily awarded by a British monarch to his or her eldest daughter. The style is held for life, so a princess cannot be given the style during the lifetime of another Princess Royal...
in the England. The title had no original connection to being one for next heirs of the throne - King John had a second son, and soon a third, but the daughter kept Beira and the boys received dukedoms (Braganza and Beja). However, Joanna died young in 1653.
Afterwards, the title kept granted and regranted a myriad of times during the remaining Portuguese monarchy. However, the precedent of being granted to the monarch's eldest daughter in a situation where he had several living sons, was repeated some times in later centuries.
The title's first connection with the position of the heir was from 1669 onwards, when it was held by to Infanta Isabel Luísa, Princess of Beira
Isabel Luísa, Princess of Beira
Infanta Isabel Luísa of Portugal was a Portuguese infanta and the sole daughter of King Peter II of Portugal and his first wife and former sister-in-law Maria Francisca of Savoy. As such she was styled Princess of Beira...
(1669–90), the only then living child of king Peter II. She received it as the eldest daughter of the king, but as she also was the heiress presumptive until 1688, a new tradition got its groundwork.
According to the first tradition, the next holder would be infanta Barbara of Portugal
Barbara of Portugal
Barbara of Portugal was an Infanta of Portugal and later Queen of Spain as wife of Ferdinand VI of Spain.-Life in Portugal:...
(1711–58), the eldest daughter of John V of Portugal. In 1729, she married with Infante Fernando of Spain
Ferdinand VI of Spain
Ferdinand VI , called the Learnt, was King of Spain from 9 July 1746 until his death. He was the fourth son of the previous monarch Philip V and his first wife Maria Luisa of Savoy...
, the Prince of Asturias
Prince of Asturias
Prince of Asturias is the historical title given to the heir to the Spanish throne. It was also the title under the earlier Kingdom of Castile. The current Prince of Asturias is Felipe, son of King Juan Carlos of Spain and Queen Sofía...
.
Then, on December 17, 1734 the title was created anew by king John V of Portugal, in favour of his new-born eldest granddaughter Infanta Maria Francisca
Maria I of Portugal
Maria I was Queen regnant of Portugal and the Algarves from 1777 until her death. Known as Maria the Pious , or Maria the Mad , she was the first undisputed Queen regnant of Portugal...
. She was the eldest daughter of the heir-apparent of the monarch. This was the first time when it was granted two generations down from the monarch. As the future Joseph I (the then Prince of Brazil) was to remain without sons, the new Princess of Beira would later become the proclaimed heiress and ultimately to ascend the throne.
In 1750 the newly-ascended Joseph I (believing that no sons would be forthcoming - and indeed, his wife and he produced no further issue after 1746, as we truly know with hindsight) proclaimed his eldest daughter the official heiress and granted her the "crown-princely" title Princess of Brazil (but apparently not that Duke of Braganza). He in 1761 further granted Maria's eldest son, Infante Dom José Francisco (1761–88) the title Prince of Beira. For the first time, the title was held by a male.
This created a new tradition. The situation now, effectively, was that the king's official heir held the Princedom of Brazil, and Prince of Beira was Brazil's heir-apparent. The situation had been the same (though unintentionally) during 1734-50, when the monarch's heir-apparent was Prince of Brazil, and Brazil's obvious heir was Princess of Beira. This was to repeat afterwards, as monarchs granted Beira to the second heir-apparent always when it was possible.
(The fashion how the titles Duke of Braganza and Prince of Brazil was held, is quite identical with that of Duchy of Cornwall
Duchy of Cornwall
The Duchy of Cornwall is one of two royal duchies in England, the other being the Duchy of Lancaster. The eldest son of the reigning British monarch inherits the duchy and title of Duke of Cornwall at the time of his birth, or of his parent's succession to the throne. If the monarch has no son, the...
and of Rothesay in the UK. The male heir apparent received it when the relevant parent ascended the throne, or if the title was vacant, at birth. During 1645-1822, the Prince of Brazil always belonged to the heir apparent
Heir apparent
An heir apparent or heiress apparent is a person who is first in line of succession and cannot be displaced from inheriting, except by a change in the rules of succession....
of the throne, who also received the Duke of Braganza
Duke of Braganza
The title Duke of Braganza in the House of Braganza is one of the most important titles in the peerage of Portugal. Since the House of Braganza acceded to the throne of Portugal in 1640, the male heir of the Portuguese Crown was known as the Duke of Braganza and Prince of Brazil until 1822, or...
. In 1750 though, Brazil -but not Braganza- was specifically granted to the female heiress, as she was proclaimed the official successor.)
The future John VI himself never became Prince of Beira - he became directly Prince of Brazil and duke of Braganza at the death of his elder brother.
According to the first tradition, the next holder of Beira would be Infanta Mariana Vitória of Portugal (1768–88), the eldest daughter of Maria I and Pedro III. She deceased two months after her eldest brother. In 1785, she married with Infante Gabriel of Spain (1752–88) whom she pedeceased by some weeks. Their three children were granted Infantes of Portugal in addition to that of Spain by their grandmother. Others going extinct, the eldest son, Infante Pedro Carlos of Spain and Portugal (1786–1812) married his Portuguese cousin Teresa, Princess of Beira, and left issue (see below).
Queen Maria II and his regent, the future John VI, granted the Beira in turn to John's heirs-apparent, and the second of them, Infante Dom Pedro Francisco survived to become in 1816 the Prince of Brazil, the last Portuguese heir-apparent to held that (as he himself later made Brazil independent).
John VI followed the first tradition also, and Beira was granted to his eldest daughter infanta dona Maria Teresa
Teresa, Princess of Beira
Infanta Maria Teresa of Portugal was the firstborn child of John VI of Portugal and Charlotte of Spain, and heir to the throne of Portugal between 1793 and 1795, until her short-lived brother António Pio was born.Maria Teresa Francisca de Assis Antónia Carlota Joana Josefa Xavier de Paula Micaela...
, firstly wife of her short-lived cousin Infante Pedro Carlos of Spain and Portugal and secondly of the first Carlist pretender, Infante don Carlos of Spain. Teresa's only child was her son with Pedro Carlos, Infante don Sebastian of Spain and Portugal (1811–75), from whom the dukes of Marchena, Durcal, Ansola and Hernani descend.
In the second tradition, when born in 1821, the then Prince of Brazil's eldest son João Carlos was granted Beira in 1821 after birth, he being the third in heir-apparent line, but he died next year, some months before Brazil's secession. Emperor Pedro's next son, born in 1825, received no title from Portugal.
According to the first tradition, the next holder would be Infanta Maria da Glória Joana (1819–53), the eldest daughter of Pedro IV. She however ascended the throne in 1826 as Maria II.
The second-tradition based need arose only in 1887, when Infante Dom Luís Filipe was born in the last years of his grandfather Luís I's reign. Luís Filipe was Prince of Beira 1887-89 and then succeeded his own father, the new king, as crown prince, becoming 21st Duke of Braganza.
No records are available to show if the Bragança-Saxe-Coburg
House of Braganza-Saxe-Coburg and Gotha
The House of Braganza-Saxe-Coburg and Gotha was a branch of the House of Braganza that ruled the Kingdom of Portugal from 1853 until the declaration of the republic in 1910....
dynasty continued to grant the title of Princess of Beira to daughters.
Use during the monarchy era
- 1645-53 Infanta Joana of PortugalJoana, Princess of BeiraThe Infanta Joana, Princess of Beira was a Portuguese infanta , the eldest surviving daughter of John IV, King of Portugal and his wife Luisa de Guzmán , and as such was styled Princess of Beira.-Biography:Joana was born in Vila Viçosa on September 18, 1635 and died in Lisbon on November...
(1636–53), the eldest surviving daughter when her father John IV of PortugalJohn IV of Portugal|-|John IV was the King of Portugal and the Algarves from 1640 to his death. He was the grandson of Catherine, Duchess of Braganza, who had in 1580 claimed the Portuguese crown and sparked the struggle for the throne of Portugal. John was nicknamed John the Restorer...
gained the throne, and was subsequently created Princess of BeiraBeira, PortugalBeira was one of the six traditional provinces or "comarcas" of Portugal.-Administrative history:The medieval province of Beira was divided in 1832 into* Beira Alta Province* Beira Baixa ProvinceBeira Litoral...
in 1653. Unmarried and childless, she died later in the same year. (Her eldest brother Teodósio, 1634–53, had analogously in 1645 been created Prince of BrazilPrince of BrazilPrince of Brazil was a title used in the Kingdom of Portugal, for the heir of the royal House of Braganza.The title was created by King John IV of Portugal on 27 October 1645 in favor of his eldest son and heir prince Teodósio, soon after Portugal had got rid of its Spanish rulers...
) - 1653 Infanta Catarina Henriqueta (1638–1705), created 2nd Princess of Beira upon the death of her elder sister. Queen consort of England, Scotland etc. 1662-85, Regent of Portugal 1704-05
- 1683-90 Infanta Isabel Luísa, Princess of BeiraIsabel Luísa, Princess of BeiraInfanta Isabel Luísa of Portugal was a Portuguese infanta and the sole daughter of King Peter II of Portugal and his first wife and former sister-in-law Maria Francisca of Savoy. As such she was styled Princess of Beira...
(1668–90), the only child of the first marriage of Pedro II of Portugal. Unmarried and childless, though "all the time betrothed". - 1711-28 Infanta Maria Madalena Barbara Teresa Xaviera Leonor Antonia Josefa (1711–58), 4th Princess of Beira
- 1734-50 Infanta Dona MariaMaria I of PortugalMaria I was Queen regnant of Portugal and the Algarves from 1777 until her death. Known as Maria the Pious , or Maria the Mad , she was the first undisputed Queen regnant of Portugal...
(1734–1816) 5th princess of Beira when the eldest daughter of the Prince of Brazil, 1750-77 Princess of Brazil herself - 1761-77 José of Bragança when the eldest son of the Princess of Brazil, also Duke of BraganzaDuke of BraganzaThe title Duke of Braganza in the House of Braganza is one of the most important titles in the peerage of Portugal. Since the House of Braganza acceded to the throne of Portugal in 1640, the male heir of the Portuguese Crown was known as the Duke of Braganza and Prince of Brazil until 1822, or...
and Prince of Brazil (1761–1788), 1777-88 prince of Brazil - 1793 Princess Teresa of Portugal (1793–1874), the eldest daughter of king John VI of PortugalJohn VI of PortugalJohn VI John VI John VI (full name: João Maria José Francisco Xavier de Paula Luís António Domingos Rafael; (13 May 1767 – 10 March 1826) was King of the United Kingdom of Portugal, Brazil and the Algarves (later changed to just King of Portugal and the Algarves, after Brazil was recognized...
, created 7th Princess of Beira upon her birth - 1795-1801 Francisco António (1795–1801), 8th Prince of Beira when the eldest son and heir of the Prince of Brazil, the future king John VI of PortugalJohn VI of PortugalJohn VI John VI John VI (full name: João Maria José Francisco Xavier de Paula Luís António Domingos Rafael; (13 May 1767 – 10 March 1826) was King of the United Kingdom of Portugal, Brazil and the Algarves (later changed to just King of Portugal and the Algarves, after Brazil was recognized...
- 1802-16 Infante Dom Pedro (1798–1834) 9th Prince of Beira when the eldest surviving son and heir of the Prince of Brazil, from 1816 prince of Brazil himself, then emperor of the same Ilk
- 1819 Infanta Dona Maria da Glória (1819–53), the eldest daughter of the then Prince of Brazil (the future Pedro I), created 10th Princess of Beira upon her birth
- 1821-22 Infante Dom João Carlos (1821–22), the eldest son and heir of the then Prince of Brazil (Pedro I), created 12th Prince of Beira (in 1820 he had a stillborn elder brother, apparently theoretically the 11th Beira)
- 1887-89 Luis Filipe, Duke of BraganzaLuís Filipe, Duke of Braganza-Titles and Styles:*21 March 1887-19 October 1889 - His Royal Highness The Prince of Beira, Duke of Barcelos*19 October 1889-1 February 1908 - His Royal Highness The Prince Royal of Portugal, Duke of Braganza-Arms:...
(1887–1908) was created 13th Prince of Beira as the eldest son and heir of the then Duke of Braganza, the crown prince
Post-monarchy claimants use
- Duarte Pio of BraganzaDuarte Pio, Duke of BraganzaDom Duarte Pio, Duke of Braganza , is the 24th Duke of Braganza and a pretender to the throne of Portugal.-Birth and education:...
(born 1945) - Afonso of Santa Maria (born 1996), first son of Duarte Pio.
See also
- List of heirs to the Portuguese throne
- Prince of BrazilPrince of BrazilPrince of Brazil was a title used in the Kingdom of Portugal, for the heir of the royal House of Braganza.The title was created by King John IV of Portugal on 27 October 1645 in favor of his eldest son and heir prince Teodósio, soon after Portugal had got rid of its Spanish rulers...
- Prince Royal of PortugalPrince Royal of PortugalPrince Royal of Portugal is the official title attributed to the heirs presumptive of the Crown of Portugal...
External links
- Portuguese Royal House Official Site