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Published online by Cambridge University Press: 28 December 2023
When the king realised that Vasco Martins was unwilling to take on the duty of being his lord lieutenant, he sent for Juan Hurtado de Mendoza, gave him that office and handed him the banner. Juan Hurtado received it from him as a very great favour and immediately raised it on high. The trumpets began to blare as they all shouted out, ‘Long live the king! Long live the king! Long live King Juan of Castile and Portugal!’ With that, they carried the banner out of the cathedral.
Ready at the door was one of the king's horses, saddled up to carry the banner throughout the city. There too, on horseback, were Juan Núñez de Toledo and others, all holding white spear-poles with pennants, waiting to accompany the banner. The lord lieutenant mounted up, and they inserted the banner into the sling on his saddle. Juan Núñez then cried out in a loud voice, urging everyone to declare, ‘Long live the king! Long live the king! Long live King Juan of Castile and Portugal!’ Then they all began to charge along after the banner as it headed on its way.
While they were joyously rushing along, the wind tore apart the stitches which held the Portuguese signs sewn on beneath, leaving them dangling down. In addition, the horse carrying the lord lieutenant stumbled against an outer quoin of the cathedral and broke one of its rider's shoulders, bringing him down with it as it fell. Some of those who saw this happen took it to be a very bad omen and said among themselves that the King of Castile would never become King of Portugal.
Some said to the king that it was not right for the Portuguese signs to be in an inferior position like that, so that he issued immediate orders that both sets of signs be displayed equally on his escutcheon. As for those Portuguese who were mourning the death of King Fernando, when they saw what had happened, both when the banner became unstitched and when the horse that was carrying the lord lieutenant fell, they were very pleased and said to one another that God would never make King Juan the King of Portugal.
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