A New Portugal (an alternate Ksar-el-Kebir)

[Gonzaga]

OK, after a long time, I've decided to posto my first TL. Thanks to Seleucus VII for helping me with the translation. I hope you enjoy.
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Chapter 1
The Ksar-el-Kebir disaster

From “History of the Portuguese Kings”, by João Guimarães Castro (1953)

...When John of Austria won the battle of Lepanto, in 1571, the king Sebastian felt himself stimulated to follow the glories of his Spanish uncle. He accepted an invitation from the Pope to join the Holy Alliance in a crusade against the Turks. Afterwards, he sent a message to the Venetian Republic to help him, and, also, wrote to the Persian Shah to attack the Ottomans through the eastern side while the Christians would do it from the west.

With the crusader idea abandoned, due to the Ottoman recovering and also due to the allies’ internal disagreements, Sebastian decided to fight in India, but this idea was soon given up. Then, he wanted to fight in Morocco, again dissuaded by his court.

Obsessed with the idea of making military glories against the infidels, in August of 1574 the king sailed to Morocco, returning some time later, not because he decided to follow his councilors advices, but because he didn’t find in Ceuta nor in Tangier a good occasion of fighting. The Moroccans, when heard about his arrival, retreated, supposing that Sebastian had a large army behind him, and did not tried to fight. The king, bored, regressed to Portugal, yet still decided to return in a more opportune moment to make a “true war”.

The moment he was waiting for came in 1576, when Prince Abdul Abdallah Mohammed II Saadi, Moroccan ruler, was deposed by his uncle, Abd al-Malik, who left his Algerian exile and was conquering the country. To defeat his uncle, Abdul went to Spain in 1577, trying to convince Phillip II helping him in this adventure. However, Abdul didn’t know that the Spanish king had already agreed upon a non-aggression pact with Abd al-Malik. Phillip answered that his troops were busy in Flanders, but suggested the deposed sultan to go to Portugal instead, to deal with his nephew, king Sebastian I. Abdul went then to Lisbon, where he required Portuguese help, exchanging it for more territories. And the first proof of his willing was the order to surrender Arsilah, where the garrison was still loyal to him, to the Portuguese, what was done in 1577 yet.

Sebastian was exalted with this possibility at hands. However, his State Council vehemently declared that it would not support the King’s action, but again the king didn’t care to what the councilors were thinking. Also useless were the contrary advices from his grandmother, Queen Catarina, from Cardinal Henrique, the senate chamber of Lisbon and Philip’s ambassador. Abd al-Malik himself offered honorable conditions to keep peace, all of them refused...

…The national treasure was almost completely emptied due to the invasion’s preparatives. A fleet was formed, and mercenaries from Spain, the HRE, Italy and Ireland were hired. Including the recruited within the kingdom, Sebastian’s army had over 24 thousand men [1]…

…Before leaving Lisbon, Sebastian ordered to bring to him from the Santa Cruz Monastery, in Coimbra, the sword that was owned by Dom Afonso Henriques, the first king of Portugal. The fleet set sail in June 25, 1578, passing by Lagos, Cadiz, Tanger, and reaching Asilah. There, they were joined by Abdul Abdallah’s men, and started the march in direction to Larache, a port that Sebastian had looked forward to conquer.

In August 04, after a long march under the Moroccan summer sun, they reached Suaken, a village on the bank of Makhazin River, near to the city of Ksar-el-Kebir. There, they finally met the 87,000 men of Abd al-Malik’s army…

... Abd al-Malik, even being ill during the battle, was able to command the army very well, surrounding the Portuguese with his troops. In the center of his battle line he put moors expelled from Spain, who fought with much more anger against the Christians. At the same time, his 10 thousand horsemen were attacking the Portuguese flanks...

The effort of the struggle was too much for the old prince. Abd al-Malik died while leading a charge against the Portuguese. The news was hidden from the rest of the army, to keep the troops’ morale high. At the same time, Adbul Adballan, realizing that the fight was over, tried to flee from the battlefield. However, while he was crossing the river, he was drowned…

...When Sebastian finally understood that the fight was lost, he said to his men that would be better to die as a warrior saint than to live as a prisoner, and ordered them to be prepared to a last charge in the midst of the enemy. His knights tried to convince him to give up. The Prior of Crato, on foot an covered with blood, pointed to an empty space in the flank of the Moroccan army were the king could escape from the Muslims, but Sebastian didn’t listen to him.[2] As a desperate action, Dom Cristóvão of Távora, ordered to an allied moor to take the sword from the king’s hand. The moor surprised the king, grabbing him by the arm. Trying to release himself, the king fell from his horse, hitting his head on the ground, where he remained unconscious.

The king’s knights made a defensive circle, trying to protect the king. But, after some time, they surrendered to the Moroccans. In the end, more than 8,000 men on the Portuguese army were dead, and 12,000 were made prisoners, with the king among them.

1) The real number of combatants in Ksar-el-Kebir it’s still polemic, with sources ranging from 15 to 25 thousand on the Portuguese side, and from 60 to 100 thousand on the Moroccan. The author of this book decided to go with the number shown above.

2) The details from the battle are not clear also, but as the POD is here, I’ve decided to use some “literary liberties”, to make the text more interesting.

 

[corourke]

So the POD here is that the Moroccans end up with the Portuguese King as a prisoner... what do they demand?

 

[Tizoc]

So, the POD is that King Sebastian survives, yes? Still, Portugal is going to be bankrupt, with all the ransoms paid - especially ransom for a king...
Though there won't be a joining of Portugal with Spain. But will it prevent Dutch takeover of many Portuguese colonies?
And what with heirs to the throne of Portugal? He was childless at the time of his birth...

 

[Thande]

Interesting, please continue.

 

[Thande]

The English is generally very good, there are just two tiny things I would point out

Obsessed with the idea of making military glories against the infidels, in August of 1574 the king sailed to Morocco, returning some time later, not because he decided to follow his councilors advices, but because he didn’t find in Ceuta nor in Tangier a good occasion of fighting. The Moroccans, when heard about his arrival, retreated, supposing that Sebastian had a large army behind him, and did not tried to fight. The king, bored, regressed to Portugal, yet still decided to return in a more opportune moment to make a “true war”.

Should be 'returned' - regress implies a return to a state of affairs rather than geographically.

And the first proof of his willing was the order to surrender Arsilah, where the garrison was still loyal to him, to the Portuguese, what was done in 1577 yet.

"which was done in 1577" or "which occurred in 1577".

Not to nitpick, just thought you might want to know.

 

[Gonzaga]

So the POD here is that the Moroccans end up with the Portuguese King as a prisoner... what do they demand?

Well, the last time the Moroccans had a member of the Portuguese royal family as a prisoner (the Infante Santo, from 1437 to 1443) they demanded Ceuta. But the Infante Santo was only the sixth son of the Portuguese king. Now the prisoner is THE king...

So, the POD is that King Sebastian survives, yes? Still, Portugal is going to be bankrupt, with all the ransoms paid - especially ransom for a king...
Though there won't be a joining of Portugal with Spain. But will it prevent Dutch takeover of many Portuguese colonies?
And what with heirs to the throne of Portugal? He was childless at the time of his birth...

My plan is to make the near future of Portugal even darker than just going bankrupt, but you're right, they will have financial problems.
For the Dutch, remember, it's 1578, the fate of the United Provinces isn't decided yet, and I have plans...
About the heirs, there were many claimants, but it depends on how much Sebastian will live, and if he will have issue..

Interesting, please continue.

Thanks! I've five chapters done, and I'll post them as soon as the traslation is ready.

The English is generally very good, there are just two tiny things I would point out


Should be 'returned' - regress implies a return to a state of affairs rather than geographically.


"which was done in 1577" or "which occurred in 1577".

Not to nitpick, just thought you might want to know.

Thanks, I need corrections! For the next chapters, I'll ask the help of friend of mine, who is an English teacher. Than I hope the reading will be less annoying...

 

[Sgt Detritus]

So, the POD is that King Sebastian survives, yes? Still, Portugal is going to be bankrupt, with all the ransoms paid - especially ransom for a king...
Though there won't be a joining of Portugal with Spain. But will it prevent Dutch takeover of many Portuguese colonies?
And what with heirs to the throne of Portugal? He was childless at the time of his birth...

In history Sebastian was succeeded by Henry, a brother of his grandfather John III. Henry died in 1580 and then there were several claimants for the throne

Ranuccio I, Duke of Parma and Piacenza, grandson of Henry's younger brother Duarte

Catharine of Braganza, daughter if Duarte

Antonio, illegitimate son of another brother of Henry, Luis

 

[Gonzaga]

In history Sebastian was succeeded by Henry, a brother of his grandfather John III. Henry died in 1580 and then there were several claimants for the throne

Ranuccio I, Duke of Parma and Piacenza, grandson of Henry's younger brother Duarte

Catharine of Braganza, daughter if Duarte

Antonio, illegitimate son of another brother of Henry, Luis

And Phillip II of Spain (of course), and the Duke of Savoia.

 

[Sgt Detritus]

And Phillip II of Spain (of course), and the Duke of Savoia.

I bow to your superior knowledge in the matter

 

[Dathi THorfinnsson]

Thanks! I've five chapters done, and I'll post them as soon as the traslation is ready.


Thanks, I need corrections! For the next chapters, I'll ask the help of friend of mine, who is an English teacher. Than I hope the reading will be less annoying...

1) Oh my, you are more daring than I ever would be. The few times I've tried to do anything not in English, I've composed it in the other language first. While it is tough, I find that translating from my native tongue (English) into anything else makes it less fluent than doing it in (e.g. French) first.

2) If you want corrections in general, I could try PMing some to you.

3) As Thande says, most of what you posted was perfectly understandable.

3a) one of the things that impresses me about this board is how many non-native English speakers we have here - and how hard it is to tell that they are non-native! I keep meaning to post something over at Changingthetimes.net in French, but I never get around to it.

3b) having re-read your post, the two quibbles Thande pointed out are really the only ones worth mentioning.

3c) Many of you guys whose native languages aren't English write better and clearer posts than several of the NATIVE English speakers - who can't be bothered getting things right!

 

[seleucusVII]

Hmm... the TL to be developed seems to be interesting.

Tell me, my fellow countryman, what do you plan to happen now on?
What are the dutch going to do? Will we see a dutch Argentina or something like it?

 

[Tocomocho]

I'll pay many attention to this.

 

[Gonzaga]

Chapter 2
The Prison

From “History of the conflicts between Morocco and Portugal – 1415 to 1582”, by Maati Ibrahim

...Less than a hundred men managed to run away from the battle, reaching the seaside, where they could look for help. The prisoners were taken to Larache, the city the Portuguese wanted to conquer, where Ahmad al-Mansur Saadi, the new sultan[1], exhibited them in a triumphal parade. Due to their great number, the captives were divided in many groups, every one sent to different cities and towns, where they would be locked in the local prisons.

The only prisoners who would be freed during the first months of captivity were some Spaniards that joined the Portuguese Army.[2] Their release was ordered by al-Mansur, in order to not upset Phillip II, with whom his brother had made a non-aggression pact when took over the Moroccan throne…

... The king and some of his most important nobles were sent to Fez. Initially, the sultan treated him with the respect that a king should deserve. Sebastian was “imprisoned” in a bedrooms of the Royal Palace, and had the right to keep two servants with him. However, the king, completely arrogant, didn’t return the same respect to the sultan. Every time Sebastian met al-Mansur, he coursed him, saying that God would make the sultan pay for this humiliation. The Portuguese king, blinded by his “crusade fever”, still talked to the sultan not as prisoner to his captor, but as an arrogant adversary.

In the fifth day after Sebastian’s arrival to Fez, al-Mansur presented to the king the Moroccan demands. According to the sultan, Sebastian would be released only once Portugal had given to him an amount of money equivalent to one year of all taxes paid to the Portuguese Crown from the commerce with India and Africa together. Also, every noble or free man imprisoned would be freed for smaller amounts, stipulated according to their degree of nobility and social position. The only territorial demand would be Asilah, because it was given to the Portuguese by the deposed sultan, therefore, illegally.

Although the sultan’s terms could be considered reasonable, Sebastian’s answer was the worst possible. The king said that he would never surrender a Christian city to the followers of a liar, blasphemous and false prophet, and he would rather follow the example of “Infante Santo”[3], dieing in a foreign prison, than to diminish in one only inch the lands conquered by Portugal. Also, he affirmed that the Portuguese court would really save money, not to give to the sultan, but to recruit a bigger army that, with the help of his uncle Phillip, would soon release and revenge him.

These words were too much for al-Mansur. He ordered that Sebastian should be locked, completely naked, into the worst cell of Fez, and announced that only would negotiate with him again when the king had learned how to have some humility. While his guards were dragging the king out of the room, the sultan still said loudly that Sebastian would suffer so much that in the next discussion he would accept not only giving Asilah, but all the other Portuguese possessions in Morocco (i.e., Ceuta, Tanger, Mazagan, and the fortress of Casablanca). And, just before Sebastian left the room, the sultan threatened to sell the Portuguese nobles as slaves if the king didn’t behave properly in the next meeting…

1) He was Abd al-Malik’s brother.
2) Among them was Juan de Silva, Spanish ambassador in Lisbon, who was released in September 1578.

3) Fernando of Portugal was the sixth son of John I. In 1437, he joined a failed expedition to Morocco, where he was made prisoner. As a ransom, the Moroccans asked Ceuta, a city that the Portuguese had taken in 1415. The Portuguese court, divided about the issue of giving Ceuta or not, discussed the matter during six years, till Fernando died in prison, solving the problem. Due to his “sacrifice for the national interests” he was known afterwards as the Infante Santo (Saint Prince).

 

[Gonzaga]

Hmm... the TL to be developed seems to be interesting.

Tell me, my fellow countryman, what do you plan to happen now on?
What are the dutch going to do? Will we see a dutch Argentina or something like it?

Well, I don't even know if the Dutch will be completely independent in the first place.
But, yes, I suppose the colonial race will have different patterns in this TL.

I'll pay many attention to this.

Thanks! Information from the Spanish will be always welcomed!

 

[Gonzaga]

1) Oh my, you are more daring than I ever would be. The few times I've tried to do anything not in English, I've composed it in the other language first. While it is tough, I find that translating from my native tongue (English) into anything else makes it less fluent than doing it in (e.g. French) first.

2) If you want corrections in general, I could try PMing some to you.

3) As Thande says, most of what you posted was perfectly understandable.

3a) one of the things that impresses me about this board is how many non-native English speakers we have here - and how hard it is to tell that they are non-native! I keep meaning to post something over at Changingthetimes.net in French, but I never get around to it.

3b) having re-read your post, the two quibbles Thande pointed out are really the only ones worth mentioning.

3c) Many of you guys whose native languages aren't English write better and clearer posts than several of the NATIVE English speakers - who can't be bothered getting things right!

Thanks! As I said before, the next chapters I'll try to translate with a friend's help. Till there, just pretend it's good enough.

 

[Thande]

Great work, Gonzaga. I'm wondering in which direction this will go...

The Moroccans have the same problem as the Afghans when I was writing LTTW - it would be nice if these Muslim civilisations had more than about three first names between them, as that way they might not have three claimants to the throne with almost identical names

A few more minor grammatical things - I'll PM you the details, hope you don't mind.

 

[Gonzaga]

Chapter 3
The Prior of Crato
From “The Power Behind the Throne – The Life of Dom Antonio, Prior of Crato”, by Juliano Gomes da Silva

...Although through the centuries many versions of the history of his release have been made, the oddest of them claiming that he had escaped disguised as a woman or as an merchant riding a camel, the truth is that Dom Antonio owed his freedom to his contacts among the Jewish community. The Prior of Crato had his ransom paid by Abraham Gebre, a Jew from Fez who owed him some favours done in Tanger, where Antonio was governor.

Gebre intervened on Antonio’s behalf to the sultan, paying a huge amount in silver coins to release him. He also informed al-Mansur that the Priorwas offering himself to be the mediator between the sultan and the king, in order to make Sebastian accept some kind of ransom proposal. The sultan accepted Gebre’s offer, not only because of the money but, as well, because he needed a mediator who the king would listen to, and the Portuguese court could accept. Since Dom Antonio had royal blood, he seemed to be the man for the task…

…After being received by al-Mansur, the first thing Dom Antonio did was to visit the king in his cell, and explain the situation to him. Sebastian agreed on making him his mediator, but asserted that his first aim should be preserve the Portuguese cities in Morocco. Also, he dictated three letters to him. The first one should be given to Cardinal Dom Henrique, informing him about the king’s situation, and announcing the government procedures that should be followed during his absence. Among them was an express order not to send “a single coin” to ransom him or his nobles in Morocco. According to the king, “we are all agreed that it is preferable to die as saints and martyrs than to live under the scar of the shame, and even more when this stain could be the reason of the kingdom’s ruin”. On the contrary, the king’s order was that, if some money should be collected in Portugal, it ought to be used to recruit troops, in order to invade Morocco again. The other two letters should be delivered to his uncle, Philip II, and to the Pope, requiring that both called a crusade to save him from the prison and avenge the Christian warriors' deaths….

…In Lisbon, the news of the disaster in Morocco caused the greatest public mourning since the 1531 earthquake, when 30,000 people died. In all homes, families were crying for the fate of their men. The churches were full of people praying for the souls of the dead, and for the release of the captives, especially the king.
It wasn’t different inside the Royal Palace, where Dom Antonio gave to the Cardinal Dom Henrique the demands of al-Mansur and the letter of the king. The court became astonished by the situation they needed to deal with: either they would give up the Moroccan cities, for what Portugal had lost so many lifes in the past, or his king would spend the rest of his life in a moor prison, just like the Infante Santo.

The State Council was summoned to a meeting in order to discuss the issue, but no conclusion was reached. One of the main reasons for it was that, even if some councilors accepted the sacrifice of the Moroccan cities, their king barred them from doing so in his letter. Sebastian urged them to ask support from Spain and the Pope to call a crusade…

...The Cardinal accepted that he should act as mediator between the Portuguese court and the sultan, more because it was recommended by the king than by the Cardinal’s will. Dom Henrique ordered him to go to Madrid and Rome, to deliver the king’s letters. Dom Antonio went there in person, not only because he was ordered by the king to do so, but because he had a private reason. If the king died in prison, his successor would be Cardinal Dom Henrique, a priest, and so, without children. As the Cardinal was an old man, even if the Pope conceded him to give up his give his religious duties, and he married, he possibly would never have issue, and Portugal would have a succession crisis. The Prior had rights to the throne but, as he was considered a bastard [1], and he also did not have the Cardinal’s sympathies, he needed all possible support to make his claim legal. To show how important he was considered by the king to Phillip II (another possible claimant) and to have good relations with the Pope could help him…

...In Rome, where he arrived in late November, the mood was no different from Spain. The Pope Gregory XIII, just like Phillip II, expressed his condolences by the king’s situation, and said that he would pray for his fate and for his nobles'. He also made some vague promises about mobilizing an army to save the king. Actually, the Pope knew that without Spanish support this expedition would never happen, and the Spanish king wasn’t very eager to do it.

Dom Antonio, with the pretext of assisting the Christmas Mass in the Holy City, remained in Rome till the New Year Day. However, during this time, he not only mobilized contacts that could lead to the payment of more nobles’ ransoms, but he tried to get advice from cardinals about the possibilities of making his parents marriage legitimate, in order to give him a legal pretension to the Portuguese throne. Among the Cardinals with whom Dom Antonio discussed this issue was Ludovico D’Este...[3]

1) Dom Antonio was the son of Luis of Portugal, second son of king Manuel I. However, his mother, Violante Gomes, was a commoner with possible Jewish origin, who had secretly married the prince.

2) Cardinal Dom Henrique didn’t like the Prior both because he was a bastard and also because he abandoned the ecclesiastical career that was intended for him.

3)A hint, keep an eye on this guy...

 

[Gonzaga]

Capítulo 4
The fate of the prisoners

From “History of the conflicts between Morocco and Portugal – 1415 to 1582”, by Maati Ibrahim

...In February 14, 1579, six months after the battle, Ahmad al-Mansur once more had a meeting with king Sebastian, trying to reach some kind of agreement. With them was the Prior of Crato, who arrived from Lisbon bringing the Cardinal Dom Henrique’s offer. The Portuguese proposal was to surrender al cities occupied by Portugal but Ceuta, and to give an amount of gold for every noble imprisoned. The Prior explained to the sultan the difficulties that Portugal would have to pay the huge amount asked before, and said that would be better for Morocco to receive territories immediately than wainting years till gain a treasure.

Although these terms didn’t content him much, because he wanted Ceuta and, even more, the treasure, the sultan affirmed that would accept the deal, if Sebastian did. But the king’s view was different. He said that the proposal from Lisbon was nothing more than a treason against Christ, the king, his ancestors, and his subjects. Sebastian also declared that he never would accept the surrender of “a single pebble” from the Portuguese territories in North Africa. He also threatened the sultan, affirming that he should be released before the crusade that the Pope would already had called to save him had arrived at his kingdom to “hunt you like a rabid wolf, although this same wolf has more nobility than you and every one of your thieving and murdering ancestors”. (OR: your ancestors, the thieves and murderers

The sultan's response to the king’s words was one of his actions that most contributed to denigrate his image among Christian historians for generations. First, he ordered that the king should receive a hundred lashes in public, in front of all his nobles imprisoned in Fez.[1] But what he commanded to be done next would have greater consequences.

In the day after the meeting, al-Mansur ordered that all the prisoners younger than 15 years old should be sold as slaves. Many Portuguese brought their sons or young relatives with them, to learn about the art of war and the duties of a Christian soldier. The exact number of infants captured with the army is unknown, but it is estimated that at least a hundred were sold in the slave market. Among them, the most famous of these infants was Teodosio, the Duke of Braganza’s 10-year-old son.[2] He was beloved by the king of Portugal, who asked his father to take him to Morocco. His destiny is uncertain, but some historians had claimed that he was bought by a merchant from Songhai. The king of Spain, as Teodosio’s father requested, sent a letter to the sultan asking the boy’s release, but by the time the message arrived at Fez it was too late…

...When Cardinal Dom Henrique died, in December 1579, the regency of the Portuguese kingdom was occupied by Catarina, Duchess of Braganza, a fact that changed the dynamics of the negotiations. The Duchess blamed the king on her son’s fate, and she no longer had sympathies for him. Also, as she was the king’s cousin, she believed herself to have a better claim for the Portuguese throne, and so, if the king died in prison, she would the Queen of Portugal.
As soon as she took over the regency, Catarina stopped all the negotiations to release the captives, except by some nobles she wanted to have their families’ support. She prohibited the Prior of Crato from keeping contact with the sultan and the king[2], and ordered to the governors of the Portuguese cities in Morocco to arrest Dom Antonio if he arrived at any port of the Portuguese Crown…

... In November 1580, due to the Portuguese withdrawal from the negotiations, and the refusal of the king to accept any agreement had already made al-Mansur sell half of all the Portuguese nobles into slavery. The despair for having this fate made many of the prisoners who, despite being Christians, had some Jewish ancestry, to turn back to their old religion, expecting to be freed by the influential Jewish community of Fez. There were even some captives who converted to Islam hoping that it would save them from their pain.

At first, the sultan didn’t believe in the sincerity of these conversions, but as he knew that it would irritate Sebastian, in February 1581 he proclaimed that all the prisoner who had decided to convert to Islam would be freed, upon the condition that they should never leave Morocco. More than 500 men accepted the deal, and many of them later became founders of important Moroccan families who would have great importance in the history of the country…

Apenas alguns prisioneiros cujas famílias recorreram a Filipe II conseguiram obter sua liberdade (e somente aqueles cujo resgate pago fosse muito valioso). Dos demais, alguns haviam falecido devido às condições do cárcere.

...When the king finally could not stand anymore the punishments and the privations, and after being convinced by Dom Antonio that he needed to protect his throne, there was almost nobody left to save. Few nobles were lucky enough to have their ransom paid, either by Phillip II or by Catarina. Only 42 Portuguese had escaped death in prison or being sold into slavery when their release was agreed at last.

The Treaty of Fez, signed by the king and the sultan on January 23 1582, stated that in exchange for the release of the king and the other nobles, Portugal should surrender all her possessions in Moroccan territory, and also accept a non-aggression pact with Morocco, where Portugal should agree to help the Sultan or his indicated successor in case of civil war or foreign threat. With this act, the king’s captivity was ended, but the peace was still far from being reached with the Christians…

1) Afterwards the sultan changed it to just 50 lashes, for piety.

2) An order he didn’t obey. Wait for the next chapters…

 

[Faeelin]

Ouch.

Well, at least he knows he can't count on Spain.

 

[Guilherme Loureiro]

Two lines didn't get translated:

Apenas alguns prisioneiros cujas famílias recorreram a Filipe II conseguiram obter sua liberdade (e somente aqueles cujo resgate pago fosse muito valioso). Dos demais, alguns haviam falecido devido às condições do cárcere.

Translation: Only a few prisoners, whose families appealed to Phillip II, managed to earn their freedom(and only those whose ransom was very large). Of the others, a few had died due to the conditions of the captivity.

Looking good. Somehow, I think D. Sebastião's image among the Portuguese will be quite different...