ABSTRACT
This chapter examines the relationship between gender – more specifically, masculinity – and the upholding of both the power of the king and the monarchy in Renaissance Portugal, more specifically during the last generations of the House of Avis. It argues that along with other variables, gender seems to have been relevant to maintaining political stability and dynastic power through a set of practices that may or may not have been in accordance with established models of expressing masculinity. The chapter considers an integral part of the hegemonic masculinity model, along with other members of the high nobility and also the upper strata of the clergy. The opposite, however, has not been fully acknowledged, which is interesting if one regards, for instance, the primacy in overseas expansion and the possible repercussions on masculinity models. There are considerations to be made regarding the possibility of masculinity models converging between southern and northern Europe.
