Upon leaving the country, Emperor Pedro I selected three people to take charge of his son and remaining daughters. The first was José Bonifácio de Andrada, his friend and an influential leader during Brazilian independence, who was named guardian. The second was Mariana de Verna, who had held the post of "aia" (governess) since the birth of Pedro II. As a child, the then-Prince Imperial called her ""Dadama"", as he could not pronounce the word "dama" (Lady) correctly. He regarded her as his surrogate mother and would continue to call her by her nickname well into adulthood out of affection. The third person was Rafael, an Afro-Brazilian veteran of the Cisplatine War. He was an employee in the Palace of São Cristóvão whom Pedro I deeply trusted and asked to look after his son—a charge that he carried out for the rest of his life.