Persecution of Jews in Portugal

Roman emperors
Under Christian emperors, Jews were persecuted in the Roman Empire, which included forbidding Jews from marrying Christians, restricting Jewish ownership of slaves, and punishing those that converted from Christianity to Judaism.

Portuguese kings
King Afonso IV of Portugal in the 14th century decreed for Jews to wear a Jewish badge.

In the 1490s, King John II took Jewish children and forcibly transported them to a new colony in São Tomé in Africa, where many died. After John II's death in 1495, his successor King Manuel I decreed for Jews to convert to Christianity or be expelled from Portugal.

The Portuguese Inquisition started in 1536 at the request of King John III and lasted until 1821. Jews that converted to Christianity suspected of secretly practicing Judaism were killed.

Lisbon massacre
In 1506, Dominican friars incited a massacre in Lisbon against Jews in which over 2,000 were killed.