Maria I the Pious Marquis of Pombal dismiss great medal

Up for auction is this bronze medal signed by "Baltazar" on the obverse. The obverse features Maria I in relief. The reverse features a scene depicting the dismiss of Marquis of Pombal in relief.

 

About Maria I:

Maria I of Portugal, the Pious (Port. a Piedosa) - (Lisbon December 17, 1734 – Rio de Janeiro March 20, 1816) was given the crown-princely title Princess of Brazil, but not the duchy of Bragança. She married her father's younger brother, Peter III, on June 6, 1760. In 1777, she became the first Queen regnant of Portugal, and Algarves, and the 26th (or 27th according to some historians Portuguese monarch. Later in life her royal title would become Queen of the United Kingdom of Portugal, Brazil and Algarves. Her first act as queen was to dismiss the unpopular Prime Minister, the Marquis of Pombal, following the brutal treatment given to the Távoras in the Tavora affair. Noteworthy events of this period were Portugal's membership of the League of Armed Neutrality (July 1782) and the 1781 cession of Delagoa Bay from Austria to Portugal. In 1801 the Spanish dictator Manuel de Godoy invaded Portugal with backing from Napoleon, but was forced to abandon the campaign in the same year. However the Treaty of Badajoz on June 6, 1801 forced Portugal to cede Olivenza and part of Guyana to Spain. Queen Mary suffered from religious mania and melancholia. It made her incapable of handling state affairs after 1799 and so her son Prince John became regent. The refusal of his government to join the Continental Blockade of Britain culminated in the 1807 Franco-Spanish invasion led by General Junot. The Braganza dynasty fled to Brazil on November 13, 1807, and Junot was appointed governor of the kingdom pending Napoleon's decision on its ultimate fate. On August 1, 1808, the British General Arthur Wellesley (later Duke of Wellington) landed a British army in Lisbon and thus commenced the Peninsular War. Wellesley's initial victory over Junot at Vimeiro (August 21, 1808) was wiped out by his superiors in the Convention of Cintra (August 30, 1808). Nevertheless, Wellesley (now Lord Wellington) returned to Portugal on April 22, 1809 to recommence the campaign. Portuguese forces under British command distinguished themselves in the defence of the lines of Torres Vedras (1809-1810) and in the subsequent invasion of Spain and France. In 1815, the regency government elevated Brazil as kingdom, and Maria I was proclaimed the Queen of the United Kingdom of Portugal, Brazil and Algarves. When Napoleon was finally defeated in 1815, Maria and her family were still in Brazil. The aged Queen died at Rio de Janeiro in 1816 and the Prince Regent succeeded her as King John VI of Portugal and Brazil.

 

Obverse: Maria I in relief
Reverse: scene depicting the dismiss of Marquis of Pombal in relief

 

Weight and diameter:

201gr

3.4/8 inches | 80mm diameter 

 

 

Happy Bidding :)