Filigrana
PT
The origin of the iconic heart-shaped filigree decoration is associated with the first Queen of Portugal.
Maria I of Portugal (1734-1816) was Queen of Portugal from 1777 to 1816. As the first woman to inherit the throne of Portugal, Maria I revolutionized the previous harsh administration.
The Queen was called "Mother of the People" and "Mad Woman".
Who was the first queen of Portugal?
Maria Francisca Isabel Josepha Antonia Gertrude Rita João was born on December 17, 1734 in Lisbon, Portugal. She was the eldest daughter of King José I of Portugal and Mariana Vitoria de Bourbon, daughter of King Philip V of Spain and his second wife Isabel Farnesio.
Princess Maria was brought up with her three sisters during the opulent reign of King João V, her grandfather. At the age of three, Princess Mary was already reciting Latin poetry, and soon learned Spanish, French and Latin.
Princess Mary's marriage had been planned during her grandfather's reign, when the monarch asked the Pope for permission for the princess to marry her uncle Pedro.
There were rumors in the kingdom about the princess's possible marriage to the Spanish infante Luis Antonio. However, the very continuity of the monarchy was at stake. A woman could only become Queen of Portugal if her husband was Portuguese.
Maria married, as her grandfather had planned, her father's brother, who was eighteen years older than the princess. From fragmentary data it can be judged that the marriage was happy. The couple loved each other. From Princess Mary's marriage to Pedro, six children were born, but only three reached adulthood.
On the occasion of the birth of her first child, Maria I ordered a gold decoration in the shape of a heart, which would eventually become an iconic Portuguese decoration - the heart of Viana.
Maria I was fanatically religious. The heart was a symbol of dedication and worship to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. Symbol of flame emanating from this Christian symbol. For a long time, this jewel was used only as a religious symbol.
On 24 February 1777, Mary was proclaimed Queen of Portugal as Maria. She became the first woman to inherit the Portuguese throne.
Having ascended the throne, Maria I began to fight the harsh rule of her father's prime minister, the Marquis of Pombal. The prisons were overcrowded with political prisoners, opponents of the policies of the Marquis of Pombal. Among the prisoners were some Jesuit priests, the Bishop of Coimbra, etc. She gave the order for the release of all prisoners, after which she received the nickname "mother of the people."
Maria I wanted to return the influence of the church and the higher nobility to the state and reverse some of the political and economic measures carried out by the Marquis of Pombal. Therefore, the first official measure was the removal of the marquis from governing the country.
During her reign, the Queen signed the Treaty, which returned the colony of Sacramento in southern Uruguay to Spain. A trade treaty was signed with Prussia in 1789.
In the field of social welfare, Maria I founded the Casa Pia orphanage in Lisbon and built a convent of Carmelite nuns. During her reign in 1780, Maria I illuminated Lisbon with seven hundred and seventy oil lamps. But from the next year, due to lack of funds, Lisbon remained dark until 1801.
She developed culture and science, sent scientific missions to Angola, Brazil, Cape Verde and Mozambique. Queen Mary I founded the Royal Academy of Sciences in Lisbon, the Royal Public Library at Court, and the Royal Naval Academy for the training of naval officers.
In 1786, Mary's husband died. Then one of her most trusted people, her spiritual guide, died. Then two children passed away. The Queen fell into melancholy. She was tormented by nightmares. She was frightened by the French Revolution. The queen's health was deteriorating. On February 10, 1792, a medical commission declared her unfit to govern the country. That's why they started calling her "crazy." In 1792, control of Portugal was transferred to her son.
In September 1806, João VI, fleeing the Napoleonic invasion, decided, together with the entire royal family, to go to Brazil under the protection of English ships. Donna Maria I died in Rio de Janeiro on February 20, 1816. Her body rests in the Estrela Basilica (Portugal), built on her orders.
Maria I of Portugal (1734-1816) was Queen of Portugal from 1777 to 1816. As the first woman to inherit the throne of Portugal, Maria I revolutionized the previous harsh administration.
The Queen was called "Mother of the People" and "Mad Woman".
Who was the first queen of Portugal?
Maria Francisca Isabel Josepha Antonia Gertrude Rita João was born on December 17, 1734 in Lisbon, Portugal. She was the eldest daughter of King José I of Portugal and Mariana Vitoria de Bourbon, daughter of King Philip V of Spain and his second wife Isabel Farnesio.
Princess Maria was brought up with her three sisters during the opulent reign of King João V, her grandfather. At the age of three, Princess Mary was already reciting Latin poetry, and soon learned Spanish, French and Latin.
Princess Mary's marriage had been planned during her grandfather's reign, when the monarch asked the Pope for permission for the princess to marry her uncle Pedro.
There were rumors in the kingdom about the princess's possible marriage to the Spanish infante Luis Antonio. However, the very continuity of the monarchy was at stake. A woman could only become Queen of Portugal if her husband was Portuguese.
Maria married, as her grandfather had planned, her father's brother, who was eighteen years older than the princess. From fragmentary data it can be judged that the marriage was happy. The couple loved each other. From Princess Mary's marriage to Pedro, six children were born, but only three reached adulthood.
On the occasion of the birth of her first child, Maria I ordered a gold decoration in the shape of a heart, which would eventually become an iconic Portuguese decoration - the heart of Viana.
Maria I was fanatically religious. The heart was a symbol of dedication and worship to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. Symbol of flame emanating from this Christian symbol. For a long time, this jewel was used only as a religious symbol.
On 24 February 1777, Mary was proclaimed Queen of Portugal as Maria. She became the first woman to inherit the Portuguese throne.
Having ascended the throne, Maria I began to fight the harsh rule of her father's prime minister, the Marquis of Pombal. The prisons were overcrowded with political prisoners, opponents of the policies of the Marquis of Pombal. Among the prisoners were some Jesuit priests, the Bishop of Coimbra, etc. She gave the order for the release of all prisoners, after which she received the nickname "mother of the people."
Maria I wanted to return the influence of the church and the higher nobility to the state and reverse some of the political and economic measures carried out by the Marquis of Pombal. Therefore, the first official measure was the removal of the marquis from governing the country.
During her reign, the Queen signed the Treaty, which returned the colony of Sacramento in southern Uruguay to Spain. A trade treaty was signed with Prussia in 1789.
In the field of social welfare, Maria I founded the Casa Pia orphanage in Lisbon and built a convent of Carmelite nuns. During her reign in 1780, Maria I illuminated Lisbon with seven hundred and seventy oil lamps. But from the next year, due to lack of funds, Lisbon remained dark until 1801.
She developed culture and science, sent scientific missions to Angola, Brazil, Cape Verde and Mozambique. Queen Mary I founded the Royal Academy of Sciences in Lisbon, the Royal Public Library at Court, and the Royal Naval Academy for the training of naval officers.
In 1786, Mary's husband died. Then one of her most trusted people, her spiritual guide, died. Then two children passed away. The Queen fell into melancholy. She was tormented by nightmares. She was frightened by the French Revolution. The queen's health was deteriorating. On February 10, 1792, a medical commission declared her unfit to govern the country. That's why they started calling her "crazy." In 1792, control of Portugal was transferred to her son.
In September 1806, João VI, fleeing the Napoleonic invasion, decided, together with the entire royal family, to go to Brazil under the protection of English ships. Donna Maria I died in Rio de Janeiro on February 20, 1816. Her body rests in the Estrela Basilica (Portugal), built on her orders.
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