Fernando II, Duke of Braganza various titles of his father, the most important and noteworthy being the title of Duke of Braganza. At this time, the House of Braganza was the most powerful noble house in the Kingdom of Portugal (with its seat at Vila Viçosa) and one of the most powerful ones in all of the Iberian Kingdoms. During that period, the Dukes of Braganza resided at Vila Viçosa Castle. When King John II of Portugal succeeded his father, King Afonso V, he sought to bring down the power of the Portuguese nobility, which had greatly flourished under his father's reign. The King heavily
House of Orléans-Braganza had 3 surviving sons which were the first to use the surname "Orléans-Braganza": Pedro de Alcântara, Prince of Grão-Pará, Prince Luís and Prince Antônio. Both Prince Pedro and Prince Luís have children. Today they are the present claimants to the throne of the former Empire of Brazil, which became extinct with the Brazilian proclamation of the republic, on 15 November 1889 after a military coup d'état headed by Marshall Deodoro da Fonseca, the 1st President of Brazil. After the death of Princess Isabel on 1921, the House of Orléans-Braganza became the claimant of the Brazilian throne under Prince Pedro Henrique