Pedro II of Brazil Portrait (1846)

When Napoleon invaded Portugal, the monarchy fled to Brazil. At the time it was a colony of the Portuguese Empire. However, during the 1820s a wave of independence movements swept across Latin America. Spain and Portugal were not strong enough to stop them. Pedro I would wage a war against his father Joao IV and Brazil became independent in 1822. Pedro I would abdicate in the face of political pressure. His son Pedro II would become emperor of Brazil. The portrait shows him in royal clothing from 1846. Pedro II was reign from 1831 to 1889. Still a child when his father abdicated a regency administrated the country until he was old enough. Pedro faced challenges from the British Empire and the United States that sought to undermine Brazil’s sovereignty. Brazil fought in the War of the Triple Alliance (1864-1870). This was the most lethal wars fought on the South American continent. Paraguay fought Brazil , Argentina, and Uruguay for disputed territory. Pedro II was opposed to slavery, but fearful that landowners would join with his political enemies. Emancipation did come with the Golden Law in 1888. Brazil did see some economic development and was more stable compared to its neighbors under Pedro II’s leadership. At the end of his rule Brazil experienced a military coup. Pedro II was forced to abdicate his throne.