Manuel I of Portugal

King Manuel's royal standard, depicting an armillary sphere, became a symbol of the Portuguese Empire's global expanse and eventually Portugal itself. It can still be seen in Portugal's coat of arms and its flag.

Manuel would prove a worthy successor to his cousin John II for his support of Portuguese exploration of the Atlantic Ocean and development of Portuguese commerce. During his reign, the following achievements were realized:

1498 – The discovery of a maritime route to India by Vasco da Gama.
1500 – The discovery of Brazil by Pedro Álvares Cabral.
1501 – The discovery of Labrador by Gaspar and Miguel Corte-Real.
1505 – The appointment of Francisco de Almeida as the first viceroy of India.
1503–1515 – The establishment of monopolies on maritime trade routes (mare clausum) to the Indian Ocean and Persian Gulf by Afonso de Albuquerque.

The capture of Malacca in modern-day Malaysia in 1511 was the result of a plan by Manuel I to thwart the Muslim trade in the Indian Ocean by capturing Aden, blocking trade through Alexandria, capturing Ormuz to block trade through the Persian Gulf and Beirut, and capturing Malacca to control trade with China.[4]

All these events made Portugal wealthy from foreign trade as it formally established a vast overseas empire. Manuel used the wealth to build a number of royal buildings (in the "Manueline" style) and to attract scientists and artists to his court.

Commercial treaties and diplomatic alliances were forged with the Ming dynasty of China and the Persian Safavid dynasty. Pope Leo X received a monumental embassy from Portugal during his reign designed to draw attention to Portugal's newly acquired riches to all of Europe.[5]

In Manuel's reign, royal absolutism was the method of government. The Portuguese Cortes (the assembly of the kingdom) met only three times during his reign, always in Lisbon, the king's seat. He reformed the courts of justice and the municipal charters with the crown, modernizing taxes and the concepts of tributes and rights. During his reign, the laws in force in the kingdom of Portugal were recodified with the publication of the Manueline Ordinances.

Manuel with his second wife Maria of Aragon and their eight children; by Colijn de Coter, c. 1515-17.

Manuel was a very religious man and invested a large amount of Portuguese income to send missionaries to the new colonies, among them Francisco Álvares, and sponsor the construction of religious buildings, such as the Monastery of Jerónimos. Manuel also endeavoured to promote another crusade against the Turks, and promoted himself as a scourge of Islam in the Indian Ocean.[6]

His relationship with the Portuguese Jews started out well. At the outset of his reign, he released all the Jews who had been made captive during the reign of John II. Unfortunately for the Jews, he decided that he wanted to marry Infanta Isabella of Aragon, then heiress of the future united crown of Spain (and widow of his nephew Prince Afonso). Her parents Ferdinand and Isabella had expelled the Jews in 1492 and would never marry their daughter to the king of a country that still tolerated their presence. In the marriage contract, Manuel I agreed to persecute the Jews of Portugal.

In December 1496, it was decreed that all Jews either convert to Christianity or leave the country without their children.[7] However, those expelled could only leave the country in ships specified by the king. When those who chose expulsion arrived at the port in Lisbon, they were met by clerics and soldiers who tried to use coercion and promises in order to baptize them and prevent them from leaving the country.

Stained glass depiction, c. 1510–1513

This period of time technically ended the presence of Jews in Portugal. Afterwards, all converted Jews and their descendants would be referred to as "New Christians", and they were given a grace period of thirty years in which no inquiries into their faith would be allowed; this was later extended to end in 1534.[8]

During the course of the Lisbon massacre of 1506, people invaded the Jewish Quarter and murdered thousands of accused Jews; the leaders of the riot were executed by Manuel.

In addition to persecuting Jews, Manuel was also notorious for his anti-Muslim policies, and is known to have pressured Ferdinand and Isabella of Spain to end the toleration of Islam in their own kingdom.[6]

Manuel was married three times, and had two daughters and one granddaughter of Ferdinand and Isabella of Spain:

• Isabella, married from 20 September 1497 – 23 August 1498, died in childbirth
• Maria, married from 30 October 1500 – 7 March 1517, died from complications of pregnancy
• Eleanor, married from 16 July 1518 – 13 December 1521, outlived Manuel, later Queen Consort of France.

Name	Portrait	Lifespan	Notes
By Isabel of Aragon (2 October 1470 – 23 August 1498; married 30 September 1497)
Miguel, Prince of Asturias & Portugal		23 August 1498 – 19 July 1500	Heir to all of the Iberian kingdoms of Portugal, Castile, and Aragon as Prince of Asturias, Prince of Portugal, and Prince of Girona, until premature death.
By Maria of Aragon (19 June 1482 – 7 March 1517; married 30 October 1500)
John III of Portugal		7 June 1502 – 11 June 1557	King of Portugal from 1521 until 1557. He was married to Catherine of Austria, daughter of King Philip I of Castile and Queen Joana I of Castile. He had nine children from this marriage.
Isabel, Holy Roman Empress		24 October 1503 – 1 May 1539	Married Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor. She had five children from this marriage.
Beatriz, Duchess of Savoy		31 December 1504 – 8 January 1538	Married Charles III, Duke of Savoy. She had seven children from this marriage.
Luís, Duke of Beja		3 March 1506 – 27 November 1555	Never married but had an illegitimate son, António, Prior of Crato, who tried to claim the throne of Portugal during the 1580 dynastic crisis.
Fernando, Duke of Guarda		5 June 1507 – 7 November 1534	Married Guiomar Coutinho, Countess of Marialva and Loulé. He had two children from this marriage.
Afonso, Cardinal-Archbishop of Lisbon		23 April 1509 – 21 April 1540	He was a Cardinal-Infante, Prince of the Church, Archbishop of Lisbon, and Bishop of Évora.
Henry I of Portugal		31 January 1512 – 31 January 1580	King of Portugal from 1578 until 1580. He was a Cardinal-Infante, Prince of the Church, Archbishop of Lisbon, and the only cardinal in history to reign as king.
Infanta Maria		3 February 1513	She was born stillborn.
Duarte, Duke of Guimarães		7 October 1515 – 20 September 1540	Married Isabel of Braganza. He had three children from this marriage. Great-grandfather of John IV.
Infante António		9 September 1516	He was born stillborn.
By Eleanor of Austria (15 November 1498 – 25 February 1558; married 16 July 1518)
Infante Carlos		18 February 1520 – 14 April 1521	He died at the age of 1, of a fever.
Maria, Duchess of Viseu		18 June 1521 – 10 October 1577	Never married. She was the richest woman in Europe of her time.