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'Joao I' KG (Portugues: ''João'', IPA pron. ; Lisbon, 11 April 1357 – Lisbon, 14 August 1433), called 'the Good' (sometimes 'the Great') or 'of Happy Memory', was the tenth King of Portugal and the Algarve and the first to use the title Lord of Ceuta. He was the natural son of Pedro I by a noble Galician woman named Teresa Lourenço. In 1364 he was created grand-master of the Order of Aviz. He became king in 1385, after the 1383–1385 Crisis.
On the death of his lawful brother Fernando I in October 1383, without a male heir, strenuous efforts were made to secure the succession for princess Beatrice, his only daughter. As heiress-apparent Beatrice had been married to king Juan I of Castile, but the popular voice declared against an arrangement by which Portugal would virtually have become united with Castile. The 1383–1385 Crisis followed as a period of political anarchy, when no king ruled the country.
On April 6 1385, the council of the kingdom (''cortes'' in Portuguese) met in Coimbra and declared João, then Master of Aviz, king of Portugal. This was in effect a declaration of war against Castile and its claims to the Portuguese throne. Soon after, the king of Castile invaded Portugal, with the purpose of conquering Lisbon and removing João I from the throne. Juan I was accompanied by French allied cavalry as English troops and generals took the side of João (see Hundred years war). João I then named Nuno Alvares Pereira, his loyal and talented supporter, general and protector of the Kingdom. The invasion was repelled during the Summer after the Battle of Atoleiros, but especially after the decisive battle of Aljubarrota (August 14, 1385), where the Castilian army was virtually annihilated. Juan I of Castile then retreated and the stability of João I's throne was permanently secured.
On 11 February, 1387, João I married Philippa of Lancaster, daughter of John of Gaunt who had proved to be a worthy ally, consolidating the union of the Anglo-Portuguese Alliance that endures to the present day.
After the death of Juan of Castile in 1390, without leaving issue by Beatrice, João I ruled in peace and pursued the economic development of the country. The only significant military action was the siege and conquest of the city of Ceuta in 1415. By this step he aimed to control navigation of the African coast. But in longer perspective, this was the first step opening the Arabian world to medieval Europe, which in fact led to the Age of Discovery with Portuguese explorers sailing across the whole world.
Contemporaneous writers describe him as a man of wit, very keen on concentrating the power on himself, but at the same time with a benevolent and kind personality. His youth education as master of a religious order made him an unusually learned king in the Middle Ages. His love for knowledge and culture was passed to his sons: Duarte, the future king, was a poet and a writer, Pedro, the duke of Coimbra, was one of the most learned princes of his time and Prince Henry the Navigator, the duke of Viseu, started a school of navigation and invested heavily in science and development of nautical topics. In 1430, his only surviving daughter, Isabella, married Philip the Good, Duke of Burgundy and enjoyed an extremely refined court in his lands; she was the mother of Charles the Bold.

Contents

Genealogical data

Ancestors

Marriages and descendants

Sources:

Genealogical data

Ancestors

'João's ancestors in three generations'

'João I of Portugal'	'Father:' Pedro I of Portugal	'Father's father:' Afonso IV of Portugal	'Father's father's father:' Denis of Portugal
			'Father's father's mother:' Elizabeth of Aragon
		'Father's mother:' Beatrice of Castile	'Father's mother's father:' Sancho IV of Castile
			'Father's mother's mother:' María de Molina
	'Mother:' Teresa Lourenço	'Mother's father:' Lourenço Martins	'Mother's father's father:' ''Unknown''
			'Mother's father's mother:' ''Unknown''
		'Mother's mother:' Sancha Martins	'Mother's mother's father:' ''Unknown''
			'Mother's mother's mother:' ''Unknown''

Marriages and descendants

João I married at Oporto on February 2 1387 Philippa of Lancaster, daughter of John of Gaunt, 1st Duke of Lancaster and Blanche of Lancaster. From that marriage were born several famous princes and princesses of Portugal (Infantes) that became known as the Illustrous Generation (Portuguese: ''Ínclita Geração'').

Name	Birth	Death	Notes
'By Philippa of Lancaster' (1359–July 19 1415; married on February 2 1387)
Infanta Branca	July 30 1388	March 1389
Infante Afonso	July 30 1390	December 22 1390
Infante Duarte	October 31 1391	September 13 1438	Who succeeded him as Eduardo I, 11th King of Portugal.
Infante Pedro	December 9 1392	May 20 1449	Duke of Coimbra. Died in the Battle of Alfarrobeira.
Infante Henrique	December 4 1394	November 13 1460	Known as Henry the Navigator. Duke of Viseu and Grand-Master of the Order of Christ.
Infanta Isabel	February 11 1397	December 11 1471	Duchess Consort of Burgundy by marriage to Philip III, Duke of Burgundy.
Infante Branca	1398	1398
Infante João	January 13 1400	October 18 1442	Constable of the Kingdom and grandfather of Isabella of Castile.
Infante Fernando	1402	June 5 1443	Grand Master of the Order of Aviz. Died in captivity in Fes, Morocco.
'By Inês Pires' (c. 1350–?)
Afonso	c. 1380	December 1461	Natural son and 1st Duke of Braganza.
Beatriz	c. 1382	October 25 1439	Natural daughter. Countess Consort of Arundel by marriage to Thomas Fitzalan, 12th Earl of Arundel. Countess Consort of Huntingdon by marriage to John Holland, 2nd Earl of Huntingdon, later Duke of Exeter.

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Sources:

Williamson, D. 1988. ‘’Debrett’s Kings and Queens of Europe’’