The Infant's share in home politics was considerable, but this is not the place to discuss it at any length. It is probably a correct surmise that his ultimate ambition on this side was to detach Portugal as far as possible from Spain and Peninsular interests, and by making her a world-power at and over sea, to give her that importance she could never of herself acquire in strictly European politics. We have already noticed that after the victory of Ceuta he seems to have been made Governor for life of the Algarve province[27] of Portugal, by his father King John (1419); that he was a leading promoter of the scheme for the Tangier campaign of 1437;[28] and that after the death of his brother King Edward (Duarte), the successor of King John (September, 1438), he supported the claims of his eldest surviving brother, Pedro, as regent and guardian of the young Affonso V, and by his wise counsels effected a reconciliation with Affonso's mother Leonor, acting for a time as partner in a Council of Regency with Pedro and the Queen. Further, it must be said that, in 1447, when a long succession of differences between D. Pedro and his royal ward ended in an armed rising of the former against "evil Counsellors," Henry stood by the Sovereign, and took, if not an active, at least a passive part in overthrowing the insurrection, which was ended by the battle of Alfarrobeira (May 21st, 1449). Finally, it is recorded that "the Navigator" somewhat recovered the military honour he had compromised at Tangier, by his successes in the African expeditions of Affonso V, especially at the capture of Alcacer the Little in 1458; in this last year he received his Sovereign in due form at or near Sagres, before sailing for "Barbary." His traditional but on the whole credible work as Protector of the Studies of Portugal has been alluded to already, in connection with his alleged foundation of professorships of mathematics and theology in the University of Lisbon, and of a school of nautical instruction and of cosmography at Sagres. This point, however, will be reconsidered in a following section.[29] [Footnote 27: Technically "kingdom."] [Footnote 28: The "Marocco Campaigns" of 1418, 1437, 1458, etc., were apparently considered by Prince Henry as only another side of his coasting explorations and projected conquests. Having then no idea of the enormous southerly projection of Africa, he probably aspired to a Portuguese North African dominion, which should control the Continent. For Guinea, in the ideas of the time, was commonly supposed to be quite close to Marocco on the south-west and west. Apparently, soon after 1437, Henry was just starting on another Moorish expedition, when the King and Council "hindered the voyage" (see Az., ch. v, p. 20 of our version).] [Footnote 29: "School of Sagres," etc.]