Alfonso II of Portugal, Called the Fat

ALFONSO II, king of PORTOGALLO, called the FAT. - Born in 1185, died in 1223, grandson of Alfonso and son of Sancio I. At the congress of Coimbra (1211) he issued the first general laws of the nation, in which the rights and privileges of the Church were also defined. He ruled wisely; he introduced the law that death sentences should not be carried out until after 20 days, so that there might be time for pardon; he fostered the rise of free municipalities and showed himself very beneficent. But relations between State and Church were troubled by various disputes concerning ecclesiastical privileges, which led to his incurring excommunication by Onorio III; from this he appears to have been absolved after being reconciled with the Church. He shared with the other Christian kings of the Iberian peninsula in the victory of Las Navas di Tolosa over the Moors (1212).