Dona Carlota Joaquina de Bourbón was born on April 25, 1775, Infanta of Spain, was the daughter of King Dom Carlos IV and his wife, Queen Maria Luisa of Parma.
She learned languages, history, court etiquette, and religion. She possessed extraordinary energy and throughout her life was active in Portuguese, Brazilian and Spanish politics.
She was wife of Dom João VI and mother of Emperor Dom Pedro I of Brazil.
Dona Carlota Joaquina portrayed with the Dom João medallion.
Marriage
The marriage between the Portuguese prince and the Spanish infanta was part of the project to bring the two kingdoms together. After all, it was advantageous for both countries to keep the peace through marriages.
At the age of ten, the infanta Dona Carlota Joaquina leaves Madrid to marry Dom João. In turn, D. João's sister, Dona Maria Ana Vitória, would marry the Spanish infant D. Gabriel.
The union would yield nine children, eight of whom reached adulthood.
Married at an early age, the marriage was never a happy one and D. Carlota Joaquina and D. João VI only fulfilled their protocol obligations. In any case, the children were born and raised in an environment of family and political tension.
In 1788, the firstborn of D. Maria I, D. José (Prince of Brazil), died, and D. João was acclaimed as heir to the Portuguese throne. At this time, Queen Maria's mental health was already showing signs of being shaken; D. João assumes the regency of the overseas empire from 1792.
Carlota Joaquina has always been described as a very ugly person. She would be small, with a limp and still bear the marks of a smallpox contracted as a child on her face.
Learn more about the life of Dom João VI
Historical Context
Meanwhile, Napoleon Bonaparte expands his empire beyond French borders. He negotiates with the Spanish king to invade Portugal through Spain and he does so in 1807.
With the protection of the English fleet, the Portuguese Court left Lisbon on November 30, 1807. They arrived in Salvador in January 1808 and in Rio de Janeiro in March of the same year, where they would stay until 1821.
When the Portuguese court moved to Brazil, D. Carlota Joaquina settled in the Botafogo neighborhood, in a private mansion, with her daughters, while D. João occupied the São Cristóvão Palace. Thus, they met only when it was necessary.
From the palace in Botafogo, where D. Carlota lived, there is still the Chapel of Nossa Senhora da Piedade.
Read more about the arrival of the Royal Family to Brazil.
Carlota Joaquina and Spanish America
Despite the fact that she left Spain as a child, what is certain is that she never stopped maintaining contacts with her Spanish relatives.
With the arrest of her brother, King Fernando VII, Dona Carlota Joaquina planned to proclaim herself regent of the Spanish colonies in America.
For this, she maintained contact with the Government Boards of different regions such as the Viceroyalty of La Plata and the Viceroyalty of Peru. She had the support of Admiral Sydney Smith to co-opt adherents to her purposes. D. João, informed of his plans, asked the British government to replace the said admiral.
Likewise, she received in Rio de Janeiro the Spanish emissary, General José Manuel de Goyeneche.
The officer sent Dona Carlota Joaquina's letters to the colonies and to the Seville Board. In that correspondence, she offered to be regent of the Spanish possessions in America while the King of Spain was a prisoner.
She did not find support for her project in either America or Spain. There, it was declared that only the regency of King Ferdinand VII in America was recognized, even though he was in prison.
Learn more about the Independence of Spanish America.
Allies with Spain
Despite political friction, D. Carlota Joaquina remained active in politics through the marriage arrangements between her daughters and her brothers.
The Infanta D. Maria Isabel of Portugal would marry her uncle, the Spanish king Dom Fernando VII and would become queen of Spain.
On the same occasion, the daughter D. Maria Francisca de Assis (1800-1834), would marry Infante D. Carlos, D. Carlota's brother, and after her death, with the other niece, D. Maria Thereza (1793). -1874).
It is worth remembering that at this time, marriage between nephews and uncles was allowed by papal dispensation.
Back to Portugal
Dom João VI and Dona Carlota Joaquina
Dissatisfied with the permanence of the Brazilian Court in Brazil, popular people from the city of Porto started a series of protests that would culminate in the Liberal Revolution in Porto.
On this occasion, the Portuguese demand the return of Dom João VI and the Court to Portugal and that the monarch recognize the Constitution drawn up by the Cortes.
Meanwhile, his son Dom Pedro was left in Brazil and on September 7, 1822 he would break ties with Portugal by proclaiming Brazil's independence.
The news of her return to Portugal made D. Carlota Joaquina very happy, as she would return to Europe. However, the political situation on the continent had changed.
Upon arriving in Portugal, she refuses to sign the Constitution that limits the powers of monarchs. She also unsuccessfully insists that D. João VI do the same.
In this way, through her son D. Miguel, she finds a way to regain power. D. Carlota Joaquina's preference for her son D. Miguel in relation to D. Pedro was notorious. Thus, she helps him to conspire against his own father in episodes known as Vilafrancada and Abrilada.
However, fearful that his wife would continue to plot against his government, D. João VI sent her first to Quinta do Ramalhão and, later, to the Palace of Queluz. There, D. Carlota Joaquina remained practically closed until her death, on January 7, 1830.
Quiz of personalities who made history
7Graus Quiz - Do you know who were the most important people in history?Curiosities
- Three children of D. Carlota Joaquina ascended the throne:D. Pedro I, as Emperor of Brazil and Pedro IV, King of Portugal. D. Miguel, was also king of Portugal from 1828 to 1834 when he was defeated in a civil war by his brother Pedro. D. Maria Isabel of Portugal would be queen consort of Spain.
- Likewise, D. Isabel Maria was regent of Portugal for almost two years, after the death of D. João VI and the seizure of power by D. Miguel.
- Currently, there is an attempt to rescue the historical figure of Dona Carlota Joaquina through her political activities.