Luís I of Brazil

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Revision as of 21:52, 3 December 2007

Luís I of Brazil
5th Monarch of the Empire of Brazil
Reign July 5, 1981 — Present
Coronation	July 10, 1981
Born	June 6, 1938 Palácio Imperial, Rio de Janeiro
Predecessor	Pedro III of Brazil
Heir-apparent	Pedro, Prince Imperial of Brazil
Consort	Maria Pavlovna, Grand Duchess of Russia
Issue	• Pedro, Prince Imperial of Brazil • Prince Antônio of Orléans-Braganza • Amélia, Princess Imperial of Brazil • Princess Francisca of Orléans-Braganza • Prince João of Orléans-Braganza
Royal House	House of Orléans-Braganza
Father	Pedro III of Brazil
Mother	Princess Maria Elisabeth of Bavaria

Luís I (baptized as Luís Gastão Maria José Pio de Orleans e Bragança; born June 6, 1938) is the fifth monarch of Brazil. The son of Emperor Pedro III and Princess Maria of Bavaria, he is the oldest of twelve children: His siblings are Prince Eudes Maria, Prince Bertrand Maria, Princess Isabel Maria, Prince Pedro de Alcântara Henrique, Prince Fernando Diniz, Prince Antônio João, Princess Eleonora Maria, Prince Francisco Maria, Prince Alberto Maria, Princess Maria Teresa, and Princess Maria Gabriela.

He ascended to the throne on July 5, 1981, upon the death of his father. He was coronated five days later, on July 10. His full title is His Imperial and Royal Highness Luís Gastão Maria José Pio de Orleans e Bragança, By the Grace of God and Unanimous Acclamation of the People, Constitutional Emperor and Perpetual Defender of Brazil. As Emperor, he serves as the head of state as well titular commander of the Brazilian armed forces, but his duties are mainly ceremonial. However, he does exercise some powers of his own. (See here for details.)

Although the Emperor cannot himself initiate legislation, he can request that the Imperial Parliament do so on his behalf. Several notable laws have been passed in this way, most notably the Prevention of Animal Cruelty Act of 1983, which banned bullfighting, dogfighting, and other "blood sports" involving animals.

The Emperor oversees what he called a "forward looking," pragmatic foreign policy. He has, however, maintained Brazil's close relations with the West, and he enjoys close, friendly relations with the two Americas, the United Kingdom, Australia, and especially France.

In 2006, Brazilians celebrated the Emperor's Silver Jubilee. Millions of Brazilians flocked into the streets to show their pride in their country and love for their monarch. Luís was widely popular with the people: according to a March 2007 poll by Agência Brasil, 87.5% of Brazilians thought Luís was "good or very good," 9.4% "not so good," and only 3.1% "bad or very bad."

Family and personal life

Luís married Maria Pavlovna, Grand Duchess of Russia on November 14, 1969. They have five children: Prince Imperial Pedro (b. 1977); Prince Antônio (b. 1979); Princess Imperial Amélia (b. 1980); Princess Francisca (b. 1981); and Prince João (b. 1985).

The Emperor and his family are devout Roman Catholics. The Emperor never fails to attend daily Mass, even when ill or otherwise occupied. He has read the entire Bible numerous times and knows several tracts of it by heart.

An outdoors enthusiast, he enjoys hunting, fishing, skeet shooting, hiking, rock climbing, camping, skeet shooting, and swimming as his main hobbies. He is very robust and physically fit for his age and in excellent health. His other hobbies include reading (the Bible being his favorite book), chess (he is not a very skilled player, but enjoys the game nonetheless), and, unusually for a man his age, video games. He owns a Nintendo Wii, which he and the King of France are said to play together often; rumor has it that the Emperor is extremely competitive when playing video games, especially against Charles. He also attends symphonies and plays fairly regularly.

Luís speaks fluent Portuguese, Spanish, English, French, Italian, Russian, and German. He can also speak a fair amount of the following indigenous Brazilian languages: Guaraní, Pano, Karib, Tukano, Yanomami, and Munduruku.

Luís was a relatively close friend of the late Erik von Kuehnelt-Leddihn, who also enjoyed a close friendship with the French monarchy. Luís is a staunch social and cultural conservative, but subscribes to classical liberal/libertarian political views, and is well versed in Austrian economics.

His favorite drinks are mojitos, txakoli, and egg nog with rum, and his favorite foods include feta cheese, calamares, lechazo asado, chouriços, and various pastas; his favorite desserts are turrón and baklava.

Although very wealthy (his fortune is estimated to exceed $1 billion), the Emperor is a very generous philanthropist who donates tens of millions to the needy every year.