Books about the Brazilian Empire

[espejor]

Hello! Do you know books about the Brazilian Empire or about the Imperial Family of Brazil? I have not found any book about it in English, Spanish or French. All the books that I have found are in Portuguese :(

Regards and thanks!

[Marengo]

Not about the Brazilian Imperial family perse, but I enjoyed 'Empire Adrift: The Portuguese Court in Rio de Janeiro', by Patrick Wilcken. It is about the Portuguese court fleeing for Napoleon's troops, and moving to Rio de Janeiro. The main disadvantage is that for primairy sources the author seems to rely on the accounts of one British diplomat mainly.

[cmbruno]

Well, I recomend these:

1) Séjour d'un Artiste Français au Brésil, depuis 1816 jusqu'en 1831 inclusivement, époques de l'Avenement et de l'Abdication de S. M. D. Pedro 1er, fondateur de l'Empire brésilien. Dédié à l'Académie des Beaux-Arts de l'Institut de France, par J. B. Debret ...
Very much appreciated by Brazilians.

Voyage pittoresque et historique au Brésil [...] (Volume 1). Debret, Jean Baptiste, 1768-1848 Voyage pittoresque et historique au Brésil [...] (Volume 1)

Voyage pittoresque et historique au Brésil [...] (Volume 2). Debret, Jean Baptiste, 1768-1848
http://www.brasiliana.usp.br/bbd/handle/1918/00624520#page/1/mode/1up

Voyage pittoresque et historique au Brésil [...] (Volume 3). Debret, Jean Baptiste, 1768-1848
http://www.brasiliana.usp.br/bbd/handle/1918/00624530#page/1/mode/1up

Author: Debret, Jean Baptiste, 1768-1848
French painter and draughtsman who took part in the French artistic mission in Brazil in 1816. He returned to France only in 1831. During those years spent in Rio de Janeiro and in neighbouring provinces, he was in the vanguard of local artistic life, still in its infancy. He founded and encouraged the Academia Imperial das Belas Artes, of which he became professor of history painting. He painted many historical works such, as the Acclamation of Peter I (1822; Rio de Janeiro, Mus. N. B.A.). He and two other members of the French mission, the architect Auguste-Henri Grandjean de Montigny and the sculptor Auguste-Marie Taunay (1768-1824), were responsible for preparing the decorations in Rio de Janeiro for the celebrations in 1818 acclaiming John VI as King. The book depicts life in Brazil – volume 3 is mostly about court life.

2) The Emperor's Beard: Dom Pedro II and His Tropical Monarchy in Brazil
Lilia Moritz Schwarcz
Written by a Brazilian and translated to English. You can find it on Amazon.

By the way, I have read Patrick Wilcken's book and I could not find anything amiss. I am Brazilian!

[cmbruno]

I have just posted at Prince and Princess Michael of Kent current events thread some info about this book that might interest you:

Princess Michael of Kent is in Brazil to release the first edition in "Brazilian Portuguese” of her 1986 book "Crowned in a Far Country: Portraits of eight royal brides".


The book
http://www.amazon.com/Crowned-Far-Co.../dp/0743296370 - English Edition
http://www.ambientesecostumes.com.br...age.php?pID=85 –Brazilian Edition
http://www.ambientesecostumes.com.br...products_id=85


The book is about eight European princesses who married foreign rulers over the past 300 years.

The Brazilian edition has as its cover a watercolour by Jean-Baptiste Debret called “Débarquement de la princesse Léopoldine à Rio de Janeiro”. One of the eight brides in the book is Maria Leopoldine von Österreich, archduchess of Austria, that in 1817 sailed to Brazil to marry the crown prince of Portugal (Príncipe Real do Reino Unido de Portugal, Brasil e Algarves), Dom Pedro de Alcântara . Later she became Empress consort of Brazil and, for two months, simultaneously queen consort of Portugal. She was a daughter of Francis II, Holy Roman Emperor, and his second wife, Maria Teresa of the Two Sicilies and sister of, among others, Emperor Ferdinand I of Austria and Marie Louise, Duchess of Parma, Napoleon Bonaparte's wife.

The other 7 royal brides are Marie Antoinette, Maria Carolina of Austria, Eugenie of France, Victoria of Germany, Catharine of Russia and Maria Feodorovna.