Individual Details
Alfonso VIII King of Castilla
(22 Nov 1155 - 6 Oct 1214)
Alfonso was born on 11 November 1155, the son of Sancho III, king of Castile and Blanca de Navarre. As a three-year-old Alfonso became king, and after a chaotic period he assumed control of his kingdom in 1166 when he was still only eleven. In Burgos, in September 1177, he married the fifteen-year-old Eleanor, daughter of Henry II of England. Gascony was to be her dowry, but when he claimed this territory in 1204, he lost it to his brother-in-law John, king of England.
The Moors defeated Alfonso at Alarcos in 1195, but after their initial incursion into León and Navarre he forced them back and made peace. With the kings of Leon and Navarre, he soundly defeated the Moors in 1212 at Las Navas de Tolosa.
Alfonso died in Burgos on 6 October 1214, followed by his queen on the 24th, and they found their last resting place together in the abbey of Las Huelgas, which on Eleanor's request he had enriched in 1187. He was succeeded by his son Enrique I.
How many children he fathered by his queen is not certain. In addition to the ten securely documented children they may also have had three more: an earlier Enrique, who died young about 1184, Fernando, born about 1183 and died before 1187, and Leonor who died young and is buried at Las Huelgas where there still exists a sarcophagus said to be hers. Four of his daughters, but no sons, had progeny.
Source: Leo van de Pas
The Moors defeated Alfonso at Alarcos in 1195, but after their initial incursion into León and Navarre he forced them back and made peace. With the kings of Leon and Navarre, he soundly defeated the Moors in 1212 at Las Navas de Tolosa.
Alfonso died in Burgos on 6 October 1214, followed by his queen on the 24th, and they found their last resting place together in the abbey of Las Huelgas, which on Eleanor's request he had enriched in 1187. He was succeeded by his son Enrique I.
How many children he fathered by his queen is not certain. In addition to the ten securely documented children they may also have had three more: an earlier Enrique, who died young about 1184, Fernando, born about 1183 and died before 1187, and Leonor who died young and is buried at Las Huelgas where there still exists a sarcophagus said to be hers. Four of his daughters, but no sons, had progeny.
Source: Leo van de Pas
Events
| Birth | 22 Nov 1155 | Soria | |||
| Marriage | 1176 | Burgos - Princess Eleanor Plantagenet | |||
| Death | 6 Oct 1214 | Gutierrez Munoz | |||
| Biography | Biography |  |
Families
| Spouse | Princess Eleanor Plantagenet (1162 - 1214) |
| Child | Blanca Infanta de Castile (1188 - 1252) |
| Child | Berenguela Infanta of Castilla (1180 - 1246) |
| Child | Urraca of Castilla (1186 - 1220) |
| Father | Sancho III "el Deseado" King of Castilla (1134 - 1158) |
| Mother | Blanca Infanta of Navarra (1137 - 1157) |
Notes
Biography
Alfonso VIII was born on 11 November 1155, the son of Sancho III, king of Castile and Blanca de Navarre. As a three-year-old Alfonso became king, and after a chaotic period he assumed control of his kingdom in 1166 when he was still only eleven. In Burgos, in September 1177, he married the fifteen-year-old Eleanor, daughter of Henry II of England. Gascony was to be her dowry, but when he claimed this territory in 1204, he lost it to his brother-in-law John, king of England.The Moors defeated Alfonso at Alarcos in 1195, but after their initial incursion into León and Navarre he forced them back and made peace. With the kings of Leon and Navarre, he soundly defeated the Moors in 1212 at Las Navas de Tolosa.
Alfonso died in Burgos on 6 October 1214, followed by his queen on the 24th, and they found their last resting place together in the abbey of Las Huelgas, which on Eleanor's request he had enriched in 1187. He was succeeded by his son Enrique I.
How many children he fathered by his queen is not certain. In addition to the ten securely documented children they may also have had three more: an earlier Enrique, who died young about 1184, Fernando, born about 1183 and died before 1187, and Leonor who died young and is buried at Las Huelgas where there still exists a sarcophagus said to be hers. Four of his daughters, but no sons, had progeny.