Born in
Lisbon, Henry was the fifth son of
King Manuel I of Portugal and
Maria of Aragon.
Cardinal As the younger brother of
King John III of Portugal and a younger son in the Royal Family, Henry was not expected to succeed to the Portuguese throne. Early in his life, Henry took
Holy Orders to promote Portuguese interests within the Catholic Church, then dominated by
Spain. In 1523, at the age of eleven, the Infante received his first ecclesiastical benefice. He rose rapidly through the Church hierarchy, becoming in quick succession
Archbishop of Braga,
Archbishop of Évora, and
Grand Inquisitor before being made a cardinal on 16 December 1545, with the title of
Santi Quattro Coronati. From 1564 to 1570 he was
Archbishop of Lisbon. Henry, more than anyone, endeavoured to bring the
Jesuits to Portugal to encourage their activity in the
colonial empire.
Reign Henry served as
regent for his great-nephew
King Sebastian, replacing his sister-in-law and Sebastian's grandmother
Queen dowager Catherine, following her resignation from the role in 1562. King Sebastian died without an heir in the disastrous
Battle of Alcácer Quibir that took place in 1578, and the elderly cardinal was proclaimed king soon after. Henry sought to be released from his ecclesiastical vows so he could take a bride and pursue the continuation of the
Aviz dynasty, but
Pope Gregory XIII, not wanting to antagonize
Philip II of Spain, did not grant him that release.
Death and succession The Cardinal-King died in the
Royal Palace of Almeirim, on his 68th birthday, without having appointed a successor, leaving only a regency to care for the kingdom. One of the closest dynastic claimants was King Philip II of Spain who, in June 1580, sent the
Duke of Alba to claim Portugal by force.
Lisbon soon fell, and Philip was elected king of Portugal at the
Portuguese Cortes of
Tomar in 1581— on the condition that the kingdom and its overseas territories would retain their autonomy. ==Ancestry==