Beatrice, Countess of Alburquerque

Who was Beatrice, Countess of Alburquerque?

Infanta Beatrice of Portugal was the daughter of Portuguese King Peter I and a Galician noblewoman called Inês de Castro.

Beatrice was born in Coimbra around the period of 1347–1351. Beatrice's entitlement to be considered an Infanta of Portugal is debatable. Some historians consider her a natural daughter of Peter I, so the title Infanta of Portugal could never be attributed to her. Other opinions refer that after the death of Inês de Castro, ordered by Peter's father King Afonso IV of Portugal, the Prince after inheriting the throne admitted that he had married Inês secretly, and because of that she was a lawful Queen of Portugal.

Beatrice became Countess of Alburquerque when she married Sancho Alfonso, 1st Count of Alburquerque. They had two children: Don Fernando Sánchez, 2nd Count of Alburquerque, and Doña Eleanor of Alburquerque, who married Ferdinand I of Aragon. She died in 1381.