Maria Afonso
| Maria Afonso | |
|---|---|
| A 16th-century miniature of a nun, wearing grey robes, flipping through a book Maria Afonso depicted in a 16th-century miniature | |
| Born | c. 1301 |
| Died | 1320 |
| Cause of death | Murder |
| Burial | |
| House | Burgundy |
| Father | Denis of Portugal |
| Religion | Roman Catholicism |
| Occupation | Nun |
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Maria Afonso (c. 1301 – 1320) was a Portuguese noblewoman and nun. The illegitimate daughter of Denis of Portugal, she was a nun at the Monastery of São Dinis de Odivelas, where she built an altar for Andrew the Apostle. She was murdered in 1320. The whereabouts of her remains have been subject to controversy. In 2022, she was portrayed in Portuguese drama series A Rainha e a Bastarda, which was about her death and the subsequent investigation.
Biography
[edit ]Maria Afonso was the illegitimate daughter of Denis of Portugal.[1] : 73 The identity of her mother has been debated upon by scholars. While some attribute Branca Lourenço de Valadares, a member of the noble Valladares family, as her mother, others say her mother was unknown.[2] : 109 She was brought up in Odivelas, and is believed to have been born in 1301, based on a document dated that year that stated Denis granted her presumed mother, Branca Lourenço, the town of Mirandela in exchange for her body.[3] Her half-siblings were the legitimate Constance of Portugal and Afonso IV of Portugal, and the illegitimate Afonso Sanches, Pedro Afonso, João Afonso, Fernão Sanches, Maria Afonso, and another Pedro Afonso. Maria Afonso was the youngest child of Denis.[3]
She became a nun at the Monastery of São Dinis de Odivelas at an unknown date,[1] : 73 which her father had founded in 1295.[4] : 159 During her time as nun, she helped build an altar for Andrew the Apostle.[1] : 73
Death and burial
[edit ]She died in 1320, and was buried at the Monastery she worked at.[1] : 73 [5] She is believed to have been murdered in the Monastery, at around 20 years old.[2] : 110
A reliquary in the Epistle chapel of the Monastery was believed to have contained the remains of Afonso. However, the reliquary was not decorated with items that would be typical of a woman like Afonso, such as religious elements or veils.[6] : 438–439 Historian Carla Varela Fernandes proposed that it actually held the remains of a son of Afonso IV of Portugal and his wife Beatrice of Castile, named John.[6] : 439 He was Maria's nephew.[1] : 76
From a report from Borges de Figueiredo from when he opened the reliquary, it contained the remains of a child that was no older than a year of age and a child's coat. Varela Fernandes noted that the child's description matched that of John.[1] : 83
Legacy
[edit ]In 2022, Afonso was portrayed in the Portuguese drama series A Rainha e a Bastarda [pt], which centers around the investigation into her murder.[7] [8]
References
[edit ]- ^ a b c d e f Varela Fernandes, Carla (December 2006). Proposta de identificação de um jacente medieval. O infante D. João [Proposal for identification of a medieval recumbent effigy. Prince John] (PDF) (Report) (in Portuguese). Art History Institute - University of Lisbon. pp. 73–87. Retrieved 11 May 2026.
- ^ a b da Cruz Parra, Ana Raquel (2017–2018). A Paternidade na Idade Média: o caso de D. Dinis (Report) (in Portuguese). University of Lisbon. pp. 109–110.
- ^ a b Máxima Vaz, Maria (13 October 2013). "D. Dinis – dois filhos legítimos e sete naturais" [King Dinis – two legitimate children and seven illegitimate children.] (in Portuguese). Capeia Arraiana. Retrieved 11 May 2026.
- ^ Carrero Santamaría, Eduardo (21 November 2022). "Mosteiro de Odivelas: documentos fundacionais, coord. científica Saul António Gomes, Odivelas, Odivelas: Cámara municipal-Mosteiro de Odivelas-Centro de Història Universidade de Lisboa, 2021". Medievalia (in Portuguese). 25 (1). Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona: 158–160. doi:10.5565/rev/medievalia.593. ISSN 2014-8410.
- ^ "Reis, Rainhas e Presidentes de Portugal - D. Dinis" [Kings, Queens, and Presidents of Portugal - King Dinis] (in Portuguese). O Portal da História. Retrieved 11 May 2026.
- ^ a b Rossi Vairo, Guilia. "O Mosteiro De S. Dinis E S. Bernardo De Odivelas, Panteão Régio (1318-1322)" (PDF). Família, Espaço e Património [Family, Space and Heritage] (in Portuguese). CITCEM. pp. 433–448. ISBN 9789898351142.
- ^ "A Rainha e a Bastarda" [The Queen and the Bastard] (in Portuguese). Rádio e Televisão de Portugal. 16 February 2022. Retrieved 11 May 2026.
- ^ Amaral Cardoso, Joana (22 February 2022). "A Rainha e a Bastarda é a senhora que se segue nas séries da RTP1" [The Queen and the Bastard is the next series on RTP1.]. Público (in Portuguese). Retrieved 11 May 2026.
