Duke of Palmela

The Duchy of Palmela was established by decree of Queen Maria II of Portugal, through Dom Pedro IV acting as Regent of the Kingdom, on 13 June 1833 (initially granted for life, then conferred as a hereditary title on 18 October 1850) in favour of Dom Pedro de Sousa Holstein,^[1] a diplomat and hero of the Liberal Wars, who had previously held, successively, the titles of first Count (by decree of Queen Maria I dated 11 April 1812) and Marquess of Palmela (by decree of King João VI dated 3 July 1823).^[1]

Prior to becoming Duke of Palmela, Dom Pedro de Sousa Holstein had been granted the title of Duke of Faial (4 April 1833).^[1]

The titles of Count and Marquess of Palmela were granted as hereditary honours. The title of Duke of Palmela was initially conferred for life (1833) and subsequently, in 1850, was made hereditary. The title of Duke of Faial, however, was granted during the lifetime of the first holder and was not renewed, having been, at the request of the Duke himself, superseded by the title of Duke of Palmela in 1833, the year both ducal titles were conferred.^[1] Shortly before Dom Pedro received the title of Marquess of Palmela, on 2 October of the same year, the title of Count of Calhariz was created,^[1] in favour of his firstborn son, Alexandre de Sousa e Holstein, the presumptive heir to the Marquisate of Palmela. One year after Dom Pedro had been granted the Dukedom of Faial, on 1 December 1834, the Marquisate of Faial was created in favour of his second son, Domingos de Sousa Holstein, who was also the presumptive heir to the Marquisate of Palmela and possibly to the Dukedom of Faial, as although the latter had been granted during the lifetime of the first holder, it could have been renewed by the Crown in his heirs. Domingos, the second son of Dom Pedro, only became the presumptive heir upon the death, while the Duke was still living, of his firstborn son, Alexandre, thereby becoming the second Count of Calhariz.^[1]

By tradition, the presumptive heirs to the Dukedom of Palmela used the title Marquess of Faial until they were granted the ducal title, in homage to the Dukedom of Faial which had been conferred upon the first Duke of Palmela.^[1]

The titles associated with the House of Palmela include:

• Marquess of Sousa Holstein;
• Marquess of Sesimbra;
• Marquess of Monfalim.

These titles were used by some of the sons and grandsons of the Dukes of Palmela.^[1]

The title of Duke of Faial (Portuguese: Duque do Faial) was a Portuguese title of nobility, named for Faial Island in the Azores, which was granted by royal decree of Queen Maria II of Portugal, dated from 4 April 1833, to Pedro de Sousa Holstein, a 19th-century politician who served as Portugal's first prime-minister. Two months later, on 16 June, Sousa Holstein successfully petitioned the Queen to change the title from Duke of Faial to Duke of Palmela, which he used for the rest of his life. On 1 December 1834, less than a year from the abolition of the Faial ducal title for Palmela, Queen Maria II created the title of Marquis of Faial, to be used as a substantive title to the heirs of the Dukes of Palmela. Since 1834, the heir of the Duke of Palmela is always referred to as the Marquis of Faial.

When the Queen granted to Dom Pedro de Sousa Holstein the title of Duke of Faial, he was already 1st Count of Palmela (royal decree of 1812) and 1st Marquis of Palmela (royal decree of 1823). Due to his services to the Crown and Country, he obtained the ranking of Duke, as Duke of Faial. Later a royal decree of the Queen, dated from October 18, 1850, changed his original title to Duke of Palmela.

Chalet Faial is an estate in Cascais, on the Portuguese Riviera, located nearby Palmela Palace (summer estate of the Duke of Palmela). A notable example of Summer architecture, Chalet Faial was built near Palmela Palace to serve as the summer estate of the Marquis of Faial, the heir to the Duke of Palmela.

• Dukedoms of Portugal
• List of prime ministers of Portugal

• Genealogy of the Dukes of Palmela

• "Nobreza de Portugal e do Brasil" – Vol. III, page 99/106. Published by Zairol Lda., Lisbon 1989.
• "A Casa Palmela", Pedro Urbano, Livros Horizonte, Lisbon 2008.