Maria I of Portugal

Dona Maria I (Maria Francisca Isabel Josefa Antónia Gertrudes Rita Joana; 17 December 1734 – 20 March 1816), also known as Maria the Pious in Portugal and Maria the Mad in Brazil, was Queen of Portugal from 24 February 1777 until her death in 1816. Maria was the first undisputed queen regnant of Portugal and the first monarch of Brazil.

Maria was the eldest daughter of King Dom José I (Joseph I) of Portugal and Queen Mariana Victoria. As the heir to the throne, she held the titles of Princess of Brazil and Duchess of Braganza. She married her uncle Infante Pedro (Peter) in 1760. They had six children, of whom three survived infancy: José, João (John), and Mariana Vitória. The death of King José in 1777 placed Maria, then 42 years old, on the throne. Her husband Pedro was nominally king alongside her as Dom Pedro III.

Upon ascending the throne, Maria dismissed her father's powerful chief minister, Sebastião José de Carvalho e Melo, 1st Marquis of Pombal. The early part of Maria's reign witnessed growth in Portugal's economy. Maria had a number of national buildings constructed and renovated, leading to the completion of the Palace of Queluz and the inauguration of the Palace of Ajuda and other new monuments. The death of her husband in 1786, followed by the deaths in 1788 of her eldest son, José, and her confessor Inácio de São Caetano, caused the queen to develop clinical depression. Her second son, João, then served as prince regent. With Napoleon's European conquests, Maria and her court moved to the Portuguese colony of Brazil in 1807. After Brazil was elevated to a kingdom in 1815, Maria became Queen of the United Kingdom of Portugal, Brazil and the Algarves. Upon her death in 1816, she was succeeded by her son Dom João VI.

Early life

thumb|upright|left|D. Maria Francisca, [[Princess of Beira, Duchess of Barcelos; Pavona; 1739.]]

Maria was born at the Ribeira Palace in Lisbon on 17 December 1734 and baptized Maria Francisca Isabel Josefa Antónia Gertrudes Rita Joana. She was the eldest of four daughters born to Dom José (Joseph), Prince of Brazil (later King Dom José I of Portugal), and Infanta Mariana Victoria of Spain. Her father José was the eldest surviving son of the reigning King Dom João V (John V) of Portugal. Her mother, Mariana Victoria, was the eldest daughter of King Don Felipe V (Philip V) of Spain. Maria's paternal grandfather João V appointed her Princess of Beira on the day of her birth.

Maria's grandfather died on 31 July 1750. Her father, Prince José, then succeeded to the throne as Dom José I. As José's eldest child, Maria became his heir presumptive and was given the traditional titles of Princess of Brazil and Duchess of Braganza.

Influence of the Marquis of Pombal

thumb|upright|Maria Francisca Isabel, Princess of Brazil. Portrait by [[Vieira Lusitano, 1753]]

King José's government was dominated completely by Sebastião José de Carvalho e Melo, 1st Marquis of Pombal. The Marquis of Pombal secured control of the government after the 1755 Lisbon earthquake, in which around 100,000 people lost their lives. The palace of Maria's birth was also destroyed in the disaster.

After the earthquake, King José was often uncomfortable at the thought of staying in enclosed spaces, and later experienced claustrophobia. The king had a palace built in Ajuda, away from the city centre. This palace became known as Real Barraca de Ajuda (Royal Hut at Ajuda) because it was made of wood. The family spent much time at the large palace. (The palace was the birthplace of Maria's first child, José, .) In 1794 the palace burned to the ground and the Palace of Ajuda was built in its place. However, the queen suffering from melancholia and declining mental health (perhaps due to porphyria) made her incapable of handling state affairs after 1792.

On 5 January 1785 the queen issued a charter imposing heavy restrictions on industrial activity in Brazil; how, for example, it prohibited the manufacture of fabrics and other products, extinguishing all textile manufactures in the colony, except the industry of coarse cloth for the use of slaves and workers; since the Portuguese colonial administration did not look favorably on the development of industrial activities in Brazil for fear of economic and, perhaps, political independence. During her reign, the trial, conviction and execution of ensign Joaquim José da Silva Xavier, known as Tiradentes, took place in 1789.

Mental deterioration

thumb|[[Portuguese escudo|4 escudos coin with effigy of Maria I and Pedro III, 1785]]

Maria's madness was first officially noticed in 1786, when she had to be carried back to her apartments in a state of delirium. Afterwards, the queen's mental state became progressively worse. On 25 May 1786, her husband died; Maria was devastated and forbade any court entertainments. According to a contemporary account, state festivities began to resemble religious ceremonies. The queen's eldest son and heir, Prince Dom José, died aged 27 from smallpox on 11 September 1788, and that same year, on November 2, her daughter Mariana Vitória died a few days after giving birth to her third child from the same illness as her brother at just 19. The queen's confessor, Inácio de São Caetano, Titular Archbishop of Salonica, died almost four weeks later.

In February 1792, Maria was deemed insane and was treated by Francis Willis, the same physician who attended the British king George III. Willis wanted to take her to England, but the plan was refused by the Portuguese court. Potentially as a result of Willis' more advisory role in Maria's care, rather than the hands-on care of King George III, Willis deemed the queen incurable.

The refusal of the Portuguese government to join the French-sponsored Continental Blockade against Britain culminated in the late 1807 Franco-Spanish invasion of Portugal led by General Jean-Andoche Junot. The ultimate Napoleonic plan for Portugal was to split it into three sections. The northern parts of Portugal, from the Douro to the Minho, would become the Kingdom of Northern Lusitania, and its throne was promised to King Louis II of Etruria. The Alentejo Province and Kingdom of the Algarve would be merged to form the Principality of the Algarves, of which Manuel de Godoy would be sovereign. The remaining portion of Portugal would have been directly ruled by France.

{| class="wikitable"

! style="width:20%;"|Name!! style="width:15%;"|Birth!! style="width:15%;"|Death!! style="width:50%;"|Notes

|Joseph, Prince of Brazil||20 August 1761||11 September 1788||José Francisco Xavier de Paula Domingos António Agostinho Anastácio married his maternal aunt Infanta Benedita of Portugal and had no issue. His death led to his younger brother becoming heir apparent and later king.

|John Francis of Braganza||16 September 1763||10 October 1763||João Francisco de Paula Domingos António Carlos Cipriano was born at the Ajuda National Palace.

|John VI||13 May 1767||10 March 1826||João Maria José Francisco Xavier de Paula Luís António Domingos Rafael married Carlota Joaquina, eldest daughter of King Don Carlos IV (Charles IV) of Spain, and had issue. He was King of Portugal from 1816 to 1826 as Dom João VI and titular Emperor of Brazil from 1825 to 1826.

|Infanta Mariana Victoria of Portugal||15 December 1768||2 November 1788||Mariana Vitória Josefa Francisca Xavier de Paula Antonieta Joana Domingas Gabriela married Infante Gabriel of Spain, son of King Don Carlos III, and had issue.

|Maria Clementina of Braganza||9 June 1774||27 June 1776||Maria Clementina Francisca Xavier de Paula Ana Josefa Antónia Domingas Feliciana Joana Michaela Júlia was born at the Queluz National Palace.

|Maria Isabella of Braganza ||12 December 1776||14 January 1777||Maria Isabel was born at the Queluz National Palace.

Ancestry

Notes

References

Bibliography

Benevides, Francisco da Fonseca. Rainhas de Portugal: Estudo Historico - Volume I. Lisbon, Portugal: Typographia Castro Irmão.
Benevides, Francisco da Fonseca. Rainhas de Portugal: Estudo Historico - Volume II. Lisbon, Portugal: Typographia Castro Irmão.