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Estremoz Municipality
Estremoz () is a municipality in Portugal. The population in 2011 was 14,318, in an area of 513.80 km². The city Estremoz itself had a population of 7,682 in 2001. It is located in the Alentejo region. History The region around Estremoz has been inhabited since pre-historic times. There are also vestiges of Roman, Visigoth and Muslim occupation. During the Reconquista, Estremoz was captured in the 12th century by the army of knight Geraldo Sem Pavor (''Gerald the Fearless''), who had also conquered neighbouring Évora. However, Estremoz was soon retaken by the Moors and only in the mid-13th century was it reconquered by the Portuguese King Sancho II. An important strategic site between the Kingdoms of Portugal and Castile, Estremoz received a charter ( fuero) in 1258 from Afonso III after the Moors were driven out a second time, which promoted Christian colonization in the area. King Dinis rebuilt the castle as a royal palace, further promoting the area. His w ...
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Alentejo
Alentejo ( , ) is a geographical, historical, and cultural region of south–central and southern Portugal. In Portuguese, its name means "beyond () the Tagus river" (''Tejo''). Alentejo includes the regions of Alto Alentejo and Baixo Alentejo. It corresponds to the districts of Beja, Évora, Portalegre, and Alentejo Litoral. Its main cities are Évora, Beja, Sines, Serpa, Estremoz, Elvas, and Portalegre. It has borders with Beira Baixa in the north, with Spain (Andalucia and Extremadura) in the east, Algarve in the south, and the Atlantic Ocean, Ribatejo, and Estremadura in the west. Alentejo is a region known for its traditional polyphonic singing groups, similar to those found in Tuscany, Corsica, and elsewhere. History The comarca of the Alentejo became the Alentejo Province, divided into upper ( Alto Alentejo Province) and lower ( Baixo Alentejo Province) designations. The modern NUTS statistical region, Alentejo Region, was expropriated from the mediev ...
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Kingdom Of Castile
The Kingdom of Castile (; es, Reino de Castilla, la, Regnum Castellae) was a large and powerful state on the Iberian Peninsula during the Middle Ages. Its name comes from the host of castles constructed in the region. It began in the 9th century as the County of Castile (''Condado de Castilla''), an eastern frontier lordship of the Kingdom of León. During the 10th century, its counts increased their autonomy, but it was not until 1065 that it was separated from León and became a kingdom in its own right. Between 1072 and 1157, it was again united with León, and after 1230, this union became permanent. Throughout this period, the Castilian kings made extensive conquests in southern Iberia at the expense of the Islamic principalities. The Kingdoms of Castile and of León, with their southern acquisitions, came to be known collectively as the Crown of Castile, a term that also came to encompass overseas expansion. History 9th to 11th centuries: the beginnings According to t ...
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Battle Of Montes Claros
The Battle of Montes Claros was fought on 17 June 1665, near Vila Viçosa, between Spanish and a combined Anglo- Portuguese force as the last major battle in the Portuguese Restoration War. The battle resulted in a decisive Portuguese victory and is considered one of the most important battles in the country's history. Prelude By 1665, the Portuguese Restoration War had been raging for 25 years. Despite numerous setbacks, King Philip IV of Spain was determined to crush the Portuguese insurrection. After a disastrous campaign in Southern Portugal culminated in the 1662 Battle of Ameixial, the Spanish court re-evaluated the performance of the Spanish Army and came to the conclusion that the war could only be ended by decisive action. The court believed that the Portuguese insurrection could only be ended by the capture of a major Portuguese city or by the complete destruction of the Portuguese Army. Luis de Benavides Carrillo, Marquis of Caracena, a veteran of campaigns in Ita ...
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Battle Of Ameixial
The Battle of Ameixial, was fought on 8 June 1663, near the village of Santa Vitória do Ameixial, some north-west of Estremoz, between Spanish and Portuguese as part of the Portuguese Restoration War. In Spain, the battle is better known as the Battle of Estremoz. In the spring of 1663, the Spanish had undertaken their most successful attack on Portugal, since the beginning of the war. Under command of John of Austria the Younger, son of Philip IV of Spain (and the conqueror of Catalonia and of the Kingdom of Naples and winner of the French in Italy), the greater part of the south of Portugal was overrun. The important city of Évora was taken on 22 May, opening perspectives for a march on Lisbon, to the west. But the lack of ammunition, food and money paralysed the Spanish army. The Portuguese raised a 17,000 men strong army led by Sancho Manoel de Vilhena, aided by Frederick Schomberg, 1st Duke of Schomberg, Fernando de Meneses, Count of Ericeira and other senior officer ...
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Portuguese Restoration War
The Portuguese Restoration War ( pt, Guerra da Restauração) was the war between Portugal and Spain that began with the Portuguese revolution of 1640 and ended with the Treaty of Lisbon in 1668, bringing a formal end to the Iberian Union. The period from 1640 to 1668 was marked by periodic skirmishes between Portugal and Spain, as well as short episodes of more serious warfare, much of it occasioned by Spanish and Portuguese entanglements with non-Iberian powers. Spain was involved in the Thirty Years' War until 1648 and the Franco-Spanish War until 1659, while Portugal was involved in the Dutch–Portuguese War until 1663. In the seventeenth century and afterwards, this period of sporadic conflict was simply known, in Portugal and elsewhere, as the ''Acclamation War''. The war established the House of Braganza as Portugal's new ruling dynasty, replacing the House of Habsburg who had been united with the Portuguese crown since the 1581 succession crisis. Events leading to re ...
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Battle Of Atoleiros
The Battle of Atoleiros () took place on 6 April 1384, between a Portuguese force and a punitive expedition from Castile sent by John I. The battle A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force ... took place near the population centre of Fronteira Municipality, Fronteira in Alentejo. It was the first major battle of the 1383–1385 Crisis. Nuno Álvares Pereira had been chosen to protect the frontier in this area, amid fear that a Castilian force could enter Portugal here. He left Lisbon with 1,000 infantry, adding to the strength of his forces on his way to Atoleiros. The Castilian army consisted of some 5,000 men, mostly cavalry, which was besieging the village of Fronteira. As Pereira approached, the Castilians sent an Diplomat, emissary to him, attempting to persuade him to ...
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Nuno Álvares Pereira
D. Nuno Álvares Pereira, O. Carm. (; 24 June 1360 – 1 November 1431) was a Portuguese general of great success who had a decisive role in the 1383-1385 Crisis that assured Portugal's independence from Castile. He later became a mystic and was beatified by Pope Benedict XV, in 1918, and canonised by Pope Benedict XVI in 2009. Nuno Álvares Pereira is often referred to as the Saint Constable ( pt, Santo Condestável) or as Saint Nuno of Saint Mary ( pt, São Nuno de Santa Maria), his religious name. He was count of Barcelos, Ourém and Arraiolos. Family Nuno Álvares Pereira was born on 24 June 1360 in Flor da Rosa, near Crato, central Portugal, the illegitimate son of Dom Álvaro Gonçalves Pereira, prior of Crato and Iria Gonçalves do Carvalhal. His grandfather was Dom Gonçalo Pereira, the archbishop of Braga from 1326 until 1349. He was descended from the oldest Portuguese and Galician nobility. About a year after his birth, the child was legitimized by royal dec ...
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Peter I Of Portugal
Peter I (Portuguese: ''Pedro I'', ; 8 April 1320 – 18 January 1367), called the Just (''o Justiceiro'') or the Cruel (''o Cruel''), was King of Portugal from 1357 until his death. He was the third but only surviving son of Afonso IV of Portugal and his wife, Beatrice of Castile. Early life In 1328, Peter's father, Afonso IV arranged for the marriage of his eldest daughter, Maria, to Alfonso XI of Castile. However, soon after their marriage Alfonso began a long affair with the beautiful and newly widowed Leonor de Guzman. Maria bore Alfonso a son in 1334, who ultimately became Peter of Castile, but after the Castilian king refused to end his affair Maria returned home to Portugal in 1335. Alfonso had been married once before, to his cousin's daughter, Constanza Manuel (granddaughter of James II of Aragon). Alfonso had the marriage annulled in 1327, after only two years, to clear the way for marriage to Maria. This angered his cousin Juan Manuel, Prince of Villena, a pow ...
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Alfonso XI Of Castile
Alfonso XI (13 August 131126 March 1350), called the Avenger (''el Justiciero''), was King of Castile and León. He was the son of Ferdinand IV of Castile and his wife Constance of Portugal. Upon his father's death in 1312, several disputes ensued over who would hold regency, which were resolved in 1313. Once Alfonso was declared an adult in 1325, he began a reign that would serve to strengthen royal power. His achievements include the victory in the Battle of Río Salado over Granadans and Marinids and the Castilian control over the Strait of Gibraltar. Life Minority Born on 13 August 1311 in Salamanca, he was the son of King Ferdinand IV of Castile and Constance of Portugal. His father died when Alfonso was one year old. His grandmother, María de Molina, his mother Constance, his granduncle Infante John of Castile, son of King Alfonso X of Castile and uncle Infante Peter of Castile, son of King Sancho IV assumed the regency. His mother died first on 18 November ...
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Alfonso IV Of Portugal
Afonso IVEnglish: ''Alphonzo'' or ''Alphonse'', or ''Affonso'' (Archaic Portuguese), ''Alfonso'' or ''Alphonso'' (Portuguese-Galician languages, Portuguese-Galician) or ''Alphonsus'' (Latin). (; 8 February 129128 May 1357), called the Brave ( pt, o Bravo, links=no), was King of Portugal from 1325 until his death in 1357. He was the only legitimate son of King Denis of Portugal and Elizabeth of Aragon. Early life Afonso, born in Lisbon, was the rightful heir to the Portuguese throne. However, he was not Denis' favourite son, the old king preferring his illegitimate son, Afonso Sanches, Lord of Albuquerque, Afonso Sanches. The notorious rivalry between the half brothers led to civil war several times. On 7 January 1325, Afonso IV's father died and he became king, whereupon he exiled his rival, Afonso Sanches, to Crown of Castile, Castile, and stripped him of all the lands and fiefdom given by their father. From Castile, Afonso Sanches orchestrated a series of attempts to usurp th ...
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Elizabeth Of Portugal
Elizabeth of Aragon, more commonly known as Saint Elizabeth of Portugal, T.O.S.F. (1271 – 4 July 1336; ''Elisabet'' in Catalan, ''Isabel'' in Aragonese, Portuguese and Spanish), was queen consort of Portugal, a tertiary of the Franciscan Order and is venerated as a saint of the Catholic Church. Family and early life Born in 1271 into the royal house of Aragon, Elizabeth was the daughter of '' Infante'' Peter (later King Peter III) and his wife Constance of Sicily and the sister of three kings: Alfonso II and James II of Aragon and Frederick III of Sicily. Great niece and namesake of Elizabeth of Hungary, she was the original source of the bread to roses miracle often depicted in art of her better known great aunt. The kingly suspicion of generosity to poor people is far more characteristic of her warlike and abusive husband than Elizabeth of Hungary's loving and pious spouse, Louis. Elizabeth was educated very piously, and led a life of strict regularity fr ...
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