Afonso, Marquis of Valença
Encyclopedia
Alphonse of Braganza (1400–1460) was the older son of Afonso, 1st Duke of Braganza
Afonso, 1st Duke of Braganza
Dom Afonso I, the 1st Duke of Braganza was the eighth Count of Barcelos, the 2nd Count of Neiva, 2nd Lord of Faria and the first Duke of Braganza.-Origins:...

 (natural son of King John I of Portugal
John I of Portugal
John I KG , called the Good or of Happy Memory, more rarely and outside Portugal the Bastard, was the tenth King of Portugal and the Algarve and the first to use the title Lord of Ceuta...

) and of his wife, Beatriz Pereira Alvim
Beatriz Pereira Alvim
Beatriz Pereira de Alvim was the daughter of Nuno Álvares Pereira and his wife Leonor de Alvim, and first Duchess of Braganza. On 8 November 1401, she married Afonso, Duke of Braganza...

 (daughter of Nuno Álvares Pereira
Nuno Álvares Pereira
Dom Nuno Álvares Pereira, O. Carm. , also spelled Nun'Álvares Pereira, was a Portuguese general of great success who had a decisive role in the 1383-1385 Crisis that assured Portugal's independence from Castile...

).

Through a formal document dated from 4 April 1422, his maternal grandfather, the Constable
Constable
A constable is a person holding a particular office, most commonly in law enforcement. The office of constable can vary significantly in different jurisdictions.-Etymology:...

 Nuno Álvares Pereira
Nuno Álvares Pereira
Dom Nuno Álvares Pereira, O. Carm. , also spelled Nun'Álvares Pereira, was a Portuguese general of great success who had a decisive role in the 1383-1385 Crisis that assured Portugal's independence from Castile...

, donated him the County of Ourém
Count of Ourém
Count of Ourém is a Portuguese title granted, in 1370 by King Fernando I of Portugal, to Dom João Afonso Telo de Meneses, uncle of Queen Leonor Telles de Menezes...

, which had King Duarte’s royal confirmation only on 24 November 1433.

He was sent by the King as his special ambassador
Ambassador
An ambassador is the highest ranking diplomat who represents a nation and is usually accredited to a foreign sovereign or government, or to an international organization....

 to the Council of Basel (1436) and to the Council of Florence
Council of Florence
The Council of Florence was an Ecumenical Council of the Roman Catholic Church. It began in 1431 in Basel, Switzerland, and became known as the Council of Ferrara after its transfer to Ferrara was decreed by Pope Eugene IV, to convene in 1438...

 (1439), visiting also Ferrara
Ferrara
Ferrara is a city and comune in Emilia-Romagna, northern Italy, capital city of the Province of Ferrara. It is situated 50 km north-northeast of Bologna, on the Po di Volano, a branch channel of the main stream of the Po River, located 5 km north...

 and Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...

.

By a document issued on 11 October 1451, King Afonso V of Portugal
Afonso V of Portugal
Afonso V KG , called the African , was the twelfth King of Portugal and the Algarves. His sobriquet refers to his conquests in Northern Africa.-Early life:...

 granted him the title of Marquis of Valença
Marquis of Valença
Marquis of Valença was a Portuguese title of nobility granted by royal decree of King Afonso V of Portugal, dated from October 11, 1451, to Dom Afonso of Braganza , who already was 4th Count of Ourém....

. He was the first Marquis to exist among Portuguese nobility.

Still in October 1451, he escorted Infanta Leonor of Portugal (King Duarte’s daughter) in her trip from Lisbon
Lisbon
Lisbon is the capital city and largest city of Portugal with a population of 545,245 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Lisbon extends beyond the administrative city limits with a population of 3 million on an area of , making it the 9th most populous urban...

 to Livorno
Livorno
Livorno , traditionally Leghorn , is a port city on the Tyrrhenian Sea on the western edge of Tuscany, Italy. It is the capital of the Province of Livorno, having a population of approximately 160,000 residents in 2009.- History :...

, where she met her groom, Frederick III, Holy Roman Emperor
Frederick III, Holy Roman Emperor
Frederick the Peaceful KG was Duke of Austria as Frederick V from 1424, the successor of Albert II as German King as Frederick IV from 1440, and Holy Roman Emperor as Frederick III from 1452...

. They got married in Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...

, where Pope Nicholas V
Pope Nicholas V
Pope Nicholas V , born Tommaso Parentucelli, was Pope from March 6, 1447 to his death in 1455.-Biography:He was born at Sarzana, Liguria, where his father was a physician...

 blessed this marriage.

In 1458, he also took part in the Portuguese expedition to north Africa, which conquered the Moroccan
Morocco
Morocco , officially the Kingdom of Morocco , is a country located in North Africa. It has a population of more than 32 million and an area of 710,850 km², and also primarily administers the disputed region of the Western Sahara...

 city of Alcácer Ceguer (Al Qsar as-Seghir).

He had a natural son from Dona Beatriz de Sousa (some say they have secretly married), Afonso de Portugal, forced to be a clergyman by King John II of Portugal
John II of Portugal
John II , the Perfect Prince , was the thirteenth king of Portugal and the Algarves...

, who became Bishop of Évora, from whom descends the Counts of Vimioso
Count of Vimioso
Count of Vimioso is a Portuguese title of nobility which have their origins in Alphonse, Bishop of Évora, the natural son of Alphonse, 4th Count of Ourém and 1st Marquis of Valença...

.

Ancestry



See also

  • House of Braganza
    House of Braganza
    The Most Serene House of Braganza , an important Portuguese noble family, ruled the Kingdom of Portugal and its colonial Empire, from 1640 to 1910...

  • Duke of Braganza
    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. Since the House of Braganza acceded to the throne of Portugal in 1640, the male heir of the Portuguese Crown was known as the Duke of Braganza and Prince of Brazil until 1822, or...

  • Marquis of Valença
    Marquis of Valença
    Marquis of Valença was a Portuguese title of nobility granted by royal decree of King Afonso V of Portugal, dated from October 11, 1451, to Dom Afonso of Braganza , who already was 4th Count of Ourém....

  • Count of Ourém
    Count of Ourém
    Count of Ourém is a Portuguese title granted, in 1370 by King Fernando I of Portugal, to Dom João Afonso Telo de Meneses, uncle of Queen Leonor Telles de Menezes...

  • List of Marquesses in Portugal
  • List of Countships in Portugal

External links

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