James II Of Urgell

James II (in

Catalan Catalan may refer to: Catalonia From, or related to Catalonia: * Catalan language, a Romance language * Catalans, an ethnic group formed by the people from, or with origins in, Northern or southern Catalonia Places * 13178 Catalan, asteroid #1 ...

''Jaume II d'Urgell'' or ''Jaume el Dissortat'' "James the unlucky", in Spanish ''Jayme II el desafortunado'') (1380 – 1 June 1433) was the

Count of Urgell This is a list of the counts of county of Urgell, Urgell, a Catalan counties, county of the Principality of Catalonia in the 10th through 13th centuries. c. 798–870 Counts appointed by the Carolingians *798–820 Borrell, Count of Osona, Borre ...

(1408–1413), Viscount of

Àger Àger is a municipality in the ''comarca'' of the Noguera in Catalonia, Spain. It is situated in the north-west of the ''comarca'', and the territory of the municipality stretches between the Noguera Ribagorçana and Noguera Pallaresa rivers. The ...

, and lord of

Antillón Antillón is a municipality located in the province of Huesca, Aragon, Spain. , (INE), the municipality has a population of 150 inhabitants. The parish church was built between the eleventh and the sixteenth century, so it has parts in Romanesqu ...

Alcolea de Cinca Alcolea de Cinca is a municipality located in the province of Huesca, Aragon, Spain. According to the 2004 census (INE INE, Ine or ine may refer to: Institutions * Institut für Nukleare Entsorgung, a German nuclear research center * Instituto ...

, and

Fraga Fraga (; ) is the major town of the ''comarca'' of Bajo Cinca ( ca, Baix Cinca) in the province of Huesca, Aragon, Spain. It is located by the river Cinca. According to the 2014 census, Instituto Nacional de Estadística (INE) the municipality ha ...

. Scion of a younger branch of the

House of Barcelona The House of Barcelona was a medieval dynasty that ruled the County of Barcelona continuously from 878 and the Crown of Aragon from 1137 (as kings from 1162) until 1410. They descend from the Bellonids, the descendants of Wifred the Hairy. The ...

and its last male member, he was the centre of opposition to the

House of Trastámara The House of Trastámara (Spanish, Aragonese and Catalan: Casa de Trastámara) was a royal dynasty which first ruled in the Crown of Castile and then expanded to the Crown of Aragon in the late middle ages to the early modern period. They were a ...

after it succeeded to the

Crown of Aragon The Crown of Aragon ( , ) an, Corona d'Aragón ; ca, Corona d'Aragó, , , ; es, Corona de Aragón ; la, Corona Aragonum . was a composite monarchy ruled by one king, originated by the dynastic union of the Kingdom of Aragon and the County of B ...

in 1412. Born at

Balaguer Balaguer () is the capital of the ''comarca'' of Noguera, in the province of Lleida, Catalonia, Spain. It is located by the river Segre, a tributary to the Ebre. The municipality includes an exclave to the east. Balaguer also has a sister city i ...

Peter II of Urgell Peter II ( es, Pedro, ; 1340 - June 1408) was Count of Urgell from 1347 until his death. Biography He was the eldest son of count James I of Urgell and Cecilia of Comminges, daughter of the count of Comminges and viscount of Turenne, Bernard VI ...

and Margaret Palaiologue of Montferrat, he inherited the county of Urgell from his father in 1408. In

Valencia Valencia ( va, València) is the capital of the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Valencian Community, Valencia and the Municipalities of Spain, third-most populated municipality in Spain, with 791,413 inhabitants. It is ...

on 29 June 1407, he had married

Isabella Isabella may refer to: People and fictional characters * Isabella (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters * Isabella (surname), including a list of people Places United States * Isabella, Alabama, an unincorpora ...

, daughter of

Peter IV of Aragon Peter IV, ; an, Pero, ; es, Pedro, . In Catalan, he may also be nicknamed ''el del punyalet'': "he of the little dagger". (Catalan: ''Pere IV''; 5 September 1319 – 6 January 1387), called the Ceremonious (Catalan: ''el Cerimoniós''), w ...

and sister of

Martin the Humane Martin the Humane (29 July 1356 – 31 May 1410), also called the Elder and the Ecclesiastic, was King of Aragon, Valencia, Sardinia and Corsica and Count of Barcelona from 1396 and King of Sicily from 1409 (as Martin II). He failed to secure ...

, who appointed him

lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations. The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but it is often sub ...

of the

Kingdom of Aragon The Kingdom of Aragon ( an, Reino d'Aragón, ca, Regne d'Aragó, la, Regnum Aragoniae, es, Reino de Aragón) was a medieval and early modern kingdom on the Iberian Peninsula, corresponding to the modern-day autonomous community of Aragon, ...

in 1408. Following the death in 1409 of

Martin the Younger Martin I of Sicily (c. 1374/1376 – 25 July 1409), called "The Younger", was King of Sicily from his marriage to Queen Maria in 1390 until his death. Martin's father was the future King Martin I of Aragon, and his grandparents were King Pet ...

, heir to the Aragonese Crown, the king appointed James

governor-general Governor-general (plural ''governors-general''), or governor general (plural ''governors general''), is the title of an office-holder. In the context of governors-general and former British colonies, governors-general are appointed as viceroy t ...

, an act interpreted by James as implying his heirdom. Following the death of the king in 1410, however, James was one of the six candidates who claimed the throne. Succession through the male line, as ordained in the will of

James I of Aragon James I the Conqueror ( es, Jaime el Conquistador, ca, Jaume el Conqueridor; 2 February 1208 – 27 July 1276) was King of Aragon and Lord of Montpellier from 1213 to 1276; King of Majorca from 1231 to 1276; and Valencia from 1238 to 1276 ...

, would have given him the crown, but through 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 ...

Ferdinand of Antequera 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 Sicily ...

was elected instead. Influenced by his mother, Margaret of Montferrat, and by

Antón de Luna Antonio de Luna y de Xérica (deceased in Mequinenza, Aragón, in 1419) was an Aragonese nobleman, Lord of Almonacid, Loarre, Morés, Pola and Rueda. He was leader of the supporters of James II of Urgell in the Kingdom of Aragon after the death ...

, James II of Urgell refused to recognise Ferdinand as king and took up arms against him. Defeated at Castefrorite and Montearagón, James took refuge in the castle of Balaguer which was under siege by the royal troops. He surrendered on 31 October 1413 and was imprisoned in

Teruel Teruel () is a city in Aragon, located in eastern Spain, and is also the capital of Teruel Province. It has a population of 35,675 in 2014 making it the least populated provincial capital in the country. It is noted for its harsh climate, with a ...

and then

Xàtiva Xàtiva (, es, Játiva ) is a town in eastern Spain, in the province of Valencia, on the right (western) bank of the river Albaida and at the junction of the Valencia–Murcia and Valencia Albacete railways. It is located 25 km west ...

where he died twenty years later. James had four daughters and one son: *

(1409–1430), married

Peter, Duke of Coimbra Infante D. Pedro, Duke of Coimbra KG (; en, Peter), (9 December 1392 – 20 May 1449) was a Portuguese ''infante'' (prince) of the House of Aviz, son of King John I of Portugal and his wife Philippa of Lancaster, daughter of John of Gaunt. I ...

, in 1428; * Eleanor (1414–1438), married Raimon Orsini in 1436; * Joanna (1415–1455), married

John I, Count of Foix John I, Count of Foix also known as Jean de Foix-Grailly (1382 – 4 May 1436) was Count of Foix from 1428 until his death in 1436. He succeeded his mother Isabella, Countess of Foix. His father was Archambaud de Grailly. Life Early life As ...

in 1435 and, then, remarried Joan Ramon Folc III de Cardona in 1445; had three children, including Juan Ramón Folc IV de Cardona, the first

Duke of Cardona Duke of Cardona ( es, Duque de Cardona) is a hereditary title in the Peerage of Spain, accompanied by the dignity of Grandee and granted in 1482 by Ferdinand II to Juan Ramón Folch de Cardona, 5th Count of Cardona, as an elevation to dukedom ...

. * Philip, who died around 1422 while still young; * Catherine, who also died young, not long after Philip (c. 1424). {{Authority control 1380 births 1433 deaths Counts of Urgell Aragonese infantes 15th-century Catalan people