Alfonso (Castilla) de Castilla (1105 - 1157)

Born 1 Mar 1105 in Toledo, Castilla

Ancestors

Husband of Berengaria (Barcelona) de Castilla — married 1128 in Castile, Spain

Descendants

Died 21 Aug 1157 at age 52 in La Fresneda, Aragon

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Biography

About Alfonso VII 'el Emperador' de Castilla y León, rey de Castilla y León Alfonso VII de León Rey de León y de Castilla De Wikipedia, la enciclopedia libre http://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alfonso_VII

Alfonso VII el Emperador (Caldas de Reyes, 1 de marzo de 1105 - Paraje de La Fresneda, 21 de agosto de 1157). Rey de León y Castilla. Hijo de la reina Urraca I de León y del conde Raimundo de Borgoña. Fue el primer rey leonés miembro de la Casa de Borgoña, que se extinguió en la línea legítima con la muerte de Pedro I el Cruel, quien fue sucedido por su hermano de padre Enrique II de Trastámara, primer rey de la Casa de Trastámara.

Alfonso VII se hizo llamar a sí mismo Emperador. Galicia, León y Castilla se reunieron bajo una sola corona que en ocasiones se ha denominado como Imperio de León o Imperio Leonés.

Hijo de Urraca I y de su primer marido, Raimundo de Borgoña, al fallecer su padre en 1108 heredó el título de conde de Galicia.

Retomando la vieja idea imperial de Alfonso III y Alfonso VI, el 26 de mayo de 1135 fue coronado Imperator totius Hispaniae en la Catedral de León, recibiendo homenaje, entre otros, de su cuñado Ramón Berenguer IV, conde de Barcelona.

En 1128 contrajo matrimonio, en el Castillo de Saldaña, con Berenguela de Barcelona, hija del conde Ramón Berenguer III. Fruto del primer matrimonio del rey nacieron los siguientes hijos: 1) Sancho III el Deseado (1134-1158). Sucedió a su padre como rey de Castilla. 2) Ramón de Castilla (a.1136-¿?). Se desconoce su fecha de defunción. 3) Sancha de Castilla (1137-1179), contrajo matrimonio con el rey Sancho VI el Sabio, rey de Navarra. 4) Fernando II de León (1137-1188). Sucedió a su padre como rey de León. 5) Constanza de Castilla (1136-1160). Contrajo matrimonio en 1154 con el rey Luis VII de Francia. 6) García de Castilla y Barcelona (1142-1146). 7) Alfonso de Castilla y Barcelona (1144/1146-a.1149). Fue sepultado en el Monasterio de San Clemente de Toledo.

Volvió a casar en 1151 con Riquilda de Polonia, hija del duque Ladislao II el Desterrado. Tuvieron dos hijos: 8) Fernando de Castilla y Polonia (1153-1155). 9) Sancha de Castilla y Polonia (1155-1208). Contrajo matrimonio en la ciudad de Zaragoza en 1174 con Alfonso II el Casto, rey de Aragón.

Fruto de su relación extramatrimonial con Gontrodo Pérez nació: 10) Urraca Alfonso "la Asturiana" (1133-1189). Contrajo matrimonio en 1144 con el rey García Ramírez de Pamplona.

De su relación extramatrimonial con Urraca Fernández de Castro2 3 , viuda del conde Rodrigo Martínez, fue padre de: 11) Estefanía Alfonso "la Desdichada", nacida entre 1139 y 11484 y fallecida en 1180. Contrajo matrimonio con Fernando Rodríguez de Castro "el Castellano", quien la asesinó en 1180, hecho que inspiró la tragicomedia titulada "La desdichada Estefanía", escrita por Félix Lope de Vega y Carpio en 1604. ----------

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alphonso_VII_of_Castile

Alfonso VII "el Emperador", Rey de Galicia, de León y de Castilla also went by the name of Alfonso VII "the Emperor". Also called Emperador de Hispania Alfonso VII "el Emperador" Raimúndez de Borgoña.2,3 He was born on 1 March 1105 at Toledo, Castile, Spain.4,5,6 He was the son of Raymond, comte de Bourgogne and Urraca, reina de León y de Castilla.1 King of Galicia at Spain between 1111 and 1157.7 Alfonso VII "el Emperador", Rey de Galicia, de León y de Castilla was a witness where conde de Traba Pedro Fróilaz de Traba the private tutor and protector of the young Alfonso VII.8 A contract for the marriage of Alfonso VII "el Emperador", Rey de Galicia, de León y de Castilla and Berenguela Raimundo de Barcelona was signed before July 1124. His 1st. Her 2nd. Alfonso VII "el Emperador", Rey de Galicia, de León y de Castilla succeeded his mother with divine dispensation on 9 May 1126.9 King of Castile and León at Iberian peninsula between 9 May 1126 and 21 August 1157.10 He defeated the de Lara rebels (Pedro and Rodrigo González) who held the Towers of León against him in May 1126.11 He was a witness where Rodrigo González "el Franco" and Pedro González rebelled against the newly proclaimed king, Alfonso VII, son of Uracca, by holding out against him in the Towers of León in May 1126 at León, Kingdom of León, Spain.11 Alfonso VII "el Emperador", Rey de Galicia, de León y de Castilla was a witness where Rodrigo González "el Franco" one of the principal antagonists of the Emperor.8 Alfonso VII "el Emperador", Rey de Galicia, de León y de Castilla was a witness where Fernando Pérez de Traba fled to the court of Alfonso VII of Castile following his banishment from Portugal in 1128.8 Alfonso VII "el Emperador", Rey de Galicia, de León y de Castilla married Berenguela Raimundo de Barcelona, daughter of Ramón Berenguer III "el Grande", conde de Barcelona y de Provenza and Dolça de Gévaudun, in November 1128 at Saladaña, Palencia Province, Castile-León, Spain; His 1st. Her 2nd.4,1 Alfonso VII "el Emperador", Rey de Galicia, de León y de Castilla was physically attacked during a meeting with Rodrigo González de Lara on the banks of the Pisuerga River in 1131.8 He was a witness where Rodrigo González "el Franco" met with King Alfonso VII on the banks of the Pisuerga River where a dispute ensued, and the Count committed the crime of "lese majesty," physically attacking the King, in 1131.8 Alfonso VII "el Emperador", Rey de Galicia, de León y de Castilla restored the prestige of the Leonese monarchy and was proclaimed emperor in 1135. He took Almería, a significant but momentary triumph in the Reconquest, ridding the Mediterranean of a strategic seaport base of infidel pirates and also severing the line of communication between Granada and North Africa in 1147.12 He married Richilde, Królewna Polska, daughter of Wladislaw II Wygnaniec, Królewicz Polska and Kristin von Schwaben, in July 1152; His 2nd. Her 1st.13,14 Alfonso VII "el Emperador", Rey de Galicia, de León y de Castilla left a will in August 1157; He left Castile to his son, Sancho, and Leon to his son, Ferdinand. This split would see the kingdoms fighting intermittant cival wars for the next half century until there final reunification under Ferdinand III.15 He died on 21 August 1157 at La Fresneda, Teruel, Asturias, Spain, at age 52 years, 5 months and 20 days.4 Alfonso VII "el Emperador", Rey de Galicia, de León y de Castilla was buried in the Cathedral of Santa Maria, Toledo, Spain. --------------------

http://www.marevalo.net/caceres/personajes.html El Emperador. Rey de Castilla (1106-1157). Hijo de Raimundo de Borgoña y de doña Urraca -que lo era de Alfonso VI-, y primer soberano de la dinastia borgoña. Fue criado en Galicia, de donde era conde desde la muerte de su padre, por don Pedro Froilaz, conde de Traba, defensor de sus derechos al trono de Castilla, con el obisco Gelmírez, el arzobispo de Toledo, Bernardo, y su tio el Papa Calixto II, frente a las decisiones de su abuelo y las pretensiones de Alfonso I de Aragón, casado con su madre (1109). Designo a Sancho Rey de Castilla y Toledo y a Fernando Rey de Leon y Galicia Tambien Alfonso Raimundez. Reino del 1104 al 1157. Coronado Emperador en 1135. Guerreó largo tiempo con los moros, venciéndoles en Jaén. Fundó la Orden de Alcántara en 1156.- -------------------- Alfonso VII of León and Castile From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Alfonso VII (1 March 1105 – 21 August 1157), called the Emperor, became the King of Galicia in 1111 and King of León and Castile in 1126. He was crowned "Emperor of All the Spains" in 1135. He was the son of Urraca of León and Raymond of Burgundy, the first of the House of Burgundy to rule in Hispania.

Alfonso was a dignified and somewhat enigmatic figure. His rule was characterised by the renewed supremacy of the western kingdoms of Christian Hispania over the eastern (Navarre and Aragón) after the reign of Alfonso the Battler. He also sought to make the imperial title meaningful in practice, though his attempts to rule over both Christian and Muslim populations was even less successful. His hegemonic intentions never saw fruition, however. During his tenure, Portugal became de facto independent, in 1128, and was recognized as de jure independent, in 1143. He was a patron of poets, including, probably, the troubadour Marcabru.

In 1111, Diego Gelmírez, Bishop of Compostela, and the count of Traba crowned Alfonso King of Galicia in the cathedral of Santiago de Compostela. He was but a child at the time, but his mother had already (1109) succeeded to the united throne of León-Castile-Galicia and desired to assure her son's prospects and groom him for his eventual succession. By 1125 he had inherited the formerly Muslim Kingdom of Toledo. On 10 March 1126, after the death of his mother, he was crowned in León and immediately began the recovery of the Kingdom of Castile, which was then under the domination of Alfonso the Battler. By the Peace of Támara of 1127, the Battler recognised Alfonso VII of Castile. The territory in the far east of his dominion, however, had gained much independence during the rule of his mother and experienced many rebellions. After his recognition in Castile, Alfonso fought to curb the autonomy of the local barons.

When Alfonso the Battler, King of Navarre and Aragón, died without descendants in 1134, he willed his kingdom to the military orders. The aristocracy of both kingdoms did not accept this and García Ramírez, Count of Monzón was elected in Navarre while Alfonso pretended to the throne of Aragón. The nobles chose another candidate in the dead king's brother, Ramiro II. Alfonso responded by occupying La Rioja, conquering Zaragoza, and governing both realms in unison. From this point, the arms of Zaragoza began to appear in those of León.

In several skirmishes, he defeated the joint Navarro-Aragonese army and put the kingdoms to vassalage. He had the strong support of the lords north of the Pyrenees, who held lands as far as the River Rhône. In the end, however, the combined forces of the Navarre and Aragón were too much for his control. At this time, he helped Ramon Berenguer III, Count of Barcelona, in his wars with the other Catalan counties to unite the old Marca Hispanica.

A vague tradition had always assigned the title of emperor to the sovereign who held León. Sancho the Great considered the city the imperiale culmen and minted coins with the inscription Imperator totius Hispaniae after being crowned in it. Such a sovereign was considered the most direct representative of the Visigothic kings, who had been themselves the representatives of the Roman Empire. But though appearing in charters, and claimed by Alfonso VI of León and Alfonso the Battler, the title had been little more than a flourish of rhetoric.

In 1135, Alfonso was crowned "Emperor of All the Spains" in the Cathedral of León. By this, he probably wished to assert his authority over the entire peninsula and his absolute leadership of the Reconquista. He appears to have striven for the formation of a national unity which Hispania had never possessed since the fall of the Visigothic kingdom. The elements he had to deal with could not be welded together. The weakness of Aragon enabled him to make his superiority effective, although Afonso I of Portugal never recognised him as liege, thereby affirming Portugal's independence. In 1143, he himself recognised this status quo and consented to the marriage of Petronila of Aragon with Ramon Berenguer IV, a union which combined Aragon and Catalonia into the Crown of Aragon.

Alfonso was a pious prince. He introduced the Cistercians to Hispania by founding a monastery at Fitero. He adopted a militant attitude towards the Moors of Al-Andalus, especially the Almoravids. From 1139, Alfonso led a series of crusades subjugating the Almoravids. He took the fortress of Oreja near Toledo and, as the Chronica Adefonsis Imperatoris tells it: “ . . . early in the morning the castle was surrendered and the towers were filled with Christian knights, and the royal standards were raised above a high tower. Those who held the standards shouted out loud and proclaimed "Long live Alfonso, emperor of León and Toledo!" ”

In 1144, Alfonso advanced as far as Córdoba. Two years later, the Almohads invaded and he was forced to refortify his southern frontier and come to an agreement with the Almoravid Ibn Ganiya for their mutual defence. When Pope Eugene III preached the Second Crusade, Alfonso VII, with García Ramírez of Navarre and Ramon Berenguer IV, led a mixed army of Catalans and Franks, with a Genoese-Pisans navy, in a crusade against the rich port city of Almería, which was occupied in October 1147. It was Castile's first Mediterranean seaport.[1] In 1151, Alfonso signed the Treaty of Tudilén with Ramon Berenguer. The treaty defined the zones of conquest in Andalusia in order to prevent the two rulers from coming into conflict. Six years later, Almería entered into Almohad possession. Alfonso was returining from an expedition against them when he died in pass of Muradel in the Sierra Morena, possibly at Viso del Marqués (Ciudad Real).

Alfonso was at once a patron of the church and a protector, though not a supporter of, the Muslims, who were a minority of his subjects. His reign ended in an unsuccessful campaign against the rising power of the Almohads. Though he was not actually defeated, his death in the pass, while on his way back to Toledo, occurred in circumstances which showed that no man could be what he claimed to be — "king of the men of the two religions." Furthermore, by dividing his realm between his sons, he ensured that Christendom would not present the new Almohad threat with a united front.

In 1124, he married Berenguela of Barcelona,^[1] daughter of Ramon Berenguer III (alternate marriage date: Nov 1128). She died in 1149. Their children were:

1. Sancho III of Castile (1134-1158) 2. Ramon, living 1136, died in infancy 3. Ferdinand II of León (1137-1188) 4. Constance (c.1138-1160), married Louis VII of France 5. Sancha (c.1139-1179), married Sancho VI of Navarre 6. García (c.1142-1145/6) 7. Alfonso (c.1144-by 1149) In 1152, Alfonso married Richeza of Poland, the daughter of Ladislaus II the Exile. They had:

1. Ferdinand, (1153-1157) 2. Sancha (1155-1208), the wife of Alfonso II of Aragón. Alfonso also had two mistresses, having children by both. By an Asturian noblewoman named Guntroda Pérez, he had an illegitimate daughter, Urraca (1132-1164), who married García Ramírez of Navarre, the mother retiring to a convent in 1133. Later in his reign, he formed a liaison with Urraca Fernández, widow of count Rodrigo Martínez and daughter of Fernando García of Hita, an apparent grandson of García Sánchez III of Navarre, having a daughter Stephanie 'the Unfortunate' (1148-1180), who was killed by her jealous husband, Fernan Ruiz de Castro.

Riley-Smith, Jonathan (1990). Atlas of the Crusades, p. 48. New York: Facts on File.

* Arnaldo, Bishop of Astorga, wrote an account of Alfonso VII's life and reign known as the Chronica Adefonsi Imperatoris. Preceded by Urraca King of Galicia 1111 – 1157 Succeeded by Ferdinand II King of León 1126 – 1157 King of Castile 1127 – 1157 Succeeded by Sancho III Vacant Title last held by Alfonso I Emperor of All the Spains 1135 – 1157

"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alfonso_VII_of_León_and_Castile"

NOTAS: * Condes de Barcelona: ver cuadro genealógico en Historia Universal, EUNSA, tomo IV, p. 367. Desde Bellón, conde de Carcasona, hasta Berenguer Ramón I (1018-1035). * Reyes de Pamplona: ver cuadro genealógico en Historia Universal, EUNSA, tomo IV, p. 359. Desde García Jiménez (c.870) hasta García Sánchez III (1035-1054). * Condes de Castilla: ver cuadro genealógico en Historia Universal, EUNSA, tomo IV, p. 366. Desde Fernán González a Munia. * Primeros príncipes pamploneses: ver cuadro genealógico en Historia Universal, EUNSA, tomo IV, p. 245. Desde Íñigo Arista (m. 851) hasta Sancho Garcés I (905-925). * Ver cuadro genealógico de los descendientes de Sacho el Mayor, rey de Navarra de 1004 a 1035, en Historia Universal, EUNSA, tomo V, p. 375. Se pueden ver los enlaces matrimoniales de los reyes de Portugal, León, Castilla, Navara. Aragón y Cataluña, desde el siglo X hasta el siglo XIV. [1] Hipótesis sobre la ascendencia materna de las hijas de Alfonso VI: Teresa y Elvira de Castilla. El origen de las hijas de Alfonso VI es una cuestión debatida. Según algunos autores, su madre sería Jimena Núñez de Lara, hija de Nuño González de Lara (descendiente del conde de Castilla Fernán González) y de Emersenda González de Amaya, que era 5ª nieta de Abd Allah I de Córdoba —nacido el 7-III-844— que, a su vez, era descendiente de los Omeya de Córdoba y de Mahoma el Profeta, que era su 8° abuelo. Otros genealogistas afirman que Elvira fue hija de Alfonso VI e Isabel (Zaïda) de Denia, una mujer conversa pero de origen árabe. Y por último, otra hipótesis —quizá la más sólida y defendida por la mayoría— sostiene que Teresa y Elvira de Castilla eran hijas de Alfonso VI y doña Jimena Muñóz, hija de Nuño Rodríguez de Guzmán y doña Jimena Ordóñez (o de Nuño González, Conde de Asturias, y doña Mayor Rodríguez). Doña Jimena Muñóz habría tenido a sus dos hijas entre 1081 y 1082. Al final de su vida, se retiro al convento benedictino de Esinareda del Bierzo, donde murió en 1128. [2] Descendencia de Pedro I de Castilla "el Justiciero", hijo de Alfonso XI, Rey de Castilla, y María de Portugal) (ascendientes de Aldonza de Castilla) I. Pedro I de Castilla (Burgos, 30-VIII-1334; murió en Montiel el 22-III-1369) casó, en Cuellar (abril de 1354), con Juana Castro Ponce de León (fallecida en Galicia el 21-VIII-1374), y tuvieron por hijo a II. Juan de Castilla (Enero de 1355) caso con Elvira de Eril y Falces (hija de Beltrán de Eril y Magdalena de Falces) y tuvieron por hijo a III. Pedro de Castilla, Obispo de Osma y Palencia (c.1380; murió el 28-IV-1461) que, de Isabel de Drochelín (dama inglesa de la reina Catalina), tuvo por hijos naturales a 1) Alfonso de Castilla (que casó con Juana de Zúñiga y Portugal y fueron padres de Pedro de Castilla y Zúñiga: ver ascendencia de Francisca Osorio de Castilla, hija del conquistador de la Nueva España, don Luis de Castilla) y 2) Aldonza de Castilla (que sigue). IV. Aldonza de Castilla (c.1440) casó con Rodrigo de Ulloa, Señor de la Mota. [3] Descendencia de la Casa de Guzmán (ascendientes de María Teresa de Guzmán) I. Pedro de Guzmán (c.1225) de Isabel Alonso (fallecida el 9-IX-1309) tuvo por hijo a II. Alonso Pérez de Guzmán "el Bueno", 1er. Señor de San Lucar (24-I-1256) casó con María Alonso Coronel y tuvieron por hijos a 1) Juan Alfonso (que sigue), 2) Isabel, 3) Leonor de Guzmán (falleció el 24-IV-1341 y casó con Luis de la Cerda en 1306; fue amante de Alfonso XI y madre de Enrique de Trastamara y de sus hermanos, entre otros, don Fadrique). III. Juan Alfonso de Guzmán, 2° Señor de San Lucar (1285-1351) casó con Urraca de Osorio y tuvieron por hijos a 1) Alonso y 2) Juan Alonso (que sigue). IV. Juan Alfonso de Guzmán, 1er. Conde de Niebla (1342-1396) casó con Beatriz de Castilla (hija de Alfonso XI y María de Portugal) y tuvieron por hijo a III. Enrique de Guzmán, 2° Conde de Niebla (1379-1436) casó con Teresa de Figueroa (1383) en 1399, y tuvieron por hija a V. María Teresa de Guzmán (c.1405-1479), que casó con Enrique Enríquez, 1er. Conde de Alba de Liste.

Burial

Place: Catedral De Toledo, Toledo, Castile

1105-03-01 1157-08-21

Sources

1. ↑ Weis, Frederick Lewis, Ancestral Roots of Certain American Colonists who Came to America Before 1700, 7th ed., Baltimore MD: Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc., 1992. Access online (search only) at GoogleBooks, Line 114, pp. 104-105: Married in 1124.

See also:

• The book, 'The Oxford History of Medieval Europe'