2020-11-11 Wed

Sancho-I was the second king of Portugal reigning from 1185 to 1211. His reign was marked by the resettlement of the depopulated areas of his country, by establishing new towns and rebuilding of frontier strongholds and castles.

Sancho-I was born on 11th November 1154, to Afonso I of Portugal and Maud of Savoy. He succeeded his father and was crowned in Coimbra when he was 31 years old on 9 December 1185. He captures Slives in 1189 but lost it to Almohad in 1191. Later, Al Mansur attacked other lands south of the Tagus River.

Sancho-I dedicated much of his reign to the political and administrative organization of the new kingdom. He accumulated a national treasure, supported new industries and the middle class of merchants. The king was also known for his love of knowledge and literature. Sancho-I wrote several books of poems and used the royal treasure to send Portuguese students to European universities.

Depicted here is gold Morabitino issued under his reign. The obverse of a coin depicts the king on horseback right, holding sceptre and brandishing a sword. On the other hand, the reverse of a coin engraved the cross composed of five shields, a 7-pointed star in each angle.

Image Source: wikipdedia.org