Individual Details
Alfonso V King of Aragon
(1394 - 27 Jun 1458)
- 42 Knight of the Order of the Golden Fleece 1445
- 166 Knight of the Garter - 1450
- Conde de Barcelona
Alfonso was born about 1394, the son of Fernando I 'the Just', king of Aragón and Sicily, and Eleonore de Albuquerque, condesa de Albuquerque. In 1415 he married his first cousin Maria of Castile, daughter of Enrique III 'the Infirm', king of Castile and León, and Catherine of Lancaster, but this marriage did not result in progeny.
Alfonso was created Infante of Aragón on his father's assumption of power in Aragón in 1412. He was created duque de Girona by his father at his coronation in January 1414. He succeeded his father in 1416 as Alfonso V, king of Aragón, Alfonso IV, conde de Barcelona, and Alfonso I, king of Sicily. Leaving his queen as regent, he left Spain for Italy in May 1420, first landing at Alghero in June 1420 to crush the Sardinian revolt. In September 1420 he captured Calvi and besieged Bonifaci, but was obliged to withdraw from Corsica by the Genoese. Offered the succession of Naples in return for military help in August 1420, he sailed for Naples in July 1421 and was received as adopted son and heir of Giovanna II, queen of Sicily (Naples) on 8 July 1421, although the appointment was revoked in June 1423 when they fell out.
Returning to Spain, Alfonso V found himself embroiled in the conflicts between his brothers and their cousin Juan II, king of Castile. He returned to Sicily in May 1432, and was reappointed heir to Naples in 1433, but when Queen Giovanna II died in 1435 she left her kingdom to René d'Anjou. Alfonso V's military intervention to capture Naples was thwarted by the Genoese on 5 August 1435 at Ponza, where he and his brothers were captured. He was released after making an alliance with Filippo Maria Visconti in October 1435, and fought from 1436 to 1442 to impose himself as king of Naples against Angevin opposition, finally occupying the town of Naples 2 June 1442. In 1442, he declared Sicily and Naples united to form the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies, and was recognised as ruler of Naples in June 1443 by Pope Eugene IV.
He earned his epithet 'the Magnanimous' by refusing to be told even the names of those involved in an abortive plot against him at the time of his accession, so that they went unpunished. He was more interested in his Italian realms of Naples and Sicily than in Aragón, where he left his queen, Maria of Castile, as regent. She proved an able administrator, but became estranged from the king after a fit of jealousy. Childless herself, she caused his pregnant mistress, one of her own ladies-in-waiting, to be strangled. Alfonso never forgave her or saw her again for the remaining twenty-six years of their marriage, though strangely they died within a few months of each other in 1458.
A leading figure of the early Renaissance, he favoured men of letters. His devotion to the classics was such that a reading from Quintus Curtius is said to have cured him of a severe illness. Alfonso's son and heir Ferrante was born to a mistress Margarita de Hijar. He also had two daughters by a mistress Giraldona Carlino, of whom Eleonora would have progeny.
On Alfonso's death on 27 June 1458, Sicily and Sardinia were inherited by his brother Juan II, king of Navarre, who also succeeded him as king of Aragón, while Alfonso's illegitimate son Ferrante succeeded him only in Naples.
Source: Leo van de Pas
- 166 Knight of the Garter - 1450
- Conde de Barcelona
Alfonso was born about 1394, the son of Fernando I 'the Just', king of Aragón and Sicily, and Eleonore de Albuquerque, condesa de Albuquerque. In 1415 he married his first cousin Maria of Castile, daughter of Enrique III 'the Infirm', king of Castile and León, and Catherine of Lancaster, but this marriage did not result in progeny.
Alfonso was created Infante of Aragón on his father's assumption of power in Aragón in 1412. He was created duque de Girona by his father at his coronation in January 1414. He succeeded his father in 1416 as Alfonso V, king of Aragón, Alfonso IV, conde de Barcelona, and Alfonso I, king of Sicily. Leaving his queen as regent, he left Spain for Italy in May 1420, first landing at Alghero in June 1420 to crush the Sardinian revolt. In September 1420 he captured Calvi and besieged Bonifaci, but was obliged to withdraw from Corsica by the Genoese. Offered the succession of Naples in return for military help in August 1420, he sailed for Naples in July 1421 and was received as adopted son and heir of Giovanna II, queen of Sicily (Naples) on 8 July 1421, although the appointment was revoked in June 1423 when they fell out.
Returning to Spain, Alfonso V found himself embroiled in the conflicts between his brothers and their cousin Juan II, king of Castile. He returned to Sicily in May 1432, and was reappointed heir to Naples in 1433, but when Queen Giovanna II died in 1435 she left her kingdom to René d'Anjou. Alfonso V's military intervention to capture Naples was thwarted by the Genoese on 5 August 1435 at Ponza, where he and his brothers were captured. He was released after making an alliance with Filippo Maria Visconti in October 1435, and fought from 1436 to 1442 to impose himself as king of Naples against Angevin opposition, finally occupying the town of Naples 2 June 1442. In 1442, he declared Sicily and Naples united to form the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies, and was recognised as ruler of Naples in June 1443 by Pope Eugene IV.
He earned his epithet 'the Magnanimous' by refusing to be told even the names of those involved in an abortive plot against him at the time of his accession, so that they went unpunished. He was more interested in his Italian realms of Naples and Sicily than in Aragón, where he left his queen, Maria of Castile, as regent. She proved an able administrator, but became estranged from the king after a fit of jealousy. Childless herself, she caused his pregnant mistress, one of her own ladies-in-waiting, to be strangled. Alfonso never forgave her or saw her again for the remaining twenty-six years of their marriage, though strangely they died within a few months of each other in 1458.
A leading figure of the early Renaissance, he favoured men of letters. His devotion to the classics was such that a reading from Quintus Curtius is said to have cured him of a severe illness. Alfonso's son and heir Ferrante was born to a mistress Margarita de Hijar. He also had two daughters by a mistress Giraldona Carlino, of whom Eleonora would have progeny.
On Alfonso's death on 27 June 1458, Sicily and Sardinia were inherited by his brother Juan II, king of Navarre, who also succeeded him as king of Aragón, while Alfonso's illegitimate son Ferrante succeeded him only in Naples.
Source: Leo van de Pas
Events
| Birth | 1394 | Medina del Campo | |||
| Death | 27 Jun 1458 |
Families
| Spouse | Giraldona Carlino (Lucrecia de Alalon) ( - ) |
| Child | Eleonora d'Aragona Princess of Neaples (1430 - ) |
| Father | Fernando I King of Aragón (1380 - 1416) |
| Mother | Eleonor Urraca of Castilla Countess of Alburquerque (1374 - 1435) |