Kingdom of the Algarve in the context of "European Algarve"

The United Kingdom of Portugal, Brazil and the Algarves was a pluricontinental monarchy formed by the elevation of the Portuguese colony named State of Brazil to the status of a kingdom and by the simultaneous union of that Kingdom of Brazil with the Kingdom of Portugal and the Kingdom of the Algarves, constituting a single state consisting of three kingdoms.

The United Kingdom of Portugal, Brazil and the Algarves was formed in 1815, following the transfer of the Portuguese court to Brazil during the Napoleonic invasions of Portugal, and it continued to exist for about one year after the court's return to Europe, being de facto dissolved in 1822, when Brazil proclaimed its independence. The dissolution of the United Kingdom was accepted by Portugal and formalized de jure in 1825, when Portugal recognized the independent Empire of Brazil.

The Portuguese House of Burgundy (Portuguese: Casa de Borgonha) was a Portuguese noble house that ruled the County and later Kingdom of Portugal from its founding until the 1383–85 Portuguese Interregnum.

The house was founded by Henry of Burgundy, who became Count of Portugal in 1096. His son, Afonso Henriques, was proclaimed King of Portugal following his victory at the Battle of Ourique in 1139, establishing the Afonsine dynasty (Dinastia Afonsina). Burgundian monarchs would rule Portugal through much of its early formation, including the formalization of the Portuguese language under King Dinis I, the first Portuguese parliament, under King Afonso II, and the conquest of the Kingdom of the Algarve, under King Afonso III. Numerous princes of the house took up thrones across Europe, such as Ferdinand I, Count of Flanders and Peter I, Count of Urgell. Similarly, many princesses became royal consorts, including Berengaria, Queen of Denmark, Leonor, Queen of Aragon, and Teresa, Duchess of Burgundy, among others.

The Council of Portugal, officially, the Royal and Supreme Council of Portugal (Portuguese: Real e Supremo Conselho de Portugal;), was the ruling body and a key part of the government of the Kingdom of Portugal during the Iberian Union. The council was founded in 1582 by Philip I of Portugal following the model of the Council of Castile. It provided Portugal with a large degree of autonomy from the House of Habsburg.

Apart from administering the Kingdom of Portugal and the Algarves, the council administered Portugal's colonial empire.

Silves (Portuguese pronunciation: [ˈsiɫ.vɨʃ] ), officially the City of Silves (Portuguese: Cidade de Silves), is a city and municipality in the Portuguese region of Algarve, in southern Portugal. The population of the entire municipality of Silves in 2011 was 37,126, in an area of 680.06 km. The urbanized area of the city proper has approximately 11,000 inhabitants. Silves is the former capital of the Kingdom of the Algarve (1249–1910), a nominal kingdom within the Kingdom of Portugal (1139–1910), and is of great historical importance.

John III (Portuguese: João III Portuguese pronunciation: [ʒuˈɐ̃w]; 6 June 1502 – 11 June 1557), nicknamed The Pious (Portuguese: o Piedoso), was the King of Portugal and the Algarve from 1521 until he died in 1557. He was the son of King Manuel I and Maria of Aragon, the third daughter of the Catholic Monarchs of Spain, Ferdinand II of Aragon and Isabella I of Castile. John succeeded his father in 1521 at the age of nineteen.

During his rule, Portuguese possessions were extended in Asia and the Americas through the Portuguese colonization of Brazil. John III's policy of reinforcing Portugal's bases in India, such as Goa, secured Portugal's monopoly over the spice trade of cloves and nutmeg from the Maluku Islands. On the eve of his death in 1557, the Portuguese Empire had a global dimension and spanned almost 4 million square kilometres (1.5 million square miles).