Also known as
    The Peacemaker
    Isabel of Portugal
    Isabella of Portugal

Memorial
    4 July
    formerly 8 July

Profile
    Princess. Daughter of King Pedro III of Aragon and Constantia; great-granddaughter of Emperor Frederick II. Great-niece of Saint Elizabeth of Hungary, for whom she was named. Pious upbringing with daily liturgy and praying of the hours, regular religious instruction and education. Married at age twelve to King Diniz of Portugal, and thus Queen of Portugal before she was a teenager.

    The king was known for his hard work, his poetic nature, and his lack of morals. Elizabeth suffered through years of abuse and adultery, praying all the while for his conversion, and working with the poor and sick. Mother of two, Princess Constantia and Prince Affonso. She sometimes convinced the ladies of the court to work with her, but most of the time she just incurred their jealousy and ill will. The king appears to have reformed late in life, though whether from Elizabeth's faith or his imminent death is unknown.

    The Prince Affonso rebelled against the favours Diniz bestowed on his illegitimate sons, and in 1323 forces of the king and prince clashed in open civil war. Though she had been unjustly accused of siding with her son against the crown, Elizabeth rode onto the battlefield between them, and was able to reconcile father and son, and prevent bloodshed. This led to her patronage as a peacemaker, and as one invoked in time of war and conflict.

    Widowed in 1325. After the king's death, she distributed her property to the poor, became a Franciscan tertiary, and retired to a monastery of Poor Clares she had founded at Coimbra.

    In 1336 her son, now King Affonso IV, marched against his son-in-law, the King of Castile to punish him for being a negligent and abusive husband. Despite her age and ill health, Elizabeth hurried to the battlefield at Estremoz, and again managed to make peace in her family, and thus maintain peace in her land.

Born
    1271 at Aragon, Spain

Died
    4 July 1336 at Estremoz of fever; buried at Coimbra, Portugal; miracles reported at her tomb

Name Meaning
    worshipper of God

Canonized
    24 June 1625 by Pope Urban VIII

Patronage
    against jealousy
    brides
    charitable societies
    charitable workers
    charities
    Coimbra, Portugal
    difficult marriages
    falsely accused people
    invoked in time of war
    peace
    queens
    tertiaries
    victims of adultery
    victims of jealousy
    victims of unfaithfulness
    widows