John III nicknamed
o Piedoso ("the Pious"), was the fifteenth King of Portugal and the Algarves. He was the son of
King Manuel IManuel 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...
and
Maria of AragonMaria of Aragon was a Spanish infanta and the second wife of Portuguese King Manuel I, thus queen consort of Portugal from her marriage on 30 October 1500 until her death.-Family:She was born at Córdoba on 29 June 1482 as the third surviving daughter of Isabella I of...
, the third daughter of King
Ferdinand II of AragonFerdinand the Catholic was King of Aragon , Sicily , Naples , Valencia, Sardinia, and Navarre, Count of Barcelona, jure uxoris King of Castile and then regent of that country also from 1508 to his death, in the name of...
and Queen
Isabella I of CastileIsabella I was Queen of Castile and León. She and her husband Ferdinand II of Aragon brought stability to both kingdoms that became the basis for the unification of Spain. Later the two laid the foundations for the political unification of Spain under their grandson, Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor...
. John succeeded his father in 1521, at the age of nineteen.
During his rule, Portuguese possessions were extended in
AsiaAsia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
and in the New World through the
Portuguese colonizationPortugal was the leading country in the European exploration of the world in the 15th century. The Treaty of Tordesillas divided the Earth, outside Europe, in 1494 into Spanish and Portuguese global territorial hemispheres for exclusive conquest and colonization...
of
BrazilBrazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
. John III's policy of reinforcing Portugal's bases in
IndiaIndia , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
(such as
GoaGoa , a former Portuguese colony, is India's smallest state by area and the fourth smallest by population. Located in South West India in the region known as the Konkan, it is bounded by the state of Maharashtra to the north, and by Karnataka to the east and south, while the Arabian Sea forms its...
) secured Portugal's
monopolyA monopoly exists when a specific person or enterprise is the only supplier of a particular commodity...
over the
spice tradeCivilizations of Asia were involved in spice trade from the ancient times, and the Greco-Roman world soon followed by trading along the Incense route and the Roman-India routes...
of cloves from the Moluccas and
nutmegThe nutmeg tree is any of several species of trees in genus Myristica. The most important commercial species is Myristica fragrans, an evergreen tree indigenous to the Banda Islands in the Moluccas of Indonesia...
from the
Banda IslandsThe Banda Islands are a volcanic group of ten small volcanic islands in the Banda Sea, about south of Seram Island and about east of Java, and are part of the Indonesian province of Maluku. The main town and administrative centre is Bandanaira, located on the island of the same name. They rise...
, as a result of which John III has been called the "Grocer King". On the eve of his death in 1557, the
Portuguese empireThe Portuguese Empire , also known as the Portuguese Overseas Empire or the Portuguese Colonial Empire , was the first global empire in history...
spanned almost 1 billion
acreThe acre is a unit of area in a number of different systems, including the imperial and U.S. customary systems. The most commonly used acres today are the international acre and, in the United States, the survey acre. The most common use of the acre is to measure tracts of land.The acre is related...
s (about 4 million square kilometers).
During his reign, the Portuguese became the first Europeans to make contact with both
ChinaChinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
, under the
Ming DynastyThe Ming Dynasty, also Empire of the Great Ming, was the ruling dynasty of China from 1368 to 1644, following the collapse of the Mongol-led Yuan Dynasty. The Ming, "one of the greatest eras of orderly government and social stability in human history", was the last dynasty in China ruled by ethnic...
, and
JapanJapan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
, during the
Muromachi periodThe is a division of Japanese history running from approximately 1336 to 1573. The period marks the governance of the Muromachi or Ashikaga shogunate, which was officially established in 1338 by the first Muromachi shogun, Ashikaga Takauji, two years after the brief Kemmu restoration of imperial...
. He abandoned
MuslimA Muslim, also spelled Moslem, is an adherent of Islam, a monotheistic, Abrahamic religion based on the Quran, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God as revealed to prophet Muhammad. "Muslim" is the Arabic term for "submitter" .Muslims believe that God is one and incomparable...
territories in
North AfricaNorth Africa or Northern Africa is the northernmost region of the African continent, linked by the Sahara to Sub-Saharan Africa. Geopolitically, the United Nations definition of Northern Africa includes eight countries or territories; Algeria, Egypt, Libya, Morocco, South Sudan, Sudan, Tunisia, and...
in favor of trade with India and investment in Brazil. In Europe, he improved relations with the
Baltic regionThe terms Baltic region, Baltic Rim countries, and Baltic Rim refer to slightly different combinations of countries in the general area surrounding the Baltic Sea.- Etymology :...
and the
RhinelandHistorically, the Rhinelands refers to a loosely-defined region embracing the land on either bank of the River Rhine in central Europe....
, hoping that this would bolster Portuguese
tradeTrade is the transfer of ownership of goods and services from one person or entity to another. Trade is sometimes loosely called commerce or financial transaction or barter. A network that allows trade is called a market. The original form of trade was barter, the direct exchange of goods and...
.
Early life
John, the eldest son of King Manuel, was born in
LisbonLisbon 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...
on 6 June 1502. The event was marked by a masterpiece of Portuguese theater,
Gil VicenteGil Vicente , called the Trobadour, was a Portuguese playwright and poet who acted in and directed his own plays. Considered the chief dramatist of Portugal he is sometimes called the "Portuguese Plautus,"[3] often referred to as the "Father of Portuguese drama" and as one of Western literature's...
's
Visitation Play, or: the Monologue of the Cowherd (
Auto da Visitação ou Monólogo do Vaqueiro), presented in the Queen's chamber.
The young prince was sworn heir to the throne in 1503, the year his youngest sister,
Isabella of PortugalIsabella of Portugal was a Portuguese Princess and Holy Roman Empress, Duchess of Burgundy, and a Queen Regent/Consort of Spain. She was the daughter of Manuel I of Portugal and Maria of Aragon. By her marriage to Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, Isabella was also Holy Roman Empress and Queen...
, Consort Empress of the
Holy Roman EmpireThe Holy Roman Empire was a realm that existed from 962 to 1806 in Central Europe.It was ruled by the Holy Roman Emperor. Its character changed during the Middle Ages and the Early Modern period, when the power of the emperor gradually weakened in favour of the princes...
between 1527 and 1538, was born.
John I was educated by notable scholars of the time, including the
astrologerAn astrologer practices one or more forms of astrology. Typically an astrologer draws a horoscope for the time of an event, such as a person's birth, and interprets celestial points and their placements at the time of the event to better understand someone, determine the auspiciousness of an...
Tomás de TorresTomás de Torres was a Portuguese teacher of King John III of Portugal, an astrologer and an eminent doctor during the early 16th century in Portugal. He was satirized by Gil Vicente in one of his plays as Doctor Torres in the Auto dos Físicos...
and Diogo de Ortiz, Bishop of Viseu, and Luís Teixeira Lobo, one of the first Portuguese Renaissance humanists, rector of the
University of SienaThe University of Siena in Siena, Tuscany is one of the oldest and first publicly funded universities in Italy. Originally called Studium Senese, the University of Siena was founded in 1240. The University has around 20,000 students, nearly half of Siena's total population of around 54,000...
(1476) and Professor of Law at Ferrara (1502).
John's chronicler António de Castilho said that "Dom João III faced problems easily, complementing his lack of
cultureCulture is a term that has many different inter-related meanings. For example, in 1952, Alfred Kroeber and Clyde Kluckhohn compiled a list of 164 definitions of "culture" in Culture: A Critical Review of Concepts and Definitions...
with a practice formation that he always showed during his reign" (
Elogio d'el rei D. João de Portugal, terceiro, do nome). In 1514, he was given his own house, and a few years later began to help his father in administrative duties.
At the age of sixteen, John was chosen to marry his first cousin, the 20-year-old Eleanor of Austria, eldest daughter of Philip the Handsome of Austria-Burgundy and Queen
Joanna of CastileJoanna , nicknamed Joanna the Mad , was the first queen regnant to reign over both the Crown of Castile and the Crown of Aragon , a union which evolved into modern Spain...
, but instead she married his widowed father Manuel. John took deep offence at this: his chroniclers say he became melancholic and was never quite the same. Some historians also claim this was one of the main reasons that John later became fervently religious.
Early Reign
On 19 December 1521, John was crowned king in the Church of São Domingos in Lisbon, beginning a thirty-six-year reign characterized by intense activity in internal and overseas politics, especially in relations with other major European states.
The marriage of John's sister, Infanta Isabella of
PortugalPortugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
, to Emperor
Charles VCharles V was ruler of the Holy Roman Empire from 1519 and, as Charles I, of the Spanish Empire from 1516 until his voluntary retirement and abdication in favor of his younger brother Ferdinand I and his son Philip II in 1556.As...
enabled the Portuguese king to forge a stronger alliance with Spain and the
Holy Roman EmpireThe Holy Roman Empire was a realm that existed from 962 to 1806 in Central Europe.It was ruled by the Holy Roman Emperor. Its character changed during the Middle Ages and the Early Modern period, when the power of the emperor gradually weakened in favour of the princes...
. To strengthen his ties with
AustriaAustria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
, he married his maternal first cousin Catherine of Austria, younger sister of Charles V and his erstwhile fiancée Eleanor, in the town of
CratoCrato is a municipality in Portugal with a total area of 398.0 km² and a total population of 3,995 inhabitants.The municipality is composed of 6 parishes, and is located in Portalegre District....
. John had nine children from that marriage, but most of them died young. By the time of John's death, only his grandson,
SebastianSebastian "the Desired" was the 16th king of Portugal and the Algarves. He was the son of Prince John of Portugal and his wife, Joan of Spain...
, was alive to inherit the crown.
John III continued to centralize the absolutist politics of his ancestors. He called for the
Portuguese CortesIn the Medieval Kingdom of Portugal, the Cortes was an assembly of representatives of the estates of the realm - the nobility, clergy and bourgeoisie. It was called and dismissed by the King of Portugal at will, at a place of his choosing...
only three times and at great intervals: 1525 in
Torres NovasTorres Novas is a municipality in Portugal with a total area of 270.0 km² and a total population of 37,155 inhabitants.The municipality is composed of 17 parishes, and is located in the district of Santarém. The city of Torres Novas has about 15,000 inhabitants. This city has a castle...
, 1535 in
ÉvoraÉvora 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....
and 1544 in
AlmeirimAlmeirim is a city and a municipality in Portugal with a total area of 222.0 km² and a total population of 22,434 inhabitants. The city proper has a population of 10,520.The municipality is composed of 4 parishes, and is located in Santarém District....
. He also tried to restructure administrative and judicial life in his realm.
Decline
Toward the end of John III's reign, Portugal entered a period of serious economic, social, and political problems, resulting in the wane of Portuguese power.
Economic pressure
The large and far-flung
Portuguese EmpireThe Portuguese Empire , also known as the Portuguese Overseas Empire or the Portuguese Colonial Empire , was the first global empire in history...
was difficult and expensive to administer, and was burdened with huge
external debtExternal debt is that part of the total debt in a country that is owed to creditors outside the country. The debtors can be the government, corporations or private households. The debt includes money owed to private commercial banks, other governments, or international financial institutions such...
and trade deficits. Portugal's Indian and Far Eastern interests grew increasingly chaotic under the poor administration of ambitious governors. John III responded with new appointments that proved troubled and short-lived: in some cases, the new governors even had to fight their predecessors to take up their appointment. The resulting failures in administration brought on a gradual decline of the Portuguese trade monopoly.
Among John III's many governors of this region, were
Vasco da GamaVasco da Gama, 1st Count of Vidigueira was a Portuguese explorer, one of the most successful in the Age of Discovery and the commander of the first ships to sail directly from Europe to India...
,
Pedro MascarenhasPedro Mascarenhas was a Portuguese explorer and colonial administrator. He was the first European to discover the island of Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean in 1512...
,
Lopo Vaz de SampaioLopo Vaz de Sampaio was an administrator of the Portuguese Empire. He was also the captain of Vasco da Gama, a famous Portuguese explorer. During 1528-29, Lopo Vaz de Sampaio seized the fort of Mahim from the Gujarat Sultanate, when the King was at war with Nizam-ul-mulk, the emperor of Chaul, a...
,
Nuno da CunhaNuno da Cunha was a governor of Portuguese possessions in India from 1528 to 1538.He was the son of Antónia Pais and Tristão da Cunha, the famous Portuguese navigator, admiral and ambassador to Pope Leo X....
, Estêvão da Gama,
Martim Afonso de SousaMartim Afonso de Sousa was a Portuguese fidalgo and explorer.Born in Vila Viçosa, he was commander of the first official Portuguese expedition into mainland Brazil...
,
João de CastroDom João de Castro was a Portuguese naval officer and fourth viceroy of Portuguese India. He was called Castro Forte by poet Luís de Camões. Castro was the son of Álvaro de Castro, civil governor of Lisbon...
and Henrique de Meneses.
Military pressures
Overseas, the Empire was threatened by
TurkeyTurkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
in both the
Indian OceanThe Indian Ocean is the third largest of the world's oceanic divisions, covering approximately 20% of the water on the Earth's surface. It is bounded on the north by the Indian Subcontinent and Arabian Peninsula ; on the west by eastern Africa; on the east by Indochina, the Sunda Islands, and...
and North Africa, causing Portugal to increase spending on defense and fortifications. Meanwhile, in the
AtlanticThe Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions. With a total area of about , it covers approximately 20% of the Earth's surface and about 26% of its water surface area...
, where Portuguese ships already had to withstand constant attacks of corsairs, an initial settlement of French colonists in Brazil created yet another "front". The French made alliances with native South Americans against the Portuguese and military and political interventions were used. Eventually they were forced out, but not until 1565.
In the first years of John III's reign, explorations in the
Far EastThe Far East is an English term mostly describing East Asia and Southeast Asia, with South Asia sometimes also included for economic and cultural reasons.The term came into use in European geopolitical discourse in the 19th century,...
continued and the Portuguese reached China and Japan; however, these accomplishments were offset by pressure from a strengthening
Ottoman EmpireThe Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
under
Suleiman the MagnificentSuleiman I was the tenth and longest-reigning Sultan of the Ottoman Empire, from 1520 to his death in 1566. He is known in the West as Suleiman the Magnificent and in the East, as "The Lawgiver" , for his complete reconstruction of the Ottoman legal system...
, especially in India, where attacks became more frequent. The expense of defending Indian interests was huge. To pay for it, John III abandoned a number of strongholds in North Africa:
SafimSafi is a city in western Morocco on the Atlantic Ocean. The capital of the Doukkala-Abda Region, it has a population of 282,227 , but is also the centre of an agglomeration which has an estimated 793,000 inhabitants ....
,
AzamorAzemmour or Azamor |The Olives]]"; ) is a Moroccan city, on the left bank of the Oum Er-Rbia River, 75 km southwest of Casablanca. Although it was a dependency of the King of Fez, Azemmour had great autonomy. In 1486 its inhabitants became vassals and tributaries of João II of Portugal...
, Alcacer Ceguer and
ArzilaAsilah or Arzila is a fortified town on the northwest tip of the Atlantic coast of Morocco, about 31 km from Tangier. Its ramparts and gateworks remain fully intact...
.
In consideration of the challenging military situation faced by Portuguese forces world wide, John III declared every male subject between 20 and 65 years old recruitable for military service on 7 August 1549.
International relations
The reign of John III was marked by active diplomacy. With Spain, he made alliances through marriage (himself with Catherine of Spain; Isabella, princess of Portugal with Charles V; Maria, princess of Portugal – his daughter – with
Philip II of SpainPhilip 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....
, and others) that ensured peace in the
Iberian PeninsulaThe Iberian Peninsula , sometimes called Iberia, is located in the extreme southwest of Europe and includes the modern-day sovereign states of Spain, Portugal and Andorra, as well as the British Overseas Territory of Gibraltar...
for a number of years. However, the intermarriage of these closely related royal families may have been one of the factors contributing to the poor health of John's children and of future King Sebastian.
John III remained neutral during the war between
FranceThe French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
and Spain, but stood firm in fighting French
corsairA privateer is a private person or ship authorized by a government by letters of marque to attack foreign shipping during wartime. Privateering was a way of mobilizing armed ships and sailors without having to spend public money or commit naval officers...
attacks. He strengthened relations with the
Papal StatesThe Papal State, State of the Church, or Pontifical States were among the major historical states of Italy from roughly the 6th century until the Italian peninsula was unified in 1861 by the Kingdom of Piedmont-Sardinia .The Papal States comprised territories under...
by introducing the
InquisitionThe Inquisition, Inquisitio Haereticae Pravitatis , was the "fight against heretics" by several institutions within the justice-system of the Roman Catholic Church. It started in the 12th century, with the introduction of torture in the persecution of heresy...
in Portugal and the adhesion of the Portuguese clergy to the
Counter-ReformationThe Counter-Reformation was the period of Catholic revival beginning with the Council of Trent and ending at the close of the Thirty Years' War, 1648 as a response to the Protestant Reformation.The Counter-Reformation was a comprehensive effort, composed of four major elements:#Ecclesiastical or...
. This relationship with the Catholic Church made it possible for John to name whomever he wanted to important religious positions in Portugal: his brothers Henry and Afonso were made
CardinalA cardinal is a senior ecclesiastical official, usually an ordained bishop, and ecclesiastical prince of the Catholic Church. They are collectively known as the College of Cardinals, which as a body elects a new pope. The duties of the cardinals include attending the meetings of the College and...
s, and his natural son Duarte was made
ArchbishopAn archbishop is a bishop of higher rank, but not of higher sacramental order above that of the three orders of deacon, priest , and bishop...
of
BragaBraga , a city in the Braga Municipality in northwestern Portugal, is the capital of the Braga District, the oldest archdiocese and the third major city of the country. Braga is the oldest Portuguese city and one of the oldest Christian cities in the World...
.
Commercial relations were intensified with
EnglandEngland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, the countries of the Baltic regions and
FlandersFlanders is the community of the Flemings but also one of the institutions in Belgium, and a geographical region located in parts of present-day Belgium, France and the Netherlands. "Flanders" can also refer to the northern part of Belgium that contains Brussels, Bruges, Ghent and Antwerp...
during John's reign. Meanwhile, at the other end of the world, Portugal was the first European nation to make contact with Japan. In China,
MacauMacau , also spelled Macao , is, along with Hong Kong, one of the two special administrative regions of the People's Republic of China...
was offered to the Portuguese, and soon Portugal controlled major trade routes in the area. In the South, the Portuguese continued its hostile stance against their Muslim rivals and insurgent Indian leaders.
John III achieved an important political victory in securing the control of the
Maluku IslandsThe Maluku Islands are an archipelago that is part of Indonesia, and part of the larger Maritime Southeast Asia region. Tectonically they are located on the Halmahera Plate within the Molucca Sea Collision Zone...
, the "Spice Islands" claimed by Spain since the
MagellanFerdinand Magellan was a Portuguese explorer. He was born in Sabrosa, in northern Portugal, and served King Charles I of Spain in search of a westward route to the "Spice Islands" ....
-Elcano circumnavigation. After almost a decade of skirmishes in Southeast Asia, he signed the Treaty of Zaragoza with Emperor Charles V on 22 April 1529. It defined the areas of Spanish and Portuguese influence in Asia and established the anti-meridian to the
Treaty of TordesillasThe Treaty of Tordesillas , signed at Tordesillas , , divided the newly discovered lands outside Europe between Spain and Portugal along a meridian 370 leagueswest of the Cape Verde islands...
.
Culture
John III's support for the
humanist causeRenaissance humanism was an activity of cultural and educational reform engaged by scholars, writers, and civic leaders who are today known as Renaissance humanists. It developed during the fourteenth and the beginning of the fifteenth centuries, and was a response to the challenge of Mediæval...
was significant. In literature, his active support of
Gil VicenteGil Vicente , called the Trobadour, was a Portuguese playwright and poet who acted in and directed his own plays. Considered the chief dramatist of Portugal he is sometimes called the "Portuguese Plautus,"[3] often referred to as the "Father of Portuguese drama" and as one of Western literature's...
,
Garcia de ResendeGarcia de Resende was a Portuguese poet and editor. He served John II as a page and private secretary, and later became a knight in the Order of Christ...
, Sá de Miranda,
Bernardim RibeiroBernardim Ribeiro was a Portuguese poet and writer. His father, Damião Ribeiro, was implicated in the conspiracy against John II of Portugal...
,
Fernão Mendes PintoFernão Mendes Pinto was a Portuguese explorer and writer. His exploits are known through the posthumous publication of his memoir Pilgrimage in 1614, an autobiographical work whose truthfulness is nearly impossible to assess...
,
João de BarrosJoão de Barros , called the Portuguese Livy, is one of the first great Portuguese historians, most famous for his Décadas da Ásia , a history of the Portuguese in India and Asia.-Early years:...
and
Luís de CamõesLuís Vaz de Camões is considered Portugal's and the Portuguese language's greatest poet. His mastery of verse has been compared to that of Shakespeare, Vondel, Homer, Virgil and Dante. He wrote a considerable amount of lyrical poetry and drama but is best remembered for his epic work Os Lusíadas...
was notable. In the sciences, John III supported mathematician
Pedro NunesPedro Nunes , was a Portuguese mathematician, cosmographer, and professor, from a New Christian family. Nunes, considered to be one of the greatest mathematicians of his time , is best known for his contributions in the technical field of navigation, which was crucial to the Portuguese period of...
and physician
Garcia de OrtaGarcia de Orta was a Portuguese Renaissance Sephardi Jewish physician and naturalist. He was a pioneer of tropical medicine.- Life :...
. Through his links to Portuguese humanists such as Luís Teixeira Lobo, Erasmus dedicated his
Chrysostomi Lucubrationes to John III of Portugal in 1527.
The monarch awarded many
scholarshipA scholarship is an award of financial aid for a student to further education. Scholarships are awarded on various criteria usually reflecting the values and purposes of the donor or founder of the award.-Types:...
s to universities abroad, mainly in the
University of ParisThe University of Paris was a university located in Paris, France and one of the earliest to be established in Europe. It was founded in the mid 12th century, and officially recognized as a university probably between 1160 and 1250...
, having sent fifty Portuguese students to the
Collège Sainte-BarbeThe Collège Sainte-Barbe is a former school in the 5th arrondissement of Paris, France.The Collège Sainte-Barbe was founded in 1460 on Montagne Sainte-Geneviève by Pierre Antoine Victor de Lanneau, teacher of religious studies...
headed by
Diogo de GouveiaDiogo de Gouveia , known as Diogo de Gouveia, the Elder to distinguish him from contemporary homonyms such as his nephew, was a leading Portuguese teacher, theologian, diplomat and humanist during the Renaissance...
. He definitively transferred the Portuguese university from
Lisbon to
Coimbra in 1537.
In 1542 John III created in Coimbra a College of Arts (
Liberal artsThe term liberal arts refers to those subjects which in classical antiquity were considered essential for a free citizen to study. Grammar, Rhetoric and Logic were the core liberal arts. In medieval times these subjects were extended to include mathematics, geometry, music and astronomy...
) for which he quickly recalled the many prominent Portuguese and European teachers headed by
André de GouveiaAndré de Gouveia was a Portuguese humanist and pedagogue during the Renaissance.André de Gouveia became one of the first Portuguese to study in the Collège Sainte-Barbe, in Paris, which was then directed by his uncle Diogo de Gouveia...
at the
College of GuienneThe Collège of Guienne was a school founded in 1533 in Bordeaux. The collège became renowned for the teaching of liberal arts between the years 1537 and 1571, attracting students such as Michel de Montaigne.-History:...
in
BordeauxBordeaux is a port city on the Garonne River in the Gironde department in southwestern France.The Bordeaux-Arcachon-Libourne metropolitan area, has a population of 1,010,000 and constitutes the sixth-largest urban area in France. It is the capital of the Aquitaine region, as well as the prefecture...
. Those included
George BuchananGeorge Buchanan may refer to:*George Buchanan , Scottish humanist*Sir George Buchanan , Scottish soldier during the Wars of the Three Kingdoms*Sir George Buchanan , Chief Medical Officer...
,
Diogo de TeiveDiogo de Teive was a Portuguese humanist during the Renaissance.Diogo de Teive was a humanist, a latinist and a typical scholar of his day: a traveller, who spent most of his formative years abroad, in Europe...
, Jerónimo Osório, Nicolas de Grouchy, Guillaume Guérante and
Élie VinetÉlie Vinet was a French Renaissance humanist, known as a classical scholar, translator and antiquary.-Life:Vinet was born at Vinets, in the commune of Saint Médard, near Barbezieux in what is now Charente. Brought up at Barbezieux, he studied at Angoulême, then at Poitiers, where he graduated M.A....
, who came to be decisive for the disclosure of the contemporary research of
Pedro NunesPedro Nunes , was a Portuguese mathematician, cosmographer, and professor, from a New Christian family. Nunes, considered to be one of the greatest mathematicians of his time , is best known for his contributions in the technical field of navigation, which was crucial to the Portuguese period of...
. The king provided the university with excellent resources. However, the importance of the College was shadowed by rivalry between the orthodox views of the "Parisians" group headed by Diogo de Gouveia and the more secular views of the "Bordeaux" school headed by his nephew André de Gouveia, within the advent of the
Counter-ReformationThe Counter-Reformation was the period of Catholic revival beginning with the Council of Trent and ending at the close of the Thirty Years' War, 1648 as a response to the Protestant Reformation.The Counter-Reformation was a comprehensive effort, composed of four major elements:#Ecclesiastical or...
and the
Society of JesusThe Society of Jesus is a Catholic male religious order that follows the teachings of the Catholic Church. The members are called Jesuits, and are also known colloquially as "God's Army" and as "The Company," these being references to founder Ignatius of Loyola's military background and a...
.
The Society of Jesus founded colleges and made education more widely available, but it also created great instability in Portuguese education, setting itself up as a rival of the University of Coimbra, often taking a conservative position against any innovation. The Inquisition also arrested and killed many prominent teachers and censured new ideas like Erasmism.
Another noteworthy aspect of John's rule was the support he gave to missionaries in the
New WorldThe New World is one of the names used for the Western Hemisphere, specifically America and sometimes Oceania . The term originated in the late 15th century, when America had been recently discovered by European explorers, expanding the geographical horizon of the people of the European middle...
, Asia and Africa. In 1540, after successive appeals to the Pope asking for missionaries for the Portuguese
East IndiesEast Indies is a term used by Europeans from the 16th century onwards to identify what is now known as Indian subcontinent or South Asia, Southeastern Asia, and the islands of Oceania, including the Malay Archipelago and the Philippines...
under the
PadroadoThe Padroado , was an arrangement between the Holy See and the kingdom of Portugal, affirmed by a series of treaties, by which the Vatican delegated to the kings of Spain and Portugal the administration of the local Churches...
agreement, the John III appointed
Francis XavierFrancis Xavier, born Francisco de Jasso y Azpilicueta was a pioneering Roman Catholic missionary born in the Kingdom of Navarre and co-founder of the Society of Jesus. He was a student of Saint Ignatius of Loyola and one of the first seven Jesuits, dedicated at Montmartre in 1534...
to take charge as Apostolic Nuncio. He had been enthusiastically endorsed by Diogo de Gouveia, who had been his teacher at the Collège Sainte-Barbe and advised the king to draw the youngsters of the newly- formed Society of Jesus. The Jesuits were particularly important for mediating Portuguese relations with native peoples.
Inquisition
The
InquisitionThe Inquisition, Inquisitio Haereticae Pravitatis , was the "fight against heretics" by several institutions within the justice-system of the Roman Catholic Church. It started in the 12th century, with the introduction of torture in the persecution of heresy...
was introduced into Portugal in 1536. As in Spain, the Inquisition was placed under the authority of the King. The
Grand InquisitorGrand Inquisitor is the lead official of an Inquisition. The most famous Inquisitor General is the Spanish Dominican Tomás de Torquemada, who spearheaded the Spanish Inquisition.-List of Spanish Grand Inquisitors:-Castile:-Aragon:...
, or General Inquisitor, was named by the
PopeThe Pope is the Bishop of Rome, a position that makes him the leader of the worldwide Catholic Church . In the Catholic Church, the Pope is regarded as the successor of Saint Peter, the Apostle...
after being nominated by the king and he always came from within the
royal familyA royal family is the extended family of a king or queen regnant. The term imperial family appropriately describes the extended family of an emperor or empress, while the terms "ducal family", "grand ducal family" or "princely family" are more appropriate to describe the relatives of a reigning...
. The Grand Inquisitor would later nominate other inquisitors. In Portugal, the first Grand Inquisitor was Cardinal Henry, the king's brother (who would later himself become King). There were Courts of the Inquisition in Lisbon, Coimbra and Évora and, from 1560 onwards, in Goa. The
Goa InquisitionThe Goa Inquisition was the office of the Inquisition acting in the Indian state of Goa and the rest of the Portuguese empire in Asia. It was established in 1560, briefly suppressed from 1774–1778, and finally abolished in 1812. The Goan Inquisition is considered a blot on the history of...
changed the demographics of Goa considerably. Goa was called the "Lisbon of the Far East" and trade reached a new level, the Portuguese did not leave Goa un-developed but progressed it to modern architecture and built strong roads and bridges which have stood the test of time even till today.
The activities of the Inquisition extended to book
censorshipthumb|[[Book burning]] following the [[1973 Chilean coup d'état|1973 coup]] that installed the [[Military government of Chile |Pinochet regime]] in Chile...
, repression and trial for
divinationDivination is the attempt to gain insight into a question or situation by way of an occultic standardized process or ritual...
,
witchcraftWitchcraft, in historical, anthropological, religious, and mythological contexts, is the alleged use of supernatural or magical powers. A witch is a practitioner of witchcraft...
and
bigamyIn cultures that practice marital monogamy, bigamy is the act of entering into a marriage with one person while still legally married to another. Bigamy is a crime in most western countries, and when it occurs in this context often neither the first nor second spouse is aware of the other...
, as well as the prosecution of sexual crimes, especially
sodomySodomy is an anal or other copulation-like act, especially between male persons or between a man and animal, and one who practices sodomy is a "sodomite"...
. Book censorship proved to have a strong influence in Portuguese cultural evolution, serving to keep the country in ignorance and cultural backwardness. Originally created to punish religious deviance, the Inquisition came to have influence in almost every aspect of Portuguese society: politically, culturally and socially. It did serve to spare Portugal the civil upheavals of religious warfare of the sort that occurred in France and elsewhere in Europe during the 16th century.
Luso-African Relations
In John III's time, trade between the Portuguese and Africans was extremely intense in the
feitoriasFactory was the English term for the trading posts system originally established by Europeans in foreign territories, first within different states of medieval Europe, and later in their colonial possessions...
like Arguim,
MinaElmina Castle was erected by Portugal in 1482 as São Jorge da Mina Castle, also known simply as Mina or Feitoria da Mina) in present-day Elmina, Ghana . It was the first trading post built on the Gulf of Guinea, so is the oldest European building in existence below the Sahara...
,
MombasaMombasa is the second-largest city in Kenya. Lying next to the Indian Ocean, it has a major port and an international airport. The city also serves as the centre of the coastal tourism industry....
,
SofalaSofala, at present known as Nova Sofala, used to be the chief seaport of the Monomotapa Kingdom, whose capital was at Mount Fura. It is located on the Sofala Bank in Sofala Province of Mozambique.-History:...
or Moçambique. Under John III, several expeditions started in coastal
AfricaAfrica is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
and advanced to the interior of the continent. These expeditions were formed by groups of
navigatorA navigator is the person on board a ship or aircraft responsible for its navigation. The navigator's primary responsibility is to be aware of ship or aircraft position at all times. Responsibilities include planning the journey, advising the Captain or aircraft Commander of estimated timing to...
s,
merchantA merchant is a businessperson who trades in commodities that were produced by others, in order to earn a profit.Merchants can be one of two types:# A wholesale merchant operates in the chain between producer and retail merchant...
s, adventurers and missionaries. Missions in Africa were established by the College of Arts of Coimbra. The objective was to increase the king's
dominionA dominion, often Dominion, refers to one of a group of autonomous polities that were nominally under British sovereignty, constituting the British Empire and British Commonwealth, beginning in the latter part of the 19th century. They have included Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Newfoundland,...
, develop peace relations and to Christianize the
native populationIndigenous peoples are ethnic groups that are defined as indigenous according to one of the various definitions of the term, there is no universally accepted definition but most of which carry connotations of being the "original inhabitants" of a territory....
. Relations with local rulers were often complicated by trade in slaves, as shown by John's correspondence with them.
Defense and abandonment of North African strongholds
John III refused to abandon all of the Portuguese North African strongholds, but he had to make choices based on the economic or strategic value of each possession. John III decided to abandon
SafimSafi is a city in western Morocco on the Atlantic Ocean. The capital of the Doukkala-Abda Region, it has a population of 282,227 , but is also the centre of an agglomeration which has an estimated 793,000 inhabitants ....
and Azamor in 1541, followed by
ArzilaAsilah or Arzila is a fortified town on the northwest tip of the Atlantic coast of Morocco, about 31 km from Tangier. Its ramparts and gateworks remain fully intact...
and Alcácer Ceguer in 1549. The fortresses of
CeutaCeuta is an autonomous city of Spain and an exclave located on the north coast of North Africa surrounded by Morocco. Separated from the Iberian peninsula by the Strait of Gibraltar, Ceuta lies on the border of the Mediterranean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean. Ceuta along with the other Spanish...
, Tangiers and Mazagan were strengthened "to face the new military techniques, imposed by the generalization of heavy artillery, combined with light fire weapons and blades".
Luso-Asian relations
Before the reign of John III, the Portuguese had already reached
SiamThailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
(1511), the Moluccas (1512), the Chinese littoral (1513),
CantonGuangzhou , known historically as Canton or Kwangchow, is the capital and largest city of the Guangdong province in the People's Republic of China. Located in southern China on the Pearl River, about north-northwest of Hong Kong, Guangzhou is a key national transportation hub and trading port...
(1517) and
TimorTimor is an island at the southern end of Maritime Southeast Asia, north of the Timor Sea. It is divided between the independent state of East Timor, and West Timor, belonging to the Indonesian province of East Nusa Tenggara. The island's surface is 30,777 square kilometres...
(1515). During John's rule, the Portuguese reached Japan, and at the end of John's reign, Macau was offered to Portugal by China. A vast array of exotic goods were imported from the East:
"From India, he [John III] receives all kinds of spice, drug & stone & many cotton clothes,
taficiras and
alaquecas [kinds of Indian fabrics]. From Malacca, clovetrees, marzipan, sandalwood, camphor, porcelains,
beijoim & calaim [kinds of spices]. From Bengala,
sinafabos, flannel,
chautares, castor beans, &
rebotins that are kinds of thin fabric made of cotton (…). From Alexandria & Cairo, red dyewood, cinnabars, saffron, copper, rosed waters,
borcados [a kind of silk], velvets, taffeta, grains of wood, camlets, gold & silver in bars, & in coins, & carpets. From China, musk, rhubarb, & silk in exchange of gromwells, pearls, horses from Arabia & Persia, non worked silk, silk embroidery threads, fruits of the date palm, raisins, salt, sulphur & many other goods."
Defence
As Muslims and other peoples constantly attacked Portuguese
fleetA fleet, or naval fleet, is a large formation of warships, and the largest formation in any navy. A fleet at sea is the direct equivalent of an army on land....
s in India, and because India was so far from mainland Portugal, it was extremely difficult for John III to assure Portuguese dominion in this area. A
viceroyA viceroy is a royal official who runs a country, colony, or province in the name of and as representative of the monarch. The term derives from the Latin prefix vice-, meaning "in the place of" and the French word roi, meaning king. A viceroy's province or larger territory is called a viceroyalty...
(or Governor-General with extensive powers) was nominated, but this was not enough to defend the Portuguese possessions in India. The Portuguese started by creating
feitorias – commercial strongholds in Cochin,
CannanoreKannur , also known as Cannanore, is a city in Kannur district in the Indian state of Kerala. It is the administrative headquarters of the District of Kannur and 518km north of state capital Trivandrum. During British rule in India, Kannur was known by its old name Cannanore, which is still in...
, Coulão, Cranganore and Tanor with the initial objective of establishing just a commercial dominion in the region.
The hostility of many Indian kingdoms and the alliances between
sultanSultan is a title with several historical meanings. Originally, it was an Arabic language abstract noun meaning "strength", "authority", "rulership", and "dictatorship", derived from the masdar سلطة , meaning "authority" or "power". Later, it came to be used as the title of certain rulers who...
s and zamorins to expel the Portuguese made it necessary for the Europeans to establish a
sovereignSovereignty is the quality of having supreme, independent authority over a geographic area, such as a territory. It can be found in a power to rule and make law that rests on a political fact for which no purely legal explanation can be provided...
state. Portugal thus militarily occupied some key cities on the Indian coast, and Goa became the headquarters of the Portuguese Empire in the East as of 1512. Goa became a starting point for the introduction of European cultural and religious values in India, and churches, schools and hospitals were built. Goa remained an overseas possession of Portugal until India reclaimed it in 1961.
Portuguese arrival in Japan
The Portuguese arrived in Japan in 1543. Japan was known in Portugal since the time of
Marco PoloMarco Polo was a Venetian merchant traveler from the Venetian Republic whose travels are recorded in Il Milione, a book which did much to introduce Europeans to Central Asia and China. He learned about trading whilst his father and uncle, Niccolò and Maffeo, travelled through Asia and apparently...
, who called it
Cipango. Whether Portuguese nationals were the first Europeans to arrive in Japan is debatable. Some say it was the writer
Fernão Mendes PintoFernão Mendes Pinto was a Portuguese explorer and writer. His exploits are known through the posthumous publication of his memoir Pilgrimage in 1614, an autobiographical work whose truthfulness is nearly impossible to assess...
, and others say the navigators António Peixoto, António da Mota and Francisco Zeimoto.
Portuguese traders started negotiating with Japan earlier than 1550 and established a base there at Nagasaki. By then, trade with Japan was a Portuguese
monopolyA monopoly exists when a specific person or enterprise is the only supplier of a particular commodity...
under the rule of a
CaptainCaptain-major is the English rendering of the Portuguese title Capitão-mor for colonial officers, put in charge of a capitania, Portuguese possession deemed not important enough to have its own colonial Governor.Due to the impossibility of exercising direct control and sovereignty over islands,...
. Because the Portuguese established themselves in Macau, Chinese commercial relations, mainly the
silverSilver is a metallic chemical element with the chemical symbol Ag and atomic number 47. A soft, white, lustrous transition metal, it has the highest electrical conductivity of any element and the highest thermal conductivity of any metal...
trade with Japan, were improved under John III's rule.
Moluccas
After the voyage of
Ferdinand MagellanFerdinand Magellan was a Portuguese explorer. He was born in Sabrosa, in northern Portugal, and served King Charles I of Spain in search of a westward route to the "Spice Islands" ....
, the
CastiliansThe Crown of Castile was a medieval and modern state in the Iberian Peninsula that formed in 1230 as a result of the third and definitive union of the crowns and parliaments of the kingdoms of Castile and León upon the accession of the then King Ferdinand III of Castile to the vacant Leonese throne...
claimed the recently discovered Moluccas Islands. In 1524, a conference of experts (cartographers, cosmographers, pilots, etc.) was held to solve the dispute caused by the difficulty of determining the
meridianA meridian is an imaginary line on the Earth's surface from the North Pole to the South Pole that connects all locations along it with a given longitude. The position of a point along the meridian is given by its latitude. Each meridian is perpendicular to all circles of latitude...
agreed to in the
Treaty of TordesillasThe Treaty of Tordesillas , signed at Tordesillas , , divided the newly discovered lands outside Europe between Spain and Portugal along a meridian 370 leagueswest of the Cape Verde islands...
. The Portuguese delegation sent by John III included names such as António de Azevedo Coutinho,
Diogo Lopes de SequeiraDiogo Lopes de Sequeira was a Portuguese fidalgo, sent to analyze the trade potential in Madagascar and Malacca, he arrived at Malacca on 11 September, 1509. He left the next year when he discovered that Sultan Mahmud Shah, the local leader, was devising his assassination...
,
Lopo HomemLopo Homem was a Portuguese cartographer and cosmographer.- Biography :In 1517 King Manuel I of Portugal handed Lopo Homem a charter entitling him the privilege of certifying and amending all compass needles in vessels. This charter was revalidated in 1524 by King John III of Portugal...
and Simão Fernandes]].
The dispute was settled in 1529 by the Treaty of Zaragoza, signed by John III and Charles I of Spain. The Portuguese paid 350,000 golden
ducadosThe ducat is a gold coin that was used as a trade coin throughout Europe before World War I. Its weight is 3.4909 grams of .986 gold, which is 0.1107 troy ounce, actual gold weight...
to Spain and secured their presence in the islands.
This payment should not have been a necessity, as Portugal was actually entitled to the islands, according to the Treaty of Tordesillas.
Macau
In 1553, Leonel de Sousa obtained authorization for the Portuguese to establish, in
CantonGuangzhou , known historically as Canton or Kwangchow, is the capital and largest city of the Guangdong province in the People's Republic of China. Located in southern China on the Pearl River, about north-northwest of Hong Kong, Guangzhou is a key national transportation hub and trading port...
and Macau. Macau was later offered to John III as a reward for the Portuguese assistance against
maritime piracyPiracy is an act of robbery or criminal violence at sea. The term can include acts committed on land, in the air, or in other major bodies of water or on a shore. It does not normally include crimes committed against persons traveling on the same vessel as the perpetrator...
in the period between 1557 and 1564.
Portugal retained Macau for over 400 years. It became a Special Administrative Region of the
People's Republic of ChinaChina , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres...
in 1999, two years after
Hong KongHong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
was similarly returned to Chinese jurisdiction by the
UKThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
.
Malacca
MalaccaMalacca , dubbed The Historic State or Negeri Bersejarah among locals) is the third smallest Malaysian state, after Perlis and Penang. It is located in the southern region of the Malay Peninsula, on the Straits of Malacca. It borders Negeri Sembilan to the north and the state of Johor to the south...
, which controlled the eponymous
Strait of MalaccaThe Strait of Malacca is a narrow, stretch of water between the Malay Peninsula and the Indonesian island of Sumatra. It is named after the Malacca Sultanate that ruled over the archipelago between 1414 to 1511.-Extent:...
, was vital to Portuguese interests in the Far East. After an unsuccessful expedition in 1509, Malacca was finally conquered by
Afonso de AlbuquerqueAfonso de Albuquerque[p][n] was a Portuguese fidalgo, or nobleman, an admiral whose military and administrative activities as second governor of Portuguese India conquered and established the Portuguese colonial empire in the Indian Ocean...
, the Portuguese viceroy of India, on 24 August 1511. Malacca was later taken by the Dutch in 1641.
Colombo
In order to follow its trade routes to the Far East, Portugal depended on the seasonal
monsoonMonsoon is traditionally defined as a seasonal reversing wind accompanied by corresponding changes in precipitation, but is now used to describe seasonal changes in atmospheric circulation and precipitation associated with the asymmetric heating of land and sea...
winds in the Indian Ocean. In winter, the prevailing northeasterly monsoon impeded travel to India; in summer, the southwest monsoon made departure from India difficult. As a result, Portugal determined that it needed permanent bases in India, in addition to its ports of call in Africa, to pass the time while the wind changed. In addition to Goa, they founded a base at
ColomboColombo is the largest city of Sri Lanka. It is located on the west coast of the island and adjacent to Sri Jayawardenapura Kotte, the capital of Sri Lanka. Colombo is often referred to as the capital of the country, since Sri Jayawardenapura Kotte is a satellite city of Colombo...
(in what is now
Sri LankaSri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is a country off the southern coast of the Indian subcontinent. Known until 1972 as Ceylon , Sri Lanka is an island surrounded by the Indian Ocean, the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait, and lies in the vicinity of India and the...
) in the sixteenth century. This port remained in Portuguese hands until 1656, when it was seized by the Dutch after an epic
siegeA siege is a military blockade of a city or fortress with the intent of conquering by attrition or assault. The term derives from sedere, Latin for "to sit". Generally speaking, siege warfare is a form of constant, low intensity conflict characterized by one party holding a strong, static...
.
Trade in Brazil
Immediately following the discovery of Brazil, the Portuguese imported
brazilwoodCaesalpinia echinata is a species of Brazilian timber tree in the pea family, Fabaceae. Common names include Brazilwood, Pau-Brasil, Pau de Pernambuco and Ibirapitanga . This plant has a dense, orange-red heartwood that takes a high shine, and it is the premier wood used for making bows for...
, Indian slaves and exotic birds from there. Brazilwood was a much appreciated product in Europe, because it could be used to produce a red dye. During John III's rule, after the initial
colonizationPortugal was the leading country in the European exploration of the world in the 15th century. The Treaty of Tordesillas divided the Earth, outside Europe, in 1494 into Spanish and Portuguese global territorial hemispheres for exclusive conquest and colonization...
, Portuguese explorers intensified the search for brazilwood and began the cultivation of
sugarcaneSugarcane refers to any of six to 37 species of tall perennial grasses of the genus Saccharum . Native to the warm temperate to tropical regions of South Asia, they have stout, jointed, fibrous stalks that are rich in sugar, and measure two to six metres tall...
, which was well suited to the climate of Brazil, especially around
RecifeRecife is the fifth-largest metropolitan area in Brazil with 4,136,506 inhabitants, the largest metropolitan area of the North/Northeast Regions, the 5th-largest metropolitan influence area in Brazil, and the capital and largest city of the state of Pernambuco. The population of the city proper...
and
BahíaBahia is one of the 26 states of Brazil, and is located in the northeastern part of the country on the Atlantic coast. It is the fourth most populous Brazilian state after São Paulo, Minas Gerais and Rio de Janeiro, and the fifth-largest in size...
.
In the final years of John's reign, Portugal's colony of Brazil was just beginning its rapid development as a producer of sugar that compensated for the gradual decline of revenues from Asia, a development that would continue during the reign of his grandson and successor,
SebastianSebastian "the Desired" was the 16th king of Portugal and the Algarves. He was the son of Prince John of Portugal and his wife, Joan of Spain...
.
Since Brazil lacked a large native population, and the Indians did not make good plantation workers, the Portuguese colonists began to import African slaves to work their plantations. The first slaves, from the region of
GuineaGuinea , officially the Republic of Guinea , is a country in West Africa. Formerly known as French Guinea , it is today sometimes called Guinea-Conakry to distinguish it from its neighbour Guinea-Bissau. Guinea is divided into eight administrative regions and subdivided into thirty-three prefectures...
, arrived in Brazil in 1539. Most of them worked in the sugarcane fields or served as house servants.
Colonization
John III was the first Portuguese monarch to recognize the potential of the New World, and the colonization of Brazil began during his reign. The territory was divided into 12 captaincies in 15 lots (some captaincies had more than one lot) that were given to donatary captains with obligations to defend them, populate them, and to develop their resources.
The first Governor-General appointed by John III was
Tomé de SousaTomé de Sousa was the first governor-general of Brazil from 1549 to 1553, when it was a Portuguese colony. He was a nobleman and soldier born in Rates, Póvoa de Varzim...
, who in 1549 founded the city of Bahia (known at the time as São Salvador da Bahia de Todos os Santos - Holy Saviour of the Bay of All Saints).
Ancestry
Death and succession
From 1539, the heir to the throne was John, prince of Portugal, who married Joan of Spain, daughter of
Charles VCharles V was ruler of the Holy Roman Empire from 1519 and, as Charles I, of the Spanish Empire from 1516 until his voluntary retirement and abdication in favor of his younger brother Ferdinand I and his son Philip II in 1556.As...
. The sole son of John II to survive childhood, Prince John was sickly and died young (of juvenile diabetes), eighteen days before his wife gave birth to Prince Sebastian on 20 January 1554. When John III died of
apoplexyApoplexy is a medical term, which can be used to describe 'bleeding' in a stroke . Without further specification, it is rather outdated in use. Today it is used only for specific conditions, such as pituitary apoplexy and ovarian apoplexy. In common speech, it is used non-medically to mean a state...
in 1557, his only heir was his grandson Sebastian, who was just three years old.
Today, John's body rests in the Monastery of Jerónimos in Lisbon.
Issue
| Name | Birth | Death | Notes |
| By Catherine of Austria (married 10 February 1525) |
| Prince Afonso Infante Afonso, Prince of Portugal was the first son of king John III of Portugal and his queen, Catherine of Habsburg. He was the Prince of Portugal but died in the same year he was born, in 1526....
|
24 February 1526 |
March 1526 |
Prince of Portugal (1526). |
Princess Maria ManuelaMaria Manuela of Portugal was a daughter of King John III of Portugal and his wife Catherine of Austria.She was Princess of Asturias as spouse of Philip, Prince of Asturias, and between 1527 and 1535 Princess of Portugal in her own right....
|
15 October 1527 |
12 August 1545 |
Princess of Portugal (1527–1531). Princess consort of Asturias by marriage to King 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....
, then Prince of Asturias. She had one deformed child, Don Carlos, and she died a few days after his birth. |
| Infanta Isabel |
28 April 1529 |
28 April 1529 |
|
| Infanta Beatriz (Beatrice) |
15 February 1530 |
15 February 1530 |
|
| Prince Manuel |
1 November 1531 |
14 April 1537 |
Prince of Portugal (1531–1537). Declared heir in 1535. |
| Prince Filipe (Philip) |
25 March 1533 |
29 April 1539 |
Crown Prince of Portugal (1537–1539). Declared heir in 1537. |
| Infante Dinis (Denis) |
6 April 1535 |
1 January 1537 |
|
| Prince João (John) |
3 June 1537 |
2 January 1554 |
Prince of Portugal (1537–1554). Declared heir in 1539. Married Joan of Spain. Their son became King Sebastian ISebastian "the Desired" was the 16th king of Portugal and the Algarves. He was the son of Prince John of Portugal and his wife, Joan of Spain...
. |
| Infante António (Anthony) |
9 March 1539 |
20 January 1540 |
|
| By Isabel Moniz |
| Duarte, Archbishop of Braga |
1521 |
11 November 1543 |
Natural son. |
Style
Like his predecessors John used the style "
El-rei" (the king) followed by "
Dom" (abbreviated to
D.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:...
), a mark of high esteem for a distinguished
ChristianA Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
nobleman.
The official style was the same used by his father Manuel I: "Dom João, by the grace of
GodGod is the English name given to a singular being in theistic and deistic religions who is either the sole deity in monotheism, or a single deity in polytheism....
, King of Portugal, of the
Algarves, of either side of the sea in
AfricaAfrica is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
, Lord of
GuineaGuinea , officially the Republic of Guinea , is a country in West Africa. Formerly known as French Guinea , it is today sometimes called Guinea-Conakry to distinguish it from its neighbour Guinea-Bissau. Guinea is divided into eight administrative regions and subdivided into thirty-three prefectures...
, & of the
ConquestThe right of conquest is the right of a conqueror to territory taken by force of arms. It was traditionally a principle of international law which has in modern times gradually given way until its proscription after the Second World War when the crime of war of aggression was first codified in the...
,
NavigationNavigation is the process of monitoring and controlling the movement of a craft or vehicle from one place to another. It is also the term of art used for the specialized knowledge used by navigators to perform navigation tasks...
, &
CommerceWhile business refers to the value-creating activities of an organization for profit, commerce means the whole system of an economy that constitutes an environment for business. The system includes legal, economic, political, social, cultural, and technological systems that are in operation in any...
of
EthiopiaEthiopia , officially known as the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. It is the second-most populous nation in Africa, with over 82 million inhabitants, and the tenth-largest by area, occupying 1,100,000 km2...
, Arabia,
PersiaThe Safavid dynasty was one of the most significant ruling dynasties of Iran. They ruled one of the greatest Persian empires since the Muslim conquest of Persia and established the Twelver school of Shi'a Islam as the official religion of their empire, marking one of the most important turning...
, &
IndiaIndia , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
" (
Dom João, por graça de Deus, Rei de Portugal, e dos Algarves, d'aquém e d'além mar em África, Senhor da Guiné, e da Conquista, Navegação, & Comércio da Etiópia, Arábia, Pérsia, & Índia). This style would only change in the 19th century when Brazil became a Vice-Kingdom.
See also
- History of Portugal
The history of Portugal, a European and an Atlantic nation, dates back to the Early Middle Ages. In the 15th and 16th centuries, it ascended to the status of a world power during Europe's "Age of Discovery" as it built up a vast empire including possessions in South America, Africa, Asia and...
- Kings of Portugal
- Timeline of Portuguese history
This is a historical timeline of Portugal.*Timeline of Iberian prehistory*Pre-Roman Iberia *Roman Lusitania and Gallaecia *Germanic Kingdoms...
- Portugal in the period of discoveries
- Portuguese Empire
The Portuguese Empire , also known as the Portuguese Overseas Empire or the Portuguese Colonial Empire , was the first global empire in history...
- History of Europe
History of Europe describes the history of humans inhabiting the European continent since it was first populated in prehistoric times to present, with the first human settlement between 45,000 and 25,000 BC.-Overview:...
External links
- Cultural Affairs Bureau of Macao S.A.R. - The Portuguese Settlement at Macao (Portuguese and English)
- The Society of Jesus in Portugal (in Portuguese)
- Orient Foundation in Portugal
- Portuguese Empire Timeline
- Japanese Screen Painting of the Portuguese in the Indies(Enlarge)
- Dutch Portuguese Colonial History Dutch Portuguese Colonial History: history of the Portuguese and the Dutch in Ceylon, India, Malacca, Bengal, Formosa, Africa, Brazil. Language Heritage, lists of remains, maps.
- Current and Former Colonies and Possessions of Portugual from World Statesmen
- The Portuguese and the East (in Portuguese, Chinese, Japanese and Thai) with English introduction.
- Portuguese monuments and history