PORTUGAL
The Arms with the Crest
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The
rulers of the County and the first rulers of the Kingdom of Portugal did not have
a crest on their helmets and arms until the end of the 14th century. This is
in line with the custom elsewhere on the Iberian peninsula. At the beginning
of the fifteeenth century the House of Avis introduced a golden dragon
issuant for crest. This was borrowed from the crest of the House of Aragon
through the marrriage of King Duarte of Avis with Eleanor of Aragon who was
the daughter of King Ferdinand of Aragon in 1428 who also bore a golden dragon
for crest on his arms. The
dragon crest was used by all other kings of Portugal until the end of the
monarchy in 1910. It was often incorporated in the royal achievement
together with two dragons for supporters. In the
20th century many commanders of the Portuguese Republican army were granted a
crest on the arms of their command. |
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Kingdom |
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Alfonso
I |
1139-1185 |
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Sancho
I |
1185-1211 |
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Alfonso
II, the Fat |
1211-1223 |
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Sancho II, Capelo |
1223-1248 |
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Alfonso
III |
1248-1279 |
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Denis the Farmer |
1279-1325 |
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Obverse and reverse of the seal of King Denis Equestrian
seal, the King on horseback with a crowned helmet. On the reverse the royal
arms |
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Alfonso IV |
1325-1357 |
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Wax seal of D. Afonso IV obverse and reverse The same in Sousa |
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Pedro
I the Justicer |
1357-1367 |
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Ferdinand
I |
1367-1383 |
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Interregnum |
1383-1385 |
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House
of Avis |
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John
I |
1385-1433 |
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A crest appears
on the arms for the first time in the coat of arms of the herald Gelre. [1] It is a castle from the bordure of the
arms. The arms represented must be attributed to King Ferdinand I
(1367-83). [2] |
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Duarte |
1433-1438 |
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From:
Bergshammavapenboken fol 3v |
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Alfonso
V, the African |
1438-1481 |
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Mannequin
of the royal arms of Portugal Le
Roy de Portugal Alphons
regis filii fol 222 [3] Chancellery
seal 1450-10-06 Sousa LXIV |
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John II, the Perfect Prince |
1481-1495 |
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From 1482
to 1485, the improvement of the royal arms was on the agenda of the Cortes
that had been called by King John II. Eventually it was decided to leave out
the cross of the Order of Aviso as a heraldic anomaly in the future. At the
same time, the escutcheons on the sides of the quinas were set upright and
the number of castles was set at seven. Central
part of a tapestry with the Portuguese Royal Coat of Arms Brussels, late 15th century (bef. 1485), Cotton,
wool and silk Over all measures H. 155 Î W. 530
cm Location: Sintra Castle, Corridor of the Coat of
Arms Room[4] A tapestry of the verdure or millefleurs type, with a dark blue background, decorated with floral features covering the entire field and interlaced with ribbons. A royal commission, at the centre is the Portuguese royal coat of arms with the shield topped by the crest with the winged serpent of the Avis dynasty. The four corners contain a depiction of the armillary sphere, the symbol of King Manuel I. This is probably a commission by members of the House of Avis or intended as a gift to them, with its production awarded to Brussels, then the main centre of Flemish production. Between the mid-15th century and the end of the 16th century, Portugal commissioned an important series of tapestries from Flanders, with heraldic tapestries with Portuguese coats of arms of great rarity. |
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Manuel
I, the Fortunate |
*1469-†1521 1495-1521 |
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Crested
royal arms of Manuel II From: António Godinho, Livro da Nobreza e
Perfeiçam das Armas dos Reis Christãos e Nobres Linhagens dos Reinos e
Senhorios de Portugal, Livro
do Almeiro Mor, 1508-09 |
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João III |
*1502-†1557 1521-1557 Knight of the Fleece
n° 168, Doornik, 1531 |
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Arms of John III as a knight of the Fleece, 1531 From: Maurice, Jean Baptiste: Le Blason des armoiries de tous les
chevaliers de l'Ordre de la Toison d'Or. par - Héraut et Roy d'Armes de sa Majesté Catholique. Den Haag, 1667. N° CLXIV Arms: Portugal Crest: A deagon issuant from a crown Order: Of the Fleece Photo Marc Beaudoin Arms of John III as a knight of the Fleece, 1531 Barcelona, Cathedral of the Holy Cross [5] Arms: Portugal Crest:
A deagon issuant from a crown Order:
Of the Fleece Chancellery seal 29-11-1545 Sousa LXXXI Arms: Portugal Crest: On a helmet to the dexter a dragon issuant
from a crown L.: ao emperador do asia egtpto arabia syria
senhor da palestia e de constantin-poli
Sousa
LXXXII SIGILLUM EXCELSSI JOANNIS 3 REGIS PORTUGALIÆ
& ALGARBIORUM CITRA & ULTRA MARE IN AFRICA AC GUINEÆ DOMINI
26-05-1539 1559 Stall plate of John III as a Knight of the
Fleece Arms: Portugal crowned with acrown of thee leaves
and two fleurs de lis L.: Treshault Tresexellet et Trespuissant Prince
Jehan Par la grace de Dieu Roy de Portugal Trespasse. (Coll. St.
Baafskathedraal, Gent.) |
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Sebastian |
1557-1578 |
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Seal of King Sebastian, 03-03-1558 Sousa LXXXVIII L:: SERENISSIMI SEBASTIANI SIGILLUM I REGIS PORTUGALIÆ &
ALGARBIORUM CITRA & ULTRA MARE IN AFRICA DOMINUS GUINEÆ CONQUISTÆ
NAVIGATIONIS, COMMERCII ETHYOPIÆ
ARABIE INDIÆ E INDI... 03-03-1558 |
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Cardeal
d. Henrique |
1578-1580 |
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House of Habsburg |
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Philip
I (II) |
1580-1598 |
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Incidentally
the portuguese crest was also used on the royal achievement of the Spanish kings,
together with a single dragon for supporter on the sinister side of the arms.
Usually however the Spanish arms were royally crowned and supported by two
lions. |
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Philip
II (III) |
1598-1621 |
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Philip III (IV) |
1621-1640 |
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House of Braganza |
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Joao
IV |
1640-1656 |
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Alfonso VI |
1656-1667 |
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Pedro II |
Regent 1667-1683 1683-1706 |
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Royal
Arms, 1675 From: O Thesouro de Nobreza. fl int-27 |
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John V, the Magnanimous |
1706-1750 |
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Joseph
I |
1750-1777 |
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Pedro
III |
1777-1786 |
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Maria
I John VI |
1777-1816 Regent 1799-1816 |
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John
VI |
1816-1826 |
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Pedro
IV |
Emperor of Brazil
1822-1831 King of Portugal 1826-1828 |
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Miguel
I |
1828-1834 |
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Maria II |
1834-1853 |
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House of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha |
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Pedro
V |
1853-1861 |
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Luis
I |
1861-1889 |
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Carlos
I |
1889-1908 |
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Manuel
II |
1908-1910 |
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I Republica Portuguesa |
1910-1926 |
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II Republica Portuguesa |
1926-present |
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In the time of the republic crests were granted to the commanders of the armed forces and police forces. Æ See: Portugal
Armed Forces |
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MINISTRO DA DEFESA |
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Descrição
heráldica Escudo de azul, cinco bezantes de prata postos em sautor. Elmo de grades, de prata, tauxiado a ouro, forrado de vermelho, de frente. Correias de vermelho, perfilado de ouro. Paquife e virol de azul e prata.Timbre, dragão sainte, de prata, linguado e animado de vermelho. Divisa, num listel branco ondulado, sotoposto ao escudo, em letras de de estilo elzevir, maiúsculas, de negro: "OS PORTUGUESES SOMOS DO OCIDENTE" O escudo azul com os cinco bezantes de prata postos em sautor, ampliação de um dos cinco escudetes nacionais, alude à bandeira das quinas que, durante o período áureo dos Descobrimentos, representou a actividade militar da Nação. O dragão simboliza a fidelidade do aparelho militar aos órgãos de soberania competentes, nos termos da Constituição. Portaria nº 587/79 de 8
de Novembro 1979 |
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© Hubert de Vries 2019-02-10
[1] Brussel K.B. Ms. 15652-56 fol.
167.
[2] That this is the case is proved by a somewhat more accurate consideration of the image at Gelre. On this, the hem of the coat of arms on which the castle stands as a crest is clearly painted over later with the lilies of the cross of Aviso which, as we know, can only have been introduced by John I. Seals from Peter I and Ferdinand I with the castle as a crest are unknown. It is unlikely that the arms refers to the arms of John of Castile. He was King of Castile then and his arms are depicted elsewhere in the Armorial Gelre..
[4] https://www.parquesdesintra.pt/en/pontos-de-atracao/tapestry-with-the-portuguese-royal-coat-of-arms/
[5] From: Maurice, Jean
Baptiste: Le Blason des armoiries de tous les chevaliers de l'Ordre de la
Toison d'Or. par - Héraut et Roy d'Armes
de sa Majesté Catholique. Den Haag, 1667. N°
CLXIV