Maria I of Portugal
Maria I was the first queen regnant of Portugal and spent her last years insane. Born in Lisbon in 1734, the eldest daughter of José I, she was recognised as heir and married her own uncle Pedro in 1760. She acceded in 1777 and her first act was universally popular: she dismissed the Marquis of Pombal, who had governed absolutely for a quarter of a century, banished him from court, and released hundreds of political prisoners he had held for years, some without trial. The period is called the Viradeira, the turnabout. She kept much of his administrative work while reversing its methods. She founded the Royal Academy of Sciences in 1779 and the Royal Maritime Academy, endowed hospitals and a library, and built the enormous basilica at Estrela in fulfilment of a vow made when she bore an heir. Her piety was intense and increasingly anxious. The deaths of her husband in 1786, of her eldest son José from smallpox in 1788, of her confessor and of her daughter within a short period broke her. By 1792 she was incapable. She was heard screaming through the palace, believed herself damned, and had visions of her father in hell; Francis Willis, who had treated George III, was brought from England and could do nothing. Her son João governed, formally as regent from 1799. When Napoleon's army approached in November 1807 the court evacuated to Brazil, and she was carried aboard, reportedly crying out as the carriage moved fast that they were not fleeing. She died in Rio de Janeiro in 1816, still nominally queen.
- Lived: 1734 CE – 1816 CE
- Nationality: Portuguese
- Roles: queen, head_of_state
