Mafalda of Portugal

Mafalda of Portugal
Lady of Arouca
Mafalda in Genealogy of the Kings of Portugal (António de Holanda, 1530–1534)
Queen consort of Castile
Tenure1215–1216
Bornc. 1195
Kingdom of Portugal
Died1 May 1256 (aged 61)
Rio Tinto, Gondomar, Kingdom of Portugal
Burial
Spouse
(m. 1215; ann. 1216)
HousePortuguese House of Burgundy
FatherSancho I
MotherDulce of Aragon
ReligionCatholic
Blessed

Mafalda of Portugal, O.Cist
Anonymous image of Mafalda, depicting her dressed in her royal robes covered by a monastic cowl, bearing a crozier in her right hand, indicative of her position as an abbess, found in the gallery of Arouca Abbey (1740)
Virgin
Venerated inCatholic Church
(Cistercian Order)
Beatified27 June 1792, Rome, Papal States by Pope Pius VI
Feast20 June

Infanta Mafalda of Portugal (also known as Blessed Mafalda, O.Cist. (c. 1195 – 1 May 1256 in Rio Tinto, Gondomar; Portuguese pronunciation: [mɐˈfaldɐ]) was a Portuguese infanta (princess), later Queen consort of Castile for a brief period. She was the second youngest daughter of King Sancho I of Portugal and Dulce of Aragon. Married briefly to the ten-year-old Henry I of Castile, she held for a time the title Queen of Castile.

Upon the dissolution of the marriage, Mafalda returned to her homeland. She chose to become a Cistercian nun, and became noted for the holiness of her life. She was declared Blessed by the Catholic Church five centuries after her death.