Prior of Crato
Encyclopedia
The Prior
of Crato (Prior do Crato), was the traditional title given to the head of the Order of the Knights of St. John of Jerusalem (Hospitaller)
in Portugal
. It is a reference to the domains of the Order around Crato, Portugal.
The Portuguese branch of the Knights Hospitaller was originally based in the northern citadel of Leça do Balio (near Matosinhos), which was allegedly donated to the Order as early as 1112 by Countess Theresa
. Around 1232, King Sancho II of Portugal
donated extensive domains further south, around Crato (in the Portalegre District) to the Knights Hospitaller, along with the duty to fortify that frontier. The Order moved its headquarters from Leça to Crato in 1340, shortly after the Battle of Salado
.
From the outset in the 12th C., the head of the Order of Knights Hospitaller in Portugal was known simply as the Prior do Hospital. That title continued to be used after the move to Crato. It is really only after 1441 that the term Prior do Crato began being commonly used.
The most famous person to hold this position was probably António, Prior of Crato
, a royal prince who attempted to lay claim on the royal throne (as King Anthony I of Portugal) during the 1580 dynastic crisis. Anthony ended up losing his bid to King Philip II of Spain
.
At the time of the Restoration
of the Portuguese monarchy in 1640, the new king John IV of Portugal
nominated D. Rodrigo da Cunha to the position, but the Order refused to ratify the king's choice, noting that the title was currently held by a Spanish Infante. For the next few decades, the king and the order continued at odds, the Order forwarding its own candidates against the King's choices. No one held the formal title of Prior, the king being limited to appointing an administrator or governor for the order. A compromise was finally reached during the regency of Peter II, whereby the king agreed to recognize the candidate nominated by the Order, and in return, the King would get to nominate his three subsequent successors.
The title of grão-prior (Grand Prior of Crato) was subsequently dominated by royal princes (infantes), before ascending to the throne. This was formalized in a royal letter of Queen Mary I of Portugal in 1789 (confirmed by Pope Pius VI
), passing the properties of the Order to the Casa do Infantado
- that is, permanently placing the administration of the Order in the hands of the legitimate heir to the throne. This arrangement continued until 1834, when the commenda of the Order of Knights Hospitaller in Portugal was extinguished, and their properties passed to the Junta dos Juros.
Prior
Prior is an ecclesiastical title, derived from the Latin adjective for 'earlier, first', with several notable uses.-Monastic superiors:A Prior is a monastic superior, usually lower in rank than an Abbot. In the Rule of St...
of Crato (Prior do Crato), was the traditional title given to the head of the Order of the Knights of St. John of Jerusalem (Hospitaller)
Knights Hospitaller
The Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of Saint John of Jerusalem of Rhodes and of Malta , also known as the Sovereign Military Order of Malta , Order of Malta or Knights of Malta, is a Roman Catholic lay religious order, traditionally of military, chivalrous, noble nature. It is the world's...
in Portugal
Portugal
Portugal , 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...
. It is a reference to the domains of the Order around Crato, Portugal.
The Portuguese branch of the Knights Hospitaller was originally based in the northern citadel of Leça do Balio (near Matosinhos), which was allegedly donated to the Order as early as 1112 by Countess Theresa
Theresa, Countess of Portugal
Theresa of Portugal was the first ruler of independent Portugal...
. Around 1232, King Sancho II of Portugal
Sancho II of Portugal
Sancho II , nicknamed "the Pious" and "the Caped" or "the Capuched" , , fourth King of Portugal, was the eldest son of Afonso II of Portugal by his wife, Infanta Urraca of Castile...
donated extensive domains further south, around Crato (in the Portalegre District) to the Knights Hospitaller, along with the duty to fortify that frontier. The Order moved its headquarters from Leça to Crato in 1340, shortly after the Battle of Salado
Battle of Rio Salado
The Battle of Río Salado was a battle of King Afonso IV of Portugal and King Alfonso XI of Castile against sultan Abu al-Hasan 'Ali of the Marinid dynasty of Morocco and the Nasrid ruler Yusuf I of the Kingdom of Granada.-Campaign:...
.
From the outset in the 12th C., the head of the Order of Knights Hospitaller in Portugal was known simply as the Prior do Hospital. That title continued to be used after the move to Crato. It is really only after 1441 that the term Prior do Crato began being commonly used.
The most famous person to hold this position was probably António, Prior of Crato
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,...
, a royal prince who attempted to lay claim on the royal throne (as King Anthony I of Portugal) during the 1580 dynastic crisis. Anthony ended up losing his bid to 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....
.
At the time of the Restoration
Portuguese Restoration War
Portuguese Restoration War was the name given by nineteenth-century 'romantic' historians to the war between Portugal and Spain that began with the Portuguese revolution of 1640 and ended with the Treaty of Lisbon . The revolution of 1640 ended the sixty-year period of dual monarchy in Portugal...
of the Portuguese monarchy in 1640, the new king John IV of Portugal
John 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...
nominated D. Rodrigo da Cunha to the position, but the Order refused to ratify the king's choice, noting that the title was currently held by a Spanish Infante. For the next few decades, the king and the order continued at odds, the Order forwarding its own candidates against the King's choices. No one held the formal title of Prior, the king being limited to appointing an administrator or governor for the order. A compromise was finally reached during the regency of Peter II, whereby the king agreed to recognize the candidate nominated by the Order, and in return, the King would get to nominate his three subsequent successors.
The title of grão-prior (Grand Prior of Crato) was subsequently dominated by royal princes (infantes), before ascending to the throne. This was formalized in a royal letter of Queen Mary I of Portugal in 1789 (confirmed by Pope Pius VI
Pope Pius VI
Pope Pius VI , born Count Giovanni Angelo Braschi, was Pope from 1775 to 1799.-Early years:Braschi was born in Cesena...
), passing the properties of the Order to the Casa do Infantado
Casa do Infantado
Created in 1654 by King John IV of Portugal, the Casa do Infantado was a wealthy Portuguese seigniory that consisted mainly of the material goods, lands and properties confiscated from the House of Vila Real, supporters of Spain during the Portuguese Restoration War...
- that is, permanently placing the administration of the Order in the hands of the legitimate heir to the throne. This arrangement continued until 1834, when the commenda of the Order of Knights Hospitaller in Portugal was extinguished, and their properties passed to the Junta dos Juros.
Priors of Crato (Heads of Knights Hospitaller in Portugal)
- c. 1157 - D. Frey Aires
- 1232 - Mem Gonçalves
- D. Gonçalo Pereira, Bishop of Lisbon and Archbishop of Braga (father of Álvaro Gonçalves PereiraÁlvaro Gonçalves PereiraÁlvaro Gonçalves Pereira, Prior of Crato, Portugal, was born to Gonçalo Pereira, 97th Archbishop of Braga and Teresa Peres Vilarinho. at a very young age, he entered the Order of St. John of the Hospitallers...
) - 1235? - Rodrigo Gil
- 1335 - ? - Álvaro Gonçalves PereiraÁlvaro Gonçalves PereiraÁlvaro Gonçalves Pereira, Prior of Crato, Portugal, was born to Gonçalo Pereira, 97th Archbishop of Braga and Teresa Peres Vilarinho. at a very young age, he entered the Order of St. John of the Hospitallers...
(father of Nuno Álvares PereiraNuno Álvares PereiraDom 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...
), the first Prior of Crato - 1384? - D. Pedro Álvares PereiraPedro Álvares PereiraDom Pedro Álvares Pereira was a Portuguese noble of the 14th century.He was the son of Iria Gonçalves do Carvalhal and Álvaro Gonçalves Pereira, to whom he succeed after his death as patriarch of the Pereira family and as Prior of Crato...
(elder brother of Nuno Álvares PereiraNuno Álvares PereiraDom 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...
) - 1430? - D. Frei Nuno de Góis
- Álvaro Gonçalves Camelo
- Afonso Pais
- Vasco de AtaídeVasco de AtaídeVasco de Ataíde was a Portuguese sailor who commanded a ship of the expedition of Pedro Álvares Cabral in the discovery of Brazil. We know little about him as his brother Pero de Ataíde...
(~1448 to 1492?) (son (?) of D. Álvaro Gonçalves de Ataíde, Count of AtouguiaCount of AtouguiaCount of Atouguia was a Portuguese title of nobility created by a royal decree, dated from 17 December 1448, by King Afonso V of Portugal, and granted to D. Álvaro Gonçalves de Ataíde....
) - Vasco Martins de Gomide ?
- 6th 1490s - Diogo Fernandes de Almeida (son of Lopo de Almeida, Count of AbrantesCount of AbrantesCount of Abrantes was a Portuguese title of nobility created by a royal decree, dated from June 13, 1476, by King Afonso V of Portugal, and granted to his 4th cousin, Lopo de Almeida....
). - João Coelho
- 1527-1555 - Infante Louis, Duke of Beja (second son of King Manuel I of PortugalManuel I of PortugalManuel 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...
) - D. João de Menezes
- António, Prior of CratoAntónio, Prior of CratoAntónio, 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,...
(son of Louis of Beja and pretender to the Portuguese throne during the 1580 dynastic crisis). - Archduke Albert of Austria
- Manuel de Melo
- ? - 1742 - Infante Francis, Duke of Beja (son of Peter II of Portugal) (grão-prior)
- ? - 1786 - Peter III of PortugalPeter III of PortugalPeter III became King of the Kingdom of Portugal and the Algarves by the accession of his wife and niece Queen Maria I in 1777, and co-reigned alongside her until his death.-Biography:...
(grão-prior) - ? - ? - John VI of PortugalJohn VI of PortugalJohn VI John VI John VI (full name: João Maria José Francisco Xavier de Paula Luís António Domingos Rafael; (13 May 1767 – 10 March 1826) was King of the United Kingdom of Portugal, Brazil and the Algarves (later changed to just King of Portugal and the Algarves, after Brazil was recognized...
(grão-prior) - ?-? - Pedro I of Brazil (grão-prior)
- 1828-1834 - Michael I of Portugal (grão-prior)
- 1846-1857 - Guilherme Henriques de Carvalho, Patriarch of LisbonPatriarch of LisbonThe Patriarch of Lisbon is an honorary title possessed by the archbishop of the Archdiocese of Lisbon.The first patriarch of Lisbon was D. Tomás de Almeida, who was appointed in 1716 by Pope Clement XI...
(grão-prior)
Sources
- "Ordem de Malta ou de S. João de Jerusalem em Portugal", January 1839, O Panorama: Jornal litterario e instructivo