Ferdinand II of Portugal

King of Portugal from 1837 to 1853

Ferdinand II

King Ferdinand in 1861

King of Portugal

(jure uxoris)

Reign| 16 September 1837 – 15 November 1853
Predecessor| Maria II
Successor| Pedro V
Co-monarch| Maria II
Prince consort of Portugal
Tenure| 9 April 1836 – 16 September 1837
Regent of Portugal
Regency| 15 November 1853 – 16 September 1855
Monarch| Pedro V

Born| Prinz Ferdinand von Sachsen-Coburg-Saalfeld
(1816-10-29)29 October 1816
Palais Coburg, Vienna, Austrian Empire
Died| 15 December 1885(1885-12-15) (aged 69)
Necessidades Palace, Lisbon, Portugal
Burial| 21 December 1885

Pantheon of the House of Braganza, Lisbon, Portugal

Spouses|

Maria II of Portugal

(m. 1836; died 1853)​

Elise, Countess of Edla

(m. 1869)​

Issue
Detail| Pedro V
Luís I
Infante João, Duke of Beja
Maria Ana, Princess Georg of Saxony
Antónia, Princess of Hohenzollern
Infante Fernando
Infante Augusto, Duke of Coimbra
House| Saxe-Coburg and Gotha-Koháry
Father| Ferdinand, Prince of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha-Koháry
Mother| Princess Maria Antonia Koháry de Csábrág et Szitnya
Religion| Roman Catholicism
Signature|

Dom Ferdinand II (German: Ferdinand August Franz Anton Koháry von Sachsen-Coburg-Gotha; 29 October 1816 – 15 December 1885), also known as Ferdinand of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha and as "the King-artist" (Portuguese: o Rei-Artista),[1] was King of Portugal from 16 September 1837 to 15 November 1853 as the husband and co-ruler of Queen Maria II.

In keeping with Portuguese law, Ferdinand only became king after the birth of his first son, Prince Pedro, in 1837. Ferdinand's reign came to an end with the death of his wife in 1853, but he served as regent for his son and successor, King Pedro V, until 1855.

He retained the style and title of king even after the death of Maria II and her succession by their children Pedro V and then Luís I. His sons were reigning kings, while Ferdinand himself was a king-father during their reigns.

## Early life

[edit]

Born Ferdinand August Franz Anton in Vienna on 29 October 1816, he was the eldest son of Prince Ferdinand of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld and Princess Maria Antonia Koháry de Csábrág et Szitnya, heiress to the House of Koháry. The younger Ferdinand grew up in several places: the family estates in modern-day Slovakia, the imperial court of Austria, and Germany. He was a nephew of King Leopold I of Belgium, and thus a first cousin to Leopold II of Belgium and Empress Carlota of Mexico, as well as Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom and her husband Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. In 1826, his title changed from Prince of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld to Prince of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, following the re-arrangement of the Saxon duchies.

## King of Portugal

[edit]

Ferdinand II around age 24, standing next to a bust of King Pedro IV, c. 1840.

According to Portuguese law, the husband of a queen regnant could only be titled king after the birth of an heir from that marriage; this was the reason Maria II's first husband, Auguste de Beauharnais, Duke of Leuchtenberg, never acquired the title of king. After the birth of their eldest son and heir, the future Pedro V of Portugal, Ferdinand was proclaimed King Dom Fernando II.

Although it was Maria who reigned by right, the royal couple formed an effective team during their joint reign, with Ferdinand reigning by himself during his wife's pregnancies.

Eventually, Maria II died as a result of the birth of their eleventh child, and Ferdinand II's reign ended. However, he would assume the regency of Portugal from 1853 to 1855, during the minority of his son King Pedro V.

## Later life

[edit]

Portrait by Joseph Layraud, c. 1877.
Displayed at Pena National Palace.

Ferdinand was an intelligent and artistically minded man with modern and liberal ideas. He was adept at etching, pottery and painting aquarelles. He was the president of the Royal Academy of Sciences and the Arts, Lord Protector of the University of Coimbra and Grand-Master of the Rosicrucians.[which?][citation needed]

An elderly Ferdinand

In 1838, he acquired the former Hieronymite monastery of Our Lady of Pena, which had been built by King Manuel I in 1511 on the top of the hill above Sintra and had been left unoccupied since 1834, when the religious orders were suppressed in Portugal. The monastery consisted of the cloister and its outbuildings, the chapel, the sacristy and the bell tower, which today form the northern section of the Pena National Palace (the "Old Palace").

Ferdinand began by making repairs to the former monastery, which, according to the historical sources of that time, was in poor condition. He refurbished the whole of the upper floor, replacing the fourteen cells used by the monks with larger-sized rooms and covering them with the vaulted ceilings that can still be seen today. In 1843, the king decided to enlarge the palace by building a new wing (the New Palace) with even larger rooms (one of them being the Great Hall), ending in a circular tower next to the new kitchens. The building work was directed by the Baron von Eschwege, a wild architectural fantasy in an eclectic style full of symbolism that could be compared with the castle Neuschwanstein of King Ludwig II of Bavaria. The palace was built in such a way as to be visible from any point in the park, which consists of a forest and luxuriant gardens with over five hundred different species of trees originating from the four corners of the earth. Ferdinand would spend his last years in this castle with his second wife, receiving the greatest artists of his time.

### Death

[edit]

When he was 60, Ferdinand suffered from facial cancer that severely disfigured him and kept him away from public life. On 12 December 1885, due to double vision caused by the tumor, he tripped when going down the stairs to the foyer of the São Carlos Theater, violently hitting his head against a wall and fell into a coma, dying three days after. In his will, he left almost all his assets to his second wife, which caused a public commotion.[2]

He rests next to Mary II, his first wife, in the Pantheon of the House of Braganza, in São Vicente de Fora, Lisbon.

## Marriages and descendants

[edit]

On 9 April 1836, Ferdinand married Queen Maria II of Portugal. Eleven children were born to the royal couple before Maria died of complications due to childbirth in 1853. Ferdinand was destined to outlive eight of his eleven children. In late 1861, an attack of cholera or typhoid fever struck the royal family and Ferdinand suffered the tragedy of witnessing the death of three of his five surviving sons.

Later in his life, Ferdinand married again in Lisbon on 10 June 1869 to actress Elisa Hensler (Neuchâtel, 22 May 1836 – Lisbon, Coração de Jesus, 21 May 1929).[3] Just before the marriage, she was styled Gräfin (Countess) von Edla by Ferdinand's cousin Ernest II, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. The couple had no children.[4]

Name | Birth | Death | Notes

|
|
|

By Maria II of Portugal (4 April 1819 – 15 November 1853; married on 9 April 1836)
Pedro V | 16 September 1837 | 11 November 1861 | Succeeded his mother as King of Portugal.
Luís I | 31 October 1838 | 19 October 1889 | Succeeded his brother as King of Portugal.
Infanta Maria | 4 October 1840 | 4 October 1840 | Stillborn.
Infante João | 16 March 1842 | 27 December 1861 | Duke of Beja. Died of cholera in 1861.
Infanta Maria Ana | 21 August 1843 | 5 February 1884 | Married King George of Saxony and was the mother of King Frederick August III of Saxony, and the maternal grandmother of Charles I, the last Emperor of Austria.
Infanta Antónia | 17 February 1845 | 27 December 1913 | Married Leopold, Prince of Hohenzollern and was the mother of King Ferdinand I of Romania.
Infante Fernando | 23 July 1846 | 6 November 1861 | Died of cholera in 1861.
Infante Augusto | 4 November 1847 | 26 September 1889 | Duke of Coimbra.
Infante Leopoldo | 7 May 1849 | 7 May 1849 | Stillborn.
Infanta Maria | 3 February 1851 | 3 February 1851 | Stillborn.
Infante Eugénio | 15 November 1853 | 15 November 1853 | Stillborn.

## Ancestry

[edit]

Ancestors of Ferdinand II of Portugal

|  |  |  |  |  |  |  | 8\. Ernest Frederick, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld

|
|
|
|
|
|
|

| 4\. Francis, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld|

|  |  |
| 9\. Duchess Sophie Antoinette of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel

| 2\. Ferdinand, Prince of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha-Koháry|

|  |  |  |  |
| 10\. Heinrich XXIV, Count Reuss of Ebersdorf

| 5\. Countess Augusta Reuss of Ebersdorf|

|  |  |
| 11\. Countess Karoline Ernestine of Erbach-Schönberg

| 1\. Prince Ferdinand of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha|
|  |  |  |  |  |  |
| 12\. Ignác József, Count Koháry de Csábrág et Szitnya

| 6\. Ferenc József, Prince Koháry de Csábrág et Szitnya|

|  |  |
| 13\. Countess Maria Gabriella Cavriani

| 3\. Princess Maria Antonia Koháry de Csábrág et Szitnya|

|  |  |  |  |
| 14\. Count Georg Christian von Waldstein

| 7\. Countess Maria Antonia von Waldstein|

|  |  |
| 15\. Countess Elisabeth Ulfeldt

|  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |

## Honours

[edit]

Royal styles of
King Fernando II of Portugal

Reference style| His Majesty
Spoken style| Your Majesty

Portuguese orders and decorations[5]

* Grand Cross of the Sash of the Three Orders, 9 December 1835 – wedding gift of his bride, Queen Maria II[6]
* Grand Cross of the Tower and Sword
* Grand Cross of the Immaculate Conception of Vila Viçosa
* Gold Medal of Distinguished Service

Foreign orders and decorations[5]

* Austrian Empire: Grand Cross of St. Stephen, 1843[7]
* Belgium: Grand Cordon of the Order of Leopold, 15 July 1835[8]
* Empire of Brazil:
* Grand Cross of the Southern Cross
* Grand Cross of the Order of Pedro I
* Grand Cross of the Rose
* Denmark: Knight of the Elephant, 12 April 1841[9]
* Ernestine duchies: Grand Cross of the Saxe-Ernestine House Order, December 1835[10]
* Kingdom of France: Grand Cross of the Legion of Honour
* Netherlands: Grand Cross of the Netherlands Lion
* Kingdom of Prussia:
* Knight of the Black Eagle, 11 January 1845; with Collar, 1862[11]
* Grand Cross of the Red Eagle
* Russian Empire:[12]
* Knight of St. Andrew, September 1850
* Knight of St. Alexander Nevsky, September 1850
* Knight of the White Eagle, September 1850
* Knight of St. Anna, 1st Class, September 1850
* Kingdom of Sardinia:
* Knight of the Annunciation, 16 August 1849[13]
* Grand Cross of Saints Maurice and Lazarus, 1849
* Kingdom of Saxony:
* Knight of the Rue Crown, 1840[14]
* Grand Cross of the Military Order of St. Henry
* Spain: Knight of the Golden Fleece, 16 October 1838[15]
* Sweden-Norway: Knight of the Seraphim, with Collar, 15 February 1852[16]
* Two Sicilies: Grand Cross of St. Ferdinand and Merit

## Notes

[edit]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Ferdinand II of Portugal.

1. ^ Given by António Feliciano Castilho, viscount of Castilho, in an article at Revista Universal
2. ^ Saraiva, José António (2024). O Homem que Mandou Matar o Rei D. Carlos (1st ed.). Lisbon: Gradiva. pp. 93 and 119. ISBN 978-989-785-265-7.
3. ^ Daughter of Jean Conrad Hensler (Röschitz, c. 1797 – Vienna, 14 April 1872) and Josephe Hechelbacher (Wallerstein, c. 1805 – aft. 1872), paternal granddaughter of Michael Hensler and Katharina Prauneis and maternal granddaughter of Karl Hechelnbacher and Theresia Schretzmayer.
4. ^ By an unknown father, she had a daughter named Alice Hensler (Paris, 25 December 1855 – Lisbon, Benfica, 18 June 1941), who married in Lisbon, Alcântara, on 30 September 1883 a Portuguese Navy officer from Azores, Manuel de Azevedo Gomes (1848–1907), by whom she had issue.
5. ^ a b Staatshandbuch für die Herzogthümer Sachsen-Coburg und Gotha (1865). "Genealogie des Herzogliche Hauses", p. 10. Gotha: Thienemann.
6. ^ Bragança, Jose Vicente de (2014). "Agraciamentos Portugueses Aos Príncipes da Casa Saxe-Coburgo-Gota" [Portuguese Honours awarded to Princes of the House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha]. Pro Phalaris (in Portuguese). 9–10: 6. Retrieved 28 November 2019.
7. ^ "A Szent István Rend tagjai" Archived 22 December 2010 at the Wayback Machine
8. ^ Ferdinand Veldekens (1858). Le livre d'or de l'ordre de Léopold et de la croix de fer. lelong. p. 206.
9. ^ Jørgen Pedersen (2009). Riddere af Elefantordenen, 1559–2009 (in Danish). Syddansk Universitetsforlag. p. 468\. ISBN 978-87-7674-434-2.
10. ^ Staatshandbücher ... Sachsen-Coburg und Gotha (1837), "Herzogliche Sachsen-Ernestinischer Hausorden" p. 13
11. ^ "Schwarzer Adler-orden", Königlich Preussische Ordensliste (in German), vol. 1, Berlin, 1877, p. 9`{{citation}}`: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
12. ^ Bragança, Jose Vicente de; Estrela, Paulo Jorge (2017). "Troca de Decorações entre os Reis de Portugal e os Imperadores da Rússia" [Exchange of Decorations between the Kings of Portugal and the Emperors of Russia]. Pro Phalaris (in Portuguese). 16: 6. Retrieved 19 March 2020.
13. ^ Cibrario, Luigi (1869). Notizia storica del nobilissimo ordine supremo della santissima Annunziata. Sunto degli statuti, catalogo dei cavalieri (in Italian). Eredi Botta. p. 112. Retrieved 2019-03-04.
14. ^ Staatshandbuch für den Freistaat Sachsen (1863) (in German), "Königliche Ritter-Orden", p. 4
15. ^ "Caballeros de la insigne orden del Toison de Oro", Guóa Oficial de España (in Spanish), 1875, p. 102, retrieved 4 March 2019
16. ^ Sveriges statskalender (in Swedish), 1881, p. 377, retrieved 2018-01-06 - via runeberg.org

Ferdinand II of Portugal

House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha

Cadet branch of the House of Wettin

Born: 13 May 1767 Died: 10 March 1826

Regnal titles
Preceded by

Maria II

as sole monarch  |  King of Portugal
16 September 1837 – 15 November 1853
with Maria II | Succeeded by

Pedro V

Portuguese royalty
Vacant

Title last held by

Auguste de Beauharnais |  Prince consort of Portugal
9 April 1836 – 16 September 1837  | Vacant

Title next held by

Stephanie of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen
as queen consort

* v
* t
* e

Monarchs of Portugal

House of Burgundy (1139–1383)|

* Afonso I
* Sancho I
* Afonso II
* Sancho II
* Afonso III
* Denis I
* Afonso IV
* Peter I
* Ferdinand I
* Beatrice I

House of Aviz (1385–1580)|

* John I
* Edward I
* Afonso V
* John II
* Manuel I
* John III
* Sebastian I
* Henry I
* Anthony I

House of Habsburg (1581–1640)|

* Philip I
* Philip II
* Philip III

House of Braganza (1640–1910)|

* John IV
* Afonso VI
* Peter II
* John V
* Joseph I
* Maria I with Peter III
* John VI
* Peter IV
* Maria II
* Miguel I
* Maria II with Ferdinand II
* Peter V
* Luís I
* Carlos I
* Manuel II

Debatable or disputed rulers are in italics.

* v
* t
* e

House of Braganza-Saxe-Coburg and Gotha

1st generation|

* Pedro V
* Luís I
* Infanta Maria
* Infante João, Duke of Beja
* Infanta Maria Ana, Princess George of Saxony
* Infanta Antónia, Princess of Hohenzollern
* Infante Fernando
* Infante Augusto
* Infante Leopoldo
* Infanta Maria da Glória
* Infante Eugénio

2nd generation|

* Carlos I
* Infante Afonso, Duke of Porto

3rd generation|

* Luís Filipe, Prince Royal of Portugal
* Infanta Maria Ana
* Manuel II
* Maria Pia (claimant)

The House of Saxe-Coburg and Braganza was not a recognized house in the former Kingdom of Portugal and monarchs following Maria II and Ferdinand II officially continued to be members of the House of Braganza

* v
* t
* e

Princes of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld

The generations are numbered from the union of Saxe-Coburg and Saxe-Saalfeld in 1699

1st generation|

* Christian Ernst II*
* Francis Josias*

2nd generation|

* Ernest Frederick
* Prince Josias

3rd generation|

* Francis

4th generation|

* Ernest III
* Prince Ferdinand**
* Leopold I of Belgium**

5th generation|

* Ernest II, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha**
* Albert, Prince Consort of the United Kingdom**
* Ferdinand II of Portugal**
* Prince August**
* Prince Leopold**

* prince of Saxe-Saalfeld until 1699
** became prince of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha in 1826

* v
* t
* e

Princes of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha

Forefather|

Duke Francis I*

1st generation|

* Duke Ernest I*
* Prince Ferdinand*
* King Leopold I of the Belgians*

2nd generation|

| Ducal|

* Duke Ernest II*
* Albert, Prince Consort of the United Kingdom*

|

Koháry|

* King Ferdinand II of Portugal and the Algarves*
* Prince August*
* Prince Leopold*

Belgium|

* Crown Prince Louis Philippe
* King Leopold II
* Prince Philippe

3rd generation|

| United Kingdom|

* King Edward VII
* Duke Alfred I
* Prince Arthur
* Prince Leopold

|

Portugal|

* King Pedro V
* King Luís I
* Infante João
* Infante Fernando
* Infante Augusto

Koháry|

* Prince Philipp
* Prince Ludwig August
* Tsar Ferdinand I of the Bulgarians

Belgium|

* Prince Leopold
* Prince Baudouin
* King Albert I

4th generation|

| United Kingdom|

* Prince Albert Victor
* King George V
* Hereditary Prince Alfred
* Prince Arthur
* Duke Charles Edward I

|

Portugal|

* King Carlos I
* Infante Afonso

Koháry|

* Prince Leopold Clement
* Prince Peter August
* Prince August Leopold
* Prince Joseph Ferdinand
* Prince Ludwig Gaston

Bulgaria|

* Tsar Boris III
* Prince Kiril

Belgium|

* King Leopold III
* Prince Charles

5th generation|

| United Kingdom|

* King Edward VIII
* King George VI
* Prince Henry
* Prince George
* Prince John
* Prince Alastair

|

Ducal|

* Hereditary Prince Johann Leopold
* Prince Hubertus
* Prince Friedrich Josias

Portugal|

* Prince Luís Filipe
* King Manuel II

Koháry|

* Prince Rainer
* Prince Philipp

Bulgaria|

* Tsar Simeon II

Belgium|

* King Baudouin I
* King Albert II
* Prince Alexandre

6th generation|

| Ducal|

* Prince Ernst Leopold
* Prince Andreas

|

Bulgaria|

* Prince Kardam
* Prince Kyril

Belgium|

* King Philippe I
* Prince Laurent

7th generation|

| Ducal|

* Prince Hubertus (born 1961)
* Prince Hubertus (born 1975}

|

Bulgaria|

* Prince Boris

Belgium|

* Prince Gabriel
* Prince Emmanuel

*Titled as Princes of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld before 11 February 1826

Authority control databases

International|

* ISNI
* VIAF
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* Germany
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Artists|

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* Deutsche Biographie
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Other|

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