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Isabel (29 July 1846 – 14 November 1921), nicknamed "the Redemptress",[1] was Regent of the Empire of Brazil and titular Empress as successor to her father, the last reigning Emperor Pedro II. She was heiress presumptive to the Brazilian throne, bearing the title of Princess Imperial until 1891 when her father, deposed in 1889 in a military coup d'état, died and she was recognized as his successor by the countries who still did not acknowledged the First Brazilian Republic as well as by a large sector of the Brazilian society.
| Isabel | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| |||||
 Princess Isabel around age 41, c. 1887 | |||||
| Head of the Imperial House of Brazil | |||||
| Tenure | 5 December 1891 – 14 November 1921 | ||||
| Predecessor | Emperor Pedro II | ||||
| Successor | Prince Pedro Henrique of Orléans-Braganza | ||||
| Born | 29 July 1846 Palace of São Cristóvão, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil | ||||
| Died | 14 November 1921 (aged 75) Château d'Eu, Eu, France | ||||
| Burial | Cathedral of São Pedro de Alcântara, Petrópolis, Brazil | ||||
| Spouse |
Prince Gaston, Count of Eu
(m. 1864) | ||||
| Issue |
| ||||
| |||||
| House | Braganza | ||||
| Father | Pedro II of Brazil | ||||
| Mother | Teresa Cristina of the Two Sicilies | ||||
| Religion | Roman Catholic | ||||
| Signature |  | ||||
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Isabel was born in Rio de Janeiro, the eldest daughter of Emperor Pedro II and Empress Teresa Cristina, and thus she was a member of the Brazilian branch of the House of Braganza (Portuguese: Bragança). After the deaths of her two brothers in infancy, she was recognized as her father's heiress presumptive. She married a French prince, Gaston, Count of Eu, in an arranged marriage and they had three sons.
During her father's absences abroad, Isabel acted as regent. In her third and final regency, she actively promoted and ultimately signed a law, named Lei Áurea or the Golden Law, emancipating all slaves in Brazil. Even though the action was broadly popular, there was strong opposition to her succession to the throne by the conservative elites. Her gender, strong Catholic faith and marriage to a foreigner were seen as impediments against her. The emancipation of the slaves generated dislike among powerful planters. In 1889, her family was deposed in a military coup. Then she spent the last 30 years of her life in exile in France.
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