O Cristão Criado no Islão que Ajudou Portugal a Existir

In 868, Vímara Peres planted a flag at the mouth of the Douro River. But what happened in the following two centuries is what most books don't tell. This episode begins where the previous one ended—and its central character is one of the most fascinating and forgotten figures in all of Portuguese medieval history. Sesnando Davides was born a Christian in Tentúgal, raised in the Islamic court of Seville in the service of Emir Abbad II al-Mutadid, rose to the position of alvazil—equivalent to a minister of the supreme council—and in 1060 crossed over to the Christian side, offering his services to Ferdinand the Great. It was on his advice that the king decided to besiege Coimbra in January 1064. Six months later, the largest Islamic city north of the Tagus was falling into Christian hands—and the man who conquered it from within was appointed its governor. He governed Coimbra for almost three decades, married the daughter of the last Portuguese count descended from Vímara Peres, and created the stability that made possible the County of Portucale under Henry of Burgundy in 1096—and the kingdom of Afonso Henriques in 1139. In this episode we also see what Almanzor did to the County of Portucale between 977 and 1002, the destruction of Santiago de Compostela in 997, the collapse of the Caliphate of Córdoba in 1031 and its fragmentation into Taifa kingdoms, the slow repopulation between the Douro and Mondego rivers, the death of Nuno Mendes in Pedroso in 1071 and the end of the Vímara Peres dynasty, and the arrival of Henry of Burgundy in 1096. Portugal was not born from a single decision. It was born from stubbornness — a name that withstood two centuries of wars, invasions, and political absorption because it took root in the territory even before a kingdom existed to sustain it. 📌 This video is part of the series on the Origins of Portugal. See also the previous episode about Vímara Peres and the founding of the County of Portucale. [   • Antes de Afonso Henriques: O Guerreiro que...  ] Portugal and Galicia: The Betrayal that Separated Two Peoples : [   • Portugal e Galiza: a Traição que Separou D...  ] 🔔 Subscribe to the channel and activate notifications so you don't miss the next episode — about Gharb al-Andalus, the territory that Muslims called the West, where Lisbon was one of the most cosmopolitan cities on the Iberian Peninsula. Sources: -Francisco Maria Botelho Barata Isaac — Sesnando Davides: Alvazil, Consul, Strategist and Mozarab. Master's Dissertation in History, Faculty of Letters of the University of Lisbon, 2013. -Maria Helena da Cruz Coelho — In the Dawn of the History of Coimbra: D. Sesnando and the Old Cathedral, 2005. -José Mattoso — The Portuguese National Identity, Gradiva, 1998. -Alexandre Herculano — History of Portugal, Vol. I, Círculo de Leitores, 1987. -Alfonso Sánchez Candeira — Castile and León in the 11th Century: A Study of the Reign of Ferdinand I, Royal Academy of History, 1999. -Chronica Gothorum (medieval primary source). -Silense Chronicle of León (medieval primary source, 12th century). #HistoryOfPortugal #OriginOfPortugal #MiddleAges #Reconquista #Coimbra #SesnandoDavides #MedievalPortugal #EmpiresAndSaints #IslamicWorld #FerdinandTheGreat #CountyOfPortugal #MedievalHistory #Mozarabic #PortugalOrigin #IberianHistory