Sancho I of Portugal

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Portuguese Royalty
House of Burgundy
Afonso Henriques (Afonso I)
Children include
Sancho I
Children include
Afonso II
Children include
Sancho II
Afonso III
Children include
Denis
Children include
Afonso IV
Children include
Peter I
Children include
Ferdinand I
Children include

Sancho I, King of Portugal (pron. IPA /'sɐ̃ʃu/), Sanctius I in English, nicknamed the Populator (Port. o Povoador), second king of Portugal, was born on November 11, 1154 in Coimbra and died on March 26, 1212 in the same city. He was the third but only surviving son of Afonso I Henriques of Portugal by his wife, Mafalda of Savoy. Sancho succeeded his father in 1185. He used the title King of Algarve and/or Silves between 1189 and 1191

In 1170, Sancho was knighted by his father, King Afonso I, and from that time he became his second in command, both administratively and military. At this time, the independence of Portugal (declared in 1139) was not firmly established. The kings of León and Castile were trying to annex the country and the Roman Catholic church was late in giving its blessing and approval. Due to this Afonso I had to search for allies within the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal made an alliance with the kingdom of Aragon and together they fought Castile and León. To secure the agreement, Prince Sancho of Portugal married, in 1174, princess Dulce Berenguer, younger sister of king Alfonso II of Aragon. Aragon was thus the first Iberian kingdom to recognize the independence of Portugal.

With the death of Afonso I in 1185, Sancho I became the second king of Portugal. Coimbra was the centre of his kingdom; Sancho terminated the exhausting and generally pointless wars against his neighbours for control of the Galician borderlands. Instead, he turned all his attentions to the South, against the Moorish communities that still thrived. With Crusader help he took Silves in 1191. Silves was an important city of the South, an administrative and commercial town with population around 20,000 people. Sancho ordered the fortification of the city and built a castle that is today an important monument of Portuguese heritage. However, military attention soon had to be turned again to the North, where León and Castile threatened again the Portuguese borders. Silves was again lost to the Moors.

Sancho I founded the city of Guarda in 1199.

Sancho I dedicated much of his reign to political and administrative organization of the new kingdom. He accumulated a national treasure, supported new industries and the middle class of merchants. Moreover, he created several new towns and villages and took great care in populating remote areas in the northern Christian regions of Portugal, notably with Flemings and Burgundians – hence the nickname the Populator. The king was also known for his love of knowledge and literature. Sancho I wrote several books of poems and used the royal treasure to send Portuguese boys to study in European Universities.

[edit] Ancestors

Sancho's ancestors in three generations
Sancho I of Portugal Father:
Afonso I of Portugal		 Father's father:
Henry, Count of Portugal		 Father's father's father:
Henry, Duke of Burgundy
Father's father's mother:
Sybil (Beatriz) of Barcelona
Father's mother:
Theresa, Countess of Portugal		 Father's mother's father:
Alfonso VI of Castile
Father's mother's mother:
Jimena Muñoz
Mother:
Maud of Savoy		 Mother's father:
Amadeus III of Savoy		 Mother's father's father:
Humbert II of Savoy
Mother's father's mother:
Gisela of Burgundy
Mother's mother:
Mahaut of Albon		 Mother's mother's father:
Guy II, Count of Albon
Mother's mother's mother:
Inés of Barcelona

[edit] Marriage and descendants

Sancho married Dulce Berenguer, daughter of Raymond Berengar IV, Count of Barcelona, and Petronilla, Queen of Aragon.

Name Birth Death Notes
By Dulce Berenguer (1152-1198; married in 1175)
Teresa 1181 1250 Married to King Alfonso IX of Castile
Raymond c. 1180 1189  
Sancha a. 1182 March 13, 1229 Abbess of Lorvão
Constance c. 1182 August 3, 1202  
Afonso II April 23, 1185 March 25, 1223 Succeeded him as 3rd King of Portugal
Peter February 23, 1187 June 2, 1258 Count of Urgell and Lord of the Balearic Islands, lived in León and married Arembiax Armengel, Countess of Urgell
Ferdinand March 24, 1188 March 4, 1233 Lived in France and married Jeanne of Flanders
Henry 1189 1189  
Branca (Blanche) c. 1192 1240 Lady of Guadalajara
Berengária c. 1195 1221 Married to King Valdemar II of Denmark
Mafalda c. 1200 1256 Married to King Henry I of Castile
By Maria Aires (c. 1180-?)
Martim Sanches or
Henrique Sanches		 c. 1200 1229 Natural son and Count of Trastamara
Urraca Sanches c. 1200 1256 Natural daughter
By Maria Pais Ribeira (Ribeirinha) (c. 1170-b. 1258)
Rodrigo Sanches c. 1200 1245 Natural son
Gil Sanches c. 1200 1236 Natural son
Nuno Sanches c. 1200 ? Natural son
Teresa Sanches 1205 1230 Natural daughter
Constança Sanches 1210 1269 Natural daughter
Maior Sanches ? ? Natural daughter
House of Burgundy
Cadet Branch of the House of Capet
Born: 11 November 1154; Died: 26 March 1212
Preceded by:
Afonso I		 Kings of Portugal
1185–1212		 Succeeded by:
Afonso II
Persondata
NAME Sancho I
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Sanctius I (English)
SHORT DESCRIPTION King of Portugal
DATE OF BIRTH November 11, 1154
PLACE OF BIRTH Coimbra, Portugal
DATE OF DEATH March 26, 1212
PLACE OF DEATH Coimbra, Portugal
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