{{Infobox noble, type , name = Egas Moniz, o Aio , title = Rico-homem , image = Egas Moniz na Estacao S. Bento.png , caption = Egas Moniz presents himself to the King of Leon with his family. , alt = , CoA = , more = no , succession = , reign = , reign-type = , predecessor = , successor = , suc-type = , spouse = Dórdia Pais de Azevedo
Teresa Afonso , spouse-type = , issue = , issue-link = , issue-pipe = , full name = , styles = , titles = , noble family = , house-type = , father = , mother = , birth_date = 1080 , birth_place =

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...

, christening_date = , christening_place = , death_date = 1146 , death_place =

, burial_date = , burial_place = , religion =

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

, occupation = , memorials = , website = , module = Egas Moniz de Riba Douro, also known as ''o Aio'' ('the Tutor') (1080-1146) was a Portuguese nobleman, who served in the Portuguese Crown as the tutor of

Afonso Henriques Afonso I of PortugalOr also ''Affonso'' (Archaic Portuguese-Galician) or ''Alphonso'' (Portuguese-Galician) or ''Alphonsus'' (Latin version), sometimes rendered in English as ''Alphonzo'' or ''Alphonse'', depending on the Spanish or French inf ...

Biography

Born in 1080 in the County of Portugal, Egas Moniz was a rich nobleman, member of the five major families of

Entre-Douro-e-Minho Entre Douro e Minho () is one of the historical provinces of Portugal which encompassed the country's northern Atlantic seaboard between the Douro and Minho rivers. Contemporaries often referred to the province as simply "Minho". It was one of ...

of the 12th century, to whom Henry, Count of Portugal, entrusted the education of his son

, a task that gave the nickname by which he became known. He was Tenente of

Lamego Lamego (; cel-x-proto, Lamecum) is a city and municipality in the Viseu District, in the Norte Region, Portugal, Norte Region of the Douro Subregion, Douro in northern Portugal. Located on the shores of the Balsemão River, the municipality has a ...

between 1102-1111.{{Citation , title=Dom Egas Moniz de Ribadouro, "o Honrado e o Bem-Aventurado., year=1946, publisher=A. de Almeida Fernandes, url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HIk6AQAAIAAJ&q=egas+moniz+tenente+Lamego Later in 1136, he served as Mordomo Mór of Portugal, until his death in 1146. Egas Moniz was son of Monio Ermiges, ''o Gasco'' (the Gascon) and Ouroana. He had two wives, the first was Dórdia Pais de Azevedo, daughter of Paio Godins de Azevedo and Gontinha Nunes Velho. His second marriage was with the Countess Teresa Afonso de Celanova, a noble lady, daughter of Afonso Nunes de Celanova and Maria Fernandes.{{Citation , title=D. Afonso Henriques, year=2007, publisher=José Mattoso, isbn=9789727599110, url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Y5MvAQAAMAAJ&q=egas+moniz+Condessa+Teresa+Afonso

The Legend of Egas Moniz, o Aio

During the siege of

Guimarães Guimarães () is a city and municipality located in northern Portugal, in the district of Braga. Its historic town centre has been listed as a UNESCWorld Heritage Sitesince 2001, in recognition for being an "exceptionally well-preserved and a ...

Alfonso VII Alphons (Latinized ''Alphonsus'', ''Adelphonsus'', or ''Adefonsus'') is a male given name recorded from the 8th century (Alfonso I of Asturias, r. 739–757) in the Christian successor states of the Visigothic kingdom in the Iberian peninsula. ...

, then the county's political headquarters, the Emperor reportedly demanded an oath of vassalage from his cousin Afonso Henriques; Egas Moniz addressed the emperor, informing him that his cousin accepted submission. However, after relocating his capital to

Coimbra Coimbra (, also , , or ) is a city and a municipality in Portugal. The population of the municipality at the 2011 census was 143,397, in an area of . The fourth-largest urban area in Portugal after Lisbon, Porto Metropolitan Area, Porto, and Bra ...

(1131), Afonso Henriques felt an urgent need to destroy the ties that bound him to Alfonso VII. With that he declared war and invaded Galicia. As Afonso Henriques did not live up to what was agreed by his tutor, Egas Moniz, having learned what happened, went to Toledo, the imperial capital, accompanied by his wife and children, all barefoot, dressed in white and with a tether around the neck. Introducing himself to the Emperor, he let him dispose of his life and of his own as a pledge for maintaining the oath of allegiance promised by him but not fulfilled by his pupil. The emperor, moved with such honor, is said to have forgiven him and sent him back to Portugal in peace. This part of Egas Moniz's life is retold by Camões in the Lusíadas Song III (stanzas 35-40).

References

External links

* http://www.arqnet.pt/dicionario/afonso1.html {{DEFAULTSORT:Moniz, Egas, Aio 1080 births 1146 deaths Portuguese nobility 11th-century Portuguese people 12th-century Portuguese people {{Portugal-bio-stub {{Europe-noble-stub