Table of Contents
Historia Iberica argues that Portugal’s shield is a Templar diagram, not only a royal badge. Two of the order’s first nine knights are said to have been Portuguese, and Teresa of Leon, widow of Count Henrique, is said to have called the new order onto the county’s frontier. Her son Afonso Henriques is presented as a young Templar who, before a battle with five Moorish kings, was told by Christ to put five small shields on his arms for that victory. Those quinas are treated as the pieces that fill the empty corners of the Templar cross, and their rounded tops are tied to a cross set over the globe. The name Portugal is split into a word for harbor and an old word for chalice, so the country would itself name the holy cup the Templars sought. Afonso’s round seal is read straight as Portugal and, on a curve, as that cup. The channel’s last claim is that this kingdom later sheltered the order and carried the cross across the ocean.
Key points
- The channel ties two founding Templars, and Teresa of Leon’s invitation, to early Portugal.
- Afonso Henriques is presented as a young Templar who receives the five shields in a vision during a fight with five Moorish kings.
- The quinas are read as the missing corners of the Templar cross, aimed at the whole world.
- Portugal’s name is treated as a pun on a port and a chalice, hence the Holy Grail.
- Afonso’s round seal is read both as the country’s name and as the cup.
- The same kingdom is said to have sheltered the order and carried its cross overseas.
Short quotes
Dona Teresa de leão viúva do Conde Dom Henrique chama a ordem do templo
História Ibérica, Templar shield of Portugal
In English, the widowed countess summons the Temple order into the county. Watch at 1:34
O Escudo português é literalmente o complemento da Cruz templária
História Ibérica, Templar shield of Portugal
In English, the Portuguese shield is called the missing piece of the Templar cross. Watch at 4:10
Portugal seria não apenas o lar da ordem Mas seria o país que preencheria a cruz de Cristo no Globo
História Ibérica, Templar shield of Portugal
In English, Portugal is cast as the order’s home and as the country that would fill out Christ’s cross on the globe. Watch at 9:08
Video by História Ibérica. Watch on YouTube.