Portuguese monarchs


The monarchs of Portugal all came from a single ancestor, Afonso I of Portugal, but direct lines have sometimes ended. This has led to a variety of royal houses coming to rule Portugal, though all having Portuguese royal lineage. These houses are:
- The House of Burgundy (1139–1383)
- The House of Aviz (1385–1581)
- The House of Habsburg (1581–1640)
- The House of Braganza (1640–1910) ((Our SL is based on this period of time))
Dukes of Braganza (before ascension to the throne)
Name | Became duke | Notes |
---|---|---|
Afonso I of Braganza | 1443 | Duke of Braganza; Count of Barcelos |
Fernando I of Braganza | 1461 | Duke of Braganza; Marquis of Vila Viçosa |
Fernando II of Braganza | 1478 | Duke of Braganza; Duke of Guimarães |
Jaime I of Braganza | 1498 | Duke of Braganza |
Teodósio I of Braganza | 1532 | Duke of Braganza; ceded Dukedom of Guimarães |
João I of Braganza | 1563 | Duke of Braganza; Duke of Barcelos |
Teodósio II of Braganza | 1583 | Duke of Braganza |
João II of Braganza
(John in our SL’s)
|
1630
|
Duke of Braganza; Duke of Guimarães; first Braganza monarch of Portugal (1640)João IV of Portugal |
The Storylines from our team are based loosely on the following events and dates in history.
- 1640: A small group of conspirators stormed the royal palace in Lisbon and deposed the Vicereine of Portugal, Margaret of Savoy on 1 December 1640. She, famously, tried to calm the Portuguese people during demonstrations in the Terreiro do Paço, at the time, Lisbon’s main square, but her efforts failed. The Duke of Bragança, head of the senior family among the Portuguese nobility, accepted the throne as João IV of Portugal later the same day. João IV’s entire reign was dominated by the struggle to maintain Portuguese independence.((SL Fight for the Crown))
- 1641: A counter-revolution mounted by the Inquisition failed. It was quelled by Francisco de Lucena, who had its leaders executed. Miguel Luís de Menezes, 2nd Duke of Caminha, was executed for continuing to support the Habsburgs’ claim to the Portuguese throne.
- 1641: Portugal signed alliances with France (1 June 1641) and Sweden (August 1641). ( Aurore Braganza, Nee Troisville is the Queen consort to John Braganza in our SL’s)
- 1641: Portugal and the Dutch Republic signed a ‘Treaty of Offensive and Defensive Alliance’, otherwise known as the Treaty of The Hague, on 12 July 1641. The treaty was not respected by either party; as a consequence, it had no effect on the Portuguese dependencies of Brazil and Angola that were under Dutch occupation.
Current SL Births Deaths & War
- 1644: The Battle of Montijo near Badajoz, between the Portuguese and the Spanish, was fought on 26 May 1644.
- 1644: The Portuguese city of Elvas withstood a nine-day siege by Spanish troops.
Portuguese Restoration War
This period of sporadic conflict was simply known, in Portugal and elsewhere, as the Acclamation War. The war established the House of Braganza as Portugal’s new ruling dynasty, replacing the House of Habsburg. This ended the so-called Iberian Union.
Waged the Restoration War, and was acclaimed King John IV. (SL fight for the crown)
We hope to release the third book in the series “Winds of Change.”
When Philip II of Portugal (Philip III of Spain) died, he was succeeded by his son Philip III, had a different approach to Portuguese issues. Taxes on the Portuguese merchants were raised, the Portuguese nobility began to lose its influence at the Spanish Cortes, and government posts in Portugal were increasingly occupied by Spaniards. Ultimately, Philip III tried to make Portugal a Spanish province, and Portuguese nobles stood to lose all of their power.
This situation culminated in a revolution organized by the nobility and bourgeoisie, executed on 1 December 1640, sixty years after the crowning of Philip I (Philip II of Spain), the first “dual monarchy”. The plot was planned by Antão Vaz de Almada, Miguel de Almeida, and João Pinto Ribeiro. They, together with several associates, known as the Forty Conspirators, killed the Secretary of State, Miguel de Vasconcelos, and imprisoned the king’s cousin, Margaret of Savoy, who had been governing Portugal in his name. The moment was well chosen; Philip’s troops were, at the time, fighting the Thirty Years’ Warand also facing a revolution in Catalonia which became known as the Reapers’ War.
One of our earliest SL’s featured the Catalonia revolt (Reapers War), we took a certain poetic licence with John and Aurore in Catalonia fighting against the Spanish forces to undermine Spain’s control over the region.
The introduction to “Fight for the crown…..by John Braganza.
John, 8th Duke of Braganza*He stared out of the window, waiting for the seal to set on his latest communication to @Olivares_RP, yet another protest about the overuse of the resources of Catalan and the impossibly high taxes being demanded from his long-suffering people. Something had to be done He needed weapons to fight back, to arm the revolt that would rid his country of Spanish rule. He sighed. Who was he fooling?
Where was he going to get the weapons required for that? All he could do was write letter after letter, knowing full well that they would be glanced at and ignored. Oh, politely, of course. He was always granted the respect due to his status, but little else.
His thoughts drifted to earlier times, happier times when his words actually meant something. When his actions had an effect. The corners of his mouth twitched into a smile, remembering a time when his words and actions definitely had an effect, judging from the smiles that had graced her face, the way her dark lashes had fluttered, the way her pale skin had flushed. They had been happy times, even though they were fraught with danger, for both parties. Yet, they had both lived for the thrill, snatching private moments where possible, each knowing exactly what they were doing and what might happen if it all went wrong.
The smile slipped from his face. And it had all gone wrong. He’d been forced to leave, rather more hurriedly than he’d hoped, to try and protect her from his own enemies. They were men she definitely didn’t need to meet, under any circumstances. He never even had the time to write her a farewell note. He’d prayed that she’d realised why he’d had to leave so suddenly, and hadn’t thought too badly of him. He knew, from reliable if not reputable sources, that she had indeed made her own retreat successfully and without lasting harm. Still, that was no more than he’d expected. After all, her uncle had been the Captain of the King’s Musketeers and was now one of the King’s most trusted confidants. The instinct to survive was in her bloodline. He shook his head and dropped the letter onto the pile of outgoing papers, wondering if the rumours were right. Was she really heading to Portugal? It would be a huge risk on her part if it was true. Still, if she requested an audience, it would only be polite to grant the request. He would, of course, have to ensure she was unarmed first. His eyes twinkled briefly thinking about the possibilities. Maybe it would be a good idea to keep watchful eye on the ships due into Porto, just in case
Aurore Troiseville Travels to Portugal under orders from her uncle Captain Troisville to strengthen the alliance with Duke Braganza and thus undermine the Spanish King.
@auroretrav2014; I will join a ship taking me to Porto, Portugal, arrangements already have been made by Captain Treville, my uncle. A meeting will take place in secretly with John @DukeBraganza, so secret not even my dear friend Noor or Nerine are party to this information, both thinking I am away at my country estate in Gascony. Albain appears at the table with mulled wine laced with brandy, for which I am grateful as I take small sips relaxing and any trepidation regarding my secret mission disappears, for this life I have chosen willingly in the service of my country. The clock strikes the half hour past six Albain offers his gloved hand assisting me up from my chair, slipping the black cape around my shoulders, I pass my arm through his, he deafly escorts me to the coach taking my hand to assist my assent into my seat. He grins broadly and winks as he shuts the coach door where my five travel companions are already seated, with relief I sit near a window avoiding their inquisitive looks, taking one last look at Albain with a week smile, not knowing if I will ever return, the coachman lightly taps the horses with his whip, no going back now. I sigh as my adventure begins*
((Aurore Braganza in our storylines))
The support of the people became apparent almost immediately, and, within a matter of hours, Philip III’s 6th cousin John, 8th Duke of Braganza was acclaimed as King John IV of Portugal; the news spread like wildfire throughout the country. By 2 December 1640, the day following the coup, John IV, acting in his capacity as sovereign of the country, had already sent a letter to the Municipal Chamber of Évora.
The ensuing conflict with Spain brought Portugal into the Thirty Years’ War as, at least, a peripheral player. From 1641 to 1668, the period during which the two nations were at war, Spain sought to isolate Portugal militarily and diplomatically, and Portugal tried to find the resources to maintain its independence through political alliances and maintenance of its colonial income. Immediately after assuming the Portuguese throne, João IV (John, 8th Duke of Braganza) took several steps to strengthen his position. On 11 December 1640, a ‘Council of War’ was created to organize all of the operations. Next, the king created the ‘Junta of the Frontiers’ to take care of the fortresses near the border, the hypothetical defence of Lisbon, and the garrisons and seaports.
A year later, in December 1641, he created a tenancy to assure that all of the country’s fortresses would be upgraded and that the improvements would be financed with regional taxes. João IV (John, 8th Duke of Braganza) also organized the army, re-established the ‘Military Laws of King Sebastian‘, and undertook a diplomatic campaign focused on restoring good relations with England.
Relations between France and Spain
In 1640, Cardinal Richelieu, the chief adviser to Louis XIII of France, was fully aware of the fact that France was operating under strained circumstances. Louis was at war with Spain at that time; he had to control rebellions within France that were supported and financed by Madrid, and he had to send French armies to fight the Spanish Habsburgs on three different fronts. In addition to their shared frontier at the Pyrenees, Philip IV of Spain, formerly Philip III of Portugal as well, reigned, under various titles, in Flanders and the Franche-Comté, to the north and east of France. In addition, Philip IV controlled large territories in Italy, where he could, at will, impose a fourth front by attacking French-controlled Savoy. (In Savoy, Christine Marie of France was acting as regent on behalf of her young son, Charles Emmanuel II, Duke of Savoy.)
Winds of change “Fate” Book one.
(Due to be released summer 2019)
Winds of change book two “Destiny” ………..(release date to be anounced in 2019)
Spain had enjoyed the reputation of having the most formidable military force in Europe, with the introduction of the arquebus and the so-called “Spanish School”. This reputation and tactic had however diminished with the Thirty Years’ War. Nevertheless, the consummate statesman, Richelieu, decided to force Philip IV to look to his own internal problems. In order to divert the Spanish troops besieging France, Louis XIII, on the advice of Richelieu, supported the claim of (John, 8th Duke of Braganza) João IV of Portugal during the Acclamation War. This was done on the reasoning that a Portuguese war would drain Spanish resources and manpower.
Relations between Portugal and France
To fulfil the common foreign-policy interests of Portugal and France, a treaty of alliance between the two countries was concluded at Paris on 1 June 1641. It lasted eighteen years before Richelieu’s successor as unofficial foreign minister, Cardinal Mazarin, broke the treaty and abandoned his Portuguese and Catalan allies to sign a separate peace with Madrid. The Treaty of the Pyrenees was signed in 1659, under the terms of which France received the portion of Catalonia north of the Pyrenees, known as the Roussillon, and part of the Cerdanya (French Cerdagne). Most important to the Portuguese, the French recognised Philip IV of Spain as the legitimate king of Portugal.
Seven years later, in the late stages of the Portuguese Restoration War, relations between the two countries thawed to the extent that the young (but sickly) Afonso VI of Portugal married a French princess, Marie Françoise of Nemours.
Relations between Portugal and England
England was, at this time, embroiled in its own civil war. Portuguese problems in dealing with England arose from the fact that the English Parliament fought and won its anti-royalist war while, at the same time, Portugal’s royal court continued to receive and recognize English princes and nobles. These strained relations persisted during the short-lived Commonwealth period when the republican government that had deposed Charles I ruled England and then Ireland and Scotland.
(9) Intrigue, power and plots! https://wp.me/P4TvvH-2p6
(10) Diplomatic Alliences https://wp.me/P4TvvH-2tf
After the restoration of the Stuart dynasty, it became possible for Portugal to compensate for the lack of French support by renewing its alliance with England. This took the form of a dynastic marriage between Charles II and Afonso VI‘s ( Alexandre in our SL) sister, Catherine of Braganza , (Catherine a baby in our SL) which assured Portugal of outside support in its conflict with Spain. The English alliance helped peace with Spain, since Spain had been drained by the Thirty Years’ War, and it had no stomach for further warfare with other European powers, especially a resurgent England.
Our storylines “Fight for the crown and “Births Deaths and War”https://authors-diary.blog/sls-as-posted-on-twitter/affairs-at-court/
War
Militarily, the Portuguese Restoration War consisted mainly of border skirmishes and cavalry raids to sack border towns, combined with occasional invasions and counter-invasions, many of them half-hearted and under-financed. There were only five major set-piece battles during the twenty-eight years of hostilities.
The war may be considered to have had three periods:
- first, an early stage (1640–1646) when a few major engagements demonstrated that the Portuguese could not be easily returned to submission to the Spanish Habsburgs;
- second, a long period (1646–1660) of military standoffs, characterized by small-scale raiding, while Spain concentrated on its military commitments elsewhere in Europe;
- third, a final period (1660–1668) during which the Spanish king, Philip IV, unsuccessfully sought a decisive victory that would bring an end to hostilities.
First stage: battles
António Luís de Meneses, Marquis of Marialva, led victories at the Lines of Elvas.
Hoping for a quick victory in Portugal, Spain immediately committed seven regiments to the Portuguese frontier, but delays by the Count of Monterrey, a commander with more interest in the comforts of life at camp than the battlefield, squandered any immediate advantage. A Portuguese counter-thrust in late 1641 failed, and the conflict soon settled into a stalemate.
Battle of Montijo
On 26 May 1644, a large column of Spanish troops and mercenaries, commanded by the Neapolitan marquis of Torrecusa, was stopped at the Battle of Montijo by the Portuguese, who were led by the Matias de Albuquerque, one of a number of experienced Portuguese colonial officers who rose to prominence during the war.
First siege of Elvas
Shortly thereafter, in November 1644, Torrecusa crossed from Badajoz, in a rare winter campaign, to attack the Portuguese town of Elvas, which he besieged for nine days. He suffered heavy losses and was forced back across the border.
(Our current part of the Story Line! (Birth, Death & War) Featuring Abilio’s stronghold at Elvas with King Johns army encamped within the star fort.) https://wp.me/P4TvvH-2wP
Elvas (Portuguese pronunciation: [ˈɛɫvɐʃ]) is a Portuguese municipality, former episcopal city and frontier fortress of easternmost central Portugal, located in the district of Portalegre in Alentejo. It is situated about 200 kilometres (120 mi) east of Lisbon, and about 8 kilometres (5.0 mi) west of the Spanish fortress of Badajoz. The inscribed site name is Garrison Border Town of Elvas and its Fortifications.
The war now took on a peculiar character. It became a frontier confrontation, often between local forces, neighbours who knew each other well, but this familiarity did not moderate the destructive and blood-thirsty impulses of either side. The wanton nature of the combat was often exacerbated by the use of mercenaries and foreign conscripts; incidents of singular cruelty were reported on both sides. The Portuguese settled old animosities that had festered during sixty years of Spanish domination, and the Spanish often took the view that their opponents were disloyal and rebellious subjects, not an opposing army entitled to respectful treatment under the rules of combat.
Attrition and corruption
Spain, at first, made the war a defensive one. Portugal, for its part, felt no need to take Spanish territory in order to win, and it too was willing to make the war a defensive contest. Campaigns typically consisted of correrias (cavalry raids) to burn fields, sack towns, and steal large herds of enemy cattle and sheep. Soldiers and officers, many of them mercenaries, were primarily interested in booty and prone to desertion. For long periods, without men or money, neither side mounted formal campaigns, and when actions were taken, they were often driven as much by political considerations, such as Portugal’s need to impress potential allies, as by clear military objectives. Year after year, given the problems of campaigning in the winter, and the heat and dry conditions of summer, most of the serious fighting was confined to two relatively short “campaign seasons” in the spring and fall.
The war settled into a pattern of mutual destruction. As early as December 1641, it was common to hear Spaniards throughout the country lament that “Extremadura is finished.” Tax collectors, recruiting officers, billeted soldiers, and depredations by Spanish and foreign troops were loathed and feared by the Spanish population as much as raids by the enemy.
Frederico, Count of Mértola, who was in command of the English contingent brigade in Portugal
By 1662, Spain had committed itself to a major effort to end the war. John of Austria the Younger, Philip IV’s illegitimate son, led 14,000 men into Alentejo, and, the following year, they succeeded in taking Évora, the major city of the region.
The Portuguese, under António Luís de Meneses, 1st Marquess of Marialva were bolstered by the arrival of a British brigade which numbered 3,000 in August 1662. Many were veterans of the English Civil War and the Dutch Revolt.[4] They were led by the German soldier of fortune, Friedrich Hermann von Schönberg, Count of Mértola, The brigade under Schomberg’s leadership, proved a decisive factor in winning back Portugal’s independence.
They defeated the Spanish in a major engagement at Ameixial on 8 June 1663, and this forced John of Austria to abandon Évora and retreat across the border with heavy losses.