Date of Birth: 20 January 1554
House: Capet-Burgundy-Aviz-Beja
Predecessor: João III
Reign: 1557 – 1578
Summary: Born into the golden age of Portuguese exploration, it is no wonder that Sebastião had his sights on more things than his progeny. He was born in 1554 and given the highly-unusual name of Sebastião due to being born on the feast day of Saint Sebastian. He was born posthumously to his father, who had been the crown prince. It was not unexpected, then, when three years later, Sebastião became the king of Portugal. His mother left soon after he became king to rule as regent of Castile for her father, Emperor Charles V of Spain. She continued in that role for her brother, Philip II of Spain, when he was away on other business. Joanna never saw her son, Sebastião, again. His regency was handled by his grandmother, Catherine of Austria, and a great-uncle, Cardinal Henrique of Évora. During his minority, Portugal continued to conquer new lands in Angola, Mozambique, Malacca, and in Macau. Catherine was directly in charge of her grandson and raised him as best she could, but he grew up to be impulsive and rebellious. His upbringing was heavily influenced by the Jesuits. His tutor and teachers were all Jesuit priests, and Sebastião became a devout Catholic. He was constantly followed by two members of the Theatine Order whose job was to ensure the chastity of the king. Throughout his teen years, Sebastião almost married the daughter of King Henri II of France, Margaret of Valois, but his indecisiveness lost him the day and the girl married Henry of Navarre instead. Other marriage proposals were all rebuffed and Sebastião never ended up marrying, an event that precipitated the succession crisis of 1580 two years after his death.
Sebastião slowly took direct control over his government beginning in 1568 when he began a scholarship program for impoverished noble children hoping to study medicine at the University of Coimbra. In 1569, he also ordered that all official laws and legal documents in the kingdom be combined and centralized in a collection known as the Leis Extravagantes. When an outbreak of plague occurred that same year, Sebastião requested doctors be sent from Saville and he created two hospitals to treat those afflicted. Sebastião was intensely interested in the well-being of his native allies in Brazil and India, and in 1570 ordered that all natives be released as slaves and treated as normal people. Sebastião was a standardizer, and in 1573 established a system of measurement for solid and liquid goods. This standardization helped in distributing goods to the poor and valuing items for sale. His final legal act was establishing court laws to regulate the time lapse between accusation and trial, and the roles lawyers play in the process. In 1576, the deposed Moroccan sultan, Abu Abdallah Mohammed II Saadi, fled to Portugal and requested help in reclaiming the throne from his uncle, who was backed by the Ottoman Empire. Sebastião attempted to rally support with his cousin in Spain but was declined. Regardless, he ventured to Morocco in front of an army of 17,000 troops including most of Portugal's nobility. At the Battle of Alcácer Quibir, the joint Portuguese-Moroccan army was obliterated by the army of ABu Abdallah's uncle, Abd Al-Malik, who commanded 50,000 men. The Portuguese king was last seen riding into the enemy lines. His body was never found, though Philip II of Spain later received remains that were supposedly Sebastião's. His uncle, Cardinal Henrique, succeeded him to the Portuguese throne. A hope—or rather myth—that Sebastião survived persisted into the 1610s, with four people claiming to be the deceased king. A movement, known as Sebastianism, persisted even longer and is but one apocalyptic tradition of a king that will return at the End of Days.
House: Capet-Burgundy-Aviz-Beja
Predecessor: João III
Reign: 1557 – 1578
Summary: Born into the golden age of Portuguese exploration, it is no wonder that Sebastião had his sights on more things than his progeny. He was born in 1554 and given the highly-unusual name of Sebastião due to being born on the feast day of Saint Sebastian. He was born posthumously to his father, who had been the crown prince. It was not unexpected, then, when three years later, Sebastião became the king of Portugal. His mother left soon after he became king to rule as regent of Castile for her father, Emperor Charles V of Spain. She continued in that role for her brother, Philip II of Spain, when he was away on other business. Joanna never saw her son, Sebastião, again. His regency was handled by his grandmother, Catherine of Austria, and a great-uncle, Cardinal Henrique of Évora. During his minority, Portugal continued to conquer new lands in Angola, Mozambique, Malacca, and in Macau. Catherine was directly in charge of her grandson and raised him as best she could, but he grew up to be impulsive and rebellious. His upbringing was heavily influenced by the Jesuits. His tutor and teachers were all Jesuit priests, and Sebastião became a devout Catholic. He was constantly followed by two members of the Theatine Order whose job was to ensure the chastity of the king. Throughout his teen years, Sebastião almost married the daughter of King Henri II of France, Margaret of Valois, but his indecisiveness lost him the day and the girl married Henry of Navarre instead. Other marriage proposals were all rebuffed and Sebastião never ended up marrying, an event that precipitated the succession crisis of 1580 two years after his death.
Sebastião slowly took direct control over his government beginning in 1568 when he began a scholarship program for impoverished noble children hoping to study medicine at the University of Coimbra. In 1569, he also ordered that all official laws and legal documents in the kingdom be combined and centralized in a collection known as the Leis Extravagantes. When an outbreak of plague occurred that same year, Sebastião requested doctors be sent from Saville and he created two hospitals to treat those afflicted. Sebastião was intensely interested in the well-being of his native allies in Brazil and India, and in 1570 ordered that all natives be released as slaves and treated as normal people. Sebastião was a standardizer, and in 1573 established a system of measurement for solid and liquid goods. This standardization helped in distributing goods to the poor and valuing items for sale. His final legal act was establishing court laws to regulate the time lapse between accusation and trial, and the roles lawyers play in the process. In 1576, the deposed Moroccan sultan, Abu Abdallah Mohammed II Saadi, fled to Portugal and requested help in reclaiming the throne from his uncle, who was backed by the Ottoman Empire. Sebastião attempted to rally support with his cousin in Spain but was declined. Regardless, he ventured to Morocco in front of an army of 17,000 troops including most of Portugal's nobility. At the Battle of Alcácer Quibir, the joint Portuguese-Moroccan army was obliterated by the army of ABu Abdallah's uncle, Abd Al-Malik, who commanded 50,000 men. The Portuguese king was last seen riding into the enemy lines. His body was never found, though Philip II of Spain later received remains that were supposedly Sebastião's. His uncle, Cardinal Henrique, succeeded him to the Portuguese throne. A hope—or rather myth—that Sebastião survived persisted into the 1610s, with four people claiming to be the deceased king. A movement, known as Sebastianism, persisted even longer and is but one apocalyptic tradition of a king that will return at the End of Days.
Date of Death: 4 August 1578
Successor: Henrique
Other Monarchs Who Died Today:
Successor: Henrique
Other Monarchs Who Died Today:
- Henri I, king of France (1060)
- Wenceslaus III, king of Bohemia (1306)
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