In the history of Portugal, a Miguelist (Portuguese : Miguelista) was a supporter of the legitimacy of the king Miguel I of Portugal. The name is also given to those who supported absolutism as form of government, in opposition to the liberals who intended the establishment of a constitutional regime in Portugal.
Miguel was regent for his niece Queen Maria II of Portugal, and potential royal consort. However, he claimed the Portuguese throne in his own right on the grounds that the "Fundamental Laws of the Kingdom" deprived his elder brother Pedro IV of his right to reign (and of any right of Pedro's daughter to inherit the kingdom from her father) when Pedro became sovereign of the former Portuguese colony of Brazil and launched war on Portugal to oust Miguel as a usurper.
This overall led to a political crisis, during which many people were killed, imprisoned, persecuted or sent into exile, culminating in the Portuguese Liberal Wars between authoritarian Absolutists (led by Miguel) and progressive Constitutionalists (led by Pedro).
In the end, Miguel was forced from the throne and lived the last 32 years of his life in exile.
Miguelism is based not only on the premise that Miguel and his line have legitimate right to the Portuguese throne, but also on defense of the traditional principles of a conservative monarchy based in Catholic values and in the absolute power of the king, in contrast to the Enlightenment values.
King Miguel I was exiled following the Convention of Evora-Monte (1834), which put an end to the Liberal Wars. The throne was retaken by his niece, Queen Maria II, and a liberal regime was installed.
In exile, the former king married a wealthy Bavarian princess, Adelaide of Löwenstein-Wertheim-Rosenberg. This marriage was the origin of the new Miguelist branch of the Braganzas and their descendants include not only the current claimant to the Portuguese crown, as well as the monarchs of Belgium, Luxembourg, Liechtenstein, and other claimants to former European monarchies (Habsburg, Habsburg-Este, Savoy, Wittelsbach, Bourbon-Parma, Mecklenburg-Strelitz, Karađorđević).
Finally, this Miguelist branch became the sole Braganza representative when King Manuel II of Portugal (the last male Braganza from the senior liberal branch) died without issue, leaving his Miguelist cousin Duarte Nuno as his closest legitimate Portuguese relative. Also Maria Pia of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha Braganza, who claimed to be the illegitimate daughter of King Carlos I of Portugal, claimed the right to the titles of Duchess of Braganza and to be the rightful Queen of Portugal. [2]
Claimant | Portrait | Birth | Marriages | Death |
---|---|---|---|---|
Miguel I 1834–1866 | 26 October 1802, Lisbon son of João VI and Carlota Joaquina of Spain | Adelaide of Löwenstein-Wertheim-Rosenberg 24 September 1851 7 children | 14 November 1866 Esselbach aged 64 | |
Miguel, Duke of Braganza 1866–1920 | 19 September 1853, Kleinheubach son of Miguel I and Adelaide of Löwenstein-Wertheim-Rosenberg | Elisabeth of Thurn and Taxis 17 October 1877 3 children Maria Theresa of Löwenstein-Wertheim-Rosenberg 8 November 1893 8 children | 11 October 1927 Seebenstein aged 74 | |
Duarte Nuno, Duke of Braganza 1920–1932 (Miguelist claimant) 1932–1976 (Royalist claimant) | 23 September 1907, Seebenstein son of Miguel, Duke of Braganza and Maria Theresa of Löwenstein-Wertheim-Rosenberg | Maria Francisca of Orléans-Braganza 15 October 1942 3 children | 23 December 1976 Lagoa aged 69 | |
Duarte Pio, Duke of Braganza 1976–present | 15 May 1945 Bern son of Duarte Nuno, Duke of Braganza and Maria Francisca of Orléans-Braganza | Isabel, Duchess of Braganza 13 May 1995 3 children | ||
On the family tree below, the Miguelist branch is clearly identified on the right-hand side while the Liberal Branch from Maria II is on the left with the Brazilian Imperial branch descending from her brother Pedro II in the middle. In 1942 the Miguelist pretender Duarte Nuno of Braganza married Maria Francisca de Orléans e Bragança, a great-granddaughter of Pedro II of Brazil. The current pretender Duarte Pio, Duke of Braganza, is therefore descended from both of the feuding brothers Pedro IV of Portugal and Miguel I of Portugal.
John VI [1767–1826] King of the United Kingdom of Portugal, Brazil & the Algarves 1816–22 King of Portugal & the Algarves 1822–26 Titular Emperor of Brazil 1825–26 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Pedro I of Brazil and IV of Portugal [1798–1834] Emp. of Brazil 1822–31 King of Portugal 1826 | Miguel I [1802–1866] Regent (to his niece) 1828 King of Portugal 1828–34 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Maria II [1819–1853] Queen of Portugal 1826–28, 1834–53 | Fernando II [1816–1885] Prince of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha Prince Consort 1836–37 King Consort 1837–53 | Pedro II [1825–1891] Emp. of Brazil 1831–89 Imperial claimant 1889-91 deposed (1889) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Pedro V [1837–1861] King of Portugal 1853–61 | Luis I [1838–1889] King of Portugal 1861–89 | Isabel, Princess Imperial [1846-1921] Imperial claimant 1891-1921 | Miguel (II) [1853–1927] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Carlos I [1863–1908] King of Portugal 1889–1908 | Luís, Prince Imperial [1878-1920] | Pedro de Alcântara [1875-1940] Petrópolis claimant 1921-40 (post mortem only) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Manuel II [1889–1932] last King of Portugal 1908–10 deposed (1910), without issue | Pedro Henrique [1909–1981] Vassouras claimant 1921-81 | Pedro Gastão [1913–2007] Petrópolis claimant 1940-2007 | Maria Francisca, Duchess of Braganza [1914-1968] | Duarte Nuno [1907–1976] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Brazilian Imperial family (Vassouras) | Brazilian Imperial family (Petrópolis) | Duarte Pio [born 1945] Duke of Braganza | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Duarte Pio, Duke of Braganza is the current Duke of Braganza, claimant to the title of King of Portugal of the dormant Portuguese throne, as the head of the House of Braganza. The Miguelist Braganzas, to whom Duarte Pio belongs as great-grandson of King Miguel I, is a cadet branch of the House of Braganza. With the extinction of male-line dynasts descended from Queen Maria II in 1932, King Miguel's descendants became the only male-line Braganzas remaining and the closest male-line heirs to the defunct Portuguese throne.
Dona Maria II "the Educator" or "the Good Mother", was Queen of Portugal from 1826 to 1828, and again from 1834 to 1853.
DomMiguel I, nicknamed "the Absolutist", "the Traditionalist" and "the Usurper", was the King of Portugal between 1828 and 1834. He was the seventh child and third son of King John VI and Queen Carlota Joaquina.
The title Duke of Braganza in the House of Braganza is one of the most important titles in the peerage of Portugal. Starting in 1640, when the House of Braganza acceded to the throne of Portugal, the male heir of the Portuguese Crown were known as Duke of Braganza, along with their style Prince of Beira or Prince of Brazil. The tradition of the heir to the throne being titled Duke of Braganza was revived by various pretenders after the establishment of the Portuguese Republic on 5 October 1910 to signify their claims to the throne.
Prince Miguel Januário of Braganza was the Miguelist claimant to the throne of Portugal from 1866 to 1920. He used the title Duke of Braganza.
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.
Maria Pia de Saxe-Coburgo e Bragança, also known by her literary pseudonym Hilda de Toledano, was a Portuguese writer and journalist who claimed to be the illegitimate daughter of King Carlos I of Portugal. From 1932 she also claimed the right to the title of Duchess of Braganza and to be the rightful heiress to the throne of Portugal.
A dynastic order, monarchical order, or house order is an order under royal patronage. Such an order is bestowed by, as a legitimate fons honorum, a sovereign or the head of a once-sovereign ruling family. These are often considered part of the cultural patrimony of the ruling family. Dynastic orders were often founded or maintained to reward service to a monarch or their subsequent dynasty.
DomDuarte Nuno, Duke of Braganza was the claimant to the defunct Portuguese throne, as both the Miguelist successor of his father, Miguel Januário, Duke of Braganza, and later as the head of the only Brigantine house, after the death of the last ruling Braganza, King Manuel II of Portugal. In 1952, when the Portuguese Laws of Banishment were repealed, the Duke moved his family to Portugal, thus returning the Miguelist Braganzas to their homeland and becoming the first of the former Portuguese royal dynasty to live in Portugal since the abolition of the monarchy in 1910.
Infante Dom Afonso of Braganza, Duke of Porto was a Portuguese Infante of the House of Braganza, the son of King Luis I of Portugal and his wife, Maria Pia of Savoy. From 1908 to the abolition of the Portuguese monarchy in 1910 he was the Prince Royal of Portugal as heir presumptive to his nephew, King Manuel II.
Duke of Loulé is a Portuguese title of nobility created by a royal decree of King Luis I of Portugal, dated from October 3, 1862, to his grand-uncle Nuno José Severo de Mendoça Rolim de Moura Barreto, 2nd Marquis of Loulé and 9th Count of Vale de Reis. The new duke descended from earlier Portuguese monarchs and belonged to the highest nobility. After the fall of the monarchy in 1910 and the death of King Manuel II, the Duke of Loulé was acclaimed by his supporters as head of the Portuguese Royal house.
Princess Adelaide of Löwenstein-Wertheim-Rosenberg was the wife of Miguel de Portugal, the former occupant of the Portuguese throne but only following his deposition. As a widow, she secured advantageous marriages for their six daughters.
Prince Miguel of Braganza, Duke of Viseu was a member of the exiled branch of the House of Braganza. The eldest son of the Miguelist pretender to the throne of Portugal he married an American heiress in 1909 and in 1920 renounced his rights to the throne. His full given names were Miguel Maria Sebastião Maximiliano Rafael Gabriel Gonzaga Francisco de Assis e de Paula Eustáquio Carlos Afonso José Henrique Alberto Clemente Inácio Martinho António Gerardo Jorge Emerico Maurício.
The House of Braganza-Saxe-Coburg and Gotha is a term used to categorize the last four rulers of the Kingdom of Portugal, and their families, from 1853 until the declaration of the republic in 1910. Its name derives from the four kings descended in a patrilineal line from King Ferdinand II of Portugal and in a matrilineal line from Queen Maria II of Portugal.
Princess Maria Theresa of Braganza was a member of the House of Braganza. Through her marriage to Prince Karl Ludwig of Thurn and Taxis, Maria Theresa was also a member of the House of Thurn and Taxis.
Infanta Adelgundes, Duchess of Guimarães was the fifth child and fourth daughter of Miguel of Portugal and his wife Adelaide of Löwenstein-Wertheim-Rosenberg. A member of the House of Braganza by birth, Adelgundes became a member of the House of Bourbon-Parma through her marriage to Prince Henry of Bourbon-Parma, Count of Bardi. She was also the Regent of the Monarchic Representation of Portugal and for that reason assumed the title of Duchess of Guimarães, usually reserved for the Head of the House.
The descendants of Miguel I of Portugal, of the House of Braganza, were numerous and left a lasting mark on European royalty. Miguel married Princess Adelaide of Löwenstein and the strategic marriages for all of their children into various European royalties would earn Miguel the nickname of Grandfather of Europe.
DomPedro José, Duke of Loulé is a claimant to the defunct Portuguese throne, as the head of the House of Braganza and Duke of Loulé.