HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Dona Maria Amélia (french: Marie Amélie Louise Hélène; 28 September 1865 – 25 October 1951) was the last
Queen consort of Portugal Portugal had only two queens regnant: Maria I and Maria II (and, arguably, two more: Beatriz for a short period of time in the 14th century; and Teresa, in the 12th century, which technically makes her the first ruler and first queen of Port ...
as the wife of
Carlos I of Portugal ''Dom'' Carlos I (; English: King Charles of Portugal; 28 September 1863 – 1 February 1908), known as the Diplomat ( pt, o Diplomata), the Martyr ( pt, o Martirizado), and the Oceanographer ( pt, o Oceanógrafo), among many other names, was ...
. She was regent of Portugal during the absence of her spouse in 1895.


Early life

She was the eldest daughter of Prince Philippe, Count of Paris and Princess Marie Isabelle d'Orléans, and a "Princess of Orléans" by birth. Amélia's paternal grandparents were Prince Ferdinand Philippe, Duke of Orléans, and Duchess Helena of Mecklenburg-Schwerin. Her maternal grandparents were
Prince Antoine, Duke of Montpensier es, Antonio María Felipe Luis de Orleans , birth_date = , birth_place = Château de Neuilly, Neuilly-sur-Seine, France , death_date = , death_place = Palacio de Orléans-Borbón, Sanlúcar de Barrameda, Spain , date of burial = , plac ...
, and the Infanta Luisa Fernanda of Spain. The Dukes of Orléans and Montpensier were siblings, both sons of Louis-Philippe I, King of the French, and
Maria Amalia of the Two Sicilies french: link=no, Marie-Amélie Thérèse de Bourbon-Siciles , house = Bourbon-Two Sicilies , father = Ferdinand I of the Two Sicilies , mother = Maria Carolina of Austria , birth_date = , birth_place = Caserta Palace, Naples , ...
.


Marriage and issue

On 22 May 1886, Amélia married Carlos, Prince Royal of Portugal. He was the eldest son of King
Luís I of Portugal Dom Luís I (31 October 1838, in Lisbon – 19 October 1889, in Cascais), known as The Popular ( Portuguese: O Popular) was a member of the ruling House of Braganza,"While remaining patrilineal dynasts of the House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha ac ...
and Maria Pia of Savoy. He was at the time the
heir apparent An heir apparent, often shortened to heir, is a person who is first in an order of succession and cannot be displaced from inheriting by the birth of another person; a person who is first in the order of succession but can be displaced by the b ...
to the throne. The bride was almost twenty-one years old and the groom about twenty-three. The marriage had been arranged by their families after several attempts to arrange a marriage for her with a member of the Austrian or Spanish dynasties. At first, the marriage was not popular and Queen Maria Pia was expecting to marry Carlos to Archduchess Marie Valerie of Austria, Princess Mathilde of Saxony,
Princess Viktoria of Prussia Princess Friederike Amalia Wilhelmine Viktoria of Prussia (12 April 1866 – 13 November 1929) was the second daughter of Frederick III, German Emperor and his wife Victoria, Princess Royal, eldest daughter of Queen Victoria. Born a member of th ...
or Princess Victoria of Wales. However, Amélia and Carlos came to live quite harmoniously with each other. They had three children: * Luís Filipe, Duke of Braganza (21 March 1887 – 1 February 1908). * Infanta Maria Anna of Portugal (born and deceased on 14 December 1887). *
Manuel II of Portugal '' Dom'' Manuel II (15 November 1889 – 2 July 1932), "the Patriot" ( pt, "o Patriota") or "the Unfortunate" (), was the last King of Portugal, ascending the throne after the assassination of his father, King Carlos I, and his elder brother, ...
(15 November 1889 – 2 July 1932).


Queen consort

On 19 October 1889, King Luís died and Carlos succeeded him on the throne. Amélia became the new Queen consort of Portugal. However her husband became known for his extramarital affairs while the popularity of the Portuguese monarchy started to wane in the face of a bankrupt economy, industrial disturbances, socialist and republican antagonism and press criticism. Amélia played an active role as a queen, and somewhat softened the growing criticism towards the monarchy with her personal popularity, though she did receive some criticism for her expenses. She was active in many social projects, such as the prevention and treatment of
tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease usually caused by '' Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can also affect other parts of the body. Most infections show no symptoms, ...
and the foundation of charity organisations,
sanatorium A sanatorium (from Latin '' sānāre'' 'to heal, make healthy'), also sanitarium or sanitorium, are antiquated names for specialised hospitals, for the treatment of specific diseases, related ailments and convalescence. Sanatoriums are often ...
s and
drugstore A pharmacy (also called "drugstore" in American English or "community pharmacy" or "chemist" in Commonwealth English, or rarely, apothecary) is a retail shop which provides pharmaceutical drugs, among other products. At the pharmacy, a pharmaci ...
s. She was considered less formal than her mother-in-law Maria Pia, learned Portuguese well and was described as calm and mild. She was interested in
literature Literature is any collection of Writing, written work, but it is also used more narrowly for writings specifically considered to be an art form, especially prose fiction, drama, and poetry. In recent centuries, the definition has expanded to ...
,
opera Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a libr ...
and
theatre Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors or actresses, to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The perfor ...
, was a diarist and also painted. During the absence of her spouse in 1895, she acted as regent. In 1902, she made a cruise on the
Mediterranean Sea The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on ...
that was much criticised for its luxury. In 1892,
Pope Leo XIII Pope Leo XIII ( it, Leone XIII; born Vincenzo Gioacchino Raffaele Luigi Pecci; 2 March 1810 – 20 July 1903) was the head of the Catholic Church from 20 February 1878 to his death in July 1903. Living until the age of 93, he was the second-ol ...
gave a
Golden Rose The Golden Rose is a gold ornament, which popes of the Catholic Church have traditionally blessed annually. It is occasionally conferred as a token of reverence or affection. Recipients have included churches and sanctuaries, royalty, military ...
to Amélia.


Queen dowager

On 1 February 1908, the royal family returned from the palace of
Vila Viçosa Vila Viçosa () is a town and a municipality in the District of Évora, Alentejo in Portugal. The population in 2011 was 8,319, in an area of 194.86 km². The municipal holiday is August 16. Parishes Administratively, the municipality is d ...
to Lisbon. They travelled in the royal train to
Barreiro Barreiro may refer to: People * Bruno Barreiro (born 1965), American politician * Gustavo Barreiro (1959–2019), American politician * Manu Barreiro (born 1986), Spanish footballer Places * Barreiro, Portugal ** Barreiro Municipality, a muni ...
and from there took a boat to cross the
Tagus River The Tagus ( ; es, Tajo ; pt, Tejo ; see below) is the longest river in the Iberian Peninsula. The river rises in the Montes Universales near Teruel, in mid-eastern Spain, flows , generally west with two main south-westward sections, to ...
. They disembarked at Cais das Colunas in the principal square of downtown Lisbon, the
Terreiro do Paço Terreiro is a town and commune of Angola, located in the province of Cuanza Norte. See also * Communes of Angola The Communes of Angola ( pt, comunas) are administrative units in Angola after municipalities. The 163 municipalities of Angol ...
. On their way to the
Palace of Necessidades The Necessidades Palace () is a historic building in the Largo do Rilvas, a public square in Lisbon, Portugal. It serves as headquarters of the Portuguese Foreign Ministry. The Palace has been classified as a Property of Public Interest since 1 ...
, the carriage carrying Carlos and his family passed through the ''Rua do Arsenal''. While crossing the square and turning to the street, several shots were fired from the crowd by at least two men (
Alfredo Luís da Costa Alfredo Luís da Costa (24 November 1883 – 1 February 1908) was a Portuguese publicist, editor, journalist, shop assistant and salesman who was part of the Portuguese Carbonária and a Mason, best remembered for being one of the two assassins (wi ...
and
Manuel Buiça Manuel may refer to: People * Manuel (name) * Manuel (Fawlty Towers), a fictional character from the sitcom ''Fawlty Towers'' * Charlie Manuel, manager of the Philadelphia Phillies * Manuel I Komnenos, emperor of the Byzantine Empire * Manu ...
), among others. The King died immediately, his heir Prince Dom Luís was mortally wounded and Infante Dom Manuel was hit in the arm, yet Queen Amélie was surprisingly unharmed after trying to defend her youngest son, the new king Manuel II, with the flower bouquet she kept in her hand. The two assassins were shot on the spot by members of the royal bodyguard and later were recognized as members of the
Portuguese Republican Party The Portuguese Republican Party (, ) was a Portuguese political party formed during the late years of the constitutional monarchy that proposed and conducted the substitution of the monarchy with the Portuguese First Republic.Carbonária The Carbonária was originally an anti-clerical, revolutionary, conspiratorial society, originally established in Portugal in 1822 and soon disbanded. It was allied with the Italian Carbonari. A new organization of the same name and claiming to be i ...
. About twenty minutes later, Prince Luis Filipe died and the next day Manuel was acclaimed King of Portugal, the last of the Braganza dynasty.
Manuel II of Portugal '' Dom'' Manuel II (15 November 1889 – 2 July 1932), "the Patriot" ( pt, "o Patriota") or "the Unfortunate" (), was the last King of Portugal, ascending the throne after the assassination of his father, King Carlos I, and his elder brother, ...
was deposed by a military coup, later known as the
5 October 1910 revolution The 5 October 1910 revolution was the overthrow of the centuries-old List of Portuguese monarchs, Portuguese monarchy and its replacement by the First Portuguese Republic. It was the result of a ''coup d'état'' organized by the Portuguese Repub ...
, which resulted in the establishment of the
Portuguese First Republic The First Portuguese Republic ( pt, Primeira República Portuguesa; officially: ''República Portuguesa'', Portuguese Republic) spans a complex 16-year period in the history of Portugal, between the end of the period of constitutional monarchy ...
. Queen Amélie left Portugal with the rest of the royal family and went into exile. She lived most of her remaining life in France. During
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...
the Portuguese government invited her to return to Portugal, but she declined the offer. She visited Portugal for the last time in 1945.


Honours

* Dame Grand Cross of the Royal Order of the Immaculate Conception of Vila Viçosa (
House of Braganza The Most Serene House of Braganza ( pt, Sereníssima Casa de Bragança), also known as the Brigantine Dynasty (''Dinastia Brigantina''), is a dynasty of emperors, kings, princes, and dukes of Portuguese origin which reigned in Europe and the Am ...
) * Dame Grand Cross with Collar of the Royal Order of Christ (House of Braganza) * Dame Grand Cross of the
Sash of the Three Orders The Sash of the Three Orders ( pt, Banda das Três Ordens, or ''Banda da Grã-Cruz das Três Ordens'') is a decoration that combines the insignia of the Grand Crosses of the Military Orders of Christ, Aviz and St. James of the Sword. It is the ...
, ''9 May 1909'' (House of Braganza) * 7th Grand Mistress Dame Grand Cross of the Royal Order of Queen Saint Isabel, Special Class (House of Braganza)Justus Perthes, ''Almanach de Gotha'' (1921
p. 26
/ref> * Dame of the Imperial and Royal Order of the Starry Cross, 1st Class ( Austrian Imperial and Royal Family) * Dame Grand Cross of Obedience of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta * 867th Dame Grand Cross of the
Order of Queen Maria Luisa The Royal Order of Noble Ladies of Queen Maria Luisa is an Order created by King Charles IV of Spain by royal decree on April 21, 1792, at the request of his wife, Queen Maria Luisa, to reward noble women who distinguished themselves for their s ...
, ''25 October 1886'' (
Kingdom of Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = '' Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , ...
) * Dame Grand Cordon of the Imperial Order of Saint Catherine, ''1895'' (
Russian Imperial Family The House of Romanov (also transcribed Romanoff; rus, Романовы, Románovy, rɐˈmanəvɨ) was the reigning imperial house of Russia from 1613 to 1917. They achieved prominence after the Tsarina, Anastasia Romanova, was married to t ...
)


Ancestry


References


External links

*
Queen Amelia of Portugal
{{DEFAULTSORT:Amelie Of Orleans 1865 births 1951 deaths House of Braganza-Saxe-Coburg and Gotha Portuguese queens consort Princesses of France (Orléans) Burials at the Monastery of São Vicente de Fora Princesses Royal of Portugal Duchesses of Braganza 3 3 3 Knights Grand Cross of the Order of the Immaculate Conception of Vila Viçosa Dames of the Order of Saint Isabel 19th-century French people 20th-century French people 19th-century French women 20th-century French women 19th-century Portuguese people 19th-century Portuguese women 20th-century Portuguese people 20th-century Portuguese women 19th-century women rulers Children of Prince Philippe, Count of Paris Queen mothers