Dona Beatriz de Menezes (1400 – ) (sometimes written as 'Brites de Meneses') was a Portuguese noblewoman. She was the 2nd Countess of Vila Real from 1437, a title she shared with her consort,

Fernando de Noronha Fernando de Noronha (), officially the State District of Fernando de Noronha () and formerly known as the Federal Territory of Fernando de Noronha () until 1988, is an archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean, part of the state of Pernambuco, Brazil, and ...

. Brites de Meneses was the eldest legitimate daughter of D.

Pedro de Menezes, 1st Count of Vila Real Pedro de Menezes Portocarrero, (1370 – Ceuta, 22 September 1437) was a 15th-century Portuguese nobleman and military figure. Pedro de Menezes (sometimes modernized as 'de Meneses') was the 2nd Count of Viana do Alentejo, 1st Count of Vila Rea ...

and

Margarida de Miranda Margarida is a Portuguese female given name, which is a variant of the name Margaret, and which also means " daisy flower" in Portuguese.''Behind the Name''"Given Name Margarida". Retrieved on 28 January 2016. The given name may refer to: * Mar ...

. On October 30, 1430, Brites married the Castilian-Portuguese nobleman

, the son of two bastard lines of the royal houses of

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country on the Iberian Peninsula in Southwestern Europe. Featuring Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point in continental Europe, Portugal borders Spain to its north and east, with which it share ...

and Castile (i.e. Fernando de Noronha was a grandson of

Henry II of Castile Henry II (13 January 1334 – 29 May 1379), called Henry of Trastámara or the Fratricidal (''el Fratricida''), was the first List of Castilian monarchs, King of Castile and List of Leonese monarchs, León from the House of Trastámara. He became ...

and

Ferdinand I of Portugal Ferdinand I (; 31 October 1345 – 22 October 1383), sometimes called the Handsome () or occasionally the Inconstant (), was the King of Portugal from 1367 until his death in 1383. He was also briefly made King of Galicia, in 1369 (a claim whi ...

). Brites de Meneses competed with her half-brother

Duarte de Menezes Dom (honorific), Dom Duarte de Menezes (sometimes ''de Meneses'')(before 1488 – after 1539) was a 16th-century Portuguese nobleman and colonial administrator, List of governors of Tangier, Governor of Tangier from 1508 to 1521 and 1536 to 153 ...

(born illegitimate, but legitimized by royal letter) to secure the inheritance of her father's titles for herself and her husband. Upon her father Pedro de Meneses' death in 1437, the titles were distributed - the crown-granted title of

Count of Vila Real Count of Vila Real (in Portuguese ''Conde de Vila Real'') was a Portuguese title of nobility created by a royal decree, in 1424, by King John I of Portugal, and granted to ''Dom'' Pedro de Menezes, also known as Peter I of Menezes, 2nd Count o ...

went to Brites and Fernando, while the older family title of

Count of Viana do Alentejo Count of Viana (do Alentejo) was a Portuguese title of nobility granted to D. João Afonso Telo, who was the second son of João Afonso Telo, 4th Count of Barcelos and a cousin of Queen Leonor Teles, by King Ferdinand I of Portugal pursua ...

went to Duarte. Brites de Menezes had two legitimate sons from her marriage to Fernando de Noronha: * Pedro de Menezes, 3rd Count (1st Marquis) of Vila Real (from which stems the Portuguese noble house of

) * João de Noronha, Lord of Sortelha (from which stems the Portuguese noble house of Count of Monsanto)

External links

* http://www.geneall.net/P/per_page.php?id=1430 {{DEFAULTSORT:Menezes, Brites 1400 births 1460s deaths 15th-century Portuguese nobility 15th-century Portuguese women