Isabella of Portugal was born in 1291 in the town of Aragon, Spain. Her father was the king of the city and her parents made sure that she prayed on a daily basis. Her education was obtained primarily from clergy members.
At the age of 12, she was given in marriage to the king of Portugal, King Diniz. She instantly became a queen. Diniz loved many things including poetry as well as being in power. He cheated on her and beat her when he was angry. The couple had a child named Affonso. As the son got older, he would get angry when his father would beat his mother. She constantly stopped their arguing.
In 1325, King Diniz died, leaving Isabella with a significant amount of wealth. She gave away nearly everything to those in poverty in Portugal and joined the Franciscan monastery. Her son became the king and she did one last favor to her people by preventing Affonso from going into a battle.
St. Isabella of Portugal has a feast day of July 4th. She is the patron saint of brides, peace, queens, falsely accused people and victims of adultery.
