Portuguese history
The Tragic Love Story of Pedro and Inês
The story of Pedro and Inês is a real-life “Romeo and Juliet” based in Portugal. Much like in Shakespeare’s tale, two lovers are forbidden to marry, only this story involves the future king of Portugal. Who Are the Main Players in This Tragedy? The Infante D. Pedro D. Pedro was born in Coimbra, Portugal, on 8 April 1320, He was the fourth of seven children of Infante D. Afonzo and his wife, Beatriz of Castile. Pedro’s older brothers, D. Afonso and D. Dinis, his younger brother, D. João, and younger sister, D. Isabel, died in childhood, making D. Pedro heir to the throne. D. Pedro loved parties and music and…
The Moors in Portugal: A Brief History
Who were the Moors in Portugal and how did they get there? How long did they rule Portugal? Who expelled them? These, and other, questions will be answered in this post. During the Dark Ages and early Medieval period, Europeans considered Portugal “to be the end of the world, as it was the westernmost point of the known world at the time.” (study.com) Prior to Moorish rule, the Iberian Peninsula (modern-day Spain and Portugal) was ruled by the Visigoths. The Moors, under Tariq ibn Ziyad, the Muslim ruler of Tangier, invaded Portugal and Spain in the year 711 CE. Troops “mostly formed by Moors from northern Africa led the Umayyad…