Infante Francisco, Duke of Beja () (Lisbon, 25 May 1691 – Lisbon, 21 July 1742) was a 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 ...

'' (prince) son of Peter II,

King King is a royal title given to a male monarch. A king is an Absolute monarchy, absolute monarch if he holds unrestricted Government, governmental power or exercises full sovereignty over a nation. Conversely, he is a Constitutional monarchy, ...

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 his second wife, Maria Sofia of the Palatinate.

Early life

Francisco Xavier José António Bento Urbano was born on 25 May 1691 in

Lisbon Lisbon ( ; ) is the capital and largest city of Portugal, with an estimated population of 567,131, as of 2023, within its administrative limits and 3,028,000 within the Lisbon Metropolitan Area, metropolis, as of 2025. Lisbon is mainlan ...

. He was given the Duchy of Beja and was made Grand-Prior of Crato and Lord of the Infantado. Plans for him to marry Archduchess Maria Magdalena of Austria sister of Queen Maria Anna failed in the early stages.

Career

Responding to a request by

Pope Clement XI Pope Clement XI (; ; ; 23 July 1649 – 19 March 1721), born Giovanni Francesco Albani, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 23 November 1700 to his death in March 1721. Clement XI was a patron of the arts an ...

to aid in the fight against the Turks, in 1716, King

John V of Portugal ''Dom (title), Dom'' John V (; 22 October 1689 – 31 July 1750), known as the Magnanimous (''o Magnânimo'') and the Portuguese Sun King (''o Rei-Sol Português''), was King of Portugal from 9 December 1706 until his death in 1750. His reig ...

(Infante Francisco's brother) sent a

fleet Fleet may refer to: Vehicles * Fishing fleet *Naval fleet * Fleet vehicles, a pool of motor vehicles * Fleet Aircraft, the aircraft manufacturing company Places Canada * Fleet, Alberta, Canada, a hamlet England * The Fleet Lagoon, at Chesil Be ...

of Portuguese ships to aid

Venice Venice ( ; ; , formerly ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 islands that are separated by expanses of open water and by canals; portions of the city are li ...

and

Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...

in their fights against the Turks, led by the Count of Rio Grande, the Count of São Vicente and by the Duke of Beja.

Affairs and issue

He died unmarried and without legitimate issue on 21 July 1742 at the Quinta das Gaeiras in Óbidos. He is buried at the

Royal Pantheon of the Braganza Dynasty The Pantheon of the House of Braganza ( Portuguese: ''Panteão da Dinastia de Bragança''), also known as the Pantheon of the Braganzas (''Panteão dos Bragança''), is the final resting place for many of the members of the House of Braganza, lo ...

. He had two natural children with Mariana Silveira, a nun, who died during the

1755 Lisbon earthquake The 1755 Lisbon earthquake, also known as the Great Lisbon earthquake, impacted Portugal, the Iberian Peninsula, and Northwest Africa on the morning of Saturday, 1 November, All Saints' Day, Feast of All Saints, at around 09:40 local time. In ...

: * Pedro of Braganza (¿? – 1741) *

João da Bemposta D. João of Braganza, Duke of Abrantes ''jure uxoris'' (12 June 1726 - 23 October 1780), more commonly known as João da Bemposta, was a legitimized natural son of Infante Francisco, Duke of Beja. A grandson of King Pedro II of Portugal, and th ...

(1725–1780) Captain General of the Portuguese Navy and Chief Steward of the Royal Household. Married

Maria Margarida de Lorena, 2nd Duchess of Abrantes Maria Margarida de Lorena, Duchess of Abrantes (2 February 1713 – 1780) was the daughter of Dom Rodrigo de Mello (1688–1713), second child of Nuno Álvares Pereira de Melo, 1st Duke of Cadaval and of Ana Maria Catarina Henriqueta de Lorena, 1 ...

Ancestry

References

Bibliography

* 1691 births 1742 deaths Nobility from Lisbon Portuguese infantes

107 107 may refer to: *107 (number), the number *AD 107, a year in the 2nd century AD *107 BC, a year in the 2nd century BC *107 (New Jersey bus) *107 Camilla, a main-belt asteroid *Peugeot 107, a city car See also

*10/7 (disambiguation) *Bohrium, ...

Burials at the Monastery of São Vicente de Fora House of Braganza 17th-century Portuguese people 18th-century Portuguese people Constables of Portugal Sons of kings {{Portugal-royal-stub