The embalmed heart of Brazil’s first emperor, Dom Pedro I, has arrived in the capital Brasilia to mark 200 years of independence from Portugal. The heart, which has been kept in an urn with formaldehyde since Pedro’s death in 1834, was flown on board a military plane from Portugal. The heart will be returned to Portugal after Brazil’s independence day.
The heart has been kept in an urn with formaldehyde in a Portuguese city
The heart has been held in an urn with formaldehyde in the Portuguese city of Porto since Pedro’s death in 1834 in Portugal at age 35.
The Portuguese government agreed to loan the heart to Brazil for three weeks for the bicentennial celebration. The Brazilian air force flew it to Brasilia. Notably, it was received on Monday by the country’s defense minister.
Far-right President Jair Bolsonaro will receive the relic on Tuesday. It will be welcomed at the presidential palace with military honors and a gun salute, before putting it on public display at the Foreign Ministry through Brazil’s Independence Day on Sept. 7.
Pedro’s declaration of independence is acclaimed by Brazilian nationalists as the birth of their country
Pedro’s declaration of independence from Portugal is acclaimed by Brazilian nationalists as the birth of their country. The declaration was an act of defiance against his father, Portuguese King Joao VI.
The Portuguese king’s family was escorted to safety in Brazil by the British Navy in 1807. It was before Napoleon’s forces invaded Portugal. On returning to Lisbon in 1821, he left his son Pedro as prince regent of Brazil.
Pedro’s heart was separated in 1834 and kept in a church in Porto according to his last wishes. Moreover, his remains were donated to Brazil in 1972 for the 150th commemoration of Brazilian independence and are kept in a museum in Sao Paulo.
