Includes bibliographical references and index.

Preliminary Material / Susannah Humble Ferreira -- Introduction / Susannah Humble Ferreira -- Spin Doctors of the Crown: The Chroniclers and Their Contexts / Susannah Humble Ferreira -- From Royal Household to Royal Court: Patronage as a Political Strategy / Susannah Humble Ferreira -- Inquiry and Reform / Susannah Humble Ferreira -- Alms for the King / Susannah Humble Ferreira -- The Crown and Its Castles / Susannah Humble Ferreira -- Conclusion / Susannah Humble Ferreira -- Bibliography / Susannah Humble Ferreira -- Index / Susannah Humble Ferreira.

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In The Crown, the Court and the Casa da Índia , Susannah Humble Ferreira examines the social and political context that gave rise to the Portuguese Overseas Empire during the reigns of João II (1481-95) and Manuel I (1495-1521). In particular the book elucidates the role of the Portuguese royal household in the political consolidation of Portugal in this period. By looking at the relationship of the Manueline Reforms, the expulsion of the Jews and the creation of the Santa Casa da Misericordia to the political threat brought on by the expansion of Ferdinand of Aragon into the Mediterranean, the author re-evaluates the place of the overseas expansion in the policies of the Portuguese crown.