This is a list of monarchs who have abdicated. Some monarchs have been forced to abdicate. The list is chronological.
Year 1501 (MDI) was a common year starting on Friday in the Julian calendar.
DomPedro I was the founder and first ruler of the Empire of Brazil, where he was known as "the Liberator". As King Dom Pedro IV, he reigned briefly over Portugal, where he also became known as "the Liberator" as well as "the Soldier King". Born in Lisbon, Pedro I was the fourth child of King Dom John VI of Portugal and Queen Carlota Joaquina, and thus a member of the House of Braganza. When the country was invaded by French troops in 1807, he and his family fled to Portugal's largest and wealthiest colony, Brazil.
A queen consort is the wife of a reigning king, and usually shares her spouse's social rank and status. She holds the feminine equivalent of the king's monarchical titles and may be crowned and anointed, but historically she does not formally share the king's political and military powers, unless on occasion acting as regent.
An heir presumptive is the person entitled to inherit a throne, peerage, or other hereditary honour, but whose position can be displaced by the birth of a person with a better claim to the position in question. This is in contrast to an heir apparent, whose claim on the position cannot be displaced in this manner.
Dona Maria II "the Educator" or "the Good Mother", was Queen of Portugal from 1826 to 1828, and again from 1834 to 1853. Her supporters considered her to be the rightful queen also during the period between her two reigns.
The Most Serene House of Braganza, also known as the Brigantine dynasty, is a dynasty of emperors, kings, princes, and dukes of Portuguese origin which reigned in Europe and the Americas.
A personal union is a combination of two or more monarchical states that have the same monarch while their boundaries, laws, and interests remain distinct. A real union, by contrast, involves the constituent states being to some extent interlinked, such as by sharing some limited governmental institutions. Unlike a personal union, in a federation or a unitary state, a central (federal) government spanning all member states exists, with the degree of self-governance distinguishing the two. The ruler in a personal union does not need to be a hereditary monarch.
The House of Aviz, also known as the Joanine Dynasty, was a dynasty of Portuguese origin which flourished during the Renaissance and the period of the Portuguese discoveries, when Portugal expanded its power globally.
Imperial and Royal Majesty was the style used by Emperor-Kings and their consorts as heads of imperial dynasties that were simultaneously royal. The style was notably used by the Emperor of Austria and by the German Emperor. The Austrian, German, and Bohemian monarchies were abolished in 1918 while the vacant throne of Hungary continued to exist until the 1940s.
The United Kingdom of Portugal, Brazil and the Algarves was a pluricontinental monarchy formed by the elevation of the Portuguese colony named State of Brazil to the status of a kingdom and by the simultaneous union of that Kingdom of Brazil with the Kingdom of Portugal and the Kingdom of the Algarves, constituting a single state consisting of three kingdoms.
A queen mother is a former queen, often a queen dowager, who is the mother of the reigning monarch. The term has been used in English since the early 1560s. It arises in hereditary monarchies in Europe and is also used to describe a number of similar yet distinct monarchical concepts in non-European cultures around the world. The rank does not go to all mothers of monarchs though. A mother of a ruling monarch may only be referred to as queen mother if she was a queen consort as opposed to a princess consort.
Abdication is the act of formally relinquishing monarchical authority. Abdications have played various roles in the succession procedures of monarchies. While some cultures have viewed abdication as an extreme abandonment of duty, in other societies, abdication was a regular event and helped maintain stability during political succession.
Coronations were previously held in the monarchies of Europe. The United Kingdom is the only monarchy in Europe that still practises coronations. Other European monarchies either have replaced coronations with simpler ceremonies to mark an accession or have never practised them. Most monarchies today only require a simple oath to be taken in the presence of the country's legislature.
The Pantheon of the House of Braganza, also known as the Pantheon of the Braganzas, is the final resting place for many of the members of the House of Braganza, located in the Monastery of São Vicente de Fora in the Alfama district of Lisbon, Portugal. The pantheon's burials have included Portuguese monarchs, Brazilian monarchs, a Romanian monarch, queen consorts of Portugal, and notable Infantes of Portugal, among others.
