Everything about King Duarte totally explained
Edward (
Portuguese:
Duarte, ;
Viseu,
31 October 1391 –
Tomar,
13 September 1438), called
the Philosopher or
the Eloquent, was the eleventh
King of Portugal and the Algarve and second
Lord of Ceuta from 1433 until his death. He was the son of
John I of Portugal and his wife,
Philippa of Lancaster, a daughter of
John of Gaunt. His was named in honor of his great-grandfather, King
Edward III of England.
As an infante, Duarte always followed his father, King João I, in the affairs of the kingdom. He was knighted in
1415, after the Portuguese capture of the city of
Ceuta in North Africa, across from
Gibraltar. He became king in
1433 when his father died of the
plague and he soon showed interest in internal consensus. During his short reign of five years, Duarte called the
Cortes (the national assembly) no less than five times to discuss internal affairs and politics. He also followed the politics of his father concerning the maritime exploration of Africa. He encouraged and financed his famous brother,
Henry the Navigator who founded a "school" of maritime
navigation at
Sagres and who initiated many expeditions. Among these, that of
Gil Eanes in
1434 first rounded
Cape Bojador on the northwestern coast of Africa, leading the way for further exploration southward along the African coast.
The colony at Ceuta rapidly became a drain on the Portuguese treasury and it was realised that without the city of
Tangier, possession of Ceuta was worthless. When Ceuta was lost to the Portuguese, the camel caravans that were part of the overland trade routes began to use Tangier as their new destination. This deprived Ceuta of the materials and goods that made it an attractive market and a vibrant trading locale, and it became an isolated community.
In
1437, his brothers, Henry (Henrique) and
Fernando, persuaded Duarte to launch an attack on
Morocco in order to get a better
African base for future Atlantic exploration. The expedition wasn't unanimously supported:
Infante Pedro, Duke of Coimbra and
Infante João were both against the initiative; they preferred to avoid conflict with the king of Morocco. They proved to be right. The resulting attack on
Tangier was successful, but at a great cost of men. Duarte's youngest brother,
Fernando, the Saint Prince was captured, kept as a hostage, and he died later in captivity in
Fez. Duarte died soon after the Tangier attack of the plague, like his father and mother (and her mother) before him.
Another less political side of Duarte's personality is related to culture. A reflective and scholarly infante, he wrote the treatises
O Leal Conselheiro (The Loyal Counsellor) and as well as several poems. He was in the process of revising the Portuguese law code when he died.
Ancestors
Marriages and descendants
Duarte married
Eleanor of Aragon, a daughter of
Ferdinand I of Aragon and Leonor Urraca of Castile, in
1428.
Further Information
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