Prince Pedro Henrique of Orléans-Braganza

Prince Pedro Henrique
Prince of Orléans-Braganza
Head of the Imperial House of Brazil (disputed)
Period 14 November 1921 – 5 July 1981
Predecessor Isabel, Princess Imperial of Brazil
Successor Prince Luiz Gastão of Orléans-Braganza
Born (1909-09-13)13 September 1909
Boulogne-Billancourt, France
Died 5 July 1981(1981-07-05) (aged 71)
Vassouras, Brazil
Spouse Princess Maria Elisabeth of Bavaria
Issue Prince Luiz Gastão
Prince Eudes
Prince Bertrand
Princess Isabel
Prince Pedro
Prince Fernando
Prince Antônio
Eleanora, Princess of Ligne
Prince Francisco
Prince Alberto
Princess Maria Teresa
Princess Maria Gabriela
Full name
Pedro Henrique Afonso Felipe Maria Miguel Gabriel Rafael Gonzaga
House House of Orléans-Braganza
Father Prince Luiz of Orléans-Braganza
Mother Princess Maria di Grazia of Bourbon-Two Sicilies
Religion Roman Catholicism

Prince Pedro Henrique of Orléans-Braganza (Portuguese: Pedro Henrique Afonso Felipe Maria Miguel Gabriel Rafael Gonzaga de Orléans e Bragança; 13 September 1909 – 5 July 1981), was a great-grandson of the last emperor of Brazil, Pedro II, and one of two claimants to the abolished throne.

Early life in Europe

He was born in 1909 in France at Boulogne-sur-Seine during the exile of the Brazilian imperial family, which had been deposed in 1889.[1] His father, Prince Luiz of Orléans-Braganza, was the second son of Isabel, Princess Imperial of Brazil, and Prince Gaston d'Orléans, comte d'Eu. His mother was Princess Maria Pia of Bourbon-Two Sicilies.[2] His paternal grandmother, Isabel, Princess Imperial of Brazil, was the heir to the defunct Brazilian throne. The year before Pedro Henrique's birth, she recognized his father, Luiz, as the heir to the succession when Luiz's elder brother, Pedro de Alcântara, Prince of Grão-Pará, signed a renunciation of his claim to the throne on behalf of himself and his descendants.[3][4]

Thus, at birth Prince Pedro Henrique received the title of Prince of Grão-Pará, according to Article 105 of the Constitution of 1824. He was baptized in the chapel of the Château d'Eu with the waters of the fountain taken from Largo da Carioca, in Rio de Janeiro. His godparents were his paternal grandmother, Princess Isabel of Brazil, and maternal grandfather, Prince Alfonso, Count of Caserta and Head of the Royal House of the Two Sicilies. The prince and his family lived between the Castle d'Eu and the palace of Boulogne-sur-Seine, both belonging to the Imperial Family. He was raised primarily by his grandmother, Princess Isabel, and numerous preceptors imbued to educate him as future emperor of Brazil.[5]

In 1920, his father died in Cannes, France, victimized by injuries acquired in the trenches of the First World War. Also in 1920, the decree of banishment is revoked by the then President Epitácio Pessoa. The grandfather of Prince Pedro Henrique, Count d'Eu, leads part of the Imperial Family back in Brazil. Princess Isabel didn't travel because she was old and sick, making the trip not recommended. Still, Prince Pedro Henrique and Count d'Eu did not stay long in Brazil, because their lives were consolidated in Europe, and decided to go back there.[6]

Given the death of his father in 1920, Prince Pedro Henrique became Prince Imperial of Brazil, but on 14 November 1921, Princess Isabel died at the Castle d'Eu. So, at age of 12 Prince Pedro Henrique became the head of the imperial family.[7] Had he became Emperor, his imperial name would be Dom Pedro III.[8]

He continued living in France with his mother, Princess Maria Pia of Bourbon-Sicilies, where she thought he could get better education with his brothers Prince Luiz Gastão of Orléans-Bragança and Princess Pia Maria of Orléans-Braganza. Pedro Henrique was educated in France at the Ecôle des Sciences Politiques in Paris.[1] He was described by his grandmother as "a very intelligent child".[9]

In 1925, at the age of 16, the Brazilian government ruled against his request to serve in the military.[10]

Life in Brazil

Pedro de Alcântara, Prince of Grão-Pará, died in 1940.[11]

Pedro Henrique was only able to return to Brazil in 1945, when the Second World War ended. He settled first in Petrópolis, Rio de Janeiro, in the palace of the Grão-Pará, and then in the neighborhood of Retiro, in Petrópolis. His cousin, Prince Pedro Gastão, the eldest son of Pedro de Alcântara, Prince of Grão-Pará, challenged Pedro Henrique's right to the succession in 1946,[1] on the basis that his father's renunciation had no legal force.

In 1951, D. Pedro Henrique bought a farm, Fazenda Santa Maria, in the town of Jacarezinho, interior of Paraná, where he launched as a farmer. In 1965, he returned to the state of Rio de Janeiro, settling in Vassouras, an important city in the days of Empire for coffee production. On site called Santa Maria, Prince Pedro Henrique resided until the end of his life.[12] He was active in the monarchist movement.[1]

On his death in 1981, Pedro Henrique's claim to the throne passed to his eldest son, Prince Luiz Gastão.

Honours

Styles of
Prince Pedro Henrique
Reference style His Imperial and Royal Highness
Spoken style Your Imperial and Royal Highness
Alternative style Sir

Dom Pedro Henrique was Grand Master of the following Brazilian Orders:[13]

He was a recipient of the following foreign honors:[14]

Marriage and children

Pedro Henrique married Princess Maria Elisabeth of Bavaria at Schloss Nymphenburg, Bavaria, on 19 August 1937.[15] They had twelve children.[7]

NameBirthDeathNotes
Prince Luiz Gastão6 June 1938 one of two claimants to the headship of the Imperial House of Brazil[7]
Prince Eudes8 June 1939 married 1) Ana Maria de Moraes e Barros (divorced) 2) Mercedes Neves da Rocha. He renounced his rights of succession to the Brazilian throne for himself and his descendants on 3 June 1966.[7]
Prince Bertrand2 February 1941
Princess Isabel5 April 1944
Prince Pedro1 December 1945 married Maria de Fátima Lacerda Rocha. He renounced his rights of succession to the Brazilian throne for himself and his descendants on 28 December 1972.[7]
Prince Fernando2 February 1948 married Maria de Graça Baere de Araújo. He renounced his rights of succession to the Brazilian throne for himself and his descendants on 24 February 1972.[7]
Prince Antônio24 June 1950 married Princess Christine de Ligne
Princess Eleonora20 May 1953 married Michel, 14th Prince of Ligne
Prince Francisco6 April 1955 married Claudia Regina Godinho. He renounced his rights of succession to the Brazilian throne for himself and his descendants on 11 December 1980.
Prince Alberto23 June 1957 married Maritza Ribas Bockel. He renounced his rights of succession to the Brazilian throne for himself and his descendants on 22 December 1982.
Princess Maria Teresa14 July 1959 married Jan Hessel de Jong (1953–)
Princess Maria Gabriela14 July 1959 married Theodore Senna de Hungria Machado

Ancestry

Notes

  1. 1 2 3 4 Montgomery-Massingberd 1977, p. 43.
  2. ↑ Montgomery-Massingberd 1977, pp. 43, 50–51.
  3. ↑ Montgomery-Massingberd 1977, pp. 43, 50.
  4. ↑ Barman 2002, p. 227.
  5. ↑ SANTOS (2006: 61)
  6. ↑ SANTOS (2006: 56–58).
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Montgomery-Massingberd 1977, p. 51.
  8. ↑ ORLEANS E BRAGANÇA, Pia Maria (1990: 8)
  9. ↑ Barman 2002, p. 228.
  10. ↑ SANTOS (2006: 64).
  11. ↑ Montgomery-Massingberd 1977, p. 50.
  12. ↑ SANTOS (2006: 109).
  13. ↑ SANTOS (2006: 56–136).
  14. ↑ SANTOS (2006: 136).
  15. ↑ Montgomery-Massingberd 1977, pp. 43, 51.

References

Prince Pedro Henrique of Orléans-Braganza
Cadet branch of the House of Orléans
Born: 13 September 1909 Died: 5 July 1981
Titles in pretence
Preceded by
Princess Isabel		 — TITULAR —
Emperor of Brazil
One of two pretenders to the Brazilian throne
14 November 1921 – 5 July 1981
Reason for succession failure:
Empire abolished in 1889		 Succeeded by
Prince Luiz Gastão
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