Count Of Avintes
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Avintes Avintes is a Portuguese civil parish in the municipality of Vila Nova de Gaia. The population in 2021 was 10,838, in an area of 8.82 km2. It is known in Portugal as "Terra da Broa", meaning "Land of the Broa", referring to the Broa de Avintes, a t ...
is a Portuguese title of nobility created by Letters Patent of King Afonso VI of Portugal on 17 February 1664 for D. Luis de Almeida, 5th Lord of Avintes. The title was conferred in perpetuity upon the 4th Count by King José I of Portugal in the same document by which he was elevated to the Marquessate of Lavradio, later confirmed by Letters Patent dated 29 August 1766.


Background

It is probable that the ancient Seigniory of
Avintes Avintes is a Portuguese civil parish in the municipality of Vila Nova de Gaia. The population in 2021 was 10,838, in an area of 8.82 km2. It is known in Portugal as "Terra da Broa", meaning "Land of the Broa", referring to the Broa de Avintes, a t ...
predates the foundation of Portugal itself. It is likely that the Seigniory was passed to the Brandão family in 1487, and in 1505, the benedictine Monastery of Saint Thyrsus, which had held it since the end of the XIII century, confirmed the Seigniory had been passed to the Brandão family in the person of Fernão Brandão Pereira, Knight Commander of São Martinho de Guilhabreu in the Order of Christ and a nobleman at the Court of
King Manuel I Manuel I (; 31 May 146913 December 1521), known as the Fortunate (), was King of Portugal from 1495 to 1521. A member of the House of Aviz, Manuel was Duke of Beja and Viseu prior to succeeding his cousin, John II of Portugal, as monarch. Manue ...
. He was appointed chamberlain to Prince Fernando, and was King João III's ambassador to the King of Fez. His heirs would continue to hold important positions at Court. His granddaughter and heiress, Isabel Brandôa, 3rd Lady of Avintes, married D. Francisco de Almeida, Knight of the Order of Christ, Captain General of the Portuguese enclaves at
Ormuz The Kingdom of Ormus (also known as Hormoz or Hormuz; ; ) was located in the eastern side of the Persian Gulf and extended as far as Bahrain in the west at its zenith. The Kingdom was established in the 11th century initially as a dependency of ...
and Diu, Governor of Angola and General of the Armed Forces in
Beira Province Beira () was one of the six traditional provinces or ''comarcas'' of Portugal. The territorial extension is different from that of the area called ''the Beiras'', which refers to three provinces of 1936, Beira Alta, Beira Baixa and Beira Lit ...
. Francisco was from an old, noble family which had reached prominence during the late 14th century. He was a great-grandson of the 2nd Count of Abrantes. His eldest son, D. João de Almeida, nicknamed "O Sábio", had only one surviving child by his wife D. Jerónima de Castro, also named Isabel, who inherited the Seigniory of Avintes. She married her kinsman, D. Luis de Almeida, 5th Lord of Avintes by marriage and 1st Count of Avintes in his own right. Like his wife, D. Luis de Almeida was also descended from the 1st Count of Abrantes but by his second son, D. Diogo Fernandes de Almeida, 6th
Prior of Crato 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 Port ...
. His father, D. António de Almeida, was the head of one of the branches of the important Almeida clan and in addition to his own assets inherited substantial estates from his mother, D. Maria de Portugal, descended from the Counts of Vimioso and the Counts of Castanheira. Luis acceded to his parents' prosperous estate together with his father's commanderies of São Martinho da Lordosa, Soalheira and Bemposta in the Order of Christ. In 1647 he was posted to
Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...
as '' Mestre de Campo'' of one of the elite regiments of Royal Marines, where he served favourably during the War of Acclamation against Spain. He was later Governor General of
Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro, or simply Rio, is the capital of the Rio de Janeiro (state), state of Rio de Janeiro. It is the List of cities in Brazil by population, second-most-populous city in Brazil (after São Paulo) and the Largest cities in the America ...
and, as a trusted courtier of the Queen Regent, D. Luisa de Gusmão, was given the highly sensitive role of last Portuguese Governor General of
Tangier Tangier ( ; , , ) is a city in northwestern Morocco, on the coasts of the Mediterranean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean. The city is the capital city, capital of the Tanger-Tetouan-Al Hoceima region, as well as the Tangier-Assilah Prefecture of Moroc ...
s, with the responsibility of managing its transition to English rule in 1662, as part of the dowry of the Infanta
Catarina __NOTOC__ Catarina may refer to: People * Catarina (given name) Places * Catarina, Masaya in Nicaragua * Catarina, San Marcos in Guatemala * Catarina, Texas in the United States * Santa Catarina Barahona in Guatemala * Santa Catarina Ixtahuaca ...
on her betrothal to King Charles II. His experience as a soldier and administrator, as well as his position at Court, earned him the title of 1st Count of Avintes in 1664, during his final administrative posting as Governor General of the
Kingdom of the Algarve The Kingdom of the Algarve (, from the Arabic language, Arabic ''Gharb al-Andalus'' , "Western al-'Andalus") was a nominal kingdom within the Kingdom of Portugal, located in the southernmost region of continental Portugal. From 1471 onwards it cam ...
. He was stationed in
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, the then capital of the Algarve, between 1663 and 1667, where he also left his mark. As well as the Seigniory of Avintes, Isabel added significantly to her husband's already considerable estate. Isabel's mother, Jerónima, was the sole heiress in Portugal of D. João Soares de Alarcão, Marquis of Turcifal and Count of Torres Vedras, through whom the 1st Count of Avintes gained extensive lands in
Lisbon Lisbon ( ; ) is the capital and largest city of Portugal, with an estimated population of 567,131, as of 2023, within its administrative limits and 3,028,000 within the Lisbon Metropolitan Area, metropolis, as of 2025. Lisbon is mainlan ...
,
Guarda Guarda may refer to: * Guarda, Portugal, city in Portugal * Guarda District, the district containing that city * Roman Catholic Diocese of Guarda, Portugal, the diocese containing that city * Guarda, Switzerland, municipality in Grisons, Switzerlan ...
,
Santarém Santarém may refer to: Places * Santarém, Pará, Brazil * Santarém District, a district in Portugal * Santarém, Portugal, Capital of the Ribatejo province * Roman Catholic Diocese of Santarém, Portugal Other * Santarém cheese, a Portuguese g ...
,
Torres Novas Torres Novas () is a Portugal, Portuguese Concelho, municipality in the district of Santarém (district), Santarém, in the Médio Tejo Subregion, Médio Tejo of the Oeste e Vale do Tejo region. The population of the municipality was approximately ...
and
Torres Vedras Torres Vedras () is a concelho, municipality in the Portugal, Portuguese district of Lisbon (district), Lisbon, approximately north of the capital Lisbon. It is a strong agricultural region thanks to its vineyards, and has an intense commercial ...
, and the Chiefdom of the Name and Arms of the Portuguese Alarcão family. By his wife Isabel, Lady of Avintes, he had nine children, the eldest of whom, D. António de Almeida, was his heir and successo


Origins and Family History

See:  Marquess of Lavradio#Origins and Family History, Marquessate of Lavradio - Origins and Family History


Counts of Avintes (1664)

# D. Luís de Almeida (1610—1671), 1st Count of Avintes. Succeeded by his son # D. António de Almeida Portugal (1640—1715), 2nd Count of Avintes. Succeeded by his son # D. Luís de Almeida Portugal (1669—1730), 3rd Count of Avintes. Succeeded by his son # D. António de Almeida Soares de Portugal (1701—1760), 1st Marquess and 1st Count of Lavradio, 4th Count of Avintes, 8th Viceroy of Brasil. Succeeded by his son # D. Luís de Almeida Portugal Soares de Alarcão d'Eça e Mello Silva Mascarenhas (1729—1790), 2nd Marquess of Lavradio, 5th Count of Avintes, 11th Viceroy of Brasil. Succeeded by his son # D. António Máximo de Almeida Portugal Soares de Alarcão Mello de Castro Ataíde d'Eça Mascarenhas Silva e Lancastre (1756—1833), 3rd Marquess of Lavradio, 6th Count of Avintes. Succeeded by his son # D. Luís de Almeida Portugal Soares de Alarcão Mello de Castro Ataíde d'Eça Mascarenhas Silva e Lancastre (1787—1812), 4th Marquess of Lavradio, 7th Count of Avintes. Succeeded by his brother # D. António de Almeida Portugal Soares de Alarcão Mello de Castro Ataíde d'Eça Mascarenhas Silva e Lancastre (1794—1874), 5th Marquess of Lavradio, 8th Count of Avintes. Succeeded by his great-grandson # D. José Maria do Espírito Santo de Almeida Corrêa de Sá (1874—1945), 6th Marquess of Lavradio, 9th Count of Avintes. Succeeded by his son # D. António de Almeida Portugal (1908—1938), 10th Count of Avintes. Succeeded by his brother # D. José Luís de Almeida (1912—1966), 7th Marquess of Lavradio, 11th Count of Avintes. Succeeded by his son # D. Jaime de Almeida, 8th Marquess of Lavradio, 12th Count of Avintes, 6th Count of Torres Vedras. Succeeded by his son # D. Luís Maria de Almeida, 13th Count of Avintes, heir apparent to the Marquess of Lavradio.


Coat of Arms

See:  Marquesses of Lavradio - Coat of Arms


Ancestry


See also

* Marquesses of Lavradio * Counts of Lavradio * Counts of Torres Vedras


Footnotes

{{notelist


References


External links


Genealogy of the Counts of Avintes
Portuguese noble titles Countships of Portugal Portuguese noble families 1664 establishments in Portugal