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Battle of Aljubarrota, 1385: the day Portugal kept its crown

1383-85 Portuguese interregnum · 1385 · Kingdom of Portugal vs Crown of Castile · ~6 min read · Updated October 2026

By Echoes of Battle

Fifteenth century miniature of the Battle of Aljubarrota from Jean de Wavrin's chronicle: armoured knights clash in a melee as the Portuguese king rides under his royal banner

At a glance

Kingdom of PortugalJohn I and Nuno Alvares Pereira
vs
Crown of CastileJohn I of Castile
Date
1385
Location
Aljubarrota, central Portugal
Period
1383-85 Portuguese interregnum
Outcome
Decisive Portuguese victory
By the numbers
SideStrengthLosses
Kingdom of Portugal~6,000-7,000Under ~1,000
Crown of Castile~30,000 (traditional; likely inflated)~4,000-5,000+ killed (disputed)

Castilian numbers come from chronicles and are widely thought to be inflated.

Quick answer

Portugal won a decisive victory at Aljubarrota on 14 August 1385, when a small Portuguese army, fighting on foot in a strong position and aided by English longbowmen, destroyed a much larger Castilian invasion. The battle secured Portugal's independence and kept its ruling house on the throne for the next two centuries.

In August 1385, near Aljubarrota, a small Portuguese army stood against a much larger Castilian invasion that aimed to swallow Portugal into a single Iberian crown. Fighting on foot in a strong position, and supported by English longbowmen, the Portuguese destroyed the Castilian attack in a single evening. Aljubarrota secured Portugal's independence and set its ruling house on the throne for the next two centuries.

A crown in dispute

When King Ferdinand of Portugal died in 1383 without a clear male heir1, the king of Castile claimed the Portuguese throne through marriage, threatening to unite the two kingdoms under Castile. Joao, Master of Avis, led the Portuguese resistance and was proclaimed king, while England, Castile's enemy, backed the Portuguese cause.2

Portrait of King João I of Portugal in a dark hat, hands joined in prayer
King João I of Portugal, the former Master of Avis, in a portrait by an anonymous Portuguese painter of the 15th century. Museu Nacional de Arte Antiga, Lisbon. Public domain

The Portuguese position

The Portuguese commander Nuno Alvares Pereira chose strong defensive ground and had his men dig in behind ditches and stakes.3 Both the Portuguese men-at-arms and their English allies fought on foot, with English and Portuguese longbowmen and crossbowmen posted to sweep the narrow approach the enemy would have to cross.

A smaller army saved a kingdom in a single evening.

The Castilian charge breaks

When the much larger Castilian and French force attacked3, its cavalry funnelled into the narrow front and was shot down and cut apart, much as the French had been at Crecy two generations earlier. The dense attacking ranks lost all order under the arrow storm and the stakes, and the Portuguese counterattack turned the repulse into a slaughter.

Medieval miniature of archers and knights fighting before a castle, with fallen horses in the foreground
Archers and armoured knights clash at Aljubarrota in a miniature from Jean de Wavrin's Chronique d'Angleterre, painted in Flanders in the late 15th century (British Library, Royal MS 14 E IV). CC0 (public domain)

Independence secured

The victory confirmed Joao I as king4 and the House of Avis on the throne, and although Castile recognised Portuguese independence formally only in the Treaty of Ayllón of 1411, its bid to absorb Portugal was finished. Portuguese independence held, and Joao's reign opened the age of Portuguese expansion. In thanks for the victory the great monastery of Batalha was built5, and Aljubarrota became a founding moment of Portuguese nationhood.

The oldest alliance

Aljubarrota also sealed a partnership that outlived the age of knights. English archers had fought beside the Portuguese, and in 1386 the two kingdoms signed the Treaty of Windsor6, a pact of perpetual friendship. The next year King João I married Philippa of Lancaster, daughter of John of Gaunt6, and their sons, among them Prince Henry the Navigator, led Portugal into the age of discovery. The Anglo-Portuguese alliance is still in force today and is often described as the oldest diplomatic alliance in the world.

Medieval miniature of a royal wedding in a Gothic church, the crowned king taking the hand of his bride
The wedding of King João I and Philippa of Lancaster in 1387, which sealed the Anglo-Portuguese alliance, in a late 15th-century Flemish manuscript miniature. Public domain

Frequently asked questions

Who won the Battle of Aljubarrota?

The Kingdom of Portugal, under King John I and his commander Nuno Alvares Pereira, won a decisive victory over the much larger invading army of the Crown of Castile.

When and where was the Battle of Aljubarrota?

It was fought on 14 August 1385 near Aljubarrota in central Portugal4, during the 1383-85 crisis over the Portuguese throne.

How did the outnumbered Portuguese win?

They fought on foot from a strong, fortified position that funnelled the enemy into a narrow front, where English and Portuguese archers and dismounted men-at-arms shattered the Castilian cavalry, much as at Crecy.

What role did England play?

England was allied with Portugal against Castile and sent longbowmen who helped win the battle. The alliance was formalised in the Treaty of Windsor in 1386, one of the oldest alliances in the world.

Why does Aljubarrota matter to Portugal?

It secured Portugal's independence from Castile and confirmed the House of Avis, opening the era of Portuguese expansion. It is remembered as a founding moment of the nation.

Sources and notes

Numbered notes in the text point to the works below.

  1. A. H. de Oliveira Marques, History of Portugal (Columbia University Press, 1972). ↩
  2. P. E. Russell, The English Intervention in Spain and Portugal in the Time of Edward III and Richard II (Clarendon Press, 1955). ↩
  3. Jonathan Sumption, Divided Houses: The Hundred Years War III (Faber and Faber, 2009). ↩ a b
  4. Encyclopaedia Britannica, “Battle of Aljubarrota” ↩ a b
  5. UNESCO World Heritage Centre, “Monastery of Batalha” ↩
  6. GOV.UK, History of Government blog, “History's Unparalleled Alliance: the Anglo-Portuguese Treaty of Windsor, 9th May 1386” ↩ a b
  7. Wikipedia, “Battle of Aljubarrota”

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