Álvaro of Braganza ( 1440 – 1504, Toledo) was the 4th son of
Ferdinand I, 2nd Duke of Braganza and his wife, ''Dona'' Joana de Castro.
Biography
He played an important role during the reign of King
Afonso V of Portugal
Afonso V (; 15 January 1432 – 28 August 1481), known by the sobriquet the African (), was King of Portugal from 1438 until his death in 1481, with a brief interruption in 1477. His sobriquet refers to his military conquests in Northern Africa. ...
, when he was appointed
Chancellor
Chancellor () is a title of various official positions in the governments of many countries. The original chancellors were the of Roman courts of justice—ushers, who sat at the (lattice work screens) of a basilica (court hall), which separa ...
of the Kingdom. He took part in the king's expeditions against
Castile (
War of the Castilian Succession
The War of the Castilian Succession was the military conflict contested from 1475 to 1479 for the succession of the Crown of Castile fought between the supporters of Joanna 'la Beltraneja', reputed daughter of the late monarch Henry IV of Castil ...
) and in the king's voyage to France. On his return to Portugal, he married ''Dona'' Filipa de Melo (c. 1460–1516), the rich daughter and heiress of
Rodrigo Afonso de Melo, 1st Count of Olivença. They had two sons and four daughters:
*Rodrigo de Melo (1468–1545), made 1st
Count of Tentúgal (by royal decree of King
Manuel I of Portugal
Manuel I (; 31 May 146913 December 1521), known as the Fortunate (), 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 Portugal, as monarch. Manu ...
, dated from 1504) and 1st
Marquis of Ferreira (by royal decree of King
John III of Portugal
John III ( ; 6 June 1502 – 11 June 1557), nicknamed The Pious ( Portuguese: ''o Piedoso''), was the King of Portugal and the Algarve from 1521 until he died in 1557. He was the son of King Manuel I and Maria of Aragon, the third daughter of ...
, dated from 1533). He was the origin of the
House of Cadaval;
*Jorge Alberto de Portugal y Melo (1470- ? ), made 1st Count of Gelves (in Spain) by King
Charles I of Spain
Charles V (24 February 1500 – 21 September 1558) was Holy Roman Emperor and Archduke of Austria from 1519 to 1556, King of Spain (as Charles I) from 1516 to 1556, and Lord of the Netherlands as titular Duke of Burgundy (as Charles II) fr ...
(emperor Charles V); married firstly Guiomar, the daughter of the Conde de Bedigueyra, and had no successors with her; and married secondly Isabel Colón de Toledo, daughter of
Diego Columbus
Diego Columbus (; ; ; 1479/1480 – February 23, 1526) was a navigator and explorer under the Kings of Castile and Aragón. He served as the 2nd Admiral of the Indies, 2nd Viceroy of the Indies and 4th Governor of the Indies as a vassal to the K ...
(son of Christopher Columbus), I Duque de Veragua, I Marqués of Jamaica and doña María de Toledo y Roxas, and had children;
*Isabel de Castro, married the Spanish Alonso de Sotomaior, 4th Count of Belalcazar;
*Beatriz de Vilhena, married the Portuguese
Infante
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 the ...
George, Duke of Coimbra;
*Joana de Vilhena, married the Portuguese Francisco de Portugal, 1st
Count of Vimioso;
*Maria de Menezes, married the Portuguese João da Silva, 1st
Count of Portalegre.
When King
John II of Portugal
John II (; ; 3 May 1455 – 25 October 1495), called the Perfect Prince (), was King of Portugal from 1481 until his death in 1495, and also for a brief time in 1477. He is known for reestablishing the power of the Portuguese monarchy, reinvigo ...
succeeded on the throne of Portugal and started his fight against the high aristocracy, namely the
Braganzas, ''Dom'' Álvaro tried an approach with the King, but he was unsuccessful; his older brother,
Ferdinand II, 3rd Duke of Braganza was executed, the family estates were confiscated, and the remaining family (Álvaro included) exiled to
Castile.
Queen
Isabella I
Isabella I (; 22 April 1451 – 26 November 1504), also called Isabella the Catholic (Spanish: ''Isabel la Católica''), was Queen of Castile and List of Leonese monarchs, León from 1474 until her death in 1504. She was also Queen of Aragon ...
granted ''Dom'' Álvaro important estates in
Gelves
Gelves is a city located in the province of Seville, in Andalusia, Spain. According to the 2006 census ( INE), the city has a population of 8,325 inhabitants. It lies on the west bank of the Guadalquivir river.
The city of Gelves is not to be con ...
, and he was appointed Mayor of
Seville
Seville ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Spain, Spanish autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Andalusia and the province of Seville. It is situated on the lower reaches of the Guadalquivir, River Guadalquivir, ...
and
Andújar
Andújar () is a Spanish municipality of 35,619 people (2024) in the province of Jaén, in Andalusia. The municipality is divided by the Guadalquivir River. The northern part of the municipality is where the Natural Park of the Sierra de And ...
. He also took part in the conquest of the
Kingdom of Granada
The Emirate of Granada, also known as the Nasrid Kingdom of Granada, was an Islamic polity in the southern Iberian Peninsula during the Late Middle Ages, ruled by the Nasrid dynasty. It was the last independent Muslim state in Western Europe.
...
led by the
Catholic Monarchs
The Catholic Monarchs were Isabella I of Castile, Queen Isabella I of Crown of Castile, Castile () and Ferdinand II of Aragon, King Ferdinand II of Crown of Aragón, Aragon (), whose marriage and joint rule marked the ''de facto'' unification of ...
.
When King John II died, Álvaro of Braganza returned to Portugal, where the new king,
Manuel I, appointed him as special ambassador to
Castile to negotiate the King's marriage to princess
Isabella, Princess of Asturias (1470-1498). Later he also negotiated the King's second marriage.
Álvaro of Braganza died in
Toledo and his body was later transferred to the Convent of St. John Evangelist, in
Évora
Évora ( , ), officially the Very Noble and Ever Loyal City of Évora (), is a city and a municipalities of Portugal, municipality in Portugal. It has 53,591 inhabitants (2021), in an area of . It is the historic capital of the Alentejo reg ...
.
Gallery
Image:Armas senhores cadaval.png, Coat of Arms of Álvaro of Braganza after his marriage with Philippa of Melo, mixing the Braganzas coat of arms with the Melo family's.
Image:Armas duques cadaval.png, The Coat of Arms of the Dukes of Cadaval, descendants of ''Dom'' Álvaro.
Ancestry
See also
*
House of Braganza
The Most Serene House of Braganza (), also known as the Brigantine dynasty (''dinastia Brigantina''), is a dynasty of emperors, kings, princes, and dukes of Portuguese people, Portuguese origin which reigned in Europe and the Americas.
The hous ...
*
Duke of Braganza
The title Duke of Braganza () 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 Portuguese Crown were ...
*
Duke of Cadaval
Duke of Cadaval is a title of Portuguese nobility. It was created on 26 April 1648 by King John IV of Portugal for his distant cousin, ''Dom'' Nuno Álvares Pereira de Melo (1638–1725), who was already 4th Marquis of Ferreira and 5th Count o ...
References
Bibliography
*"Nobreza de Portugal e do Brasil" – Vol. II, pages 439–440. Published by Zairol Lda., Lisbon 1989.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Alvaro of Braganza
1504 deaths
House of Braganza
1440s births
15th-century Portuguese people
16th-century Portuguese people