Prince of Brazil ( pt, Príncipe do Brasil) was the title held by the heir-apparent to the

Kingdom of Portugal The Kingdom of Portugal ( la, Regnum Portugalliae, pt, Reino de Portugal) was a monarchy in the western Iberian Peninsula and the predecessor of the modern Portuguese Republic. Existing to various extents between 1139 and 1910, it was also kno ...

, from 1645 to 1815. Tied with the title of Prince of Brazil was the title

Duke of Braganza The title Duke of Braganza ( pt, Duque de Bragança) 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 ...

and the various subsidiary titles of the

Dukedom of Braganza The title Duke of Braganza ( pt, Duque de Bragança) 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 ...

. The title's name has its origins in the

State of Brazil The State of Brazil ( pt, Estado do Brasil) was one of the states of the Portuguese Empire, in the Americas during the period of Colonial Brazil. History In 1621, the Governorate General of Brazil was split into two states, the State of Bra ...

, a colony of the

Portuguese Empire The Portuguese Empire ( pt, Império Português), also known as the Portuguese Overseas (''Ultramar Português'') or the Portuguese Colonial Empire (''Império Colonial Português''), was composed of the overseas colonies, factories, and the l ...

. The term "Principality of Brazil" is anachronistic, having never been used as the official title of Brazil in the period in question, in the same way that the "Principality of Beira" related to the nobiliarchic title

Prince of Beira Prince of Beira ( pt, Príncipe da Beira, feminine: ''Princesa da Beira'') is a title traditionally granted to the heir apparent of the heir apparent to the throne of Portugal. The title's original use that it be granted on the eldest daughter o ...

never existed. During this period, Brazil was officially designated as the

. The title was abandoned and changed to that of ''Prince Royal'' in the wake of Brazil's elevation from the status of a colony to the rank of a Kingdom united with Portugal in the

United Kingdom of Portugal, Brazil and the Algarves 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 w ...

. Brazil would later break from the United Kingdom of Portugal, Brazil and the Algarves and become the independent

Empire of Brazil The Empire of Brazil was a 19th-century state that broadly comprised the territories which form modern Brazil and (until 1828) Uruguay. Its government was a representative parliamentary constitutional monarchy under the rule of Emperors Dom Pe ...

. The heirs presumptive of Brazil were known as The Prince Imperial of Brazil or The Princess Imperial of Brazil, with the style of Imperial Highness. Other members of the Brazilian Imperial Family were known by the title of Prince or Princess prefixed to their given names, with the style of Highness. The Portuguese title of Prince of Brazil, that existed as a title of the Portuguese heir apparent only while Brazil was still a colony of Portugal, should therefore not be confused with the later ranks of Brazilian Prince or Brazilian Princess, that stem from the era of the Empire of Brazil.

History

Until the reign of King

John IV of Portugal John IV ( pt, João, ; 19 March 1604 – 6 November 1656), nicknamed John the Restorer ( pt, João, o Restaurador), was the King of Portugal whose reign, lasting from 1640 until his death, began the Portuguese restoration of independence from H ...

, the heir-apparent to the throne of Portugal had used the title of

Prince of Portugal Hereditary Prince of Portugal (Portuguese: ''Príncipe Herdeiro de Portugal''), unofficially Prince of Portugal (''Príncipe Herdeiro de Portugal''), or Princess of Portugal, was the title held by the heirs apparent and heirs presumptive to the K ...

. After his succession to the throne, John IV sought to give his heir a more prestigious and noble title, ''Prince of Brazil'', alongside granting the heir of Portugal the title of

. The title was created by King

on 27 October 1645 in favor of his eldest son and heir Teodósio, to replace the title ''

''. The eldest son and heir of the ''Prince of Brazil'' was styled

and

Duke of Barcelos Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they are ranke ...

. When

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

was elevated to the status of a Kingdom within the

, the title was replaced by ''

Prince Royal of the United Kingdom of Portugal, Brazil, and the Algarves Prince Royal (Portuguese: ''Príncipe Real'') was the title held by the heir apparent or the heir presumptive to the throne of the Kingdom of Portugal, from 1825 to 1910. The eldest son of the Prince Royal held the title of Prince of Beira. H ...

''. When Brazil broke away from the United Kingdom to become an independent Empire, the title of the Portuguese heir apparent was again changed to ''

Prince Royal of Portugal and the Algarves Prince Royal (Portuguese: ''Príncipe Real'') was the title held by the heir apparent or the heir presumptive to the throne of the Kingdom of Portugal, from 1825 to 1910. The eldest son of the Prince Royal held the title of Prince of Beira. H ...

''.

List of Princes of Brazil

External links

{{Portuguese royalty Heirs to the throne