King of Portugal 1325-1357. "Afonso the Brave" was the son and heir of King Dinis I, the Farmer of Portugal and his Queen Isabella de Aragon. He had a long quarrel with his half-brother Afonso Sanches about the Royal favour of their common father. The rivalry led to several outbreaks of civil war. When Afonso IV became King in 1325, Afonso Sanches was exiled to Castile. In 1309, Afonso IV married Princess Beatrice, daughter of king Sancho IV of Castile by his wife Maria de Molina. The first-born of this union, Princess Maria of Portugal, married King Alfonso XI of Castile in 1328, at the same time that the Portuguese heir, Pedro (I), was promised to another Castilian princess, Constance. These arrangements were imperiled by the ill will of Alfonso XI of Castile, who was, at that time, publicly mistreating his queen. Afonso IV was not happy to see his daughter abused, and started a war against Castile. The last part of Afonso IV's reign saw complications and intrigues inside the Royal Court itself. Pedro, the heir of Portugal, had fallen in love with one of his wife, Constance's maids, Ines de Castro. Afonso IV was very displeased with this, but Pedro was openly in love with Ines, who bore him several children - one of whom was the later king João I Aviz. Pedro recognized all the children of Ines, and after the death of his wife, Constance, in 1349, he refused the idea of marrying anyone but Ines de Castro. The situation became worse as the years passed and the aging Afonso IV lost control over his Court. Pedro's only legitimate male heir, the future King Fernão I, was a weak and sickly child, which Ines's children were not. Worried about his legitimate grandson's life, Afonso IV ordered the murder of Ines de Castro in 1355. He expected his son to act reasonably, but Pedro was not able to forgive his father for this barbaric act. Enraged with fury, Pedro raised an army, and devastated the country before he was reconsiled with his father in early 1357. Afonso IV died almost immediately after this. As King, Afonso IV, also called "the Brave" is remembered as a soldier and general. But perhaps his most important contribution was the importance he gave the Portuguese Navy. Afonso IV granted public funding to raise a proper commercial fleet and ordered the first maritime explorations. During his reign, the Canary Islands were discovered by the Portuguese. He was the father of 7 children, two of whom are already mentioned. His youngest daughter, Leonor, was married to king Pedro IV of Aragon.