Maria Benedita of Braganza

Maria Benedita of Braganza (born Maria Benedita Rosa Carolina Mafalda Fernanda; 5 July 1896, Kleinheubach, Kingdom of Bavaria - 11 May 1971, Palma, Mariana) was a member of the House of Braganza and Infanta of Portugal by birth. Through her marriage to King Johan II of Mariana, she was the Queen Consort of Mariana from 1913 to 1967 (the record for a consort), and Queen mother until her death in 1971. Maria Benedita died in May 1971 at the age of 74.

Biography
Maria Benedita was the second daughter and child of Miguel, Duke of Braganza and his wife Princess Maria Theresa of Löwenstein-Wertheim-Rosenberg. Her father was the Miguelist claimant to the throne of Portugal from 1866 to 1920.

Marriage and early years
In February 1915 a marriage was arranged with Prince Johan of Mariana, the heir to the throne. Johan, upon seeing Maria Benedita became besotted with her, if more for her personality than her looks. The two were wed in October 1915 at Palma Cathedral, in a fairly lavish ceremony. The two were a fairly happy couple, but for several years they were unable to have a child.

The Queen was very supportive of the war effort in 1915 and set up the Queen's Relief Fund that year to assist in supporting serving soldiers, nurses and their families. The queen was highly popular, not only for her visits with average Marianans but also by her down-to-earth and humble way of life.

A pregnancy in early 1919 resulted in a miscarriage and it seemed she may not be able to provide a son. Rumors of an affair by her husband were the talk in 1920, but the queen refused to believe them. As a shock to most, the Royal Palace in December 1922 announced the queen was pregnant with child.

On 23 June 1923, she gave to a son, Martin Jan Albert, which placed great relief on the king. It would take four years for her to become pregnant again, giving birth to a daughter, Angela Maria, on 2 July 1927.

War years
The night of the 20th of May 1941, after German paratroopers had landed in Cape Cross, King Johan, Queen Maria Benedita and their two children were evacuated by car to Palma, and then onto the ship Bergen to Ciutadella, where they were to be evacuated to Egypt. Maria Benedita had hoped to perhaps move on to Portugal, but the status of her as a member of the deposed Portuguese house could have raised grave issues, and the idea was rejected. They then moved on to Sierra, for the duration of the war.

The royal family returned from Sierra to Palma on 2 March 1945, aboard the aging cruiser R.S. King Ambroos. Throngs of people clamored when they landed, cheering on the returned king and queen, with the greatest display of flags, pomp and patriotism not seen since the victory parades of November 1918.

Later years
The queen strove to increase relations with Portugal and made the first state visit there with the king in August 1951, meeting with Prime Minister Oliveira Salazar. Queen Maria Benedita became one of the founding members of The Cancer Society in 1954 and was its vice-president from 1954 to 1966.

On 11 October 1965, Johan and Maria Benedita celebrated their golden wedding anniversary. It was largely a private family affair, but souvenirs were being sold commemorating the couple's 50 years of marriage, and parties were held across the country. Henry Warson, again Prime Minister, visited the king and queen and with his wife presented them with a special bound, unique book on History of Mariana in the Reign of Johan II.

In 1967 the queen began showing early signs of Alzheimer's, exacerbated from 1969. On 14 June 1967, she fell coming out of a car and had her using a cane. The illness and death of her husband in November 1967 greatly affected her.