The Ultimate Glass Pipe Buyers Guide

Pedro Afonso was born at 08:00 on 19 July 1848 in the Palace of São Cristóvão in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.[1] His full name was Pedro Afonso Cristiano Leopoldo Eugênio Fernando Vicente Miguel Gabriel Rafael Gonzaga.[2] Through his father, Emperor Pedro II, he was a member of the Brazilian branch of the House of Braganza and was referred to using the honorific Dom (Lord) from birth.[3] He was the grandson of Emperor Dom Pedro I and the nephew of the reigning Queen of Portugal, Dona Maria II. Through his mother, Teresa Cristina, he was a grandson of Don Francesco I (Francis I) and nephew to Don Ferdinando II (Ferdinand II), who ruled as kings of the Two Sicilies in turn.[4]

Following the birth, Pedro II received official congratulations at a formal reception held later that day, which according to a contemporary was an event “more splendid and better attended” than any since the Emperor was declared of age in 1840.[5] News of the birth of a male heir was received with rejoicing among the Brazilian people. Celebrations included skyrockets and artillery salutes. City streets were illuminated for days after the birth, and an elaborate gala was held at court.[6] The birth of Pedro Afonso was widely welcomed, as a male heir was regarded as imperative for the Empire’s continuation, even though the constitution allowed for female succession.[7] Writer Manuel de Araújo Porto Alegre (later Baron of Santo Ângelo) considered the birth of Pedro Afonso a “triumph” that had secured the succession.[8]

Pedro Afonso’s baptism took place on 4 October 1848. The ceremony was held privately in the Imperial Chapel, followed by public celebrations.[9] The godparents were his granduncle Emperor Ferdinand I of Austria and his step-grandmother Amélie of Leuchtenberg. Prime Minister and former regent Pedro de Araújo Lima (then-Viscount and later Marquis of Olinda) and Mariana de Verna, Countess of Belmont represented the godparents, who were not present.[10] Fireworks entertained the crowds, and a band shell that could hold more than a hundred musicians was raised for the festivities that followed. According to historian Hendrik Kraay, royal baptisms in imperial Brazil “stressed that the princes and princesses secured the dynasty’s future”.[9] As the sole surviving male child, Pedro Afonso took precedence in the line of succession over his two older sisters, Dona Isabel and Dona Leopoldina. Pedro Afonso, as heir apparent to the Brazilian throne, was styled “Prince Imperial” from birth.