KING MANUEL I – 1469-1521
Manuel I (Alcochete, 1 June 1469 – Lisbon, 13 December 1521), king of Portugal between 1495 and 1521, was the son of Ferdinand and Beatrice, Infantes of Portugal and Dukes of Viseu and Beja, the nephew of King Afonso V and the cousin of King João II, whom he succeeded. In his veins ran the blood of King João I, of Afonso, 1st Duke of Braganza, and of the Holy Constable Nuno Álvares Pereira.
He married three times, always with close relations of the monarchs of Castile and Aragon, kingdoms with which he sought to keep the peace. He fathered 13 children, including two future kings of Portugal, João III and Cardinal Henry, not to mention Isabella, the Germanic Holy Roman Empress and Queen of Castile and Aragon, and the cultured and extremely wealthy Maria of Portugal.
A prudent, discreet, astute, gentle, and merciful man, who was also known for being cheerful, jovial, and friendly, he loved luxury and magnificence. Hunting and boat trips along the river Tagus were among his favourite pastimes. He was also passionate about music and loved books, particularly on the subject of history. He stimulated an intense period of construction of civil and religious buildings and was the only Portuguese king to have his name linked to an architectural style, the Manueline.
During his reign, he oversaw the promulgation of the new Ordinances of the Kingdom, the reform of municipal charters, the start of what became known as Leitura Nova, the creation of the first Misericordias (charitable institutions to help the poor), the expulsion of Jews and Moors, the increased prominence of Lisbon as the capital of Portugal and the creation of the position of Postmaster General of the Kingdom.
It was also the time of the great voyages of the Discoveries (particularly those of Vasco da Gama and Pedro Álvares Cabral) and the consolidation of the Portuguese Empire in the east, thanks to the efforts and commitment of Francisco de Almeida, Afonso de Albuquerque and others.
King Manuel I went down in history as the Fortunate. That was how his subjects referred to him. His chief chronicler, Damião de Góis, however, nicknamed him Most Happy. Fortunate and happy for various reasons. Firstly, because he came to a throne that was not initially in his destiny; secondly, because he was undoubtedly a happy man in terms of family; and finally, because he oversaw the birth of a vast empire that, for the first time in the history of humanity, spread across three continents.
He was somewhat less fortunate and happy with the fact that he was unable to bring to fruition an audacious project that had always been part of his agenda, and which was also rather quixotic: to entirely annihilate Islam and be crowned emperor of the East in Jerusalem.
Six centuries after his death, the spirit of King Manuel I, as well as enduring in the collective Portuguese consciousness – sometimes, and despite the best efforts of historians, not always entirely correctly –, still pervades the many works of Manueline art scattered throughout Portugal and the former Portuguese territories. And, lest we forget, the current Portuguese flag features his emblem, the armillary sphere.
Paulo Drumond Braga
