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Infanta Maria Anna of Portugal (1843–1884)

Infanta Maria Anna
Princess George of Saxony
Portugalmaria anna.jpg
Born (1843-08-21)21 August 1843
Lisbon
Died 5 February 1884(1884-02-05) (aged 40)
Dresden
Burial Katholische Hofkirche
Spouse George of Saxony
Issue Princess Maria Johanna
Princess Elisabeth
Princess Mathilde
Frederick Augustus
Princess Maria Josepha
Prince Johann Georg
Prince Maximilian
Prince Albert
Full name
Portuguese: Maria Ana Fernanda Leopoldina Micaela Rafaela Gabriela Carlota Antónia Júlia Vitória Praxedes Francisca de Assis Gonzaga
House Braganza
Father Ferdinand II of Portugal
Mother Maria II of Portugal
Religion Roman Catholicism
Full name
Portuguese: Maria Ana Fernanda Leopoldina Micaela Rafaela Gabriela Carlota Antónia Júlia Vitória Praxedes Francisca de Assis Gonzaga

Infanta Maria Ana of Portugal (or of Braganza; Portuguese pronunciation: [mɐˈɾiɐ ˈɐnɐ]; full name: Maria Ana Fernanda Leopoldina Micaela Rafaela Gabriela Carlota Antónia Júlia Vitória Praxedes Francisca de Assis Gonzaga; English: Mary Anne; German: Maria Anna) (Lisbon, 21 August 1843 – Dresden, 5 February 1884) was a Portuguese infanta (princess), the eldest surviving daughter of Queen Maria II of Portugal and her King consort Ferdinand II of Portugal, a member of the House of Braganza.

After her mother's death in 1853, when Maria Anna was just ten years old, she became the leading lady of the court, until her older brother, King Pedro V of Portugal, married Princess Stephanie of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen, in 1858. Although in the early stages of their acquaintance the two sisters-in-law had a good relationship, in a letter written in 1859 to Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, when Stephanie was already dead, King Pedro mentions that his sister made unflattering comments regarding his wife "because of her feminine vanity caused by a lower status (...)".

The relationship between the sisters-in-law seems to have had its ups and downs since Stephanie's arrival in May 1858 and Maria Anna's wedding in May 1859. The Queen wrote about her sister-in-law: "She is, in every respect, the one who is more like Pedro (...)", "She is a charming person, good, generous, remarkably sensible for her age, with no trace of selfishness, respected and loved by all of us (...) George of Saxony has discovered a true gem. She is happy and loves him, but she cannot talk about the moment in which she will leave her family without crying. What is certain is that she will leave a terrible emptiness behind". Maria Ana's brother, Pedro, also claims during this time that his sister is "the pearl of our family circle", in a letter to Prince Albert.


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