Dom João I of Braganza (1543 – 22 February 1583) was the 6th

Duke of Braganza The title Duke of Braganza ( pt, Duque de Bragança) in the House of Braganza is one of the most important titles in the peerage of Portugal. Starting in 1640, when the House of Braganza acceded to the throne of Portugal, the male heir of the P ...

and 1st Duke of Barcelos, among other titles. He is known for pushing the claims of his wife, Infanta Catherine of Guimarães, to the throne of Portugal.

Life

In 1563 he married his 1st cousin

Infanta ''Infante'' (, ; f. ''infanta''), also anglicised as Infant or translated as Prince, is the title and rank given in the Iberian kingdoms of Spain (including the predecessor kingdoms of Aragon, Castile, Navarre, and León) and Portugal to th ...

Catherine Katherine, also spelled Catherine, and other variations are feminine names. They are popular in Christian countries because of their derivation from the name of one of the first Christian saints, Catherine of Alexandria. In the early Christ ...

, daughter of

Prince A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. ...

Edward, Duke of Guimarães and Isabel of Braganza (João's aunt). After the disaster of the Battle of Ksar El Kebir, where heirless

King King is the title given to a male monarch in a variety of contexts. The female equivalent is queen regnant, queen, which title is also given to the queen consort, consort of a king. *In the context of prehistory, antiquity and contempora ...

Sebastian of Portugal died, the aged Cardinal Henry of Portugal had become King. Because Henry was old and was not allowed to have legitimate children, a dynastical crisis occurred even before the death of the Cardinal. The

supported his wife's claim to the throne (she was a granddaughter of King

Manuel I Manuel I may refer to: *Manuel I Komnenos, Byzantine emperor (1143–1180) *Manuel I of Trebizond, Emperor of Trebizond (1228–1263) *Manuel I of Portugal Manuel I (; 31 May 146913 December 1521), known as the Fortunate ( pt, O Venturoso), was ...

Philip II of Spain Philip II) in Spain, while in Portugal and his Italian kingdoms he ruled as Philip I ( pt, Filipe I). (21 May 152713 September 1598), also known as Philip the Prudent ( es, Felipe el Prudente), was King of Spain from 1556, King of Portugal from ...

(another grandson of Manuel I and also claimant to the throne), tried to bribe him to abandon his wife's pretensions, offering him the Vice-Kingdom of

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

, the post of Grand-Master of the Order of Christ, a license to send a personal ship to

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area, the List of countries and dependencies by population, second-most populous ...

every year, and the marriage of his eldest son Teodósio of Braganza to one of his daughters (either

Isabella Clara Eugenia Isabella Clara Eugenia ( es, link=no, Isabel Clara Eugenia; 12 August 1566 – 1 December 1633), sometimes referred to as Clara Isabella Eugenia, was sovereign of the Spanish Netherlands in the Low Countries and the north of modern France with ...

or Catherine Michaela). The Duke of Braganza, influenced by his wife, refused the proposal.

Portuguese succession crisis

When the Cardinal-King died, the Duke accompanied the governors of the Kingdom to

Lisbon Lisbon (; pt, Lisboa ) is the capital and largest city of Portugal, with an estimated population of 544,851 within its administrative limits in an area of 100.05 km2. Lisbon's urban area extends beyond the city's administrative limits w ...

and

Setúbal Setúbal (, , ; cel-x-proto, Caetobrix) is a city and a municipality in Portugal. The population in 2014 was 118,166, occupying an area of . The city itself had 89,303 inhabitants in 2001. It lies within the Lisbon metropolitan area. In the t ...

, trying to assure recognition for his wife's claim, but ultimately gave up and accepted the rule of Philip II (future Philip I of Portugal). After the civil war that followed, Anthony, Prior of Crato was defeated at the Battle of Alcântara, and Philip II entered Portugal and was confirmed by the

Cortes Cortes, Cortés, Cortês, Corts, or Cortès may refer to: People * Cortes (surname), including a list of people with the name ** Hernán Cortés (1485–1547), a Spanish conquistador Places * Cortes, Navarre, a village in the South border of ...

Tomar Tomar (), also known in English as Thomar (the ancient name of Tomar), is a city and a municipality in the Santarém district of Portugal. The town proper has a population of about 20,000. The municipality population in 2011 was 40,677, in an a ...

, where João occupied the post of Constable. When King Philip left to

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = '' Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , ...

, he endowed the post of

Constable A constable is a person holding a particular office, most commonly in criminal law enforcement. The office of constable can vary significantly in different jurisdictions. A constable is commonly the rank of an officer within the police. Other peop ...

of Kingdom to João's heir Teodósio, 7th Duke of Braganza, a marquessate ( Flexilla-Xarandilla) to his second son, ''Dom'' Duarte, and a commandment and many concessions to the third, ''Dom'' Alexandre, who was destined to become an ecclesiastic. He confirmed João's title of ''His

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 r ...

'' and his rights of chancellery. He died at

Vila Viçosa Vila Viçosa () is a town and a municipality in the District of Évora, Alentejo in Portugal. The population in 2011 was 8,319, in an area of 194.86 km². The municipal holiday is August 16. Parishes Administratively, the municipality is d ...

in 1583.

Marriage and issue

Of Catherine, Duchess of Braganza: * Maria of Braganza (January 27, 1565 – April 30, 1592) * Serafina of Braganza (1566–1604), married to Juan Fernandez Pacheco, 5th Duke of Escalona * Teodósio II, 7th Duke of Braganza (1568–1630), father of the future king João IV of Portugal, married Ana de Velasco y Giron, daughter of Duque de Frias * Duarte de Portugal (1569–1627), 1st Marquis of Frechilla (i.e. Flexilla) * Alexandre of Braganza,

Archbishop of Évora In Christian denominations, an archbishop is a bishop of higher rank or office. In most cases, such as the Catholic Church, there are many archbishops who either have jurisdiction over an ecclesiastical province in addition to their own archdioc ...

* Querubina of Braganza (1572–1580) * Angélica of Braganza (1573–1576) * * Isabella of Braganza (1578–1582) * Filipe of Braganza (1581–1608)

Ancestry

Bibliography

* "Nobreza de Portugal e Brasil", Vol. II pages 445 to 448. Published by Zairol Lda., Lisbon 1989

External links

Genealogy of João I, 6th Duke of Braganza (in Portuguese)
, - {{DEFAULTSORT:Joao 1 Of Braganza, Duke Portuguese royalty House of Braganza 1543 births 1583 deaths Dukes of Braganza 101 16th-century Portuguese people Constables of Portugal Portuguese nobility