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Sunday, November 6, 2011

King Alfonso IX of Leon & Queen Berenguela of Castile

23638788. King Alfonso IX of Leon & 23638789. Queen Berenguela of Castile

8/15/1171, Alphonso born in Zamora, Spain, s/o 47277576. Ferdinand II of Leon.

1/1181, Berenguela born in Burgos, Castile-Leon, Spain, d/o 47277578. King Alfonso VIII & 47277579. Queen Eleanor Plantagenet.

1/22/1188, Alfonso succeeded on the death of his father.

4/23/1188 by treaty at Seligenstadt, Berenguela pledged to Konrad von Hohenstaufen, Duke of Swabia, s/o Emperor Frederic Barbarossa.

6/1188, In the church of San Zoilo de Carrion, in Toledo, Konrad was knighted by King Alfonso VIII of Castile. Alfonso IX, King of Leon, was also knighted, returning homage to King Alfonso VIII. Queen Eleanor was present at the ceremony. Alfonso IX, to keep the peace, agreed to marry a daughter of Alfonso VIII.

1190, Alfonso II of Aragon joined forces with Sancho VI of Navarre against Alfonso VIII of Castile. [Alfonso IX of Leon supported the pact.]

[––Alfonso & Tarasia––]

2/1191, Alfonso 1st married Tarasia, d/o Sancho I of Portugal, in violation of his agreement with Alfonso VIII.

1194, Alfonso IX of Leon made peace with Alfonso VIII of Castile at the treaty of Tordehumos.

1194, Alfonso and Tarisia’s marriage annulled by the Pope [they were 1st cousins, their 3 children illegitimate: Sancha, Fernando, Dulce.]

1195, Tarisia returned to Portugal with her 2 younger children; Sancha remaining in Leon.

8/15/1196, Konrad murdered before they were married.

[––Alfonso & Berenguela––]

12/1197, Alphonso IX married 2nd Berenguela in Valladolid, Castile-Leon, Spain. [1st cousins, once removed, the pope pronounced the marriage to be null and excommunicated the principals.]

5/1204, Berenguela returned to the court of her father, leaving her son Fernando with his father.

6/20/1204, Alphonso divorced Berenguela with the approval of the Pope. Berenguela returned to Castile-leon with her infant sons Ferdinand and Alphonso. [The children were later declared legitimate, and her dower lands were restored.]

1204, The kings of Castile, Navarre, and Aragon entered in another peace agreement.

[––Alfonso––] & [––Berenguela––]

3/26/1206, By the Treaty of Cabreos, the marriage of Alphonso and Berenguela ended with recognition of their son Fernando as Alfonso’s heir. Berenguela returned to the court of her father in Castile with her sons, and an income of 8,000 maravedies yearly.

1209, Alfonso’s marriage to Berenguela annulled by the pope.

10/14/1209, Berenguela’s brother Ferdinand, heir to Castile, died leaving her younger brother Henry as heir. [Berenguela and the Archbishop of Toledo buried Ferdinand at the monastery of St. Mary’s in Huelgas, Burgos.]

1211, Alfonso IX defeated the forces of Alfonso II, king of Portugal, at Valdez. [During the campaign, the Leonese seized border fortresses with Castile.]

1212, Alphonso refused to join his father-in-law on crusade against the Almohads.

1212, Berenguela in Castile wrote a letter to her sister Blanch in France telling of their father’s victory over the Moors at the battle of Las Navas. (S) Epistole.

11/1212, The kings of Castile, Leon, and Portugal signed a truce at Coimbra, agreeing to cooperate against the Muslims.

1213, Alfonso of Castile began the reconquest of Alcantara.

1214, Alfonso’s son Fernando by Tarasia died.

8/1214, Berenguela with her son Ferdinand and her parents made a trip to Portugal to visit her sister Urraca, who was Queen.

10/6/1214, During the trip Berenguela’s father died.

10/1214, Berenguela in Castile to presided over the funeral of her father.

10/31/1214, Berenguela’s mother died, leaving her as guardian of her 10 year old younger brother and heir Enrique [Henry].

1215, Alfonso granted Christian serfs the right to leave the estates of their lords and could not be sold with the land. They were also allowed to marry without their lord’s permission.

By 1216 in Castile, Berenguela was acting as regent for her younger brother, Henry. The former regent, Alvaro Nunez de Lara [Longoria Alcala], attempted to retain control.

2/1216 in Valladolid, Castile, a gathering of Castilian barons supported Berenguela as regent against the Lara family interests.

5/1216, Because of troubles in Castile, Berenguela took refuge in the castle of Autillo in Palencia, and sent her son Fernando to his father in Leon.

8/15/1216, A gathering of the barons of Castile was arranged to attempt to prevent a civil war. [A general accord could not be reached.]

6/6/1217 in Castile, Berenguela’s brother Enrique died in an accident. Withholding from Alfonso IX the knowledge of the death, Berenguela arranged for her son Fernando to come to her from Leon.

7/2/1217 at Valladolid, Berenguela renounced her rights to the throne of Castile in favor of her son Fernando.

1218, Pope Honorius approved the Treaty of Cabreros making Berenguela’s son Fernando the heir. [The Treaty removed canonical issues associated with succession.]

1218, By invitation of the Lara family, Alfonso IX invaded Castile in an attempt to overturn the selection, but was unsuccessful.

1218, Berenguela sent emissaries headed by the bishop of Burgos to negotiate with Frederick II the marriage of his cousing Beatriz with her son Fernando.

1218, Alfonso recognized the University of Salamanca as the general school of the kingdom.

8/26/1218, Alfonso and Fernando, father and son, signed the pact of Toro, ending conflict between Castile and Leon.

1219 in Castile, Berenguela arranged for her son Fernando’s wedding.

11/27/1219 at Las Huelgas, Berenguela took part in the knighting of Fernando by unbuckling his sword [the role of chivalric godparent.]

1220, A peace agreement was arranged between Leon and Castile; and another between Leon and Portugal.

1221, Retuning to the reconquest, Alfonso IX took Valencia de Alcantara south of the Tajo.

11/23/1221, Berenguela was with her daughter-in-law Jeanne in Toledo where she gave birth to a son Alfonso [X].

1222, Alfonso began annual attacks on Caceres with little success.

1222 in Castle, Berenguela ended the conflict with the Lara family with an agreement to marry her son Alfonso to Mafalda, heiress and d/o the lord of Molina.

1224, Alphonso, visited by Jean de Brienne, King of Jerusalem, offered daughter Berengere as his bride.

1224, Berenguela, mother of Berengere, accompanied the newlywed couple to Logrono where they were given gifts and bid farwell.

1226, Alfonso with Sancho II of Portugal failed to conquer the Portuguese city of Elvas.

1227, Alphonso won victories at Caceres and Merida against the Almohads, capturing Caceres.

1229, Alfonso captured the city of Alange against the Almohads of Ibn-Hud.

1230, Alphonso won a victory at Badajoz against the Almohads; and reconquered Merida by siege, which had been retaken by Almohads of Ibn-Hud.

9/24/1230, Alphonso died in Sarria, Lugo, Spain, on his was to Santiago de Compostela to give thanks for his victories.

[––Berenguela––]

12/11/1230, at Benavente, Berenguela and son Fernando agreed to make lifetime payments to the 2 daughters of Alphonso by his 1st marriage for them to set aside their inheritance rights; uniting Leon and Castile.

1234, In a letter, Thibaut, King of Navarre and count of Champagne, proposed a marriage of his daughter Blanca, and Alfonso, the grandson of Berenguela “Queen of Castile and Leon by the Grace God”.

4/30/1235, The Inquisiton began in Spain by papal bull of Pope Gregory IX.

1237, Berenguela involved in arranging the 2nd marriage of her son Fernando to Jeanne de Dammartin [proposed by her sister Blance, Queen of France.]

1242, Berenguela received the monastery of Buenafuente as a gift of archbishop Rodrigo.

1245, Berenguela met with her son Fernando at Pozuelo de Calatrava.

11/8/1246, Berenguela died in Las Huelgas, Burgos, Castile-leon, Spain; buried with her parents.

(S) Medieval Iberia, Gerli, 2003. (S) The Cantar de Mio Cid, Duggan, 2008. (S) Berenguela of Castile, Shadis, 2009. (S) Alfonso 10, The Learned, Marta-Nez, 2010.

Family notes:

·         Alfonso IX had 19 offspring by wives and mistresses.

Children of Alphonso and Berenguela:

i. Fernando III of Castile (11819394), born 8/5/1199 in Castile.

ii. Berengere of Castile-Leon (23640737), born 1204 in Castile.


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