For many of us AH.com'ers who know the many WI's involving Miguel da Paz, knew that his rise to power came at the expense of the death of Isabel, Princess of Asturias' first husband, Afonso, Prince of Portugal. who died in a suspicious riding accident in 1491.
Joao II, who was king of Portugal at the time, now had an heir in the form of Manuel, then Duke of Beja. Joao had previously killed Manuel's brother, the Duke of Viseu, as well as his brother in law, the Duke of Braganza. Manuel only escaped death because Joao saw him as a "harmless fool." Quite ironic that said fool stood to (and in OTL, did) succeed him. This worried Joao as he thought (and as it turned out not to be the case) Manuel would decentralize Portugal just as his father did after the death of the Duke of Coimbra.
Joao sought to legitimize his illegitimate son, Jorge de Lencastre, so that he would inherit the throne. This would be countered by a counter-campaign led by Joao's wife, and Manuel's brother, Leonor, and supported by Manuel's Order of Christ. Ultimately, the plan failed (the request was denied by Pope Alexander VI, that sneaky Borgia.) And though Joao's will was mostly carried out, it was interpreted in such a way that Jorge could not make a significant threat to Manuel's royal authority, ultimately culminating in reducing the Lencastrian household into minor Nobility as the Dukes and later Counts of Aviero.
But going back to the question on hand, what if Joao managed to successfully legitimize Jorge de Lencastre, and thus with it, bring about the Lencastrian branch of the House of Aviz on the throne of Portugal. Would this change up the centralization policies initiated by his father? Would colonialization and exploration continue under this hypothetical King Jorge's reign?
Joao II, who was king of Portugal at the time, now had an heir in the form of Manuel, then Duke of Beja. Joao had previously killed Manuel's brother, the Duke of Viseu, as well as his brother in law, the Duke of Braganza. Manuel only escaped death because Joao saw him as a "harmless fool." Quite ironic that said fool stood to (and in OTL, did) succeed him. This worried Joao as he thought (and as it turned out not to be the case) Manuel would decentralize Portugal just as his father did after the death of the Duke of Coimbra.
Joao sought to legitimize his illegitimate son, Jorge de Lencastre, so that he would inherit the throne. This would be countered by a counter-campaign led by Joao's wife, and Manuel's brother, Leonor, and supported by Manuel's Order of Christ. Ultimately, the plan failed (the request was denied by Pope Alexander VI, that sneaky Borgia.) And though Joao's will was mostly carried out, it was interpreted in such a way that Jorge could not make a significant threat to Manuel's royal authority, ultimately culminating in reducing the Lencastrian household into minor Nobility as the Dukes and later Counts of Aviero.
But going back to the question on hand, what if Joao managed to successfully legitimize Jorge de Lencastre, and thus with it, bring about the Lencastrian branch of the House of Aviz on the throne of Portugal. Would this change up the centralization policies initiated by his father? Would colonialization and exploration continue under this hypothetical King Jorge's reign?