John VI
John VI (Portuguese: João)(1769–1826), king of Portugal, 1816–26. John assumed rule in 1792, after his mother, Queen Maria I, had become insane. He took the title of regent in 1799 and retained it until his mother's death in 1816. When a French army invaded Portugal in 1807, John fled to Brazil, a Portuguese colony. In 1815 he proclaimed Brazil a kingdom equal to and united with Portugal. John remained in Brazil even after the end of the Napoleonic Wars and the death of his mother. In 1821 he returned to Portugal, leaving his son Dom Pedro as regent of Brazil. Dom Pedro declared Brazil's independence in 1822, and became its emperor.