His Most Faithful Majesty's Council was the
privy council
A privy council is a body that advises the head of state of a state, typically, but not always, in the context of a monarchic government. The word "privy" means "private" or "secret"; thus, a privy council was originally a committee of the mon ...
of the
Kings of Portugal. It was composed of a small group of
fidalgos of great social and political importance.
In political importance, only his
Most Faithful Majesty
Most Faithful Majesty ( pt, Sua Majestade Fidelíssima) was the title used by the Portuguese monarchs, from 1748 to 1910.
The sobriquet Most Faithful King ( la, Rex Fidelissimus, pt, link=no, Rei Fidelíssimo) was a title awarded by the Pope Be ...
's ministers were above the council, though they were often part of the council as well.
Fidalgos
A member of the council was called a Fidalgo of His Most Faithful Majesty's Council. If the members of the council did not have a title from
Portuguese nobility, he would be addressed as "my Fidalgo" or "my Lord", by his inferiors, and "Counselor" or "Lord Counselor," by his peers in his social scale or higher. Alongside this, a member of His Most Faithful Majesty's Council was granted the styling of
Excellency
Excellency is an honorific style given to certain high-level officers of a sovereign state, officials of an international organization, or members of an aristocracy. Once entitled to the title "Excellency", the holder usually retains the right ...
.
References
{{portugal-stub
1910 disestablishments in Portugal
Kingdom of Portugal
Politics of Portugal
Privy councils