This miniature was painted by the little-known miniaturist William Barclay in 1843 in Lisbon where he had been sent by Queen Victoria to paint the Portuguese Royal family. The main result of his stay was a large-scale cabinet piece of Pedro V when Duke of Braganza and Luis I when Duke of Oporto (421674), but he also produced this small bust-length miniature of the Duke of Braganza with a companion piece of the Duke of Oporto (420397).

Pedro, Duke of Braganza, was the eldest son of Maria II, Queen of Portugal, and Ferdinand, Prince of Saxe-Coburg. Pedro succeeded to the throne of Portugal in 1853 and reigned under the regency of his father, Ferdinand II, until he came of age in 1855. He married, in 1858, Stephanie, daughter of Karl Anton, Prince of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen, but died from typhoid in 1861 and was succeeded by his brother, Luis I.