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In 1383, king Fernando of Portugal was dying. From his marriage with Leonor Telles de Menezes, a Castilian lady, only a girl, princess Beatrice of Portugal, survived. Her marriage was the political issue of the day, since it would determine the future of the kingdom.
Several political factions lobbied for possible husbands, which include English and French princes. Finally the king settled for his wife's first choice: king John I of Castile. The marriage was celebrated in May 1383 but was not a widely accepted solution. This dynastic union meant that Portugal would loose independence to Castile and there were plenty of personalities fiercely against this possibility. But they were not united under a common pretender to the crown. Candidates, both half, illegitimate brothers of Fernando were:
In October 22, king Fernando died. According to the marriage contract, dowager queen Leonor assumed regency in the name of her daughter Beatrice and son-in-law, John I of Castile. Since diplomatic opposition was no longer possible, the party for independence took more drastic measures, starting the 13831385 crisis.
The first act of hostilities was taken by the faction of the Master of Aviz in DecemberDecember is the twelfth and last month of the year in the Gregorian Calendar, with 31 days. From the Latin decem for " ten" (it was originally the tenth month of the year, before January and February were inserted). The winter solstice falls in December., 1383. John, the count of Andeiro and lover of the dowager queen was murdered by a group of conspirators, led by Joćo of Aviz. Following this act of war, Joćo was now the leader of the opposition. With the help of Nuno Alvares Pereira, a talented general, he took the cities of LisbonLisbon (in Portuguese, Lisboa is the capital and largest city of Portugal. It is the seat of the district of Lisbon. Geography and Location Lisbon is situated at 38 degrees, 43 minutes north, and 9 degrees, 8 mintes west. It is located in the west of the, BejaBeja is a city, capital of a district of the same name located south near Algarve ( South Alentejo) in Portugal. The city population is 23,475 in 4 parishes. The municipality has 35,289 in 18 parishes. It's the biggest district in Portugal., PortalegreThis article is about Portalegre, Alentejo, Portugal. You may be looking for Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. Portalegre is a city in Portugal. History Portalegre was founded in the reign of Afonso III, in 1259. It was to be given to his bastard s, Estremoz and Évoravora is both a town and a district in eastern Portugal. Geography Evora (latitude 38. 6ŗ, longitude 7ŗ54', altitude 300 m) is situated in Alentejo (south of Portugal). It is the chief city of the district and capital of Alto Alentejo Province. Highlights. As a response, king John I of Castile entered Portugal and occupied the city of Santarém. In his effort to normalize the situation and secure his wife's crown, he forced queen Leonor to abdicate from the regency and took control of the country.
The armed resistance and the Castilian army met in April 6, 1384, in the battle of Atoleiros . General Alvares Pereira won the battle for the Aviz party, but victory was not decisive. John I then retreated to Lisbon in May and besieged the capital, with an auxiliary fleet blocking the city's port in the river Tagus. This was a severe drawback to the independence cause. Without the capital, with her riches and commerce, little could be done to free the country from the Castilian king. On his side, John I of Castile needed Lisbon, not only for financial reasons, but also for political ones. Neither he or Beatrice had been crowned and without a coronation in the capital; he was only a designated king.
Meanwhile, Joćo of Aviz had surrendered the military command of the resistance to Alvares Pereira. The general continued to attack cities loyal to the Castilians and to harass the invading army. The Master of Aviz was now focused on diplomatic offensives. International politics played an important role in this internal Portuguese affair. In 1384, the Hundred Years' War was at its peak, opposing English and French forces in a struggle for the crown of France. The conflict's influence surpassed the French borders, and influenced, for instance, the papal disputes of Avignon. Castile was a traditional ally of France, so looking for assistance in England was the natural option for Joćo of Aviz. In May, already with Lisbon besieged, an embassy was sent to the court of Richard II of England to make a case for independence. In 1384 the king was seventeen years old, but the power lay on John of Gaunt, duke of Lancaster, his uncle and regent. Despite being at first reluctant to concede men, John of Gaunt finally agreed to levy troops to reinforce the Portuguese army. These proved to be decisive.
Lisbon was struggling with famine and fear to sustain the Castilian siege. Blocked by land and by the river, the city had no hope to be relieved by the Aviz army, which was too small to risk an intervention and occupied in subduing other cities. An attempt was made by a Portuguese fleet to relieve the siege by the Castilian ships. In July 18, a group of ships led by captain Rui Pereira managed to break the blockade and deliver precious supplies of food to Lisbon. The cost was high, since all the boats were lost and Rui Pereira himself died in the naval combat. Despite this minor success, the siege held on and the city of Almada, in the south bank of the Tagus, surrendered to Castile. But the siege was hard not only to the inhabitants of Lisbon. The army of Castile was also dealing with a shortage of food supplies, due to the harassment of Nuno Alvares Pereira, and the plague. It was the outbreak of an epidemic in his ranks that forced John I to retreat to Castile on September 3. Weeks later, the Castilian fleet also abandoned the Tagus, and Lisbon could breathe a sigh of relief.