The Duchy of Palmela was established by

decree A decree is a law, legal proclamation, usually issued by a head of state, judge, monarch, royal figure, or other relevant Authority, authorities, according to certain procedures. These procedures are usually defined by the constitution, Legislativ ...

Queen Maria II of Portugal Dona Maria II (Maria da Glória Joana Carlota Leopoldina da Cruz Francisca Xavier de Paula Isidora Micaela Gabriela Rafaela Gonzaga de Habsburgo-Lorena e Bragança; 4 April 1819 – 15 November 1853) also known as "the Educator" () or as ...

, through Dom Pedro IV acting as

Regent In a monarchy, a regent () is a person appointed to govern a state because the actual monarch is a minor, absent, incapacitated or unable to discharge their powers and duties, or the throne is vacant and a new monarch has not yet been dete ...

of the Kingdom, on 13 June 1833 (initially granted for life, then conferred as a

hereditary title Hereditary titles, in a general sense, are nobility titles, positions or styles that are hereditary and thus tend or are bound to remain in particular families. Though both monarchs and nobles usually inherit their titles, the mechanisms often d ...

on 18 October 1850) in favour of Dom Pedro de Sousa Holstein, a

diplomat A diplomat (from ; romanization, romanized ''diploma'') is a person appointed by a state (polity), state, International organization, intergovernmental, or Non-governmental organization, nongovernmental institution to conduct diplomacy with one ...

and hero of the

Liberal Wars The Liberal Wars (), also known as the Portuguese Civil War () and the War of the Two Brothers () was a civil war in Portugal that lasted from May 1828 to May 1834, fought between liberal progressive constitutionalists (led by former King P ...

, who had previously held, successively, the titles of first

Count Count (feminine: countess) is a historical title of nobility in certain European countries, varying in relative status, generally of middling rank in the hierarchy of nobility. Pine, L. G. ''Titles: How the King Became His Majesty''. New York: ...

(by

Queen Maria I '' Dona'' Maria I (Maria Francisca Isabel Josefa Antónia Gertrudes Rita Joana; 17 December 1734 – 20 March 1816) also known as Maria the Pious in Portugal and Maria the Mad in Brazil, was Queen of Portugal from 24 February 1777 until her de ...

dated 11 April 1812) and

Marquess A marquess (; ) is a nobleman of high hereditary rank in various European peerages and in those of some of their former colonies. The German-language equivalent is Markgraf (margrave). A woman with the rank of a marquess or the wife (or wid ...

Palmela Palmela () is a town and municipality in Portugal. As of 2011, the population was 62,831, covering an area of 465.12 km². The municipality is located in the Lisboa Region and Setúbal District, about south of Lisbon. The municipal holiday ...

(by

of King João VI dated 3 July 1823). Prior to becoming

Duke Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of Royal family, royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and above sovereign princes. As royalty or nobi ...

, Dom Pedro de Sousa Holstein had been granted the title of

of Faial (4 April 1833).

History

The titles of

and

were granted as hereditary honours. The title of

was initially conferred for life (1833) and subsequently, in 1850, was made hereditary. The title of

of Faial, however, was granted during the lifetime of the first holder and was not renewed, having been, at the request of the

himself, superseded by the title of

in 1833, the year both

ducal Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and above sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they are ...

titles were conferred. Shortly before Dom Pedro received the title of

, on 2 October of the same year, the title of

of Calhariz was created, in favour of his firstborn son, Alexandre de Sousa e Holstein, the presumptive heir to the

Marquisate A marquess (; ) is a nobleman of high hereditary rank in various European peerages and in those of some of their former colonies. The German-language equivalent is Markgraf (margrave). A woman with the rank of a marquess or the wife (or widow) ...

. One year after Dom Pedro had been granted the Dukedom of Faial, on 1 December 1834, the

of Faial was created in favour of his second son, Domingos de Sousa Holstein, who was also the presumptive heir to the

and possibly to the Dukedom of Faial, as although the latter had been granted during the lifetime of the first holder, it could have been renewed by the

Crown A crown is a traditional form of head adornment, or hat, worn by monarchs as a symbol of their power and dignity. A crown is often, by extension, a symbol of the monarch's government or items endorsed by it. The word itself is used, parti ...

in his heirs. Domingos, the second son of Dom Pedro, only became the presumptive heir upon the death, while the

was still living, of his firstborn son, Alexandre, thereby becoming the second

of Calhariz.

Associated titles

By tradition, the presumptive heirs to the Dukedom of

used the title

of Faial until they were granted the ducal title, in homage to the Dukedom of Faial which had been conferred upon the first

. The titles associated with the House of

include: * Marquess of Sousa Holstein; * Marquess of Sesimbra; * Marquess of Monfalim. These titles were used by some of the sons and grandsons of the Dukes of Palmela.

Counts of Palmela

Marquesses of Palmela

Dukes of Faial

Dukes of Palmela

Claimants of the Dukes of Palmela in the Republic

External links

Genealogy of the Dukes of Palmela

References

*"Nobreza de Portugal e do Brasil" – Vol. III, page 99/106. Published by Zairol Lda., Lisbon 1989. *"A Casa Palmela", Pedro Urbano, Livros Horizonte, Lisbon 2008. {{DEFAULTSORT:Palmela Portuguese noble titles Portuguese noble families Dukedoms of Portugal 1850 establishments in Portugal