Henry, King of Portugal

Cardinal Henry
King of Portugal and the Algarves
Reign 4 August 1578 – 31 January 1580
Acclamation 28 August 1578; Lisbon
Predecessor Sebastian
Successor Anthony (disputed) or Philip I
Born 31 January 1512
Lisbon, Portugal
Died 31 January 1580 (aged 68)
Almeirim, Portugal
Burial Jerónimos Monastery
Dynasty Aviz
Father Manuel I of Portugal
Mother Maria of Aragon
Religion Roman Catholicism

Cardinal Henry (Portuguese: Henrique Portuguese pronunciation: [ẽˈʁik(ɨ)]; 31 January 1512 – 31 January 1580) was King of Portugal and the Algarves and a cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church. He ruled Portugal between 1578 and 1580 and was known as Henry the Chaste (Portuguese: Henrique o Casto) and the Cardinal-King. As a clergyman, he was bound to chastity, and as such, had no children to succeed him, and thus an end to the Royal House of Aviz. His death led to the Portuguese succession crisis of 1580 and ultimately to the 60-year Iberian Union that saw Portugal share a monarch with that of Spain. The next independent monarch of Portugal would be John IV, who took the throne after 60 years of Spanish rule.

Life

Born in Lisbon, Henry was the fifth son of King Manuel I of Portugal and Maria of Aragon.

Cardinal

As the younger brother of King John III of Portugal and a younger son in the Royal Family, Henry was not expected to succeed to the Portuguese throne. Early in his life, Henry took Holy Orders to promote Portuguese interests within the Catholic Church, then dominated by Spain. He rose fast through the Church hierarchy, becoming in quick succession Archbishop of Braga, Archbishop of Évora and Grand Inquisitor before receiving a Cardinal's hat in 1545,[1] along with the Titulus Ss. Quattuor Coronatorum. From 1564 to 1570 he was Archbishop of Lisbon. Henry, more than anyone, endeavoured to bring the Jesuits to Portugal to employ them in the colonial empire.

Coat of Arms of King-Cardinal Henry I of Portugal.

Reign

Henry served as regent for his great-nephew King Sebastian, replacing his sister-in-law and Sebastian's grandmother Queen dowager Catherine, following her resignation from the role in 1562.[2] King Sebastian died without an heir in the disastrous Battle of Alcácer Quibir that took place in 1578, and the elderly cardinal was proclaimed king soon after. Henry sought to be released from his ecclesiastical vows so he could take a bride and pursue the continuation of the Avis dynasty, but Pope Gregory XIII, not wanting to antagonize Philip II of Spain, did not grant him that release.[3][4]

Death and succession

The Cardinal-King died in Almeirim, on his 68th birthday, without having appointed a successor, leaving only a regency to care for the kingdom. One of the closest dynastic claimants was King Philip II of Spain who, in November 1580, sent the Duke of Alba to claim Portugal by force. Lisbon soon fell, and Philip was elected king of Portugal at the Portuguese Cortes of Tomar in 1581—on the condition that the kingdom and its overseas territories would not become Spanish provinces.

Ancestry


Notes

  1. ↑ Cardinals of the Holy Roman Church: Enrique de Portugal; Henry's brother Alonso had also been made a Cardinal, in 1517 at the age of eight. (Cardinals of the Holy Roman Church: Alonso de Portugal).
  2. ↑ Disney, p. 174.
  3. ↑ MacKay, p. 44.
  4. ↑ Disney, p. 176.

Bibliography

  • Disney, A. R. (2009). A History of Portugal and the Portuguese Empire, vol. 1: Portugal. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-60397-3.
  • MacKay, Ruth (2012). The Baker Who Pretended to Be King of Portugal. University of Chicago Press. ISBN 978-0226501086.


See also


Henry, King of Portugal
Cadet branch of the House of Burgundy
Born: 31 January 1512 Died: 31 January 1580
Regnal titles
Preceded by
Sebastian		 King of Portugal and the Algarves
1578–1580		 Succeeded by
Anthony or Philip I
Catholic Church titles
Preceded by
Diogo de Sousa		 Archbishop of Braga
1533–1539		 Succeeded by
Diego da Silva
Preceded by
Cardinal-Infante Afonso of Portugal
as Bishop of Evora		 Archbishop of Evora
1540–1564		 Succeeded by
João de Melo
Preceded by
Fernando de Menezes Coutinho e Vasconcellos		 Archbishop of Lisboa
1564–1569		 Succeeded by
Jorge de Almeida
Preceded by
João de Melo		 Archbishop of Evora
1574–1578		 Succeeded by
Teotónio de Bragança

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