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Katharina war das vierte Kind des portugiesischen Königs Johann IV. (1604-1656) und dessen Gattin Luisa von Guzmán (1613-1666). Sie erblickte das Licht der Welt am 25. November 1638 und starb am 31. Dezember 1705. Im Jahr 1662 hatte sie den englischen König Karl II. Stuart (1630-1685) zu heiraten. Aus ihrer Ehe gingen keine Kinder hervor.
Ihr Geburtstag am 25. November war ein ganz besonderer Tag in Portugal, denn an diesem Tag konnte sich Portugal im Jahr 1640 vom spanischen Joch befreien: "From that era, the twenty-fifth of November 1640, Portugal became an independent sovereignty, after having been for sixty years an appanage of Spain. Immediately after John the Fourth had defeated the Spanish forces in 1640, Charles the First recognized him as sovereign of Portugal, a service refused to him by the Pope, and by all the Catholic courts of Europe, excepting France, and which emboldened him to propose, through his Ambassador, the marriage of his daughter, Katherine of Braganza, with the Prince of Wales, afterwards Charles the Second; a proposal to which the needy English monarch listened with stoical indifference. Katherine was educated in a convent, under the immediate superintendence of her wise, energetic mother … and in November, 1654, her father, out of the unbounded affection he bore her, gave her, besides other sources of income, the island of Madeira, the city of Lanega, and the town of Mour; but with a proviso, that if she married out of the kingdom, she should exchange them for a suitable equivalent from the nation. Shortly afterwards her father died, and her eldest brother [nicht korrekt: ihr ältester Bruder war Teodosio (1634-1653)], Don Alphonso, being too young to reign, her mother assumed the regal authority, which she exercised for ten years [nicht korrekt: ihre Mutter war dessen Regentin bis 1662, also acht Jahre lang], with such success, that the independence of Portugal was firmly established, the commerce and trade of the nation enlarged, and the social condition of the people greatly meliorated." (in: Francis Lancelott: The Queens of England and their Times, Volume II, id., pp. 710-711).
"Don Francisco del Mello, the Portuguese Ambassador in England ... proposed the match to the King’s Lord Chamberlain, the Earl of Manchester, [im Jahr 1660] and on the following day paid Charles [Karl II. Stuart] a visit in person, and offered with the Princess a dower of five hundred thousand pounds in ready money, and to annex Tangiers, on the coast of Africa, and Bombay, in the East Indies, to the crown of England for ever; and to grant to the English a free trade to Portugal and to the Portuguese colonies. Charles, who greatly needed money [war zu dieser Heirat bereit]. ... At the commencement of 1661, he [der portugiesische Botschafter Francisco del Mello] arrived at London, when, to his surprise, he was received with great coolness at court; in fact, in his absence, Vatteville, the Spanish Ambassador, had informed Charles, that Katharine was known to be incapable of becoming a mother; she was ugly and deformed, and his marriage with her would lead to a war with Spain and other evils; but if he would take one of the Princesses of Parma, the King of Spain would give with either of those ladies as large a dower as would be given with a daughter of Spain. These suggestions … induced Charles to dispatch that nobleman [the Earl of Bristol] to Parma, to obtain information regarding the two Princesses [Maria Caterina (1637-1684) und Maria Maddalena (1638-1693)]. He saw them on their way to church; the one sight convinced him that the one was too ugly, the other too corpulent, to be recommended to the royal choice." (in: Francis Lancelott: The Queens of England and their Times, Volume II, id., pp. 711-712).
"Following the signing of the marriage treaty with Charles II, she landed at Portsmouth on 14 May 1662 with a large Portuguese retinue. The marriage was a political and dynastic one, and her Catholicism made her unpopular in Britain. Throughout the 1660s … Catherine suffered several miscarriages… although she is noted as showing kindness to her husband’s illegitimate children. The diarist and writer John Evelyn (1620-1706) remarked on 'her pretty shape', 'languishing and excellent eyes' and projecting teeth; shy and solemn, she was devoted to her husband, and, although he hurt her by his infidelities, he had a genuine affection to her." (in: D. Piper: Catalogue of Seventeenth-Century Portraits in the National Portrait Gallery, 1625-1714, Cambridge 1963, pp. 56-57).
Katharina, die am 15. April 1662 Lissabon verlassen hatte, traf am 13. oder 14. Mai 1662 mit ihrer großen portugiesischen Gefolgschaft in Portsmouth ein. "The voyage was tedious and stormy; in the channel it blew such a gale, that the fleet sought shelter in Mount Bay, till the storm subsided, and a favourable breeze sprung up. Off the Isle of Wight, they met the Duke of York [Jakob II. (VII.) Stuart, den jüngeren Bruder des englischen Königs], who, at the head of five frigates, had put to sea, to meet the future sister-in-law. … he daily visited the Queen to the end of the voyage … The fleet anchored at Spithead on the thirteenth of May; and on the same day Katherine landed, and was conducted to the King’s house, at Portsmouth ..." (in: Francis Lancelott: The Queens of England and their Times, Volume II, id., p. 713). In ihrem neuen Königreich war sie als Katholikin nicht beliebt. Ihren Gatten, den englisch-schottischen König Karl II. Stuart, liebte sie sehr, aber seine vielen außerehelichen Affären taten ihr sehr weh. Trotzdem war sie gegenüber seinen vielen unehelichen Kindern stets sehr freundlich. Sie selbst erlitt in den 1660er Jahren zwei Fehlgeburten und blieb ohne ein eigenes Kind.
Karl II. Stuart hatte London am 19. Mai 1662 verlassen und traf einen Tag später in Portsmouth ein. Er schrieb an Edward Hyde: "It was happy for the honour of the nation I was not put to the consummation of the marriage last night, for I was so sleepy, by having slept but two hours in my journey, that I was afraid that matters would have gone very sleepily. I can only now give you an account of what I have seen a-bed; which, in short, is; her face is not so exact as to be called a beauty, though her eyes are excellent good, and not anything in her face that in the least can shock one. On the contrary, she has much agreeableness in her looks altogether as ever I saw; and, if I have my skill in physiognomy, which I think I have, she must be as good a woman a ever was born ... You would much wonder to see how well we are acquainted already." ... "The couple was married on 21 May [ganz früh am Morgen], secretly according to Catholic rites for the Queen's sake, and publicly by the Bishop of London [am Abend]." (in: Christopher Falkus: The Life and Times of Charles II, p. 90). "After dinner, the ceremony was publicly solemnized, after the form established by the Church of England, in the great hall or presence chamber, by the Bishop of London. … When the King and Queen had taken their places under a rich canopy, the Bishop performed the nuptial rites prescribed in the Book of Common Prayer, and pronounced them married … 'Long may they live!' responded the spectators, with hearty shouts; and, in conclusion, the ribbons, which the bride wore in profusion, were cut from her dress, and distributed in small portions, as wedding favours, amongst the assembly." (in: Francis Lancelott: The Queens of England and their Times, Volume II, id., p. 713). "Catherine could speak no English, and her convent upbringing scarcely equipped her for the court of the merry monarch. Her retinue of monks and forbidding-looking ladies caused much amusement to the gay courtiers who surrounded the King." (in: Christopher Falkus: The Life and Times of Charles II, p. 90).
Die Hochzeitsnacht: "The Queen's [Katharina von Braganza] state of health did not permit the marriage to be consummated that night [sie hatte die Regeln.] The King jokingly reported to his sister Madame [seine jüngste Schwester Henriette Anna] that he thought it was just as well that the long sea journey had upset her cycle, for he himself had such a terrible journey down to Portsmouth that he was afraid that 'matters would have gone stupidly'. [Er hatte an diesem Tag nur zwei Stunden geschlafen und fühlte sich körperlich nicht fit, die Ehe zu vollziehen; es war also gut, dass Katharina von Braganza ebenfalls nicht in der Lage war, ihre Ehe vollziehen zu lassen]." (in: Antonia Fraser: King Charles II, id., p. 206).
Katharina von Braganza war aber nicht bereit, Barbara Villiers, die bekannte Geliebte ihres Gatten, als ihre Hofdame zu akzeptieren. Diesen Kampf verlor sie allerdings gegenüber ihrem Gatten: "In this struggle Charles used a variety of tactics. Once he openly introduced his mistress at court, and when Catherine learnt who it was who had just kissed her hand she fainted. Then Charles began to ignore her, and plunged himself even more vigorously into his other pleasures. He had her Portuguese ladies sent home, and left her an isolated figure, friendless and helpless in her misery. Then, quite suddenly, Catherine gave up the unequal fight and not only accepted Lady Castlemaine [Barbara Villiers] but went out of her way to pay her compliments and cultivate her as a friend. She began to compete for the King's affections, cutting her dresses lower and her skirts shorter, Charles responded, and for the rest of the reign domestic harmony prevailed." (in: Christopher Falkus: The Life and Times of Charles II, pp. 90-91).
Mit Katharina von Braganza "came three gifts in her hands, Tangier, Bombay, and a dowry of £500,000. Through her England gained her oldest ally, so invaluable later on in the maritime wars against France, when the harbours and supplies of Portugal could always be relied upon for English man-of-war." (in: Marie Ruan Hopkinson: Anne of England – The Biography of a great Queen, id., p. 32).
Katharinas größte Schwäche war laut ihrem Zeitgenossen Sir Walter Scott: "An excessive love of dancing." (in: Francis Lancelott: The Queens of England and their Times, Volume II, id., p. 729). "She, it appears, had but little taste for the polite arts: painting, sculpture, and architecture, owe nothing to the Queenly patronage." (in: Francis Lancelott: The Queens of England and their Times, Volume II, id., p. 729).
"When her Majesty [Katharina von Braganza], with the King and the Court, was being magnificently entertained at Audley End, in September 1671, she and the Duchesses of Richmond and Buckingham, went disguised as rustics to Saffron Walden fair, in the neighourhood; but they so overdid their disguises, that the real rustics, believing them to be a company of strolling players, followed them in a crowd. The Queen went into a booth to purchase a pair of yellow stockings for her sweetheart; one of the customers there recognised her, and immediately the whole fair crowded to gaze on her, and forced her and her party to ride back in dismay to Audley End, as fast as their horses would carry them, with a host of rude horsemen behind them, all eager 'to get as much gape as they could.'" (in: Francis Lancelott: The Queens of England and their Times, Volume II, id., p. 729).
Das Leben von Katharina von Braganza war im Laufe der Zeit sehr einsam geworden. Ihr Gatte verbrachte seine Zeit lieber mit seinen vielen Mätressen als mit ihr. So lesen wir anlässlich der Hochzeit von Maria II. Stuart und Wilhelm III. von Oranien am 4. November 1677 Folgendes: "... she [Katharina von Braganza] danced at the bridal ball, and took part in the gorgeous festivity that marked the occasion, but she did so with a heavy heart. For more than five years the King had so completely withdrawn himself from her company, that he ceased to live with her, and now he rarely, if ever, spoke to her, except in public." (in: Francis Lancelott: The Queens of England and their Times, Volume II, id., p. 730).
Der portugiesische Botschafter "considered it enough to describe her [Katharina von Braganza], rather casually, as having an exceptionally good and modest nature, and having been brought up in a 'hugely retired' manner [sie lebte in einem Kloster]. Convent-bred - and certainly reared in a most secluded fashion, having made very few appearances in the outside world - Catherine of Braganza was already twenty-three years old, which one sour commentator said was like a woman of forty in English terms. When she was told of her impending marriage, she made one of her rare sorties from the royal palace, to make a religious pilgrimage to some Saints' shrines in Lisbon ... In cuisine Catherine was conservative: there are continual payments to 'Portugall cooks' in the royal accounts. But in costume at least she adapted quickly, showing a coquettish desire to wear man's clothing, which set off her pretty, neat legs and ankles; ... Catherine also enjoyed dressing up in general, as a village maiden, and so forth; ... Catherine of Braganza also came to enjoy such typically English preoccupations as fishing and picnics. For all her slight frame, she was not unathletic, particularly for one who had been nurtured in such a claustrophobic fashion. Catherine's skill at archery was noted; she was sufficiently interested in the whole sport to become patroness of the Honourable Fraternity of Bowmen. ... Catherine must have appeared to the English: small and dark and very, very foreign. 'Swarthy,' wrote Evelyn, adding that she had sticking-out teeth. 'A long nose,' wrote another unsympathetic critic. She even made up or 'painted' in [sie schminkte sich] what was considered to be an un-English manner. ... Charles [ihr Gatte] described Catherine as having two other qualities pleasing in a woman, wit, and a most agreeable voice - a fact confirmed by the man appointed as her Chamberlain, Lord Chesterfield, who also called her voice very pleasing. ... She learnt to speak pretty, broken English ... It amused Charles to tease his Catharine by teaching her English swearwords without telling her what they meant, and then listening to her innocently repeating them. ... In time, Catherine was notably more spontaneous with Charles in public ... she even hugged him in public, something unthinkable to that grave Portuguese Infanta who had arrived at Portsmouth [in 1662]. ... No-one could seriously believe ill of her." (in: Antonia Fraser: King Charles II, id., pp. 207-208/212-213).
Im Herbst 1663 wurde Katharina von Braganza sehr schwer krank. Sie litt laut den zeitgenössischen Quellen an Fleckfieber oder -typhus (in: Francis Lancelott: The Queens of England and their Times, Volume II, id., p. 721: "Mrs. Sarah tells me [Pepys] that the Queen’s sickness [im Jahr 1663] is the spotted fever ...), die vermutlich zusätzlich zu einer Hirnhautentzündung führte. "... during her severe illness ... the delirious Queen raved of pregnancy and childbirth. To the King at her bedside, Catherine confided that she had been delivered of a 'very ugly' boy. 'No, it's a pretty boy,' Charles answered gently. 'If it be like you, it is a fine boy indeed,' whispered the Queen. There followed further rambling remarks on the same subject; at one time the Queen thought she had three children, including a girl who did look like the King. 'How do the children?' she enquired anxiously." (in: Antonia Fraser: King Charles II, id., p. 213). Katharina wünschte sich so sehr Kinder, aber nach zwei Fehlgeburten hatte sie schweren Herzens zu akzeptieren, dass ihr dieser Wunsch verwehrt bleiben sollte. "It was not until 7 May 1668 that the King wrote to his sister [Henriette Anna] that his wife had miscarried that morning. On the same date Pepys reported that the Queen had miscarried 'of a perfect child' about ten weeks old. ... Then in May [1669], exactly a year after her first conception, the Queen was pronounced - possibly - pregnant again by the King. ... As if in confirmation of this, Pepys wrote in his Diary a few days later that everyone at the Court concluded that the Queen was far gone with child! A week later the diarist himself saw the Queen in a white pinner and apron, the maternity dress of the time. ... On 7 June the King wrote again to his sister informing her that a miscarriage had taken place 'after all our hopes' ... What is quite certain is that Catherine never conceived again." (in: Antonia Fraser: King Charles II, id., pp. 259-260).
"Unlike the pomp-loving King and his mistresses, who in splendour rivalled the fabled princes of the east, and decorated their apartments with all that luxury could devise, or wealth procure, Katherine observed a rigid economy, and, in private as well as public, avoided extravagant magnificence and ostentatious display. To her simplicity of taste in the furniture and fittings of her private apartments, Pepys bears evidence in the following words: 'June twenty-fourth, 1664. To Whitehall; and Mr. Pierce showed me the Queen’s bed-chamber, and her closet, where she had nothing but some pretty pious pictures and books of devotion; and her holy water at the head, as she sleeps with a clock by her bedside, wherein a lamp burns that tells her the night.'" (in: Francis Lancelott: The Queens of England and their Times, Volume II, id., p. 722).
"Katherine of Braganza deeply mourned the loss of her beloved husband [im Februar 1685]. For several weeks after his death, she confined herself to a chamber of mourning, where the daylight was shut out and tapers kept burning, and where the floor, the walls, the ceiling, the bed she reclined on, and, in fact, every thing the eye could rest upon, was black. James the Second [ihr Schwager] treated her with kindness, and permitted her to remain at Whitehall till the second week in April, when she removed to her own palace, Somerset House, where she resided with the splendour and dignity becoming a Queen Dowager of England." (in: Francis Lancelott: The Queens of England and their Times, Volume II, id., p. 740).
Katharina verließ England schließlich am 30. März 1692, um in ihre Heimat zurückzukehren. Sie überquerte den Kanal, reiste in aller Gemütlichkeit durch Frankreich und Spanien und traf am 20. Januar 1693 in Lissabon ein. Ihr neues Zuhause war ein königliches Landhaus: Qinta de Alcantara. Ihre beste Freundin wurde ihre Schwägerin Marie Sophie Elisabeth von Pfalz-Neuburg, die zweite Gattin ihres jüngsten Bruders, des Königs Peter II. von Portugal. "After a time, she, to improve her declining health, removed first to the palace of the Conde de Redonda, and then to that of the Conde de Aveiera, at Belem. For the same reason she made a progress to the place of her birth [den Palast Villa Viçosa] in the spring of 1699 … when ill-health forced Don Pedro [= Peter II.] to retire to Beira for change of air, he placed the reins of government in her hands …" Als Regentin ihres Bruders starb sie am 31. Dezember 1705. "She was interred in the monastery of Belem … she instituted Don Pedro her heir, and as she died extremely rich, left bountiful legacies to all her relations and friends, munificent bequests to several Portugal monasteries and convents, founded a Jesuit college for education of missionaries for India, and ordered large sums to be distributed in alms to the poor." (in: Francis Lancelott: The Queens of England and their Times, Volume II, id., p. 742).
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