After the Battle of Alfarrobeira, where his father's army was defeated by the forces of Afonso V, John went into exile in Burgundy together with his brother James and sister Beatrice.

[1] His aunt Isabella, wife of Duke Philip the Good, was able to offer protection to her nephews and niece and ensure they enjoyed high social position.

[3] At court he counterbalanced the Greek Orthodox influence of his mother-in-law, Helena Palaiologina.

[2] After a short illness, allegedly due to poisoning, he died in 1457 and was buried in the Church of St. Francis in Nicosia.

This biography of a member of the Portuguese royal family is a stub.