Where in the World?

Question: Where in the world has a queen been crying soundlessly for nearly 200 years straight?

Answer: The Pantheon of Braganzas in the São Vincente de Fora Monastery, Lisbon, Portugal.

Step into the quiet crypt of Lisbon’s São Vincente de Fora, and she’ll be waiting. Head bowed, hidden in the folds of a long cloak, her face buried in her hands, she is the very essence of grief. In perpetual mourning, she weeps not for one but many: the Braganzas.

There was never a family like the Braganzas. Beginning with the Restoration War in 1640, this epic clan ruled first Portugal, then Brazil, and the Algarves as well. Their ranks boasted 15 monarchs in Portugal and four in Brazil, Queen consorts in England and Spain, and contenders for the thrones of Poland and Greece. For 270 years, there was a Braganza ruling over at least one nation.

In the 1830s, King Ferdinand II ordered that the refectory of a 16th-century monastery be transformed into a pantheon for the royal family. Existing tombs were moved to the site, and spaces were cleared for future burials. Dozens were interred here, ranging from infants to ancients. Actual monarchs enjoyed tombs engraved with crowns, while family members were laid to rest in simpler marble chambers lining the walls. It was a hall filled with historic figures: Joao the Restorer, who wrested control from Spain; Maria Francisca, who became Queen Consort twice by marrying different Braganzas; and Infanta Catherine, monarch of three European countries. (Read more below.)

At the heart of the crypt is a four-coffin tomb containing the royals swept up in the Lisbon Regicide. In an epic tragedy, King Carlos and Prince Luis were murdered in their carriage in broad daylight; the survivors of the 1908 shooting were Prince Manuel, who became the last King of Portugal, and his mother, Amelie the last Queen Consort. Because this assassination sounded the death knell for Braganza rule, the mourner’s tears may well be for the entire dynasty, now gone.

A Queen Beyond Portugal: Fascinating Facts About Infanta Catherine

• Daughter to King Joao and Queen Luisa, Catherine was so thoroughly sheltered that one writer marveled, “She has hardly been ten times out of the palace.”


• When she was in her early twenties, monarchs from around Europe ask for her hand, with offers from Louis XIV and John of Austria.


• It was agreed that she would marry Charles II of England. In exchange, Portugal was guaranteed the support of Britain’s navy, while England got Tangier, a septet of Indian islands, and trading access to Brazil.


• Catherine was devoutly Catholic, which was very unpopular in Britain, so she and Charles II kept their Catholic ceremony a secret and then put on a show wedding, Anglican-style, for the public.


• Upon marrying, Catherine became Queen Consort of England, Scotland, and Ireland.


• The newlyweds were feted in a grand procession into London across a bridge built just for them, followed by fireworks.


• Her good nature made much of the citizenry love her. She visited the countryside often and once showed up at a rural fair. When she started wearing dresses short enough to reveal her ankles, this new fashion swept England.


• Though tea had existed in England several years before her arrival, her love of tea-drinking (a habit of the Braganzas) is widely believed to have been responsible for the embrace of tea.


• After she miscarried three times, royal advisors urged Charles to get a divorce so that he could have a royal heir; he refused.


• Nonetheless, he had multiple mistresses, which Catherine found mortifying, especially as he fathered and acknowledged several children out of wedlock.


• Their biggest fight came when he insisted on making his favorite mistress, Barbara Palmer, a Lady of the Bedchamber. His wife refused to be seen with him while such an arrangement was in place and they spent several years interacting almost not at all.


• During this time, anti-Catholic sentiment led to the expulsion of all British and Irish Catholic priests. To ensure that she would have spiritual guidance, she named a Portuguese priest as her Lord Chamberlain, and hired Catholic servants.


• Agitators concocted the so-called Popish Plot, accusing her servants of a nobleman’s murder and of planning to kill the king, which led to charges of treason that collapsed when Charles himself interceded.


• His intervention was the beginning of a thaw between them, and they began to spend time together again, with frequent visits.


• When he lay dying in 1685, he said, “I beg her pardon with all my heart.”


• Being a widow didn’t end her story: Catherine returned to Portugal in 1692 to raise her newly orphaned nephew Prince John, and later served twice as Regent of Portugal.


• She now lies in rest with her fellow Braganzas in the Pantheon.

Explore the rich history of the Braganzas’ homeland during our Iberian Voyage: Lisbon to Barcelona adventure.