Eleanor, 3rd Countess of
Alburquerque (1374 – 16 December 1435) was
Queen of Aragon
This is a list of the kings and queens of Aragon. The Kingdom of Aragon was created sometime between 950 and 1035 when the County of Aragon, which had been acquired by the Kingdom of Navarre in the tenth century, was separated from Navarre ...
by her marriage to
Ferdinand I of Aragon
Ferdinand I (Spanish: ''Fernando I''; 27 November 1380 – 2 April 1416 in Igualada, Òdena) named Ferdinand of Antequera and also the Just (or the Honest) was king of Aragon, Valencia, Majorca, Sardinia and (nominal) Corsica and king of Sic ...
. In
Spanish
Spanish might refer to:
* Items from or related to Spain:
**Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain
**Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries
**Spanish cuisine
Other places
* Spanish, Ontario, Can ...
, she is known as ''Leonor Urraca de Castilla, condesa de Alburquerque''. She was the regent of Aragon during the absence of her son the king in 1420.
Family
Eleanor was born in
Aldeadavila de la Ribera,
province of Salamanca
Salamanca () is a province of western Spain, in the western part of the autonomous community of Castile and León (Castilla y León). It is bordered by the provinces of Zamora, Valladolid, Ávila, and Cáceres, and on the west by Portugal. It has ...
. Her father was
Sancho Alfonso, 1st Count of Alburquerque
The name Sancho is an Iberian name of Basque origin (Santxo, Santzo, Santso, Antzo, Sans). Sancho stems from the Latin name Sanctius.Eichler, Ernst; Hilty, Gerold; Löffler, Heinrich; Steger, Hugo; Zgusta, Ladislav: ''Namenforschung/Name Studies/ ...
, who was an illegitimate son of King
Alfonso XI of Castile and his mistress
Eleanor of Guzman
Eleanor () is a feminine given name, originally from an Old French adaptation of the Old Provençal name ''Aliénor''. It is the name of a number of women of royalty and nobility in western Europe during the High Middle Ages.
The name was introd ...
, and a brother of King
Henry II of Castile
Henry II (13 January 1334 – 29 May 1379), called Henry of Trastámara or the Fratricidal (''el Fratricida''), was the first King of Castile and León from the House of Trastámara. He became king in 1369 by defeating his half-brother Peter th ...
. Her mother was
Infanta Beatrice, Countess of Alburquerque
Beatrice of Portugal (–) was Alburquerque, Badajoz, Countess of Alburquerque as the wife of Sancho Alfonso, 1st Count of Alburquerque, Sancho Alfonso of Alburquerque. She was the daughter of Peter I of Portugal and his wife Inês de Castro.
...
, who was daughter of
Peter I of Portugal
Peter I (Portuguese: ''Pedro I'', ; 8 April 1320 – 18 January 1367), called the Just (''o Justiceiro'') or the Cruel (''o Cruel''), was King of Portugal from 1357 until his death. He was the third but only surviving son of Afonso IV of Portug ...
and
Ines de Castro
Ines or INES may refer to:
People
* Ines (name), a feminine given name, also written as Inés or Inês
* Saint Ines or Agnes (), Roman virgin–martyr
* Eda-Ines Etti (stage name: ''Ines''; born 1981), Estonian singer
Places
* Doña Ines, a volca ...
. Eleanor's brother was Ferdinand, 2nd Count of Alburquerque.
Marriage and queenship
Eleanor was originally betrothed to Frederick, illegitimate son of
Henry II of Castile
Henry II (13 January 1334 – 29 May 1379), called Henry of Trastámara or the Fratricidal (''el Fratricida''), was the first King of Castile and León from the House of Trastámara. He became king in 1369 by defeating his half-brother Peter th ...
, however this engagement was broken off.
Upon the death of the sickly
John I of Castile
John I ( es, Juan I; 24 August 1358 – 9 October 1390) was King of Castile and León from 1379 until 1390. He was the son of Henry II and of his wife Juana Manuel of Castile.
Biography
His first marriage, to Eleanor of Aragon on 18 June 137 ...
on October 9 of 1390 the Regency Council addressed the issue of the heir presumptive,
Infante Henry at the time eleven years of age and his brother
Infante Ferdinand, who was then ten years old. It was agreed that Ferdinand could not marry before his brother Henry reached the age of fourteen. Then he would be granted the privileges and social policies majority.
Peter I of Castile
Peter ( es, Pedro; 30 August 133423 March 1369), called the Cruel () or the Just (), was King of Castile and León from 1350 to 1369. Peter was the last ruler of the main branch of the House of Ivrea. He was excommunicated by Pope Urban V for ...
was murdered in March 1369 by his bastard brother
Henry
Henry may refer to:
People
*Henry (given name)
* Henry (surname)
* Henry Lau, Canadian singer and musician who performs under the mononym Henry
Royalty
* Portuguese royalty
** King-Cardinal Henry, King of Portugal
** Henry, Count of Portugal, ...
. The representatives of the clergy, the nobility, the state of the gentry and merchants, as well as the authorized legal representatives of some Castillian cities agreed that Henry's grandson Infante Henry should marry the granddaughter of the murdered Peter, the English princess
Catherine of Lancaster
Catherine of Lancaster ( Castilian: ''Catalina''; 31 March 1373 – 2 June 1418) was Queen of Castile by marriage to King Henry III of Castile. She governed Castile as regent from 1406 until 1418 during the minority of her son.
Queen Catherine ...
, daughter of
John of Gaunt
John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster (6 March 1340 – 3 February 1399) was an English royal prince, military leader, and statesman. He was the fourth son (third to survive infancy as William of Hatfield died shortly after birth) of King Edward ...
. As the elder brother, Henry, fulfilled these requirements then so should his brother Infante Ferdinand, with a good wife who was honorable and rich.
It was then heard that Eleanor of Alburquerque was sixteen and old enough to marry. She expressed her agreement in marriage but could not take place as Ferdinand was not yet ten years old. She owned the towns of Haro, Briones, Vilforado, Ledesma with the five towns, Albuquerque, the Codesera, Azagala, Alconchel, Medellin, Alconétar and Villalon, a gift from
John I of Castile
John I ( es, Juan I; 24 August 1358 – 9 October 1390) was King of Castile and León from 1379 until 1390. He was the son of Henry II and of his wife Juana Manuel of Castile.
Biography
His first marriage, to Eleanor of Aragon on 18 June 137 ...
. This made Eleanor a very attractive offer to Ferdinand.
In 1394, Eleanor and Ferdinand were married. The marriage is described as a happy one. In 1412, Ferdinand and Eleanor became King and Queen of
Aragon
Aragon ( , ; Spanish and an, Aragón ; ca, Aragó ) is an autonomous community in Spain, coextensive with the medieval Kingdom of Aragon. In northeastern Spain, the Aragonese autonomous community comprises three provinces (from north to sou ...
after the
Compromise of Caspe
The 1412 Compromise of Caspe (''Compromís de Casp'' in Catalan) was an act and resolution of parliamentary representatives of the constituent realms of the Crown of Aragon (the Kingdom of Aragon, Kingdom of Valencia, and Principality of Catal ...
. Eleanor was crowned in 1414.
Later life
Ferdinand died in 1416, aged 36 years. Eleanor, who was then 42 years old, retired to
Medina del Campo
Medina del Campo is a town and municipality of Spain located in the autonomous community of Castile and León. Part of the Province of Valladolid, it is the centre of a farming area.
History
Medina del Campo grew in importance thanks to its fairs ...
. When her son the king left for Italy in 1420, he appointed her to act as his regent during his absence.
The Royal Palace of
Medina del Campo
Medina del Campo is a town and municipality of Spain located in the autonomous community of Castile and León. Part of the Province of Valladolid, it is the centre of a farming area.
History
Medina del Campo grew in importance thanks to its fairs ...
, birthplace of her husband and her children, was transformed into the
Convent of Santa María la Real. There, Eleanor witnessed her children fighting against the royalist party led by
Álvaro de Luna
Álvaro de Luna y Fernández de Jarava (between 1388 and 13902 June 1453), was a Castilian statesman, favourite of John II of Castile. He served as Constable of Castile and as Grand Master of the Order of Santiago. He earned great influence in t ...
.
Eleonor lost some of her possessions as a benefit for the latter.
In 1435 her sons, the princes of Aragon were taken prisoners of the
Genoese after the naval
battle of Ponza.
Eleanor died in
Medina del Campo
Medina del Campo is a town and municipality of Spain located in the autonomous community of Castile and León. Part of the Province of Valladolid, it is the centre of a farming area.
History
Medina del Campo grew in importance thanks to its fairs ...
,
province of Valladolid
Valladolid () is a Provinces of Spain, province of northwest Spain, in the central part of the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Castile-Leon, Castile and León. It has a population of 520,716 people in a total of 225 munici ...
, in 1435. Her grave is in the Convent of Santa María la Real, in a simple grave on the floor. It has a tablet that is stone Toledo dark, with the Royal Arms carved on it.
Issue
She had seven children:
*
Alfonso V of Aragon
Alfonso the Magnanimous (139627 June 1458) was King of Aragon and King of Sicily (as Alfonso V) and the ruler of the Crown of Aragon from 1416 and King of Naples (as Alfonso I) from 1442 until his death. He was involved with struggles to the t ...
(1394–1458), also king of
Sicily
(man) it, Siciliana (woman)
, population_note =
, population_blank1_title =
, population_blank1 =
, demographics_type1 = Ethnicity
, demographics1_footnotes =
, demographi ...
and
Naples
Naples (; it, Napoli ; nap, Napule ), from grc, Νεάπολις, Neápolis, lit=new city. is the regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 909,048 within the city's adminis ...
*
Maria of Aragon, first wife of
John II of Castile
John II of Castile ( es, link=no, Juan; 6 March 1405 – 20 July 1454) was King of Castile and León from 1406 to 1454. He succeeded his older sister, Maria of Castile, Queen of Aragon, as Prince of Asturias in 1405.
Regency
John was the ...
, (1396–1445)
*
John II of Aragon
John II (Spanish: ''Juan II'', Catalan: ''Joan II'', Aragonese: ''Chuan II'' and eu, Joanes II; 29 June 1398 – 20 January 1479), called the Great (''el Gran'') or the Faithless (''el Sense Fe''), was King of Aragon from 1458 until his death i ...
(1397–1479)
*
Henry of Aragon, Duke of Villena, Count of Alburquerque, Count of Empuries and Grand Master of the Order of Santiago (1400–1445)
*
Eleanor of Aragon (Queen of Portugal)
Eleanor of Aragon (2 May 1402 – 19 February 1445) was List of Portuguese royal consorts, Queen of Portugal as the spouse of Edward I of PortugalEdward I of Portugal
Edward ( pt, Duarte (; 31 October 1391 – 9 September 1438), also called Edward the King Philosopher (''Duarte o Rei-Filósofo'') or the Eloquent (''o Eloquente''), was the King of Portugal from 1433 until his death. He was born in Viseu, the son ...
, (1402–1445)
*
Pedro of Aragon, Count of Alburquerque and Duke of Noto (1406–1438)
*
Sancho of Aragon (1410–March 1416). Created Grand Master of the Orders of Calatrava and Alcántara after 1412.
Ancestors
References
Sources
*
* https://web.archive.org/web/20110707104223/http://www.aldeadavila.com/historia/la-historia-de-leonor-de-alburquerque-y-ledesma/
, -
{{DEFAULTSORT:Eleanor Of Alburquerque
1374 births
1435 deaths
House of Trastámara
Aragonese queen consorts
Countesses of Barcelona
Majorcan queens consort
Royal consorts of Sicily
Burials at the Poblet Monastery
14th-century Castilians
14th-century Spanish women
14th-century Italian nobility
14th-century Italian women
15th-century people from the Kingdom of Aragon
15th-century Spanish women
15th-century Italian nobility
15th-century Italian women
15th-century women rulers
Queen mothers