Count of Vimioso
Encyclopedia
Count
Count
A count or countess is an aristocratic nobleman in European countries. The word count came into English from the French comte, itself from Latin comes—in its accusative comitem—meaning "companion", and later "companion of the emperor, delegate of the emperor". The adjective form of the word is...
of Vimioso
Vimioso
Vimioso is a municipality in the northern part of Portugal with an area of approximately 481.6 km² and population of 5105 inhabitants.-Geography:The municipality is composed of 14 parishes and is located in the district of Bragança....
(in Portuguese Conde de Vimioso) is a Portuguese title of nobility which have their origins in Alphonse, Bishop of Évora
Évora
Évora is a municipality in Portugal. It has total area of with a population of 55,619 inhabitants. It is the seat of the Évora District and capital of the Alentejo region. The municipality is composed of 19 civil parishes, and is located in Évora District....
, the natural son of Alphonse
Afonso, Marquis of Valença
Alphonse of Braganza was the older son of Afonso, 1st Duke of Braganza and of his wife, Beatriz Pereira Alvim ....
, 4th 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...
and 1st 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....
(eldest son of Alphonse I, 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:...
). Therefore, the Counts of Vimioso
Vimioso
Vimioso is a municipality in the northern part of Portugal with an area of approximately 481.6 km² and population of 5105 inhabitants.-Geography:The municipality is composed of 14 parishes and is located in the district of Bragança....
were close related to the Braganzas
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...
.
This title was created on February 2, 1515, by King Manuel I of Portugal
Manuel I of Portugal
Manuel I , the Fortunate , 14th king of Portugal and the Algarves was the son of Infante Ferdinand, Duke of Viseu, , by his wife, Infanta Beatrice of Portugal...
to his 3rd cousin, Francisco de Portugal (Francis of Portugal), also known as Francis I, 1st Count of Vimioso, a natural son of Alphonse of Portugal, Bishop of Évora
Évora
Évora is a municipality in Portugal. It has total area of with a population of 55,619 inhabitants. It is the seat of the Évora District and capital of the Alentejo region. The municipality is composed of 19 civil parishes, and is located in Évora District....
.
The House of the Counts of Vimioso had also close links with the Portuguese Royal family, as members of the King’s Council, ambassadors, and Vice-roys. The 2nd Count, Alphonse I of Portugal, joined King Sebastian in his crusade in Morocco
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...
, and died there (during the Battle of Alcazarquivir in 1578 or, according to others, imprisoned by the moors
Moors
The description Moors has referred to several historic and modern populations of the Maghreb region who are predominately of Berber and Arab descent. They came to conquer and rule the Iberian Peninsula for nearly 800 years. At that time they were Muslim, although earlier the people had followed...
after the battle).
This was one of the few Portuguese high aristocracy families to support King Anthony I of Portugal
António, Prior of Crato
António, Prior of Crato , was a grandson of King Manuel I of Portugal, claimant of the Portuguese throne during the 1580 dynastic crisis, who was King of Portugal as António I of Portugal during 33 days in the continent in 1580, and, after the crowning of Philip II of Spain as King of Portugal,...
against King Philip II of Spain
Philip II of Spain
Philip II was King of Spain, Portugal, Naples, Sicily, and, while married to Mary I, King of England and Ireland. He was lord of the Seventeen Provinces from 1556 until 1581, holding various titles for the individual territories such as duke or count....
claims, during the War of the Portuguese Succession
War of the Portuguese Succession
The War of the Portuguese Succession was fought from 1580 to 1583 between the two main claimants to the Portuguese throne: António, Prior of Crato, proclaimed in several towns as King of Portugal, and Philip II of Spain, who eventually succeeded in claiming the crown reigning as Philip I of...
(1580–1583). The 3rd Count, Dom
Don (honorific)
Don, from Latin dominus, is an honorific in Spanish , Portuguese , and Italian . The female equivalent is Doña , Dona , and Donna , abbreviated "Dª" or simply "D."-Usage:...
Francisco de Portugal (Francis II), was appointed King’s Anthony Constable
Constable of Portugal
Constable of Portugal or Constable of the Kingdom was a title created by the King of Portugal Ferdinand I in 1382, to substitute the title Alferes Mór do Reino. The constable was the second most powerful person in the kingdom, after the King of Portugal...
, leading the Portuguese armies in the Battle of Alcântara (1580)
Battle of Alcântara (1580)
The Battle of Alcântara took place on August 25, 1580, near the brook of Alcântara, in the vicinity of Lisbon, Portugal, and was a decisive victory of the Spanish Habsburg King Philip II over the Portuguese pretender to the Portuguese throne, Dom António, Prior of Crato.-Background:In Portugal, the...
; he found death, two years later, in the naval Battle of Vila Franca, off São Miguel Island
São Miguel Island
São Miguel Island , nicknamed "The Green Island", is the largest and most populous island in the Portuguese Azores archipelago. The island covers and has around 140,000 inhabitants, 45,000 of these people located in the largest city in the archipelago: Ponta Delgada.-History:In 1427, São Miguel...
, in the Azores
Azores
The Archipelago of the Azores is composed of nine volcanic islands situated in the middle of the North Atlantic Ocean, and is located about west from Lisbon and about east from the east coast of North America. The islands, and their economic exclusion zone, form the Autonomous Region of the...
.
The family supported the 1640 rebellion against the Spanish Habsburgs, receiving a new title from the Braganzas
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...
(Marquis of Aguiar
Aguiar
Aguiar is a Portuguese parish, located in the municipality of Barcelos. It has a population of 574 inhabitants and a total area of 2.45 km²....
, in 1643).
In 1687, the 7th Count, Dom Miguel de Portugal (Michael of Portugal), died without legitimate issue. To avoid that such an illustrious family would be extinct, the King Pedro II of Portugal, through a special decree, issued on December 13, 1681, legitimated the count’s natural son, Francisco de Paula (or Francis III), as 8th Count, giving him all his father’s honours and titles.
During the romantic period, the 13th Count of Vimioso (1817–1865) was quite a popular personality not only among aristocracy but also throughout the Portuguese society: he was a remarkable horse-rider, participating in bullfighting
Bullfighting
Bullfighting is a traditional spectacle of Spain, Portugal, southern France and some Latin American countries , in which one or more bulls are baited in a bullring for sport and entertainment...
s, with a bohemian life style; his mistress was the quite known fado
Fado
Fado is a music genre which can be traced to the 1820s in Portugal, but probably with much earlier origins. Fado historian and scholar, Rui Vieira Nery, states that "the only reliable information on the history of Fado was orally transmitted and goes back to the 1820s and 1830s at best...
singer, Maria Severa
Maria Severa Onofriana
Maria Severa Onofriana , also known simply as A Severa, is regarded as the first fado singer to have risen to fame, attaining a near-mythical status after her death...
, and the story was later popularized by literature, music (the famous Fado do Conde de Vimioso), theatre and movies (A Severa (film)).
List of the Counts
- Francisco de Portugal (1485–1549), Francis I, 1st Count of Vimioso in 1515
- Afonso de Portugal (1519–1579), Alphonse I
- Francisco de Portugal, 3rd Count of VimiosoFrancisco de Portugal, 3rd Count of VimiosoFrancisco de Portugal, also known as Francis II of Portugal, 3rd Count of Vimioso , was the eldest son and heir of the 2nd Count of Vimioso, Afonso de Portugal ....
(1550–1582), Francis II - Luis de Portugal (1555–1637), Louis I
- Afonso de Portugal (1591–1649), Alphonse II
- Luis de Portugal (1620–1655), Louis II
- Miguel de Portugal (1631–1687), Michael
- Francisco de Paula de Portugal e Castro (1679–1749), Francis III, became 2nd Marquis of ValençaMarquis of ValençaMarquis 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....
- José Miguel João de Portugal e Castro (1706–1775)
- Francisco José Miguel de Portugal e Castro (1736–1771), Francis IV
- Afonso Miguel de Portugal e Castro (1748–1802)
- José Bernardino de Portugal e Castro (1780–1840)
- Francisco de Paula de Portugal e Castro (1817–1865), Francis V
- José Luis de Sousa Coutinho Castelo-Branco e Menezes (1859–1930)
- António Luis de Sousa Coutinho (1925–2007)
- Fernando Patrício de Portugal de Sousa Coutinho (b. 1956)
Other Titles
Other titles granted to this family were:- Marquis of ValençaMarquis of ValençaMarquis 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....
, in 1451, by King Alphonse VAfonso V of PortugalAfonso 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:...
; - Marquis of Aguiar, in 1643, by King John IVJohn IV of Portugal|-|John IV was the King of Portugal and the Algarves from 1640 to his death. He was the grandson of Catherine, Duchess of Braganza, who had in 1580 claimed the Portuguese crown and sparked the struggle for the throne of Portugal. John was nicknamed John the Restorer...
; - Count of Aguiar, in 1808, by Queen Maria IMaria I of PortugalMaria I was Queen regnant of Portugal and the Algarves from 1777 until her death. Known as Maria the Pious , or Maria the Mad , she was the first undisputed Queen regnant of Portugal...
.
Family Name
The Counts family name was de Portugal, as they descended from King John I of PortugalJohn 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...
.
In the late 17th Century, the 8th Count, Francisco de Paula, also known as Francis III, joined de name Castro once he inherited from an aunt properties and titles belonging to the Castro family, and, from then on, the Counts beard de Portugal e Castro (of Portugal and Castro) as their family name.
In the late 19th Century, the Counts family name became Sousa Coutinho, due to the marriage of Maria José de Portugal e Castro, the 13th Count's heir, with Fernando Luis de Sousa Coutinho (Marquis of Borba).
Genealogical Summary
JOHN IJohn 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...
(1357–1433)
King of Portugal
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DUARTE I | AFONSO
(1391–1438) | (1377–1470)
King of Portugal | 1st.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...
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| JOHN<------------>ISABEL
Isabel of Braganza
Isabel of Braganza, also known as Isabella or Elizabeth, was a daughter of Jaime, Duke of Braganza and Eleanor of Mendoza, she married her cousin Infante Duarte, Duke of Guimarães a son of Manuel I and Maria of Aragon in 1537, Isabella was dowried with the Dukedom of Guimarães in her own right...
AFONSO
Afonso, Marquis of Valença
Alphonse of Braganza was the older son of Afonso, 1st Duke of Braganza and of his wife, Beatriz Pereira Alvim ....
FERNANDO I
Fernando I, Duke of Braganza
Ferdinand was the second son of Afonso, 1st Duke of Braganza and of his wife, Beatriz Pereira de Alvim .-Life:...
| (1400–1442) | (1402–1465) (1400–1460) (1403–1478)
| Lord of Reguengos | 1st.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....
2nd.Duke of Braganza
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FERNANDO
Infante Fernando, Duke of Viseu
The Infante Ferdinand, Prince of Portugal, Duke of Beja and Duke of Viseu was the third son of the Portuguese King Edward of Portugal and his wife Eleanor of Aragon.- Biography :...
<------------------>BEATRICE ALPHONSE FERNANDO II
Fernando II, Duke of Braganza
Ferdinand II was the older son of Fernando I, 2nd Duke of Braganza and of his wife, Doña Joana de Castro....
(1433–1470) | (1430–1506) (c.1462-1522) (1430–1483)
2nd.Duke of Viseu
Duke of Viseu
Duke of Viseu was a Portuguese Royal Dukedom created in 1415 by King John I of Portugal for his third male child, Prince Henry the Navigator, following the conquest of Ceuta....
| Bishop of Évora 3rd.Duke of Braganza
1st.Duke of Beja
Duke of Beja
Duke of Beja was an aristocratic Portuguese title with the level of Royal Dukedom, associated with the Portuguese Royal House, created in 1453, by King Afonso V of Portugal for his younger brother Infante Ferdinand of Portugal.Infante Ferdinand younger son, became King of Portugal as Manuel I and,...
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MANUEL I
Manuel I of Portugal
Manuel I , the Fortunate , 14th king of Portugal and the Algarves was the son of Infante Ferdinand, Duke of Viseu, , by his wife, Infanta Beatrice of Portugal...
FRANCIS I |
(1469–1521) (1485–1549) |
4th.Duke of Beja 1st.Count of Vimioso |
King of Portugal | |
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Royal House of Portugal House of Vimioso House of Braganza