Prince Miguel, Duke of Viseu

Prince Miguel of Braganza, Duke of Viseu (22 September 1878 – 21 February 1923) 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''.

Early life

Miguel was born in Reichenau an der Rax, Austria-Hungary the eldest son and heir of the Miguelist pretender to the Portuguese throne Miguel, Duke of Braganza and his first wife Princess Elisabeth of Thurn and Taxis. Prince Miguel's father was the head of the non reigning branch of the Portuguese Royal House that had been exiled from Portugal. The exile was the result of the Portuguese law of banishment of 1834 and the constitution of 1838 which was brought about because in 1828 his grandfather Miguel usurped the throne of Portugal from his niece Queen Maria II. His grandfather reigned as king until 1834 when Maria II was restored.

Like his father Miguel pursued a career in the Army and served in a Saxon cavalry regiment. On 16 September 1900 Miguel was riding back into town in a Phaeton after having attended a dinner at a country house, when he caught his wheels in the carriage of Prince Albert, the nephew of King Albert of Saxony. The collision was so great that the carriage overturned into a ditch, with the prince dying of his injuries a few hours after. Because it could not be determined whether it was an accident or intentional Miguel escaped a court martial but he was forced to give up his commission in the Army and leave the country.

A year later he caused more controversy when it was discovered that while King Carlos I of Portugal was visiting the United Kingdom, Miguel had entered Portugal with the aim of assisting an uprising against the king. After this was discovered he effectively became a social outcast.

Marriage

On 9 July 1909 Miguel's engagement to the American heiress, Anita Stewart was announced in London. Stewart was the daughter of William Rhinelander Stewart and Annie Armstrong. After her parents divorced in August 1906, her mother married the millionaire James Henry Smith, then the socialite Jean de Saint-Cyr on April 25, 1915.

Miguel and Anita Stewart were married at Tulloch Castle near Dingwall in Scotland on 15 September 1909. This was the first royal wedding in Scotland since the days of the Stuarts. Shortly before the wedding Stewart was created ''Prinzessin von Braganza'' (Princess of Braganza) by the Austrian Emperor Francis Joseph. Upon his marriage Miguel was able to keep his place in the line of succession as morganatic marriages did not exist in Portuguese law.

Out of this union, three children were born, all of whom used the title Prince or Princess until 1920, when their parents' marriage was deemed to be in contravention of royal law:

* Isabel Maria "Nadejda" de Bragança (1910–1946), who married Wlodzimierz "Vadim" Dorozynski in Capri, Italy on August 16, 1930. They divorced in 1932 and in 1942, she married René Millet.
* John de Bragança (1912–1991), who married Winifred Dodge Seyburn in 1948. They divorced in 1953 and in 1971, he was married to Katharine (''née'' King) Bahnson (1921–2007).
*Miguel de Bragança (1915–1996), a St. George School graduate who married Anne Hughson in 1946.

Later life

After his marriage Miguel was granted the title Duke of Viseu by his father, though the reigning Portuguese King Manuel II did not recognise this and claimed the title for himself. Shortly after his marriage, Miguel faced legal action from a syndicate who had lent him money a few years before his marriage when he was in financial difficulties. After promising to pay the syndicate one-fifth of any dowry he received as a result of contracting a marriage he later tried to pay back only what he had originally borrowed. Although he paid off the majority of his creditors after his wedding some were unhappy and seized his furniture and other items and took them to an Auction house.

In 1911-1912 Miguel took part in the monarchist uprisings in Portugal led by Henrique Mitchell de Paiva Couceiro, in an unsuccessful attempt to overthrow the First Portuguese Republic. He was also active in raising money to fund the uprisings.

Miguel later found work in London where he was employed as a Broker's clerk for the city firm Basil Montgomery, Fitzgerald and co. After originally being forced to resign from the Army, he returned to serve in the German automobile corps during the First World War reaching the rank of Captain.

After the war on 21 July 1920 Miguel renounced for himself and his descendants, his rights of succession to the Portuguese throne. His father also renounced his rights ten days later which resulted in the Miguelist claim passing to his younger half brother Duarte Nuno.

Prince Miguel later moved to New York City where he sold life insurance before dying of pneumonia following an influenza attack.

Issue

Ancestry

References

, -

, -

{{DEFAULTSORT:Miguel Of Viseu, Duke, Prince
House of Braganza
Portuguese infantes
Dukes of Viseu
Deaths from pneumonia in New York City
1878 births
1923 deaths
Deaths from influenza