Denis of Portugal
For the prince with the same name see: Denis, Prince of PortugalDinis of Portugal (
pron. IPA //) in archaic
Portuguese Diniz; in
English Denis),
the Farmer (
Port. o Lavrador), sixth
king of Portugal and Algarve, was born in
Lisbon in
October 9 1261 and died in
January 7 1325 in
Santarém. He was the eldest son of
Afonso III of Portugal by his second wife, princess Beatrice of Castile. Dinis succeeded his father in
1279.
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Denis of Portugal |
As heir to the throne prince Dinis was summoned by his father (Afonso III) to share government responsibilities. At the time of his accession to the throne, Portugal was again in diplomatic conflicts with the
Catholic church. Dinis signed a favouring agreement with the pope and swore to protect the Church's interests in Portugal. Due to this, he granted asylum to the
Templar knights persecuted in
France and created the
Order of Christ, designed to be a continuation of the Order of the Temple.
With the
Reconquista completed and the Portuguese territory freed from
Moorish occupation, Dinis was essentially an administrative king, not a military one. However, a short war between
Castile and Portugal broke during his reign, for the possession of the town of Serpa and Moura. After this, Dinis avoided war: he was a notably peace-loving monarch during a tempestuous time in European history. With Portugal finally recognized as an independent country by his neighbours, Dinis signed a border pact with
Ferdinand IV of Castile (
1297) which has endured to the present day.
Dinis' main priority of government was the organization of the country. He pursued his father's policies on legislation and centralization of power. Dinis promulgated the nucleus of a Portuguese civil and criminal law code, protecting the lower classes from abuse and extortion. As king, he travelled around the country, correcting unjust situations and resolving problems. He ordered the construction of numerous castles, created new towns, and granted privileges due cities to several others. With his wife, princess Isabella of Aragon, Dinis worked to improve the life of the poor and founded several social institutions.
Always concerned with the country's infrastructure, Dinis ordered the exploration of mines of
copper,
silver,
tin and
iron and organized the export of excess production to other European countries. The first Portuguese commercial agreement was signed with
England in
1308. Dinis effectively founded the Portuguese navy under command of a Genoese admiral and ordered the construction of several docks.
His main concern was the redevelopment and promotion of rural infrastructure, hence the nickname
the Farmer. Dinis redistributed the land, promoted agriculture, organized communities of farmers and took personal interest in the development of exports. He instituted regular markets in a number of towns and regulated their activities. One of his main achievements was the protection of agricultural lands from advancing coastal sands, by ordering the planting of a pine forest near
Leiria. This forest still exists as one of the most important of Portugal and is known as the
Pinhal de Leiria.
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King Diniz statue at the University of Coimbra |
Culture was another interest of King Dinis. He had a fondness for literature and wrote several books himself, with topics ranging from administration to hunting, science and poetry. In his days,
Lisbon was one of Europe's centers of culture and knowledge. The
University of Coimbra was founded by his decree
Magna Charta Priveligiorum.
The latest part of his peaceful reign was nevertheless marked by internal conflicts. The contenders were his two sons:
Afonso the legitimate heir, and Afonso Sanches his natural son, who quarrelled frequently among themselves for royal favour. At the time of Dinis death in
1325 he had placed
Portugal on an equal footing with the other Iberian Kingdoms.
Dinis' first wife was Isabel or
Elizabeth of Aragon, daughter of Pedro or
Peter III of Aragon. She bore him a son and a daughter.
