, Galicia. Note the family coat of arms.
Andrade became a powerful family in north-western
Iberian Peninsula during the
late Middle Ages and the early
Renaissance, during which time they held the titles of Counts of Andrade and Vilalba, amongst others, together with numerous castles, palaces, manor houses and extensive lands. The city of
Ferrol and the borough of
Pontedeume in particular have always been regarded as the areas with the closest attachment to the Andrades, to the point, that Pontedeume has always been, and still is, known as
The Borough of Andrade. The two Galician regions of
Ferrolterra and
Terra Chá (i.e. the
Province of Mondoñedo which disappeared as a province in the
1833 territorial division of Spain though still exists as the Roman Catholic district of the
Diocese of Mondoñedo-Ferrol) are known to have been part of the domains of Fernán Pérez de Andrade in the 14th century. Fernán Pérez de Andrade was made Count of Andrade and Pontedeume, and Lord of Ferrol, Serantes and Vilar. Later the family would obtain the title of Counts of Vilalba under the
Catholic Monarchs gaining full control over the entire Terra Chá Region in today's
Lugo Province. Most of the Galician properties, palaces and castles of the Andrade family these days belong to the
House of Alba, and the present Count of Andrade is
Carlos Fitz-James Stuart, 19th Duke of Alba. In the 12th century, Pedro Fortúnez, son of Fortunio Bermúdez de Andrade, founded the branch that at the end of the 13th century would adopt like name of lineage: Freire. By this same time, concretely in the year 1320 the last knights of Andrade are executed by order of the Archbishop of Santiago de Compostela: Berenguel de Landoira (1317–1330). This moment marked the initial starting point that placed his relatives
Freire as the main lineage of the northern area of the current Galician province of A Coruña. From this same branch of the primitive Andrade, the knight
Fernán Pérez de Andrade called: "The Good" (died 1397) will emerge as a direct descendant, who was undoubtedly the true founder of the so-called House de Andrade.
Pontedeume,
Ferrol and
Vilalba were given in the 14th century to Fernán Pérez by the king
Henry II of Castile due to his services against his brother the King
Pedro of Castile. (manor) of the Andrade,
Pontedeume, Galicia Some of the main branches that emerged directly from this lineage were: • The branch of the descendants of Nuño Freire de Andrade, brother of Fernán Pérez de Andrade, who left Galicia to settle definitively in the kingdom of Portugal. From this character, all the families that today use the surname Andrade descend from their illegitimate children. • The branch emerged in the thirteenth century from Sancha Oanes, daughter of Juan Freire, which would use as the name of the lineage "Díaz de Andrade", or "Díaz de Santamarta" that would occupy the lands around the town of Santa Marta de Ortigueira in the north of Galicia. • The descendants of Pedro Fernández de Andrade, son of another Fernán Pérez de Andrade, owner of the house of Andrade in the fifteenth century. This branch was established in the city of Betanzos and reached the nobility titles of Counts of Maceda in the year 1654, and Taboada. In the sixteenth century Teresa de Andrade, daughter of Fernando de Andrade and Mariñas, first Count of Andrade, married Fernando Ruiz de Castro and Portugal, fourth Count of Lemos and main noble of the kingdom of Galicia. At this moment the House of Andrade is definitely integrated into the House of Castro, and both in the House of Alba from different marriage links.
The Portuguese branch of the Spanish Andrade family This family soon spread to Portugal. This happened several times and with several different branches of the Andrade. The most important branch to go to Portugal was that of the 14th century
Freire de Andrade in the person of
Nuno Freire de Andrade (son of Ruy Freire de Andrade, and brother of the founder of the House: Fernán Pérez de Andrade), later 6th Grand-Master of the
Order of Christ. From this branch of the
Freire de Andrade came
João Fernandes de Andrade who, having served the
Portuguese Kings Afonso V and
John II in the conquest of the
Moroccan strongholds of
Tangier and
Asilah, was granted a new
coat of arms and possessions in the Portuguese Island of
Madeira, namely in
Arco da Calheta (
Bow of the
Calheta). João Fernandes de Andrade, known also as João Fernandes de
Andrade do Arco, married Beatriz de Abreu and had prolific issue, descendants of whom were present in the colonization of
Brazil.
Jacob Velosinho de Andrade translated Saul Morteira's "Torat Mosheh" into
Portuguese under the title "Epitome de la Verdad de la Ley de Moyses." ==People with the surname==