Isabella of Aragon, also known as Saint Elizabeth of Portugal, was born in Zaragoza on January 4, 1271. She was the third child of Peter III the Great, the king of Aragon, Valencia, and Count of Barcelona, and Constance of Sicily.
At the age of 12, she was married to Dionysius, the king of Portugal, with whom she had two children. The marriage was troubled by her husband’s infidelities, but Elizabeth demonstrated her Christian faith through her actions and became known for her holiness. As her husband’s adviser, she worked to reduce tensions between Aragon, Portugal, and Spain and also conducted peacemaking efforts within her own family.
After her husband’s death, she gave away her possessions to the poor and monasteries, and she became a Franciscan tertiary. She later made a pilgrimage to the shrine of Compostela where she renounced her crown and then retired to the Poor Clare convent in Coimbra, which she had founded.
Elizabeth passed away in 1336 in Estremoz, Portugal, and her body was returned to the Coimbra monastery. In 1612, during an exhumation related to the process of declaring her a saint, her body was found to be incorrupt.
The feast day is July 4.
Origin: https://www.causesanti.va/it/santi-e-beati/elisabetta-isabella-di-portogallo.html