Dom Pedro Mystery

In early March of 1362 Dom Pedro, King of Portugal, arrives in Oporto to make merry with its inhabitants on the last day of Carnaval. The townspeople are delighted with his arrival and celebrate the last day before Lent with music and dancing in the streets, drinking and feasting, and the lighting of bonfires. The king attends a great feast and dance at the bishop's palace then goes out to wander among the common folk. It is a joyous occasion for all. That is... almost all. Shortly after dawn on Ash Wednesday the body of a beautiful naked woman is discovered. She was stabbed and her remains abandoned in a street. She is quickly identified as Berengaria, the young wife of Randolfo an elderly but quite wealthy inhabitant of the city. Dom Pedro is quite disturbed by this crime which reminds him all too vividly of the great tragedy of his own life and is determined to discover the person responsible. However, it soon becomes clear that Berengaria's killer is likely to be found among the elite of the city, indeed among the guests at the feast Pedro himself attended. Discovering and punishing the criminal may have unwelcome consequences.

For over a year civil war has been raging in Portugal. The war began when King Afonso ordered the execution of the beautiful Ines de Castro because he believed she was encouraging his son, Crown Prince Pedro, into unwise actions that might lead to war with neighboring Castile. Ines was the only woman Pedro had ever truly loved. Maddened by her death, Pedro raised an army and swore to avenge her by destroying all involved in her execution. Up to this point neither side has obtained a decisive advantage. Pedro is considering what his next actions should be when a new crisis occurs. Lourenco, one of his most trusted aides, is accused of raping and murdering the daughter of Nuno Gaultas, a prominent local noble. Gaultas wants to try and execute Lourenco. But Pedro believes in his young follower's innocence and is determined to save Lourenco's life and honor.

On a pleasant autumn day in the year 1357, Pedro, King of Portugal, sets out on a hunt, accompanied by a group of his companions. He soon discovers that wild boar are not his only quarry. Not far from the city of Santarém, where the court is in residence, they find a body in a field, face disfigured, clothes stained and tattered. Was this unfortunate a pilgrim or a beggar? Was he the victim of robbers or did he provoke the anger of a fellow traveler? Because a king owes justice to all his subjects, no matter their station, King Pedro has the body taken to Santarém in hopes it will be identified. He sends a group of men out to learn if there are any robbers in the area and capture them if possible. He instructs another man to question the inhabitants of the area where the body was found. It soon becomes clear that the matter is more complicated than was first thought. Far from being a beggar, it appears that the dead man was a prosperous goldsmith. And a Jew. New evidence suggests that the death cannot be conveniently blamed on a band of robbers but is instead the work of members of the court, perhaps even close associates of the king himself. Soon Pedro must ask himself what he will do if forced to choose between justice for an outsider and friendship for a member of his court. This story is not wholly a work of fiction. It is based in part on an incident described in The Chronicles of King Pedro. Fernão Lopes, the author of the Chronicles, was a member of the court of Duarte I, grandson of King Pedro. As Royal Archivist, he had access not only to official documents but was also acquainted with men and women whose parents and grandparents had known and told stories of King Pedro and his times, allowing Lopes to create a vivid picture of fourteenth century Portugal.