Eleanor of Portugal (18 September 1434 – 3 September 1467) was Empress of the Holy Roman Empire. A Portuguese infanta (princess), daughter of King Edward of Portugal and his wife Eleanor of Aragon, she was the consort of Holy Roman Emperor Frederick III and the mother of Holy Roman Emperor Maximilian I. Background Eleanor was born in Torres Vedras on 18 September 1434, one of the nine children of King Edward of Portugal and Eleanor of Aragon. She was the third eldest daughter, but her two older sisters died when they were young, leaving Eleanor as the eldest surviving daughter. When her father died five days before her fourth birthday, Eleanor's brother Afonso V succeeded him as king with her mother as regent. The following March, her mother gave birth to another daughter, Joan, who would become the notorious wife of Henry IV of Castile. In 1440, Eleanor's mother was forced to go into exile in Castile after losing litigation against her brother-in-law Peter, Duke of Coimbra, for the regency of the young King Afonso. She left Eleanor behind, because she was ill at the time. Empress Eleanor's marriage partner was likely suggested by her aunt Isabella of Portugal, Duchess of Burgundy. Arrangements were made by Eleanor's maternal uncle Alfonso V, King of Aragon and Naples, who, in 1448, sent artists from his court to paint Eleanor. Eleanor was also suggested as a marriage partner for Louis, Dauphin of France, the eldest son of King Charles VII, but she herself preferred to marry Frederick, because a match with him would give her the title of empress instead of queen. The practical negotiations were made in Naples and completed in 1451. During the sea travel, the fleet escorting Eleanor to Italy was tormented by pirates and storms, and there were rumours that she had been lost at sea. Eleanor and Frederick met in Sienna: Frederick was said to have paled when he saw her, partly out of excitement for her beauty, but also out of worry that she would have troubles giving birth because of her slender and frail appearance. The marriage took place in Rome. Upon her coronation, she was also given the name Helena, but she never used this name. The festivities were hosted by her uncle, the king of Naples. Eleanor and Frederick were dissimilar and never happy. She was an ambitious and willful woman who frequently participated