Inês 
de Castro was born in Galicia, according to the tradition in Monforte de Lemos, she was an illegitimate daughter of an important galician warrior, D. Pedro Fernandez Castro, that had the nicknamed "that of the war", and a Portuguese lady, D. Aldonça Valadares. As a lady in waiting of her cousin, D. Constança Manuel, came to Portugal in 1340, for the wedding of her cousin's with the prince D. Pedro. According to the chronic and tradition, she aroused the prince's intense passion, due to her extreme beauty, has stated by the only contemporary chronicler, Pedro Lopes de Ayala.
This love was soon noted, leading the King D. Afonso IV to exile her to the castle of Albuquerque, at the spanish Extremadura, that belonged to an aunt. D. Constança died in 1345, giving birth to the future king, D. Fernando, and soon D. Pedro brought Inês back to Portugal. Together they lived in several places of the country, for fear that the prince had for any intervention from his father. Meanwhile they had four children, the eldest of whom died as a child. Was born from tradition that happened a secret marriage in Bragança, in 1352/53. Both real lineage of the kings of Castile, from D. Fernando III, the Saint, this marriage required papal dispensation, one of the problems that is still debated today.
Finally they settled in the former palace of Queen Isabel, near the Monastery of Santa Clara-a-Velha, in Coimbra.
According to some legends, Inês was not well liked by the people, who saw in her a representative of the neighbour Castile, a permanent enemy. Two brothers, that like their father had served D. Pedro I of Castile, had disagreements with this king and took refuge in Portugal, where conspired with other Castilian nobles to overthrow the King. their coexistence with the Portuguese king, who tried to convince the head this movement, as told by Ayala, possibly with the promise of joining the two crowns, raised great displeasure, that fell on Inês. It was a very risky undertaking for Portugal, whose forces were fewer than those of Castile. Inês was seen as an intermediate of these relationships, meaning therefore a real danger to the Portuguese independence, so hard won and still unsafe. The politics overwhelmed all, and, at a time the prince was far in Coimbra, on a hunt, the State Council met in Montemor-o-Velho's Castle, and the King was persuaded to sign a death sentence against Inês. The royal party went to Coimbra, and slith the throuth of Inês, as befitted her noble quality, on 7 th of January 1355, and then buried in the convent's church itself. When the prince returned, gave vent to his disgust triggering a civil war that mostly destroyed the north of the country, area where stood the properties of members of the Council considered the main instigators of that death, those properties were burned to the ground. With the mediation of the Queen and the Archbishop of Braga, it was possible to get the King and the Prince to sign an "amnesty of agreement and concord", in Oporto, on 5 of August. In it the Prince vow to forgive those he considered the most responsible for the death of Inês.
Knowing his son, D. Afonso IV, and feeling the aproach of death, advised three of those men, that, from the narration of this episode by Camões, in The Lusiad, became known as the "killer" of Inês, to flee the country, what they did, taking refuge in Castile.
When he ascend to the throne, D. Pedro began to organize the rehabilitation of Inês and his revenge.
In 12 st of June 1360, in Cantanhede, the King summoned the court and proclaimed, showing the necessary documentation, his marriage to Inês held in Bragança by the dean of the Cathedral of the church of Guarda and now their bishop, in the presence of Estevão Lobato, one of his servants. So he declared Inês Queen and their legitimate children infants. Meanwhile, negotiated with his neighbor and cousin D. Pedro of Castile the exchange of exiles in both countries. One of the three Portuguese was warned and managed to escape to Navarre, but the other two were taken to Santarém, where the King watched during lunch to the death of the two men, to whom, while alive, was removed the heart, one from the chest and another from the back. Their remains were burned afterwards.
At this point, D. Pedro erected in Alcobaça's Monastery two majestic tombs that surpass everything that can be found in Europe. Once the one for Inês was ready, he staged the last act of this tragedy. He took her from the place where he was buried in Coimbra and dress her richly. What was left of Inês was then taken into night procession through candles lit taken throughout the course of 17 leagues to Alcobaça, which was deposited in her final tomb, with all real pomp, on the right of him who, even then (2 of April, 1361 th or 1362) was being prepared for the King.
The Castilian literature of the sixteenth century did precede the descent to the tomb of a coronation of the corpse, but past six years on his death, it would be unthinkable, besides the fact that Inês was killed. Already proclaimed queen, the coronation he lacked was consummated with the closure of the tomb, where we see the lying statue, crowned and surmounted by a canopy. Thus was the case the first Portuguese poet we know as the author of a poem (“Trovas à morte de D. Inês de Crasto ", by Garcia de Resende, 1516) and it was generally accepted by the Portuguese tradition, with a few exceptions especially in the eighteenth century theater, very influenced by the Spanish, especially Reynar después de morir, by Velez de Guevara, previously to 1644.
We find literary works of all kinds in almost all European languages, and also Hebrew, a production that still shows no sign of stopping. Operas continue to be written, as well as other musical forms and other arts, especially painting and sculpture.
Professor Maria Leonor Machado de Sousa