Princess Isabel Maria de Bragança

regent of Portugal between D. Pedro and D. Miguel

Resumo

The daughters of King John VI of Portugal and Queen Carlota Joaquina had their lives forgotten by historiography and have remained at the threshold of ostracism. Amongst the events of the political trajectories of the six infantas, the regency of Isabel Maria (1826 to 1828) can be considered the high point of the history of such princesses. Her role in the government of Portugal began with the death of her father and was marked by the disputes between D. Pedro and D. Miguel for the post. The fourth daughter of the Portuguese sovereigns assisted King John as secretary in his political functions and, as regent, sought to secure the throne for her brother D. Pedro, and later supposedly turned to the other brother. Chosen by her own father to take over the regency of Portugal, she reluctantly handed over the command of the country to D. Miguel. Unmarried to death, the infanta showed a political posture distinct of that of her mother and sisters, aligned with her father and older brother posture, and actively participated in the political events of the 1800s. Through the analysis of her personal and public trajectories, it is sought to understand its importance in the Brazilian and the Iberian political contexts, especially the relations between Brazil and Portugal. This study also seeks to contribute to the analysis of important themes of Brazilian and Portuguese historiographies through new uses and possibilities of biographies, which has been gaining space through the approaches of New Political History.