The Descendants of

Manuel I of Portugal Manuel I (; 31 May 146913 December 1521), known as the Fortunate ( pt, O Venturoso), was King of Portugal from 1495 to 1521. A member of the House of Aviz, Manuel was Duke of Beja and Viseu prior to succeeding his cousin, John II of Portuga ...

, of the

House of Aviz The House of Aviz ( Portuguese: ''Casa de Avis''), also known as the Joanine Dynasty (''Dinastia Joanina''), was a dynasty of Portuguese origin which flourished during the Renaissance and the period of the Portuguese discoveries, when Portugal ...

, left a lasting mark on

Portuguese history The history of Portugal can be traced from circa 400,000 years ago, when the region of present-day Portugal was inhabited by Homo heidelbergensis. The Roman invasion in the 3rd century BC lasted several centuries, and developed the Roman provinc ...

and royalty, and European history and royalty as a whole. Manuel married three times, each time providing children. He first married Isabel of Aragon and Castile, followed by

Maria of Aragon and Castile Maria of Aragon (29 June 1482 – 7 March 1517) was Queen of Portugal as the second spouse of King Manuel I, the widower of her elder sister Isabella. Life Early life Maria was born at Córdoba on 29 June 1482 as the third surviving ...

and lastly

Eleanor of Austria Eleanor of Austria (15 November 1498 – 25 February 1558), also called Eleanor of Castile, was born an Archduchess of Austria and Infanta of Castile from the House of Habsburg, and subsequently became Queen consort of Portugal (1518–1 ...

. His descendants can be found in both reigning and non-reigning royal families all over Europe. This article deals with the children of Manuel I and in turn their senior heirs.

Background on Manuel I

Manuel, born on 31 May 1469 at the Royal Palace at

Alcochete Alcochete () is a municipality in Portugal. The population in 2011 was 17,569, in an area of 128.36 km². The municipality is composed of three parishes and is located in Setúbal District. Alcochete is known for its bullfighting tradition ...

, was the second son of Duke Ferdinand I of Viseu and Beja and Infanta Beatriz of Reguengos.

Throne of Portugal

During Manuel's youth, his cousin

John II of Portugal John II ( pt, João II; ; 3 March 1455 – 25 October 1495), called the Perfect Prince ( pt, o Príncipe Perfeito, link=no), was King of Portugal from 1481 until his death in 1495, and also for a brief time in 1477. He is known for re-establishi ...

was King. John II went through a large process trying to eliminate the powers and wealth of the

Portuguese nobility Portuguese may refer to: * anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Portugal ** Portuguese cuisine, traditional foods ** Portuguese language, a Romance language *** Portuguese dialects, variants of the Portuguese language ** Portu ...

, of which Manuel was a prominent part of. John II had both Duke Diogo I of Viseu and Beja and Duke Fernando II of Braganza put on trial and executed. After Diogo's death, the Dukedoms of Viseu and Beja passed to Manuel, causing Manuel to fear for his own being. In 1491,

Afonso, Prince of Portugal Afonso, Hereditary Prince of Portugal (; 18 May 147513 July 1491) was the heir apparent to the throne of Portugal. He was born in Lisbon, Portugal, and died in a horse-riding accident on the banks of the river Tagus. Heir apparent Afonso, na ...

was killed in a horse riding accident. John II only had one other child, Jorge, Duke of Coimbra, but he was illegitimate. After countless failed efforts by John II to legitimize Jorge, he finally sent a royal order to Manuel in 1493. Once Manuel heard a royal order was on its way to him, he initially thought it to be a summons for a trial, and likely execution, and Manuel worried. However, when the order reached Manuel, he was greatly relieved as the order made Manuel the heir to John II's throne. John II died on 25 October 1495 and Manuel became monarch of Portugal. During his reign, Manuel expanded the

Portuguese Empire The Portuguese Empire ( pt, Império Português), also known as the Portuguese Overseas (''Ultramar Português'') or the Portuguese Colonial Empire (''Império Colonial Português''), was composed of the overseas colonies, factories, and the ...

, making it the most formidable power in all of Europe at the time. From his countless riches from India, after

Vasco da Gama Vasco da Gama, 1st Count of Vidigueira (; ; c. 1460s – 24 December 1524), was a Portuguese explorer and the first European to reach India by sea. His initial voyage to India by way of Cape of Good Hope (1497–1499) was the first to link ...

discovered the maritime passage to there, Manuel created the most luxurious court in all Europe and founded countless architectonic wonders throughout Portugal in the

Manueline style The Manueline ( pt, estilo manuelino, ), occasionally known as Portuguese late Gothic, is the sumptuous, composite Portuguese architectural style originating in the 16th century, during the Portuguese Renaissance and Age of Discoveries. Manuel ...

, named for the king. It is this wealth, power, and prestige that made Manuel's children prime candidates for royal marriages throughout Europe. After King Manuel's death, his descendants would hold a great importance to Portuguese sovereignty and European history. Almost all of Manuel's descendants would become crucial beings in the

Portuguese succession crisis of 1580 The Portuguese succession crisis of 1580 ( pt, Crise de sucessão de 1580) came about as a result of the deaths of young King Sebastian I of Portugal in the Battle of Alcácer Quibir in 1578 and his successor and great-uncle Henry I in 1580. As ...

, the

Iberian Union pt, União Ibérica , conventional_long_name =Iberian Union , common_name = , year_start = 1580 , date_start = 25 August , life_span = 1580–1640 , event_start = War of the Portuguese Succession , event_end = Portuguese Restoration War , ...

, and later the

Portuguese Restoration War The Portuguese Restoration War ( pt, Guerra da Restauração) was the war between Portugal and Spain that began with the Portuguese revolution of 1640 and ended with the Treaty of Lisbon in 1668, bringing a formal end to the Iberian Union. The ...

, as all the claims to the Portuguese throne during these events originated from descendancy from Manuel I.

Descendants by Isabel of Aragon and Castile

On 13 September 1497, Manuel I married Isabel of Aragon and Castile, Princess of Asturias. The couple had 1 child:

Background on Manuel I

Throne of Portugal

Descendants by Isabel of Aragon and Castile

Miguel, Prince of Asturias and Portugal

Descendants by Maria of Aragon and Castile

John III of Portugal

Infanta Isabel of Portugal

Infanta Beatriz of Portugal

Infante Luís, Duke of Beja

Infante Fernando, Duke of Guarda and Trancoso

Cardinal-Infante Afonso of Portugal

Henrique I of Portugal

Infante Duarte I, Duke of Guimarães

Descendants by Eleanor of Austria

Infante Carlos

Infanta Maria, Duchess of Viseu

See also