Angel of Portugal

The Angel of Portugal (Portuguese: Anjo de Portugal), also referred to as the Guardian Angel of Portugal (Anjo da Guarda de Portugal), the Holy Guardian Angel of Portugal (Santo Anjo da Guarda de Portugal), the Custodian Angel (Anjo Custódio) or the Angel of Peace (Anjo da Paz) is celebrated as the Guardian angel of Portugal. It is the only "national angel" recognized as such. Portugal celebrates the Feast of the Angel of Portugal on June 10.[1]

Guardian Angel of Portugal
Stone statue of the Angel of Portugal at Museu Nacional Machado de Castro, in Coimbra, Portugal
Venerated inPortugal, Catholic Church
Major shrineSanctuary of Fátima
FeastJune 10
AttributesArchangel carrying the Portuguese Shield
PatronagePortugal

History

The east wall of the chapel at the Batalha Monastery, the construction of which commenced in 1386, had an altar dedicated to the Guardian Angel of Portugal.[2] In 1504, by request of King Manuel I of Portugal, Pope Julius II created the feast of the Custodian Angel of the Kingdom (Anjo Custódio do Reino).[3]

The cult of the Guardian Angel of Portugal declined considerably after the 17th century, and was officially restored in 1952, its feast day being inserted into the Portuguese liturgical calendar by Pius XII.[1]

Lúcia dos Santos and her cousins Francisco and Jacinta Marto, the three children who claimed in 1917 to have experienced a series of Marian apparitions at the Our Lady of Fátima events, claimed the angel to have appeared before them three times in 1916,[4] and identified himself as the "Angel of Peace".

The Angel of Portugal has at times been identified as Saint Michael.[5]

See also

References
  1. Dos Santos, Antonio. "The Angel of Portugal celebrated on June 10", O Clarim, Semanario Catolico de Macau, June 6, 2021
  2. Karl Baedeker. Spain and Portugal: Handbook for Travellers, 1898, p. 558
  3. David Keck: Angels and Angelology in the Middle Ages, Oxford University Press, 1998, p.38.
  4. George J. Marshall: Angels: An Indexed and Partially Annotated Bibliography of Over 4300 Scholarly Books and Articles Since the 7th Century B.C. McFarland, 2015 p.132
  5. Gabriel Paquette: Imperial Portugal in the Age of Atlantic Revolutions: The Luso-Brazilian World, c.1770–1850, Cambridge University Press, 2013, p.207
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