Duke of Palmela

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Dukedom of Palmela
Coronet of a Duke - Kingdom of Portugal.svg
Duque de Palmela coa.png
Coat of Arms of the Duchy of Palmela
Creation date13 June 1883
Created by Maria II of Portugal
First holder Pedro de Sousa Holstein, 1st Duke of Palmela
Last holderHelena de Sousa Holstein, 4th Duchess of Palmela
Subsidiary titlesMarquess of Faial
Marquess of Palmela
Count of Palmela
StatusExtinct
Extinction date15 October 1910

The Duchy of Palmela was established by decree of Queen Maria II of Portugal, through Dom Pedro IV acting as Regent of the Kingdom, on 13 June 1833 (initially granted for life, then conferred as a hereditary title on 18 October 1850) in favour of Dom Pedro de Sousa Holstein, [1] a diplomat and hero of the Liberal Wars, who had previously held, successively, the titles of first Count (by decree of Queen Maria I dated 11 April 1812) and Marquess of Palmela (by decree of King João VI dated 3 July 1823). [1]

Contents

Prior to becoming Duke of Palmela, Dom Pedro de Sousa Holstein had been granted the title of Duke of Faial (4 April 1833). [1]

History

The tomb of the Dukes of Palmela at Prazeres Cemetery, Lisbon (August 2025) Jazigo dos Duques de Palmela.jpg
The tomb of the Dukes of Palmela at Prazeres Cemetery, Lisbon (August 2025)

The titles of Count and Marquess of Palmela were granted as hereditary honours. The title of Duke of Palmela was initially conferred for life (1833) and subsequently, in 1850, was made hereditary. The title of Duke of Faial, however, was granted during the lifetime of the first holder and was not renewed, having been, at the request of the Duke himself, superseded by the title of Duke of Palmela in 1833, the year both ducal titles were conferred. [1] Shortly before Dom Pedro received the title of Marquess of Palmela, on 2 October of the same year, the title of Count of Calhariz was created, [1] in favour of his firstborn son, Alexandre de Sousa e Holstein, the presumptive heir to the Marquisate of Palmela. One year after Dom Pedro had been granted the Dukedom of Faial, on 1 December 1834, the Marquisate of Faial was created in favour of his second son, Domingos de Sousa Holstein, who was also the presumptive heir to the Marquisate of Palmela and possibly to the Dukedom of Faial, as although the latter had been granted during the lifetime of the first holder, it could have been renewed by the Crown in his heirs. Domingos, the second son of Dom Pedro, only became the presumptive heir upon the death, while the Duke was still living, of his firstborn son, Alexandre, thereby becoming the second Count of Calhariz. [1]

Associated titles

By tradition, the presumptive heirs to the Dukedom of Palmela used the title Marquess of Faial until they were granted the ducal title, in homage to the Dukedom of Faial which had been conferred upon the first Duke of Palmela. [1]

The titles associated with the House of Palmela include:

These titles were used by some of the sons and grandsons of the Dukes of Palmela. [1]

Counts of Palmela

#NameDatesSpouseNotes
1Dom Pedro de Sousa Holstein 1781–1850Dona Eugénia Francisca Maria Ana Júlia Felizarda Apolónia Xavier Teles da GamaAlso 1st Marquess of Palmela and 1st Duke of Faial (later 1st Duke of Palmela).

Marquesses of Palmela

#NameDatesSpouseNotes
1Dom Pedro de Sousa Holstein 1781–1850Dona Eugénia Francisca Maria Ana Júlia Felizarda Apolónia Xavier Teles da GamaAlso 1st Count of Palmela and 1st Duke of Faial (later 1st Duke of Palmela).

Dukes of Faial

#NameDatesSpouseNotes
1Dom Pedro de Sousa Holstein 1781–1850Dona Eugénia Francisca Maria Ana Júlia Felizarda Apolónia Xavier Teles da GamaAlso 1st Count of Palmela and 1st Duke of Faial (later 1st Duke of Palmela).

Dukes of Palmela

#NameDatesSpouseNotes
1Dom Pedro de Sousa Holstein 1781–1850Dona Eugénia Teles da Gama, daughter of the 7th Marquess of Nisa Diplomat and military officer in the Peninsular War and the Portuguese Civil War (1832–1834).

He was Count of Palmela (1812), ambassador in London, participant at the Congress of Vienna, served several times as Minister of Foreign Affairs [1] and was elevated to Duke in 1833.

2Dom Domingos António Maria Pedro de Sousa Holstein 1818–18642nd son of the above. [1]

2nd Count of Calhariz and 1st Marquess of Faial.

Peer of the Realm and diplomat.

3Dona Maria Luísa de Sousa Holstein 1841–1909António de Sampaio e Pina de Brederode2nd Marchioness of Faial. [1]

Lady-in-waiting to Queen Maria Pia and chief lady-in-waiting to Queen Amélie. [1] Founder of the Association of Economic Kitchens of Lisbon.

In her honour, the Alameda Duchess of Palmela in Cascais was named after her. [1]

4Dona Helena Maria Domingas de Sousa Holstein 1864–1941Dom Luís Coutinho de Medeiros de Sousa Dias da Câmara (son of the 1st Marquess of Praia e Monforte)3rd Marchioness of Faial.

Claimants of the Dukes of Palmela in the Republic

#NomeDatasCônjugeNotas
5 Domingos Maria do Espírito Santo José Francisco de Paula de Sousa Holstein-Beck [1] 1897–1967Maria do Carmo Pinheiro de Melo (daughter of 1st Count of Arnoso)Graduated in civil engineering from the Faculty of Engineering of the University of Coimbra. [1]

Director of the Bank of Portugal and administrator of the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation. [1]

Ambassador of Portugal in London during the Second World War. [1]

6Luís Maria da Assunção de Sousa e Holstein Beck1919–1997Maria Teresa de Jesus de Assis Pereira Palha
7Pedro Domingos de Sousa e Holstein Beck1951–Isabel Astride Teixeira Guerra DundasCurrent claimant.

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 Zuquete, Afonso Eduardo Martins (1961). Nobreza de Portugal. Vol. 3. Lisboa: Editorial Enciclopédia, Lda. pp. 99–106.