"S. Elisabeth Reg. Portugalliae, Viduae"

"S. Elisabeth Reg. Portugalliae, Viduae", refers to **Saint Elizabeth of Portugal**, who is also known as **Santa Isabel** in Portuguese. She was a queen consort of Portugal, the wife of King Denis, and is venerated as a saint in the Catholic Church.

Saint Elizabeth of Portugal was known for her devout faith and her works of charity. Despite being a queen, she led a life of humility and was known for her efforts to promote peace within her kingdom². She is often commemorated in the Traditional Latin Mass.

Her feast day is celebrated on July 8th, and she is the patron saint of the Third Order of St. Francis². She is also remembered in various liturgical celebrations, including the Missa “Cognóvi, Dómine".

Saint Elizabeth of Portugal, also known as Elizabeth of Aragon, was born around 1271. She was the daughter of Peter III of Aragon and was named after her great-aunt, Saint Elizabeth of Hungary. She received a strict and pious education.

In 1282, when she was about 12 years old, she was married to King Dinis (Denis) of Portugal. Despite her husband's infidelity and immoral lifestyle, Elizabeth showed remarkable grace, treating her husband with love and fulfilling her duties as queen with humility. They had two children: their daughter, Constance, and a year later, their son, Afonso, who would succeed his father as King of Portugal.

Elizabeth was born of the royal family of Aragon in the year of our Lord 1271. The joy of her birth put an end to the unhappy quarrels between her grandfather and her father, thus making it clear from the outset that she would be a blessed peacemaker between kings and kingdoms. She was remarkable for the way in which she chastised her body, for her constancy in prayer, and for her exercise of the works of charity. When she was married to Denis, King of Portugal, she devoted herself no less to the work of cultivating virtue than to that of educating her children, striving to please her husband, but still more to please God. She not only had monasteries, colleges and churches built, but gave them magnificent endowments. She was wonderful in settling the disputes of kings, unwearied in relieving the private and public calamities of her fellow-men, and famous for her miracles. When King Denis had died, she put on the habit of the Seraphic Order, and whatever she had that was dear and precious to her she offered at the church of Compostella for the soul of the king and used for works of devotion and mercy. Finally, having fallen ill as a result of a journey she made to establish peace between two kings, her son and her grandson, she died a most holy death, after receiving a visit from the Virgin Mother of God. Famous for miracles, she was enrolled among the Saints by Urban VIII. ℣. But thou, O Lord, have mercy upon us.

Throughout her life, Elizabeth maintained her devout habits, helped the sick and the poor, and founded charitable establishments. She was deeply devout from a young age, spending hours in prayer². By age eight, she regularly fasted, attended Mass, and prayed the entire Divine Office daily. Her deep love for the poor and sick remained steadfast, and she sought daily opportunities to aid them.

After King Dinis died in 1325, she lived at Coimbra, Portugal, near a Poor Clare convent that she had founded, and she devoted herself to people in need. She died on July 4, 1336, on her way to the battlefield to make peace between her son, then King Afonso IV, and Alfonso XI of Castile.

She was canonized in 1625, and her feast day is celebrated on July 4. She is venerated as a saint in the Catholic Church and is the patron saint of the Third Order of St. Francis. She is also remembered for her efforts to promote peace within her kingdom.

(1) Saint Elizabeth of Portugal | Biography, Feast Day, & Facts. https://www.britannica.com/biography/Saint-Elizabeth-of-Portugal.

(2) Saint Elizabeth of Portugal - My Catholic Life!. https://mycatholic.life/saints/saints-of-the-liturgical-year/july-4-saint-elizabeth-of-portugal/.

(3) Saint Elizabeth of Portugal | Biography, Feast Day, & Facts. https://bing.com/search?q=Life+of+Saint+Elizabeth+of+Portugal.

(4) Saint Elisabeth of Portugal - Museo Nacional del Prado. https://www.museodelprado.es/en/the-collection/art-work/saint-elisabeth-of-portugal/70f72f87-85dd-4923-8d05-e4d7940f8c0b.

(5) Saint Elizabeth of Aragon, Queen of Portugal - lisbon.vip. https://www.lisbon.vip/lisbon-essentials/history-heritage/saint-elizabeth-of-aragon-queen-of-portugal.