James of Coimbra

Jaime or James of Portugal (17 September 1433 – 27 August 1459), also known as James of Coimbra, James of Lusitania, was a Portuguese infante (prince) of the House of Aviz, and a bishop and cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church. James was the 3rd son of Infante Pedro, Duke of Coimbra, and Isabella of Urgell; among other kinships he was the great-grandson of the English prince John of Gaunt. At the age of just 14, he took part in the battle of Alfarrobeira (1449) where his father's army was defeated by the Portuguese royal army, and his father killed. James was taken captive after the battle, but he escaped and, together with his brother John and his sister Beatrice, took refuge in Burgundy, under the protection of his aunt, Isabella of Portugal (the consort of Duke Philip III the Good). He spent most of his remaining decade of life in Italy. Church career James of Portugal studied in Flanders and, on 23 March 1453, was appointed Bishop of Arras. On his aunt’s advice, he traveled to Rome, where Pope Nicholas V, hearing of the disgraces inflicted upon his family after Alfarrobeira, resolved to appoint the young James as the new Archbishop of Lisbon, which had been recently vacated by the death of D. Luís Coutinho. However, not being old enough to be consecrated to the dignity, James was only appointed administrator in perpetuity of the Archdiocese on 30 April 1453. Given the political situation in Portugal, James was unable to return to Lisbon to take possession of it, and so remained in Italy and governed his archdiocese from afar, via the vicar-general Luís Anes.