In European history, few love stories are as poignant and politically charged as that of Inês de Castro and King Pedro I of Portugal. Their tale, marked by passion, betrayal, and vengeance, blends legend and reality, creating a captivating story of medieval intrigue and lasting love.
In the heart of 14th-century Portugal, where alliances were often sealed with strategic marriages, the romance between Pedro, the heir to the throne, and Inês, a lady-in-waiting of Galician nobility, blossomed against the backdrop of courtly expectations and dynastic ambitions. What began as a forbidden affair would culminate in a dramatic series of events that saw Inês brutally murdered on royal orders and Pedro, upon ascending the throne, exacting a chilling retribution that would etch their love story into the annals of history.
The Coronation of Inês de Castro in 1361. Painting by Pierre Charles Comte (1823–1895)
Inês de Castro was the daughter of Pedro Fernández de Castro, Lord of Lemos and Sarria, and his noble Portuguese mistress Aldonça Lourenço de Valadares. Her family descended both from the Galician and Portuguese nobilities and she was also well connected to the Castilian royal family by illegitimate descent.
In 1339, when Inês was only 14 years old, she arrived in Portugal as a lady-in-waiting to Constance of Castile, who had recently married to Pedro, the son of King Afonso IV of Portugal and the heir to the Portuguese throne. Once the 19-year-old Pedro laid eyes on the golden-haired Inês, he forgot all about his newly wedded wife and fell in love with her. The two became entangled in an intense teenage love affair, drawing disapproval from King Afonso. Inês was the sister of two powerful Galician noblemen, Álvaro Pérez de Castro and Fernando de Castro, and through her sister, they became Pedro’s closest advisors. King Afonso grew concerned about the growing influence the brothers wielded over his son.
19th-century depiction of Inês de Castro.
As a way to end her husband's affair, Constance invited Inês to be the godmother of her first son. According to the Catholic Church's precepts at the time, the relationship between a godparent and a parent of the baptized child was considered one of moral kinship, rendering their love almost incestuous. However, the child died within a week, and the adulterous romance between Pedro and Inês only intensified.
In 1344, King Afonso IV exiled Inês to the Castilian border, but this did not deter Pedro from visiting her. Shortly after giving birth to her third child, Constance died. With his legal wife gone, Pedro began living openly with Inês, recognized all her children as his, and refused to marry anyone other than Inês herself. His father, hoping the infatuation would end, refused to go to war against Castile and attempted to arrange another dynastic marriage for Pedro.
The two lovers, now closer than ever, went on to have four children. During this time, Pedro began giving Inês's brothers, who had been exiled from the Castilian court, important positions in Portugal. As the years passed and the aging King Afonso IV lost control over his court, the situation worsened. Pedro’s only legitimate son, Ferdinand I of Portugal, was a sickly child, while Inês's illegitimate children thrived. Worried about his legitimate grandson's life and the growing influence of Castile within Portugal, the King concluded that only the death of Inês would save the country from civil war.
The assassination of Inês de Castro. Painting by Columbano Bordalo Pinheiro (1857–1929)
One day, while Pedro was away, the King sent three men to the Monastery of Santa Clara-a-Velha in Coimbra, where Inês was detained, and had her killed, decapitating her in front of her small children.
When Pedro learned that his father had masterminded Inês’s murder, he became enraged and rose in revolt against his father, with Inês’s brothers fighting alongside him. King Afonso defeated his son within a year, but died shortly thereafter. Pedro succeeded to the throne in 1357. Immediately, he sought out Inês's killers, who had gone into hiding in Castile, and managed to capture two of them. Legend has it that he executed them publicly by ripping their hearts out with his own hands.
Pedro claimed that he had secretly married Inês some years earlier, making her the rightful queen. According to legend, the king ordered her body to be exhumed, dressed, crowned, and placed on the throne for her coronation. He commanded the courtiers to swear allegiance to her, something they had neglected to do during her lifetime, by kissing the hem of her gown. After the ceremony, she was buried in the royal monastery in Alcobaça.
Tomb of Inês de Castro. Photo credit: Wikimedia Commons
Modern scholars assert that the story of Inês’s posthumous coronation is a myth first appearing in Spanish playwright Jerónimo Bermúdez's 1577 play Nise Laureada. However, Pedro did have Inês’s body removed from her resting place in Coimbra and taken to Alcobaça, where it was reburied in the royal monastery. Her tomb can still be seen, positioned opposite Pedro’s, so that, according to legend, when Pedro and Inês rise from their graves on the Last Judgment, they can look at each other. Both tombs are exquisitely sculpted with scenes from their lives and a promise by Pedro that they would be together até ao fim do mundo (until the end of the world).
The story of Pedro and Inês is often compared to Romeo and Juliet. The scene of a mad king insisting that his lover's rotting body be dressed in coronation robes, propped up on a throne, crowned, and her hand kissed by noblemen, has proved irresistible to many adaptors, forming a grotesque set piece for plays, poems, paintings, operas, and novels. Pedro and Inês’s story continues to inspire countless retellings and artistic representations, ensuring that their legacy endures through the ages, capturing the imagination of all who hear it.
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