8 December. Today is a national holiday in Portugal, in honor of Miriam, the Jewish woman who has been the country’s Queen and Patroness since 1646, when King João IV offered her the royal crown in gratitude for the restoration of Portugal’s independence in 1640 after six decades of Spanish rule.
Led by the nobility and supported by a significant part of the population, the Portuguese proclaimed independence on December 1, putting an end to the long Spanish occupation.
By placing his own crown on her image, the king declared that Miriam was the true Sovereign of Portugal. This symbolic act transformed the relationship between monarchy and faith, creating a tradition unique in the world: since then, no king or queen has worn a crown again — a privilege reserved exclusively for the Patroness.
Gabriel Senderowicz comments on this holiday, saying: “It is significant. Portugal was the work of both Catholics and Jews. The governance that turned the county into an empire belonged to the noble lineages of Dom Afonso Henriques and Yaish ben Yahia. Nothing the country produced came from flatterers of the materialistic and sexual socialisms born a century ago. These people hate Portugal’s history and cannot even distinguish between what is a man and what is a woman".
