The Sousa family is an ancient Portuguese noble family. It is considered to be one of the eldest and most noble houses in the Kingdom of Portugal.
The Sousa family is an ancient Portuguese noble family. It is considered to be one of the eldest and most noble houses in the Kingdom of Portugal.
The descendants are of the marriage of Martim Afonso Chichorro and Inês Lourenço de Sousa. [1] [2]
Its origin starts with the Visigoth [3] Kings and the name was first used in the 11th century, by Lord Egas Gomes de Sousa, heir to the house and to several royal lineages. There are three main lineages of this noble house, but we shall only focus on the one represented to left (Sousa of Arronches).[ citation needed ]
The family head is the Duke of Lafões. Some[ who? ] say that there isn't a single noble man (or woman) in Portugal that does not have the blood of the Sousas. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Garcia Homem de Sousa, which was dated 1420, christened at Funchal, Portugal, during the reign of King John I of Portugal. The House of Sousa played a significant role in the creation of the Portuguese Empire. Martim Afonso de Sousa was the first captain - major of Brazil ("capitão-mor da armada e da terra do Brasil", with powers equivalent to those of a governor), [4] Tomé de Sousa was the first formal Governor General of Brazil, Pedro Lopes de Sousa was the 1st Governor of Portuguese Ceylon and Thome de Sousa Arronches was a Captain of the Portuguese Navy in the Portuguese India Armadas. [5]
The family motto (Better to break than to bend).[ citation needed ]
Lords of the House of Sousa
The field of the shield is divided in four quarters (quarterly or party per cross) with the royal arms of Portugal in the first and fourth quarters, and the arms of Sousa, a quartet of silver crescents (Argent) over a field of red (Gules), in the second and third quarters. This grouping known as the Sousa of Arronches (because of the title of Lords of Arronches), is still borne by many of the noble houses of Portugal, like the Dukes of Palmela.[ citation needed ]
Martim Afonso de Sousa was a Portuguese fidalgo, explorer and colonial administrator.
Madragana Ben Aloandro, later Maior or Mór Afonso, was a woman from the Algarve known as a mistress to king Afonso III of Portugal, in the 13th century, when he ended the Reconquista in Portugal by taking Faro in 1249. Faro was at that time the last part of the Kingdom of the Algarve still in Muslim hands, and there her father was the Qadi.
DomMichael of Braganza was a Portuguese infante, illegitimate son of King Pedro II of Portugal and of the French lady Anne Armande Pastre de Verger. Miguel was recognized by his half brother, King John V of Portugal, who demanded he should be regarded as his brother. He was born in Lisbon on 15 October 1699 and died drowned in the Tagus River on 13 January 1724.
Duke of Lafões is a Portuguese title of nobility created under the decree of February 17, 1718, of King John V of Portugal and granted to his nephew, Dom Pedro Henrique de Bragança, the building force behind Palacio do Grilo and first son of Infante Miguel de Bragança, the latter an illegitimate son of King Peter II of Portugal and Anne Armande Pastre de Verger. Pedro's mother, Luisa Casimira de Sousa Nassau e Ligne was the first to use this title. The title was later passed on to his brother, João Carlos de Bragança e Ligne de Sousa Tavares Mascarenhas da Silva, the most famous Duke of this title.
Count of Miranda do Corvo was a Portuguese title of nobility created by a royal decree, dated from March 21, 1611, by King Philip II of Portugal, also known as Philip III of Spain, and granted to Dom Henrique de Sousa Tavares.
The noble title of Marquis de Arronches was created on 27 April 1674 by D. Afonso VI of Portugal for Henrique de Sousa Tavares, 3º conde de Miranda do Corvo. The heir presumptive to the title is the only male descendant of the family, D. Pedro Miguel Vasques Milhinhos, who due to primogeniture will be the only one eligible to succeed D. Aires Manuel to the title.
Diogo do Couto was a Portuguese historian.
Miguel António de Sousa Horta Almeida e Vasconcelos, 2nd Baron of Santa Comba Dão was a Portuguese nobleman.
Fernando de Castro was a 15th-century Portuguese nobleman, diplomat and military figure. Fernando de Castro was the 1st Lord of Paúl de Boquilobo. He was a member of the royal council of John I of Portugal, and governor of the household of Prince Henry the Navigator.
Fernão Gomes de Lemos was the third and last Captain of Portuguese Ceylon. Lemos succeeded Lopo de Brito and was appointed in 1522 under John III of Portugal, he was Captain until 1524. In 1524 when he left as Captain, the office was left vacant until 1551, where the office was succeeded by Captain-majors of Portuguese Ceylon. He was also Portuguese Ambassador to Persia, appointed by Afonso de Albuquerque in 1515.
The Maia family was an old and powerful Portuguese noble family with its origins dating back to the 10th century.
Egas Gomes de Sousa was a Portuguese noble of County of Portugal and the first of his line to use the surname Sousa. He was Lord of the House of Sousa and of Felgueiras.
Luís de Sousa was Archbishop of Lisbon. He was a major figure of the second half of the seventeenth century, serving as Royal Chaplain and Councillor of State of Portugal, later being created a Cardinal by Pope Innocent XII in 1697.
Martim Afonso Chichorro (1250–1313) was a Portuguese nobleman, who served in the Court of Denis of Portugal.
Lourenço Soares de Valladares, Lord of Valadares and Tangil was a Portuguese nobleman, who served in the Court of Afonso III as Tenente of Ribeira do Minho and Mayor of the Palace.
Martim Afonso Chichorro II or Martin Alfonso de Sousa (1280-?) was a Portuguese nobleman, who served in the Court of Denis of Portugal.
Vasco Martins de Sousa Chichorro (1320s–1387) was Lord of Mortágua, and Chancellor mor under King Peter I of Portugal.
Jorge de Melo, o Lagio (1460-1534) was a Portuguese nobleman, Alcaide mor of Redondo and Pavía. member of the Court of John III of Portugal.
Lopo Fernandes Pacheco, was the first of his lineage to accede to the highest ranks of the nobility, that of a rico-homem, in the Kingdom of Portugal. He lived during the reign of King Afonso IV of Portugal of whom he was his favorite and loyal vassal. His parents were João Fernandes Pacheco and his wife Estevaínha Lopes de Paiva, daughter of Lope Rodrigues de Paiva and Teresa Martins Xira. His family owned properties in different parts of the kingdom although its area of influence was mainly Beira in the northern part of the country.
Sueiro Belfaguer.