Peter III of Portugal

Peter III (Portuguese: Pedro III) (Portuguese pronunciation: [ˈpedɾu]) (5 July 1717 – 25 May 1786) became King of the Kingdom of Portugal and the Algarves by the accession of his wife and niece Queen Maria I in 1777, and co-reigned alongside her until his death.

Pedro, Prince of Brazil; Portrait by Vieira Lusitano.

Pedro was born at 12:00 noon on 5 July 1717 in the Ribeira Palace in Lisbon, Portugal. He was baptized on 29 August and was given the name Pedro Clemente Francisco José António. His parents were King João V and his wife Maria Ana of Austria. Pedro was a younger brother of José I of Portugal. Their maternal grandparents were Leopold I, Holy Roman Emperor, and Eleonor Magdalene of Neuburg, sister of Queen Maria Sofia of Portugal.

Pedro married his niece Maria, Princess of Brazil, in 1760, at which time she was the heiress presumptive to the throne then held by his brother José I. According to custom, Pedro thus became king of Portugal in right of his wife. They had six children, of whom the eldest surviving son succeeded Maria as João VI on her death in 1816.

Pedro made no attempt to participate in government affairs, spending his time hunting or in religious exercises.

He also defended the high nobility of Portugal, and sponsored the petitions of those accused in Távora affair, whose rehabilitation was subject of new lawsuits, in which the heirs demanded the restitution of their confiscated properties.

Peter III was moderately friendly toward the Jesuits, who had been banished from Portugal and its overseas empire in 1759, largely at the behest of the Marquis of Pombal. Peter III had taken some of his early education from the Jesuits, explaining this. His affection had little effect; Pope Clement XIV ordered the Jesuits suppressed across Europe in 1773.

The couple married on 6 June 1760. At the time of their marriage, Maria was 25 and Pedro was 42. Despite the age gap, the couple had a happy marriage. Peter automatically became co-monarch (as Pedro III of Portugal) when Maria ascended the throne, as a child had already been born from their marriage. The couple had six children and a stillborn baby.

Effigy of Maria I and Peter III, 1785