John of Castile, ''called the "el de Tarifa"'' ( es, Juan de Castilla "el de Tarifa"; 1262–25 June 1319) was an ''

infante ''Infante'' (, ; f. ''infanta''), also anglicised as Infant or translated as Prince, is the title and rank given in the Iberian kingdoms of Spain (including the predecessor kingdoms of Aragon, Castile, Navarre, and León) and Portugal to th ...

'' of Castile and León. He was engaged in a decades-long fight for control over the Lordship of

Biscay Biscay (; eu, Bizkaia ; es, Vizcaya ) is a province of Spain and a historical territory of the Basque Country, heir of the ancient Lordship of Biscay, lying on the south shore of the eponymous bay. The capital and largest city is Bilbao. B ...

with

Diego López V de Haro Diego López V de Haro, nicknamed '' el Intruso'' ( 1250 – 1310), was a Spanish noble of the House of Haro and held the title of the Lord of Biscay which he took from the pretender to the title, John of Castile. He further served in th ...

, the uncle of his wife.

Biographical sketch

He was born before 15 April 1262 in

Seville Seville (; es, Sevilla, ) is the capital and largest city of the Spanish autonomous community of Andalusia and the province of Seville. It is situated on the lower reaches of the River Guadalquivir, in the southwest of the Iberian Peninsula ...

, the son of

Alfonso X Alfonso X (also known as the Wise, es, el Sabio; 23 November 1221 – 4 April 1284) was King of Castile, León and Galicia from 30 May 1252 until his death in 1284. During the election of 1257, a dissident faction chose him to be king of Germ ...

, King of Castile and León and Queen

Violant of Aragon Violant or Violante of Aragon, also known as Yolanda of Aragon (8 June 1236 – 1301), was Queen consort of Castile and León from 1252 to 1284 as the wife of King Alfonso X of Castile. Life Violant was born in Zaragoza, the daughter of King ...

. In 1296, during the minority of his nephew

Ferdinand IV of Castile Ferdinand IV of Castile (6 December 1285 – 7 September 1312) called the Summoned (''el Emplazado''), was King of Castile and León from 1295 until his death. His upbringing and the custody of his person were entrusted to his mother, Queen M ...

, John was declared

King of León In the reign of Ordoño I of Asturias (850–866), the kingdom began to be known as that of León. In 910, an independent Kingdom of León was founded when the king of Asturias divided his territory amongst his three sons. Below follows a ...

, Galicia and Seville, although in 1300 he reconciled with Ferdinand IV and entered his service. In 1312, after the death of Ferdinand IV, he was appointed guardian of his son

Alfonso XI Alfonso XI (13 August 131126 March 1350), called the Avenger (''el Justiciero''), was King of Castile and León. He was the son of Ferdinand IV of Castile and his wife Constance of Portugal. Upon his father's death in 1312, several disputes en ...

, whom he served alongside Queen

María de Molina María Alfonso Téllez de Meneses (c. 1265 – 1321), known as María de Molina, was queen consort of Castile and León from 1284 to 1295 by marriage to Sancho IV of Castile, and served as regent for her minor son Ferdinand IV (1295 - c.1301) ...

and Infante

Peter of Castile, Lord of Cameros Peter of Castile, in Spanish Pedro de Castilla (1290 – 25 June 1319), was an '' infante'' of Castile, a younger son of King Sancho IV and his wife María de Molina. He held the lordships (''señoríos'') of Cameros, Almazán, Berlanga, ...

. He was the Lord of Valencia de Campos and

, by his marriage to María Díaz de Haro, and was also Lord of Baena,

Luque Luque () is a city in Central Department of Paraguay, part of the Gran Asunción metropolitan area. Both 1635 and 1750 have been recorded as dates of its founding. It was temporarily the capital of Paraguay in 1868 during the Paraguayan War b ...

Zuheros Zuheros is a mountain village located in the province of Córdoba, Spain. According to the 2006 census (INE INE, Ine or ine may refer to: Institutions * Institut für Nukleare Entsorgung, a German nuclear research center * Instituto Nacional de ...

, Lozoya, Villalón, Oropesa, Santiago de la Puebla, Melgar de Arriba,

Paredes de Nava Paredes de Nava is a municipality located in the province of Palencia, Castile and León, Spain. It is the birthplace of Renaissance painter Pedro Berruguete. Some paintings by him can be seen in the predella of the local church of Santa Eulal ...

, Medina de Río Seco and

Castronuño Castronuño is a municipality located in the province of Valladolid, Castile and León, Spain. According to the 2004 census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a give ...

, and he served as

alférez In medieval Iberia, an ''alférez'' (, ) or ''alferes'' (, ) was a high-ranking official in the household of a king or magnate. The term is derived from the Arabic ('' al-fāris''), meaning "horseman" or "cavalier", and it was commonly Latinise ...

(armour-bearer) of the King and mayordomo mayor (high steward) of the King. He was also

Adelantado ''Adelantado'' (, , ; meaning "advanced") was a title held by Spanish nobles in service of their respective kings during the Middle Ages. It was later used as a military title held by some Spanish ''conquistadores'' of the 15th, 16th and 17th cen ...

Andalusia Andalusia (, ; es, Andalucía ) is the southernmost autonomous community in Peninsular Spain. It is the most populous and the second-largest autonomous community in the country. It is officially recognised as a "historical nationality". The t ...

. He died in 1319 at

Pinos Puente Pinos Puente is a municipality located in the province of Granada, Spain. According to the 2005 census (INE), the city has a population of 13319 inhabitants. The Cubillas River runs by the town. Etymology The town's name refers to pine or fir g ...

, in the battle of Sierra Elvira, also known as the disaster of Vega de Granada.

Marriages and issue

On 17 February 1281, he married Margaret, who died in 1286, daughter of

William VII, Marquess of Montferrat Guillaume VII de Montferrat. William VII (c. 1240 – 6 February 1292), called the Great Marquis ( it, il Gran Marchese), was the twelfth Marquis of Montferrat from 1253 to his death. He was also the titular King of Thessalonica. Biography ...

and Elizabeth of Gloucester, with whom he had: * Alfonso of Valencia de Campos, married as his first wife, Teresa, daughter of

Juan Núñez I de Lara Juan Núñez I de Lara y León (died Córdoba, April 1294), also known as "''el Gordo''" or "the Fat", was a Spanish noble. He was the head of the House of Lara, Lord of Lerma, Amaya, Dueñas, Palenzuela, Tordehumos, Torrelobatón, and la ...

and in 1314, married Juana Fernández de Castro, daughter of Fernando Rodríguez de Castro and granddaughter of King Sancho IV of Castile. One year after the death of his first wife and before 11 May 1287 he married María Díaz de Haro with whom he had three children: *

Juan de Castilla y Haro Juan de Castilla y Haro, most commonly known as Juan el Tuerto (the one-eyed) (b. ? - d. 31 October 1326, Toro), was a Spanish noble of the House of Haro and of the royal line of the Kingdom of Castile descended from Alfonso X of Castile. He w ...

, known as Juan el Tuerto (the one-eyed). * Lope Díaz de Haro died after 1295 in his youth. * María Díaz de Haro

Ancestry

, - , - , - , - , - , - , - , -

Notes

References

Bibliography

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

External links

Ficha genealógica del infante Juan de Castilla, hijo de Alfonso X el Sabio
* {{DEFAULTSORT:John of Castile, Lord of Valencia De Campos 1262 births 1319 deaths Castilian infantes Castilian House of Burgundy Lords of Spain Regents of Castile Sons of kings