Abstract

On 16 April 1581 the Courts of Tomar designated Philip II of Spain as Philip I of Portugal (r. 1581–98). This marked the beginning of the period known in historiography as the Iberian Union (1581–1640). The dynastic crisis arose in Portugal after the death of King Sebastian (r. 1557–78) in the battle of Alzaquivir that left the realm without an heir. The crisis was not solved during King Henry’s short reign (r. 1578–80). Diplomacy, bribery and an effective four-month invasion led by the Duke of Alba gave Philip control over mainland Portugal. António (1531–95), Prior de Crato, an illegitimate grandson of King Manuel I (r. 1469–1521) was designated King of Portugal on 19 July 1580. However, soon afterwards Alba defeated António’s military contingent in the Battle of Alcântara on 25 August 1580 in the vicinity of Lisbon. António resisted with his flotilla until the Azores defeat in 1583. In 1581, Philip now King of Portugal, progressed toward Lisbon. In 1581 the Lusitanian capital was in turmoil with plague outbursts and the political instability characteristic of a post-war period. Nevertheless, a ceremonial entry with fifteen triumphal arches and other artefacts took place on 29 June 1581 to receive Philip as their new king. This chapter explores the image that the ruler wished to project through artistic display and a studied visual etiquette in the pageant. I will show how the king and his entourage aimed to combine an image of a just, peace-seeking ruler with that of a mighty and powerful king, able to destroy his enemies at once, including or especially those within his kingdom. This image–making was to dominate the discourse used by the ruled and the ruler in the pageant of 1581 in which, as I will argue, both were ‘negotiating’ their place in the new political tableau through their words and postures.