Isabel of Viseu

Duchess of Braganza

Infanta Isabel

Duchess of Braganza

Isabel of Viseu in a c. 1645 genealogy of the Kings of Portugal (National Library of Portugal).

Born| 1459
Beja, Portugal
Died| April 1521
Lisbon, Portugal
Spouse| Fernando II, Duke of Braganza
Issue| Jaime, Duke of Braganza
Dinis of Portugal
House| Aviz (by birth)
Braganza (by marriage)
Father| Infante Fernando, Duke of Viseu
Mother| Beatrice of Portugal

Isabel of Viseu (1459–1521) was a daughter of Infante Fernando, Duke of Viseu and his wife and cousin Infanta Beatrice, Duchess of Viseu. She was a member of the House of Aviz and later, House of Braganza.

## Family[edit]

She was the sister of Manuel I of Portugal and Leonor of Viseu. Her maternal grandparents were Infante João of Portugal and his wife Isabella of Barcelos. Her paternal grandparents were Edward of Portugal and Leonor of Aragon.

Isabel's cousin was Isabella I of Castile, wife of Ferdinand II of Aragon and mother of the English queen, Catherine of Aragon.

## Life[edit]

### Marriage[edit]

She married Fernando II, Duke of Braganza, a marriage that would later end in tragedy. This was Fernando's second marriage, after the death of his first wife, Leonor de Menezes. Leonor had not borne any children, so Isabel needed to deliver a son.

Isabel and Fernando had four children:

* Filippe de Braganza (6 July 1475 - 1483)
* Jaime, Duke of Braganza (1479 - 20 September 1532), succeeded his father as Duke of Braganza. Married firstly to Eleanor of Mendoza, had issue. Married secondly to Joana de Mendoça and had issue.
* Dinis of Braganza, Count of Lemos (1481 - 9 May 1516), younger surviving son and ancestor of John IV of Portugal.
* Margarida de Braganza, died young in June 1483.

### Downfall[edit]

Even at a young age, John II of Portugal was not popular among the peers of the kingdom since he was immune to external influence and appeared to despise intrigue. The nobles (including particularly Isabella's husband, the Duke of Braganza) were afraid of his future policies as king. Events proved them right.

After the official accession to the throne in 1481, John II took a series of measures to curtail the overgrown power of his aristocracy and to concentrate power on himself. Immediately, the nobles started to conspire; John II did nothing but observe. Letters of complaint and pleas to intervene were exchanged between the Duke of Braganza and Queen Isabella I of Castile. In 1483, this correspondence was intercepted by royal spies. The House of Braganza was outlawed, their lands confiscated and Isabel's husband executed in Évora.

The following year Isabel's brother was murdered by King John himself because there was word of a new conspiracy that also involved Isabel's second cousin and her father's brother in law. Isabel's family would have felt safe because her sister Leonor was married to John II, but they weren't safe at all. Many other members of Isabel's family were murdered including her elder brother Diogo, Duke of Viseu.

### Later years[edit]

In 1495, John died without surviving legitimate issue and Isabel's brother succeeded him as Manuel I of Portugal. At first, Leanor was made heiress but because she was Dowager Queen and had no surviving children, the post as heiress was passed to Isabel, who in turn passed it to her eldest son Jaime, who was heir from 1495 until 1498 when Manuel's son Miguel da Paz, Prince of Portugal was born.

Isabel died in 1521, she was 62 years of age at the Lisbon Convent of the Mother of God, her brother died later in the year, her sister Leonor died 4 years later. Out of their four children Jaime and Dinis survived to adulthood, Jaime later succeeded his father as Duke of Braganza.

## Ancestry[edit]

Ancestors of Isabel of Viseu

|  |  |  |  |  |  |  | 8\. John I of Portugal

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| 4\. Edward I of Portugal|

|  |  |
| 9\. Philippa of Lancaster

| 2\. Ferdinand, Duke of Viseu|

|  |  |  |  |
| 10\. Ferdinand I of Aragon

| 5\. Eleanor of Aragon|

|  |  |
| 11\. Eleanor of Alburquerque

| 1\. Isabella of Viseu|
|  |  |  |  |  |  |
| 12\. John I of Portugal (= 8)

| 6\. John, Constable of Portugal|

|  |  |
| 13\. Philippa of Lancaster (= 9)

| 3\. Beatrice of Portugal|

|  |  |  |  |
| 14\. Afonso I, Duke of Braganza

| 7\. Isabel of Barcelos|

|  |  |
| 15\. Beatriz Pereira de Alvim

|  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |

## See also[edit]

* Duke of Braganza

## References[edit]

* v
* t
* e

Infantas of Portugal

The generations indicate descent form Afonso I, and continues through the House of Aviz, the House of Habsburg through Infanta Isabel, Holy Roman Empress and Queen of Spain, and the House of Braganza through Infanta Catarina, Duchess of Braganza.

| 1st generation|

* Urraca, Queen of León
* Teresa, Countess of Flanders
* Infanta Mafalda

|

2nd generation|

* Teresa, Queen of León
* Infanta Sancha, Lady of Alenquer
* Mafalda, Queen of Castile
* Infanta Branca, Lady of Guadalajara
* Berengária, Queen of Denmark

3rd generation|

* Leonor, Queen of Denmark

4th generation|

* Infanta Branca, Lady of Las Huelgas
* Infanta Sancha

5th generation|

* Constança, Queen of Castile and León
* Infanta Maria, Lady of Meneses and Orduña

6th generation|

* Maria, Queen of Castile and León
* Leonor, Queen of Aragon

7th generation|

* Infanta Maria, Marchioness of Tortosa
* Infanta Beatriz, Countess of Alburquerque

8th generation|

* Beatriz, Queen of Castile and León
* Isabel, Duchess of Burgundy

9th generation|

* Leonor, Holy Roman Empress
* Infanta Catarina
* Joana, Queen of Castile and León
* Isabel, Queen of Portugal
* Beatriz, Lady of Ravenstein
* Infanta Filipa
* Isabel, Queen of Castile and León
* Infanta Beatriz, Duchess of Viseu

10th generation|

* Joanna, Princess of Portugal
* Leonor, Queen of Portugal
* Isabel, Duchess of Braganza

11th generation|

* Isabel, Queen of Spain
* Beatriz, Duchess of Savoy
* Infanta Maria, Duchess of Viseu

12th generation|

* Maria Manuela, Princess of Portugal and Asturias
* Maria, Hereditary Princess of Parma
* Infanta Catarina, Duchess of Braganza

13th generation|

* Isabel Clara, Archduchess of Austria*
* Catalina Micaela, Duchess of Savoy*

14th generation|

* Ana, Queen of France*
* María*
* María Ana, Holy Roman Empress*
* Margarita*

15th generation|

* María Teresa, Queen of France*
* Joana, Princess of Beira
* Catarina, Queen of England

16th generation|

* Isabel Luísa, Princess of Beira
* Infanta Francisca Josefa

17th generation|

* Bárbara, Queen of Spain

18th generation|

* Maria I
* Infanta Maria Ana
* Maria Doroteia
* Benedita, Princess of Brazil

19th generation|

* Mariana Victoria, Infanta Gabriel of Spain

20th generation|

* Infanta Maria Teresa
* Maria Isabel, Queen of Spain
* Maria Francisca, Infanta Carlos María Isidro of Spain
* Infanta Isabel Maria
* Infanta Maria da Assunção
* Infanta Ana de Jesus Maria, Marquise of Loulé

21st generation|

* Maria II**
* Infanta Januária, Countess of Aquila**
* Infanta Paula**
* Francisca, Princess of Joinville**
* Infanta Maria Amélia**
* Infanta Maria das Neves, Duchess of San Jaimeƒ
* Maria Teresa, Archduchess Karl Ludwig of Austriaƒ
* Maria José, Duchess Karl Theodor in Bavariaƒ
* Infanta Adelgundes, Duchess of Guimarãesƒ
* Maria Ana, Grand Duchess of Luxembourgƒ
* Maria Antónia, Duchess of Parmaƒ

22nd generation|

* Maria Ana, Princess Georg of Saxony***
* Antónia, Princess of Hohenzollern***
* Maria Teresa, Princess Karl Ludwig of Thurn und Taxisƒ◙
* Isabel Maria, Princess of Thurn und Taxisƒ◙
* Maria Ana, Princess Karl August of Thurn und Taxisƒ◙
* Infanta Maria Adelaide, Mrs. van Udenƒ◙

24th generation|

* Maria Francisca, Duchess of Coimbraƒ

* also an infanta of Spain and an archduchess of Austria, ** also an imperial princess of Brazil, *** also a princess of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, Duchess in Saxony, ◙ Also a princess of Braganza, ƒ title of pretense

* v
* t
* e

House of Aviz

João I (1385–1433)

| Spouse(s)|

* Philippa of Lancaster

|

Children|

* Duarte I
* Peter, Duke of Coimbra
* Henry the Navigator
* Isabella, Duchess of Burgundy
* John, Constable of Portugal
* Ferdinand the Holy Prince

Duarte I (1433–1438)

| Spouse(s)|

* Eleanor of Aragon

|

Children|

* Afonso V
* Ferdinand, Duke of Viseu
* Eleanor, Holy Roman Empress
* Catherine
* Joan, Queen of Castile

Afonso V (1438–1481)

| Spouse(s)|

* Isabel of Coimbra
* Joanna la Beltraneja

|

Children|

* John, Prince of Portugal
* Joanna
* João II

João II (1481–1495)

| Spouse(s)|

* Eleanor of Viseu

|

Children|

* Afonso, Prince of Portugal

Manuel I (1495–1521)

| Spouse(s)|

* Isabella of Aragon
* Maria of Aragon
* Eleanor of Austria

|

Children|

* Miguel da Paz, Prince of Portugal
* João III
* Isabella, Holy Roman Empress
* Beatrice, Duchess of Savoy
* Louis, Duke of Beja
* Ferdinand, Duke of Guarda
* Cardinal-Infante Afonso
* Henrique I
* Edward, Duke of Guimarães
* Maria, Duchess of Viseu

João III (1521–1557)

| Spouse(s)|

* Catherine of Austria

|

Children|

* Afonso, Prince of Portugal
* Maria Manuela, Princess of Asturias
* Manuel, Prince of Portugal
* Filipe, Prince of Portugal
* João Manuel, Prince of Portugal

Sebastião I (1557–1578)

Henrique I (1578–1580)

Notes
The House of Aviz is a cadet branch of the House of Burgundy and was succeeded by the House of Habsburg
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