The personality, nature and life of Sebastian, King of Portugal, lent themselves tothe strange structure of events which followed his strenuous and somewhat eccentric andstormy life. He was born in 1554, and was the son of Prince John and his wife Juana, daughter of the Emperor Charles V. He succeeded his grandfather, John III, at the age ofthree. His long minority aided the special development of his character. The preceptorappointed to rule his youth was a Jesuit, Luiz-Goncalvoz de Camara. Not unnaturally histeacher used his position to further the religious aims and intrigues of his strenuous Order.Sebastian was the kind of youth who is beloved by his female relatives-quite apart fromhis being a King; and naturally he was treated by the women in a manner to further hiswaywardness. When he was fourteen years old he was crowned. From thence on heinsisted on having his way in everything, and grew into a young manhood which was of thetype beloved of an adventurous people. He was thus described: "He was a headstrong violent nature, of reckless courage, of boundless ambitionfounded on a deep religious feeling. At the time of his coronation he was called 'AnotherAlexander.' He loved all kinds of danger, and found a keen pleasure in going out in atempest in a small boat and in actually running under the guns of his own forts where hiscommands were stringent that any vessel coming in shore should be fired on. He was anotable horseman and could steer his charger efficiently by the pressure of either knee-indeed he was of such muscular vigour that he could, by the mere stringency of thepressure of his knees, make a powerful horse tremble and sweat. He was a greatswordsman, and quite fearless. 'What is fear?' he used to say. Restless by nature he hardlyknew what it was to be tired."And yet this young man-warrior as he was, had a feminine cast of face; his featureswere symmetrically formed with just sufficient droop in the lower lip to give thecharacteristic 'note' of Austrian physiognomy. His complexion was as fine and transparentas a girl's; his eyes were clear and of blue; his hair of reddish gold. His height was medium, his figure fine; he was vigorous and active. He had an air of profound gravity and sternenthusiasm. Altogether he was, even without his Royal state, just such a young man asmight stand for the idol of a young maid's dream.