At the time of her birth, she had an elder brother named Afonso who was heir apparent to the Brazilian throne. Two other siblings followed: Leopoldina in 1847 and Pedro in 1848. Afonso's death in 1847, at the age of , propelled Isabel to the position of Pedro II's heir presumptive. She briefly lost the position with the birth of Prince Imperial Pedro. After his death in 1850, Isabel became the definitive heir as Princess Imperial, the title given to the first in the line of succession. Isabel's early years were a time of peace and prosperity in Brazil. Her parents provided a happy and healthy upbringing. She and her sister "grew up in a stable, secure environment dramatically different from the one her father and aunts had known, and light years away from the childhood chaos of Pedro I."