Dona Maria I (English:
Mary I) (17 December 1734 – 20 March 1816) was
Queen of Portugal,
Brazil,
and the Algarves. Known as
Maria the Pious (in Portugal), or
Maria the Mad (in Brazil), she was the first undisputed
Queen regnant of Portugal. With
Napoleon's European conquests, her court, then under the direction of Prince Dom João, the Prince Regent, moved to the then Portuguese colony of Brazil. Later on, Brazil would be elevated from the rank of a colony to that of a Kingdom, with the consequential formation of the
United Kingdom of Portugal, Brazil and the Algarves.