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In 1094, Afonso VI of Lion
entrusted the county of Portucale (the territory that encompassed the lands between the
Minho and the Mondego Rivers) to Henry of Burgundy as a partial reward for his services in
the battles against the Moors. In addition, Count Henry, a French knight, was given the
hand of D. Princess Teresa. From this union a child, Afonso Henriques, who was to become
the first king of Portugal, was born. Count Henry governed Portucale as a subject of the
king of Lion, and established a capital in Guimarães, Minho. Because of this, the region
is referred to as the "cradle of Portugal." Although Count Henry longed
for Portucale's independence, he died without having realized his dream. However, he left
this legacy to his son. Because Afonso Henriques was only three years old when his father
died, D. Teresa governed Portucale in his place. Though initially harboring her late
husband's secret wish of emancipation, D. Teresa was unable to accomplish it due to the
involvement of Spanish knights in the Court of Portucale. To further hinder the cause for
independence, D. Teresa later became involved with one of these knights, Count Fernão
Peres de Trava.
In 1125, at the age of fourteen, Afonso Henriques
proclaimed his own knighthood at the Cathedral of Zamora. Disagreeing with his mother's
politics, he asked her to yield control of Portucale to him. She refused, and he sided
with her rivals. Two distinct political parties then arose in Portucale--D. Teresa's and
D. Afonso Henriques'. Tension escalated between the two parties resulting in the Battle of
St. Mamede in 1128, from which D. Afonso Henriques arose victorious. D. Teresa retired to
Galiza, and D. Afonso Henriques took control of the county. In 1143, the son of the
French Knight and of the Spanish Princess proclaimed independence and gave himself the
title of king of Portugal. This marked the beginning of the First Dynasty or the
Afonsino Dynasty, which ended in 1383 with the death of D. Fernando, the Handsome. The
Portuguese kingdom expanded from Minho to Algarve during this dynasty. |
