Parents: Henrique, count of Portugal, and Theresa, countess of Portugal
Date of Birth: 25 June 1109
House: Capet-Burgundy
Spouse(s): Maud, daughter of Amadeo III, count of Savoy, and Mahaut of Albon
Predecessor: Henrique (as count)
Reign: 1139 – 1185
Brief: The first monarch of an independent, post-Carolingian Portugal, Afonso I began his tenure as a count and vassal of the kingdom of Léon. His father had been created count when he married King Alfonso VI of León's illegitimate daughter, Theresa, a woman who later ruled after her husband died alongside Afonso. After being forced out of the government in 1120, Afonso sought out on his own and became a knight, fighting his mother's troops at the Battle of São Mamede in 1128 at the age of nineteen. He proclaimed himself sovereign duke of Portugal after his victory, and he sent his mother into a monastery for the rest of her life. In 1129, after defeating King Alfonso VII of León, he promoted himself to prince, but was still a decade away from his true goal. That came after ten years of continuous fighting against the Moors of southern Spain and the successful Battle of Ourique, whereafter he proclaimed himself the King of the Portuguese. He transferred his allegiance to the Papacy in Rome, which was confirmed in 1179, and León was forced to accept the loss of its southern province. For most of the rest of his reign, Afonso sought to enrich the monasteries of Portugal in order to win over the pope. Despite years of civil war with León and fighting against the Moors, Afonso continued to engage in combat until 1184. He died the following year leaving his now-secure kingdom to his son, Sancho I.
Date of Death: 6 December 1185
Brief: The first monarch of an independent, post-Carolingian Portugal, Afonso I began his tenure as a count and vassal of the kingdom of Léon. His father had been created count when he married King Alfonso VI of León's illegitimate daughter, Theresa, a woman who later ruled after her husband died alongside Afonso. After being forced out of the government in 1120, Afonso sought out on his own and became a knight, fighting his mother's troops at the Battle of São Mamede in 1128 at the age of nineteen. He proclaimed himself sovereign duke of Portugal after his victory, and he sent his mother into a monastery for the rest of her life. In 1129, after defeating King Alfonso VII of León, he promoted himself to prince, but was still a decade away from his true goal. That came after ten years of continuous fighting against the Moors of southern Spain and the successful Battle of Ourique, whereafter he proclaimed himself the King of the Portuguese. He transferred his allegiance to the Papacy in Rome, which was confirmed in 1179, and León was forced to accept the loss of its southern province. For most of the rest of his reign, Afonso sought to enrich the monasteries of Portugal in order to win over the pope. Despite years of civil war with León and fighting against the Moors, Afonso continued to engage in combat until 1184. He died the following year leaving his now-secure kingdom to his son, Sancho I.
Date of Death: 6 December 1185
Successor: Sancho I
Other Monarchs Who Died Today:
Other Monarchs Who Died Today:
- Clement VI, pope of Rome (1352)
- John II Casimir, king of Poland (1672)
- Charles Michael, titular grand duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz (1934)
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