User:Parutakupiu/Peter V of Portugal

Dom Pedro V (Peter V; 16 September 1837 – 11 November 1861), nicknamed "The Hopeful" (O Esperançoso), was King of Portugal from 15 November 1853 until his death. He was the first firstborn male heir of the Braganza dynasty to ascend to the Portuguese throne

Birth
Pedro was born at 23:30 on 16 September 1837, at the Palace of Necessidades in Lisbon, Portugal. As the firstborn son of Queen Maria II and her consort, King Ferdinand II, he was the heir apparent to the Portuguese throne and held among others the title of Duke of Braganza. Through his mother, Pedro was a member of the royal House of Braganza and grandson of Emperor Pedro I of Brazil (also King Pedro IV of Portugal) and Empress Maria Leopoldina of Austria, daughter of Emperor Francis I of Austria. Through his father, he belonged to the German ducal House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha and was a relative of Queen Victoria and Albert, Prince Consort of the United Kingdom (first cousins once removed), and of King Leopold I of Belgium (great uncle).

The birth was announced throughout the capital, with gun salutes fired from the Castle of São Jorge and from warships and fortresses in the Tagus estuary. Two weeks later, on 1 October, Pedro was baptized in a ceremony held at the Palace's royal chapel and conducted by the Patriarch of Lisbon, Patrício da Silva. Pedro's godparents were his maternal uncle, Emperor Pedro II of Brazil (represented by his minister, Sérgio Teixeira de Macedo), and Amélie of Leuchtenberg, his maternal step-grandmother. Christened after Saint Pedro de Alcantara, he was given the full name Dom Pedro de Alcântara Maria Fernando Miguel Raphael Gonzaga Xavier João António Leopoldo Víctor Francisco de Assis Júlio Amélio de Bragança e Bourbon Saxe Cobourgo Gotha. Pedro was confirmed as Maria II's heir on 26 January 1838, when he was sworn Prince Royal before the parliament.

Education
Pedro's upbringing into the duties of a future king was a matter of vital importance to his parents, who ensured that he was instructed and accompanied by the best people. This included the appointment of high-ranked statesmen – the Viscount of Carreira, Luís António de Abreu e Lima, and the vice-consul in Paris, Manuel Moreira Coelho – to the position of chamberlain of the Prince Royal. Besides mathematics, rhetoric and philosophy, which were taught by Filipe Folque and António José Viale, Pedro also learned English, French, German, Greek and Latin. In addition, his education covered artistical areas such as literature, music and painting, for which he received training from António Manuel da Fonseca and Manuel Inocêncio Liberato dos Santos. Physical education was not overlooked, as gymnastics and horse riding lessons constituted an important component of the prince's instruction.

From an early age, Pedro showed such a vivid yearning for knowledge and a constant motivation to understand the root of things that "he appeared more like an adult man than a nine-year-old boy". When asked about his preference for being in the company of adults instead of children of his age, Pedro replied: "What good or instruction can I get by talking with young boys?" An example of Pedro's precocious intelect was the ability to translate complex Latin works after two months of learning. One of the fields he enjoyed studying the most was natural sciences, particularly botany and natural history. When Pedro and his brother Luís (later King Luís I of Portugal) were not having lessons, they spent their time in the palace gardens collecting specimens. Their collection grew so large that a room in the palace was vacated to house their "museum", and an expert was called to help arrange and classify every item. Despite his strong interest for science, religion was an important aspect of Pedro's life. He prayed frequently and had the Patriarch of Lisbon as his personal confessor and spiritual guide.

Regency
On 8 July 1852, aged 14, Pedro swore upon the Constitutional Charter that was drafted 26 years before by his grandfather, taking the last step towards becoming the future Portuguese monarch. After a long and complicated delivery that ended with the stillbirth of her 11th child, Maria II died on 15 November 1853. Pedro succeeded his mother, taking the regnal name Pedro V and becoming the first firstborn prince of the House of Braganza to occupy the throne. However, as he was 16 years old and legally a minor, his father assumed the regency until Pedro's 18th birthday, the age of majority stated in the Constitution.

The deceased queen had long planned for her two eldest sons to travel across Europe so they could get to know other countries, peoples and customs, as part of their education. On 28 May 1854, Pedro V and Prince Luís set sail from Lisbon, taking with them a small entourage that included their chamberlain, the Viscount of Carreira. Headed to England, they arrived in London on 3 June and were invited by Queen Victoria to stay at the Buckingham Palace. During his stay, Pedro V became close friends with 14-year-old Princess Victoria, with whom he would correspond frequently during his life. As the young king began understanding the British ethos, his admiration for the country grew stronger. He made numerous visits to museums and other cultural and scientific instutitions in London, as well as to factories, army and navy instalations, both in and outside the British capital. Pedro V's fascinatation with the scientific and technological progress – a legacy of the Industrial Revolution – nurtured his hope that Portugal could experience a similar development during his reign.

After nearly a month, Pedro V left the British Isles towards Belgium, where he met his great uncle, King Leopold I. In his nine-day stay in Brussels, he visited the local hospital and observatory, always taking notes of every detail he considered important to bring back home. In the Netherlands, he saw the works of Dutch master painters and was admired by the country's efforts to claim land from the sea. Across the border, in Prussia, the young king's attention was drawn by the highly developed professional military system and by how natural the military art and spirit were to the Prussian society. Further stopovers included some German states, such as the Kingdom of Saxony and his father's homeland of Saxe-Gotha, and the imperial cities of Wien and Prague. On his way back to England, Pedro V met with French emperor Napoleon III at Boulogne-sur-Mer, with whom he agreed an official visit to Paris the following year. Pedro V and his brother returned to Lisbon on 15 September 1854, but could only disembark two days later due to a quarantine restriction imposed on their ship, which had sailed from the cholera-stricken Boulogne region.

On 22 May 1855, less than four months before his coronation, Pedro V departed for a second European trip, which began in France. Arriving by sea to Bordeaux, he traveled to the French capital, where he met with Napoleon III. He made a tour of some of the city's many museums – including the Louvre, the Musée de l'Artillerie, and the Musée de Cluny – and visited also the École Polytechnique, which strengthened his perception of the major importance of such institutions in the promotion of instruction and cultural enrichment of a nation and its people. However, it was the universal exposition taking place at the newly-built Palais de l'Industrie in the Champs-Élysées that mostly impressed Pedro V during his visit.. His journey took him to Italy (Rome, Naples, Palermo, Genoa and Turin), Switzerland, and again back to Belgium and England, before his return to Portugal on 14 August.

Enthronement
On 16 September 1855, Pedro V completed 18 years of age and became legally apt to perform his royal duties. His enthronement was scheduled for that morning at 9:00, but he had trouble sleeping that night because of a leg furuncle that afflicted him with "cruel pains", and the feeling of anxiety ahead of the most important moment of his life. Before leaving the palace, Pedro V was approached by his physician and astrologer, who recommended him to extend the ceremony past noon, otherwise he would have a short, tiresome and unhappy reign. Pedro V refused to commit his fate to anything other than God, but he could not avoid remembering a childhood dream, in which "an eagle lifted [him] to the clouds and, dropping [him] from the heighest heights, caused [him] to shatter as [he] fell on the ground, [before] lifting to the same place [his] brother Luís."

The ceremony took place at the Palácio das Cortes, the parliament house, and was presided by the patriarch Guilherme Henriques de Carvalho. Following a speech by his father, who had served as regent, Pedro V took the oath of office and, having delivered his inaugural speech, was consecrated. The king then attended a Te Deum at the cathedral and received the city keys from the mayor and councilmen at the city hall. That same day, Pedro V appointed his household staff – the Duke of Terceira, as first adjutant; his mother's former prime-minister, José Jorge Loureiro, as adjutant; and the Baron of Sarmento, as gentleman of the royal chamber.

Politics and political sentiment
The Regenerator government resulting from the 1852 elections was confirmed by Peter V. The Prime-Minister Duke of Saldanha (also Minister of War) headed a cabinet composed by Rodrigo da Fonseca Magalhães (Minister for the Kingdom), Frederico Guilherme (Minister of Justice), Fontes Pereira de Melo (Minister of Finances and Public Works), and the Viscount of Atouguia (Minister of Navy and Foreign Affairs). A close cooperation between the King and the government was expected and fundamental to tackle the major problems that raged the nation: diseases (cholera and yellow fever), natural disasters (rainstorms and earthquakes), poverty, depressed economy, and lack of infrastructures.

The idea of a conflict-free institutional collaboration fell apart from the first moment. Peter V's first measure was the implementation of the Caixa Verde (English: Green Box), a box placed at the door of the royal palace where popular requests addressed directly to the king should be placed. Its implementation was hardly fruitful and shifted the attention of Peter V away from more important government-related affairs, but it ultimately represented a tool of the King's interference in the powers that the Constitutional Charter asigned to the government. Another situation that increased the friction between Peter V and his ministers was the former's painstaking care in reading, understanding and even commenting or correcting government decrees – a reflection of his high-level education and scholar mind –, which oftenly delayed the dispatch of important legal documents. "I do not wish to authorize any measure that I have not studied. I always want to be sure and conscious of everything I do", Peter V wrote to Saldanha.

Close to the royal family since Peter V's mother was born, Saldanha had him in great consideration and was the only cabinet member showing patience and comprehension for the meticulous side of Peter V's character, even when it hindered government resolutions. Unlike Saldanha, Fontes Pereira de Melo was less tolerant with the constant interventions of Peter V and showed at times a quick temper before the King's arguments. The other ministers, despite unhappy with Peter V's interference, opted for a non-confrontational approach.

In late May 1856, the government of Saldanha resigned after their project proposals concerning the financing and concession contracts for the railway construction were rejected by the peer chamber of the parliament. It was Peter V's first governmental crisis. He did not desire another Regenerator government but, wary of a takeover by Costa Cabral, which had led two cabinets before being overthrown by Saldanha in 1851, Peter V needed urgently to find a new prime-minister. After a few unsuccessful contacts, he appointed his great-uncle and leader of the Historic Party, the Marquess of Loulé, which had his cabinet formed by 6 June 1856. The new government was soon faced with internal challenges, when the escalation of bread prices sparked a popular uprising in the capital, on 9 August 1856. No sooner was the civilian rebellion contained, another one emerged at the hands of the military. Both revolts had been resolved but the late and inefficient action of the political power brought serious consequences for the government. Although the ruling party guaranteed popular approval in the general elections late that year, Loulé was forced to recast his cabinet in light of the August events.

On 26 March 1858, the parliament's lower chamber was dissolved by Peter V in response to a request of the government. Elections were held on 2 May.

On 14 March 1859, Loulé and his cabinet resigned with the approval of Peter V, who summoned the Duke of Terceira to form a new government. Fontes returned, taking the Kingdom folder. On 26 April 1860, Terceira died and his number two, Fontes, expected to substitute him but Peter V - who had a near-obsessive distrust for the politician - was not in favor of that and went as far as forcing other influent statesmen to reject his pretension. Peter V eventually appointed former prime-minister Joaquim António de Aguiar, not because he was his first choice but because he was the quickest solution to solve Terceira's replacement until Peter V could find the ideal head of government.

On 4 July 1860, the two-month-old government of Aguiar resigned alleging loss of confidence from the majority; Loulé was called again to form a new cabinet.

In 1861, as a way to protect the power of Loulé and therefore avoid a new government by Saldanha, Fontes Pereira de Melo or Aguiar, Peter V dissolves the parliament for the second time in his reign and issues the creation of new peers to reinforce Loulé's position in the high chamber.

Peter V was a "moderated liberal"; he could not envision a world without freedom nor one where it was boundless. For him, freedom was not a gift of kings to their subjects, but a natural right of the people and whose protection was the monarch's biggest responsibility. He acknowledged the principle of social evolution and the power it exerted over the dynamics of political systems. In his mind, monarchy and democracy were a nation's political pillars and, as king, it was his foremost duty to uphold the fundamental constitutional rights and protect the representative institutions, making sure that they responded promptly and effectively to the society needs. In that sense, he was an adept of decentralization, promoting the power of the municipalities, which he referred to as "representatives of individual freedom within the State". The people reciprocated Peter V's love and social dedication and believed that if his powers were not constitutionally restricted, his liberal, democratic and progressive ideas could do more for the country's development than the parliamentary regime ever did. Peter V felt that despite its faults the representative democracy should be preserved.

He generally distrusted politicians, seeing them as mostly incompetent, but also dishonest and lacking scruples. His antipathy and, at times uncalled, rudeness to members of his different governments was one of his traits.

Patron of education, arts and sciences
Peter V regarded public instruction as a "the big business of the 19th century", and its neglect was a nation's main obstacle in its path towards civilization and prosperity. He boosted the higher education system by creating new courses in letters, and promoted the reformulation of the secondary education system. Pedro V advocated the existence of smaller but more specialized professional schools, which could better educate people to fulfill specific needs of the society, than the bigger universities administered by the clergy, with their traditionally more religious- than reason-oriented teaching.

In his first visit to the the oldest Portugues university, in Coimbra, in 1852 (age 14!), together with his parents, he could already assess the decaying and outdated state of the several scientific collections and the lack of proper teaching material, which were a reflection of the state of higher education in the country.

He wished to organize a public instruction system where the transition between the three educational levels was more gradual and accomodating for the students.

He believed that public libraries were important learning tools and so, in Portugal, they should have better schedules for students and contain more contemporary literary and scientific works.

Founded a school at the Palace of Mafra on 8 December 1855. The king supported the printing costs and supplied most of the study books. He signed books to be given personally as prize to the best students on each subject. If the students were poor, he also provided them with money or clothes. He went as far as attending the exams whenever he was in Mafra, and asking questions to the students.

On occasion of his 19th birthday, Peter V created and set up a primary school at the Palace of Necessidades. He oftenly visited in and around Lisbon, and donated books to their students.

On 8 June 1859, Peter V decreed the creation of the Course of Superior Studies in Letters (predecessor of the Faculty of Letters of Lisbon), which was inaugurated on 14 January 1860 and first headed by Peter V's former literature master António José Viale.

On 11 March 1861, construction works for an astronomical observatory began at the Alcantara park.

On 22 August 1861, Peter V attended the Industrial Exposition in Porto.

He was close friend and admirer of writer Alexandre Herculano.

Due to a cholera outbreak which closed down the University of Coimbra, the 1855–1856 school year was shortened, and the students submitted a request to be excused from the final exams (perdão de acto). Peter V opposed, considering the request "a great harm (...) for instruction" as it facilitated the unmerited access to higher education and resulted in a disproportionate production of graduates.

Public infrastructure modernization
In July 1856, a new disciplinary code for the army is published, abolishing any form of physical punishment. Also, forced labor is erradicated and several measures are implemented to improve working conditons for every profession.

Despite not liking each other, Pedro V and Fontes Pereira de Melo, were the instigators of a new era of modernization in Portugal.

Fontes Pereira de Melo reports in March 1856:
 * the inauguration of the railway line linking Lisbon to Carregado and the works on the railway lines to Vendas Novas and Sintra;
 * the conclusion of 17 new bridges and the construction of 28 other;
 * the laying of 92 leagues of new roads and 24 more near conclusion;
 * the instalation of the electric telegraph

The artificial seaport of Leixões on the coast north of Porto is idealized by Peter V to alleviate the maritime traffic in the Douro mouth.
 * Harbors


 * Railway
 * Personal examination of the railway line between Lisbon and Carregado (25 August 1856). Inauguration on 28 October, train departs from Carregado (16:30) in a pompous ceremony, attended by the highest dignitaries of the country. Train had to stop in Sacavém due to excess weight, wagons had to be released and arrival was at 22:00.
 * More on Morton Peto contract (construction line Lisbon-Porto) The contract was revoked on 11 April 1859, after no progress in the works, and a new one was celebrated with José Salamanca, which included the lines from Lisbon to the Spanish border with Badajoz and to Porto.
 * Set up committee of Spanish and Portuguese engineers to study a railway line between Porto and the northern border.
 * Before the railway, it took five days to travel to Porto, eight to Algarve and fifteen to Braganza in the northern border.
 * Pedro V took this matter very personally, strongly insisting that such strategic works proceeded as planned and without delays created by useless political disputes. He even visited the sites to accompany the evolution of works.
 * On 23 January 1861, the second railway line is inaugurated, between Barreiro and Vendas Novas, part of the projected line to Évora, which would then bifurcate to the Spanish border and to the Algarve.


 * Roads
 * Charles Langlois contract to build national road system (first and second class) of 633 km.
 * Contract was rejected by the new government of Loulé on 18 July 1860, which had been against the concession and wanted the State to take charge of the road construction.


 * Communications
 * Telegraph is introduced in Portugal by Fontes Pereira de Melo in 1855. In June 1857, its services are regulated and its administration is assumed by the state. In July, a convention with Spain is achieved, allowing the contact with other European countries.
 * In 1855, Portuguese government signs a contract with American general Wilde to lay the first submarine communications cable from Lisbon to the Azores, as part the transatlantic line linking North America and Europe.


 * Others
 * The decimal system was established by Fontes Pereira de Melo in July 1859, and began being taught in elementary schools in the following year.

Daughters of Charity

 * Already in Portugal since 14 April 1819 (decree).
 * The "orphan protector society" asked permission to the government to call upon the French congregation of the Daughters of Charity of Saint Vincent de Paul so they could send some members to Lisbon to take the responsibility of the teaching and education of the children left orphan by the cholera epidemics of 1856. The government received a positive recommendation of the patriarch, and approved the request on 9 February 1857, but only revealed officially this situation to the parliament on 12 August 1858.
 * A decree from 3 September stated that their number should not increase and that the daughters were not allowed to providen educational assistance; only teachers legally habilitated could do so.
 * Their permanence was supported by the aristocracy, including the Queen Stephanie herself, who became saddened with the polemics and unfair treatment the daughters were being given in Portugal.[ref das Cartas]
 * The problem to some members of the parliament about the french daughters was that they did not limit themselves to assist the ailed ones (their primary goal), they also ministered education to children, taking the job of Portuguese teachers.
 * In 6 March 1861, an ordinance was published demanding the congregation to abandon their headquarters building. It would be dissolved and its assets apprehended unless they submitted to the diocesan prelature and found a national congregation of the Daughters. Simultaneously, a bill was introduced authorizing the reorganization of the congregation. The ordinance was considered outraging and a national embarrassment by both parliament chambers, which demanded explanations about the reasons.
 * This neverending situation brought great sorrow to Peter V.
 * In 22 June 1861, the extinction of the Daughters corporation in Portugal was officialized by decree. Loulé fundamented this decision by the decree of 1833 which ordered the extinction of religious orders and congregations that answered and obeyed to foreign prelates. This went in contradiction to the 1857 ordinance approved by Loulé which had confirmed their introduction in Portugal when the 1833 law was valid.
 * Peter V did not want to go against the aristocrats, strong supporters of the Daughters, nor the democratic press, a fierce critic of the daughters but had always been behind the king., but he surely did not want them to serve as a pretext for the French government to consider it an international affair and reserve a right to mess with what was a Portuguese internal affair.


 * Many of Peter V's female relatives were fond of this congregation was were disturbed by Peter V's hesitant lack of protection for the duaghters. His step-grandmother even resigned from her 25-year presidency of the charity shelters as an act of protest, which Peter V tried to revert in vain.

Epidemic outbreaks
Between October 1855 and November 1856, over 3000 people died because of cholera. First case of yellow fever in Lisbon, September 1856.

The Algarve (2770 deaths in 1855 only) and the Madeira provinces were among the most affected.

In July 1856, an epidemy of cholera reached Lisbon with severe consequences. To escape the disease, Peter V and the royal family were advised to move temporarily to Sintra. Filled with concern about the lives of those afflicted in the capital, and frustration for not helping personally those in need, Peter V demanded for news and daily updates from those travelling from Lisbon. He also urged an increase in hospital surveillance and improved the assistance to the sick by donating transportation vehicles.

Since July 1857, Lisbon had been struck by another epidemic outbreak, this time yellow fever. Undeterred by fears of contagion and death, Peter V participated actively and personally in the assistance, confort, nourishment and treatment of those directly and indirectly hit by the disease. "Where will these people stay, where will they go, if I retreat from Lisbon?", said Peter V to his mentor and personal adviser, Manuel Moreira Coelho. After the outbreak had passed, Peter V created a special fund to attend every child turned orphan by the illness, regardless of social class, focused particularly in supporting their instruction. Peter V rewarded generously all of those who worked and even sacrificed their lives to help the sick and their families. The newspaper A Nação (English: The Nation) from 12 September 1862 reported that Pope Pius IX, moved by Peter V's unselfish dedication, called him an "apostle". In March 1859, the Lisbon city hall awarded him a medal for his role during the outbreak; Peter V accepted it with "vivid acknowlegement" and described the recognition as the most important he could have had received.

By the end of 1857, over 5,000 people in Lisbon had been killed by the disease. In January 1858, the government presented measures to prevent epidemic resurgences in Lisbon, namely the improvement of the sanitary infrastructures and urban cleaning services, but was heavily criticized for the delay in their implementation before summer time. In March, the epidemy was declared extinct.

The parliament could not function properly from the lack of quorum caused by the disease. The epidemics were announced as extinguished on 30 December.

The patriarch D. Guilherme Henriques de Carvalho died of yellow fever on 15 November 1857.

Concordat of 1857
Concordat signed in 21 February 1857, ratified on 6 February 1860. Reduced the number and power of Portugal in the Far East dioceses.

Ambriz
One of the most problematic issues Peter V faced during his reign. Despite unoccupied, the region had been de facto recognized as a Portuguese possession by the major European powers, including the United Kingdom, since the late 18th century. Since 1852, however, the British had tried to exert their influence over the populations of Ambriz, Cabinda and nearby coastal areas. The effective occupation of the Ambriz became a necessity, not only to confirm Portugal's sovereignty over the region and discourage further British attempts to seize the territory, but also to fight off the large traffic of slaves taking place there. The governor-general of Angola sent an occupying military force to Ambriz in May 1855 and appointed the new provincial authorities. The occupation was contested by the British, who claimed that the Portuguese rights over that portion of the African coast had never been officially recognized by the United Kingdom. Peter V followed this situation with worry and outrage and, despite the pressure of the British government, he was not willing to give in to the their claims, even if it meant making use of military strength to protect the Portuguese interests.

The Portuguese ambassador in London proposed in March 1856 an agreement in principle through which if Portugal was recognized as the rightful holder of Ambriz it would open trading in its port to all countries during one year, and eliminate slavery in the entire region in the space of eight months. For this last condition, the British should provide naval help whenever required by Portugal. Seeing it as insufficient to their real intentions, the British government rejected the agreement and in turn made a counter-proposal which again went against the Portuguese interests. The situation was finally solved in June 1860 when the United Kingdom recognized Ambriz as "a Portuguese possession on the West Coast of Southern Africa." This positive outcome for Portugal is mostly credited to the near-defying resistance of Peter V to the British challenge.

Timor
In 1848, the governors of the Dutch East Indies and Timor discussed about the delimitation of their dominions. The Dutch attempted to claim sovereignty over the whole of Timor, basing their reasoning with arguments such as their conquest of the island in the 17th century, which had been confirmed by a treaty in 1661, and their consequent longer presence and relations with the locals. The Portuguese governor did not accept this claim and further negotiations did not change the established geopolitical status of the island.

In 1851, negotiations for the establishment of borders in Timor recommenced. It involved the cession of the Portuguese possessions in the Flores and Solor in exchange for Maubara and ƒ200,000. The Portuguese commissioner (former governor of timor and solor) did not wait for the approval of the central government and delivered Larantuka to the Dutch for ƒ80,000. Knowing about this, the government ordered his arrest and the annulment of the treaty, with the returning of the money to the Dutch and Larantuka to Portugal.

In 1854, a third round of negotiations resulted in the signing of a treaty which was very similar to the one of 1851 and although it was approved by the Portuguese parliament, it was rejected by the Dutch one.

In 1857, a fourth and final phase of negotiations took place between Portugal and the Netherlands.

The Portuguese-Dutch treaty regarding the Lesser Sunda islands was finally signed on 20 April 1859 and ratified on 18 August 1860. It involved the cession of the Portuguese possessions of Larantuka, Sikka and Paga in the Flores, Wouré (Wurek) in Adonara, and Pomang Kaju (Pamakajo) in Solor to the Dutch East Indies in exchange for Maubara and Ambeno in Timor, and ƒ200,000.

Although he signed the treaty ratification, Peter V was not pleased by it.

Spain
The political and social turmoil ongoing in neighboring Spain alerted Peter V, fearing that the upheaval spreaded to Portugal. The idea of an Iberian political union afflicted Peter V, as it afflicted his relationship with his father, who had been rumored to become the ruler of this union.[ref]

Charles et Georges
In late 1857, the former Réunion governor Sarda-Garriga requested the recruitment of slaves from the Inhambane region of Mozambique to work in the French island. Advised by the Overseas Council – which referred to the 1842 Anglo-Portuguese treaty, whereby slave trafficking from the Portuguese African colonies to any point in the Indian Ocean was banned – Portuguese government denied the request and asked the French foreign affairs minister, Count Walewski, to not admit African slaves from the Portuguese colonies in their Indian Ocean colonies. The French cabinet, however, was not satisfied and were determined to make their will prevail.

In February 1858, the Portuguese government was notified that a French barge named Charles-et-Georges, originating from Réunion, had been anchored for some days at a port just north of the colonial capital. Suspicious of the vessel's intentions, colonial officials were sent to investigate if they were boarding slaves. As the officials were arriving to the port, the French ship had set sail. The Portuguese went after it, but when they came back, they found it again the port. On 27 November, they aprehended the boat with 110 slaves aboard and brought it to the capital, where the crew, which included a Réunion government official, were inquired and delivered to justice. In August 1858, the arrested boat arrived in Lisbon and the French ambassador demanded its release, on the grounds that no boat carrying a French official could be involved in slave trading. Despite the Portuguese legal argumentation, the French government issued an ultimatum on 14 September. Unwilling to comply with the French demands, the Portuguese government allowed France the opportunity to choose a third party to referee the situation (an instrument included by Count Walewski himself in the 1856 Treaty of Paris); they refused. Finally, the government gave in to the French demands, releasing the ship and crew to the French authorities and paying a compensation of about 63 million réis.

The parliament criticized the extended delay in presenting the legal argumentation for the ship arrest, despite multiple French complaints. The fact that there was no formal request to the government of the UK – their oldest ally – to provide aid against the French diplomatical mobbing was also censured; as was the passiveness demonstrated by British government before a distressed ally.; and the quick surrender to the legally weak but politically strong demands of France. The French diplomatic behavior was condemned by the British press, which, unlike its government, sided with the Portuguese allies. Even Emperor Napoleon III had showed Malewski his discontent for having nearly endangered France's relations with Portugal, and urged him to definitely clarify if it had been a case of recruitment of free workers or masked trafficking of slaves. The image of the United Kingdom in Portugal and to Peter V was damaged by their inertia in helping their old ally in this issue before the diplomatic attack of France. In one letter to his uncle Leopold of Belgium he voiced his indignation about the British stance: "We paid a high price for satisfying the English wishes for so long; suffered the consequences of our loyalty to the alliance (...) [The English] moral lasts as much as their interests. In our dying times, we can scream: it is for you that we die; it is because our moral prevailed over our own interests".

Marriage and domestic life

 * First indication of a bride for Peter V was allegedly made by Spanish minister Salustiano de Olózaga y Almandoz to Queen Victoria, Peter V's first cousin once removed. He proposed the young King to marry Isabella, Princess of Asturias, daughter and heiress-presumptive of Queen Isabella II of Spain. In a letter to her foreign affairs minister dated from 5 November 1854, Victoria disapproved it, unwilling to endanger the throne of Isabella II, "with whom we are on a footing of amity", with a marriage that could result in the union of the Iberian crowns. It is not known if Peter V ever knew of this proposal.
 * Queen Victoria was very fond of Peter V, having welcomed him in London during his regency years. She strongly recommended him to her uncle Leopold I of Belgium as groom of his daughter Charlotte. Victoria even stated, "If Charlotte asked me, I should not hesitate a moment, as I would give any of my own daughters to him, were he not a Catholic". Leopold, who was Peter V's great uncle, had him in great consideration and also preferred him for Charlotte's husband, but she was in love with and chose to marry the Archduke Ferdinand Maximilian Joseph of Austria (future Emperor Maximilian I of Mexico).
 * Peter V was not sad about Charlotte's refusal; his main worry was to ensure Leopold I that their relations were not hurted by his daughter's choice more than having been rejected by a princess of which he had not the best first impression when he stopped in Brussells in 1854.
 * On 8 July 1957, Stephanie was informed by her parents that she had been chosen by Pedro V to become his spouse.
 * In 25 August 1857, Peter V appointed the Count of Lavradio his personal envoy to Prussia, with the responsibility of negotiating and signing his marriage contract with the Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen.
 * Prince Albert was an important mediator in the negotiations between Lavradio and Karl Anton, Prince of Hohenzollern, Stephanie's father.
 * Peter V's father was apparently not in favor of Stephanie.
 * Lavradio submitted the first marriage proposal on 20 October in Sigmaringen, and the official proposal on 15 December in Dusseldorf.
 * In November 1857, Peter V's old master António José Viale was chosen by the king to travel to Germany to teach Portuguese and sosme customs of the royal court and of the country.
 * The Duke of Terceira was chosen by Peter V to organize the reception act of Stephanie.
 * Stephanie spoke fluently french, italian and english. Very religious and helped the poor and sick. She relied in her faith to find consolation from the burdens in her life.
 * The pre-nuptial contract was signed in Berlin on 8 December 1857 between the proxies of Peter V and the King Frederick William IV of Prussia, the head of the bride's family.
 * On 29 April 1858, Peter V and Stephanie married by proxy in the St. Hedwig's Cathedral in Berlin, the groom represented by Stephanie's brother, Prince Leopold. )
 * Peter V confessed to Vicky how he hoped having Stephanie in his life would soften the bitterness of his royal duties: "She will be a solace in my life tortured by constant difficulties".
 * At the same time, Peter V apologised to Stephanie's father for taking her away from her family and submitting her to the hard life of a Portuguese queen, "May I be allowed... to understand almost as one of your relatives the extent of the sacrifice that the Princess, my dear bride, will fullfil as she sets foot on Portugal. (...) she will see... that the life on the throne is a long sacrifice of one self".
 * King Leopold I sent a train to Dusseldorf to bring Stephanie to Brussels, en route to Portugal, and welcomed her with great honors. On 5 May, she departed from Ostende to England, from where she left on the 11th towards Lisbon.
 * In the afternoon of 17 May 1858, Peter V's wife arrived in Lisbon, aboard the Bartolomeu Dias corvette. She was accompanied by her brother, Prince Leopold (who eventually married Peter V's sister Antónia), and an escort of both Prussian and Portuguese officials and stewards. Later, Peter V climbed aboard the ship to meet his wife in person for the first time, and introduce her to his family, with whom they both dined together. In a letter to her mother, Stephanie described the moment of their first encounter, "At last, he arrived; I met him at the cabin door. We say nothing to each other, we hold hands, he kisses my forehead, I cried, he had tears in his eyes, we look at each other a bit longer, without saying anything but understanding one another".
 * The next morning, Peter V climbed again aboard the ship, docked in front of the Praça do Comércio (English: Commerce Square) to escort Stephanie onto Portuguese land. Greeted and cheered by the people of Lisbon, the couple headed for the Church of São Domingos to ratify their matrimonial union.
 * Peter was very happy with his wife, "I cannot give to Stephanie any name other than 'angel' ... She is so gentle, so good, so intelligent, so pacient towards everything that can turn us impacient in this irritating country", that he thought he was dreaming, "What if this... is a dream!"
 * Peter V's new life alongside Stephanie gave him a sense of personal fulfillment, which he had lacked since his upbringing. "I tried to satisfy a great moral need with my marriage; I felt the need to find in my wife the good, loving, and believing side of my nature, which had been lost with the vices of my education and the moral print left on me by my first state business relationships", Peter V wrote to his uncle Leopold I.
 * Peter V thanked profoundly Queen Victoria's contribution to his marriage with Stephanie, "... you may surely, dear aunt, consider a great favor the support you lent me in the constitution of my home (...) you have made me a debtor of a feeling towards you that is larger than friendship and gratitude."
 * Stephanie did not interfere in Peter V's state duties and decisions, even if at times she did not agree with them. She was most satisfied by his kindness, especially towards children.

Domestic life

 * Life in the Lisbon royal palace after the wedding was simple and without luxuries. The day usually started at about 8:00, they attended mass in the chapel and at 11:00 lunch was served. They would then spend some time recreating until noon, when they would go to the salon to receive people from the society wishing to meet and speak to them. They would return to their quarters and spend part of the day reading – Peter V read extensively the works of French liberal political thinkers, such as Montesquieu, Tocqueville and Guizot, but also classic works by Molière and other authors –, drawing, playing piano or talking to each other. Peter V would then receive his ministers. Between 15:00 and 17:00, they would go for a walk. At about 18:00, they dined, and after that they would gather with the family in the salon. If they did not go out that night, they would retreat to their chambers or Ferdinand's.
 * Some weeks after, dinner began at 16:00 and after it they would go out until 20:00, and go to bed at 23:00.
 * When in Sintra, they would lunch together at 10:30, have dinner at 15:00, and go for a walk between 17:00 and 20:00.
 * Peter V preferred the isolation of Mafra, where he would go hunting in the palace woods, with the company of Stephanie. They visited the orphan school founded in the palace by Peter V. They spend the night in the salon with the family and guests.
 * Stephanie wished to organize more formal ceremonies and receptions in the palace, but was met with the opposition of Peter V whose nature was against that kind of social events.
 * Peter V felt dislocated and uncomfortable in these situations, appearing very serious and speaking only the necessary – the exact opposite of his father – and not even the dedicated efforts of his beloved Stephanie could change that side of Peter V.

Widowhood
On 8 July 1859, Queen Stephanie fell sick from angina, after a trip with Peter V to Vendas Novas. Her condition worsened on 16 July and she was ministered her last rites on that afternoon; she died at 01:00 on 17 July. Her body was taken to the Royal Pantheon of the House of Braganza on 20 July, where she was buried. Struck with deep grief by the untimely death of his wife, whom Peter V considered "a heart on Earth and a spirit in Heaven", he felt incapable of attending the Queen's funeral on 20 August. Peter V and his family spent the last weeks of September in Mafra, and during his stay he was rarely seen outside of his bedroom, except when he visited the palace library or the primary school, also installed in the palace. His cordial posture and hospitality towards his guests could not disguise the sadness that consumed him.

Her possessions returned to the Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen family, as agreed in the pre-nuptial contract.

Unconfirmed rumours pointed that Stephanie had died a virgin, as during her autopsy it was discovered that she still had the hymen.

Illness and death
On 5 September 1861, Peter V returned from his visit to the Industrial Exposition in Porto. His appearance was that of a tired man, and he was seen coughing frequently and even expectorate at times. In late October, having returned from a visit to Alentejo, Peter V and his brothers Ferdinand and Augustus fell ill. Ferdinand's condition worsened in the first days of November and on the night of 5 November, he was ministered the extreme unction. He died the next day at about 05:15, aged 15. Peter V, whose condition was slowly improving, was struck with immense sorrow at the news of his brother's death and this state of mind precipitated his health deterioration. On 10 November, he asked for his confessor. At 19:15 of the following day, having been ministered his last rites and the papal bless (through the Apostolic Nuncio), Peter V died. In his dying moments, he claimed he could see his mother, wife and recently deceased brother in Heaven. The body of Peter V was autopsied on 13 November at 08:00, and the report indicated severe intestinal inflamation and ulceration, hepatomegaly and splenomegaly, and meningitis, which were typical signs of typhoid fever.

His death sparked a popular uproar which escalated into some episodes of violence throughout Lisbon.

Prince Louis was commander of the ship that transported his sister Antónia and his brother-in-law Leopold to Antwerp, on their way to Saxony, after their wedding in Lisbon on 12 September 1861. He arrived in Lisbon on 14 November 1861, three days after his brother Peter V died.

"The painful surprise that I suffer due to the immense loss, that all of us are experiencing, breaks my heart. The country mourns the death of its most fair and illustrious Sovereign, and I shed tears over the tomb of my dearest of Brothers.", declared Peter V's brother Louis, on his first public statement after being sworn his successor as King Louis I. On 16 November 1861, Peter V's funeral was held at the Church of São Vicente de Fora, where his remains were buried next to those of his wife.

Titles and styles

 * 16 September 1837 – 15 November 1853: His Royal Highness The Prince Royal of Portugal
 * 15 November 1853 – 11 November 1861: His Most Faithful Majesty The King of Portugal and the Algarves, of either side of the sea in Africa, Lord of Guinea and of Conquest, Navigation and Commerce of Ethiopia, Arabia, Persia and India, etc.

Nobility
Pedro V held the following titles as heir to the Portuguese crown:
 * Duke of Braganza
 * Duke and Count of Barcelos
 * Duke and Count of Guimarães
 * Marquis of Vila Viçosa
 * Count of Arraiolos
 * Count of Faria and Neiva
 * Count of Ourém

Honours
As king, Pedro V was awarded the following honours:

Portuguese orders:
 * Grand Master of the Order of Christ
 * Grand Master of the Order of Saint Benedict of Aviz
 * Grand Master of the Order of Saint James of the Sword
 * Grand Cross of the Order of the Tower and Sword
 * Grand Cross of the Order of the Immaculate Conception of Vila Viçosa

Foreign orders:
 * Grand Cross of the Austro-Hungarian Order of Saint Stephen
 * Grand Cross of the Brazilian Order of the Southern Cross
 * Grand Cross of the Dutch Order of the Netherlands Lion
 * Grand Cross of the French Legion of Honour
 * Grand Cross of the Prussian Order of the Black Eagle
 * Grand Cross of the Order of the White Falcon of Saxe-Weimar
 * Grand Cross of the Order of Ernest the Pious of the Saxon Duchies
 * Grand Cross of the Order of the Rue Crown of Saxony
 * Grand Cross of the Order of Saint Ferdinand and of Merit of the Two Sicilies
 * Knight of the British Order of the Garter
 * Knight of the Italian Order of the Most Holy Annunciation
 * Knight of the House Order of Hohenzollern
 * Knight of the Spanish Order of the Golden Fleece

Ancestry
The ancestry of Pedro V, comprising five generations: