Alice of Majorca (1341 – after 1376) was a Cypriot noblewoman, the great-granddaughter of King

James II of Majorca James II ( ca, Jaume) (31 May 1243 – 29 May 1311) was King of Majorca and Lord of Montpellier from 1276 until his death. He was the second son of James I of Aragon and his wife, Violant, daughter of Andrew II of Hungary. In 1279, by the Tre ...

and granddaughter of King

Hugh IV of Cyprus Hugh IV (1293-1296 – 10 October 1359) was King of Cyprus from 31 March 1324 to his abdication, on 24 November 1358 and, nominally, King of Jerusalem, as Hugh II, until his death. The son of Guy, Constable of Cyprus (son of Hugh III of Cyprus), ...

. Her husband was Philip of Ibelin, seneschal of Cyprus who was sent to prison in Genoa after his murder of Alicia's uncle, King

Peter I Peter I may refer to: Religious hierarchs * Saint Peter (c. 1 AD – c. 64–88 AD), a.k.a. Simon Peter, Simeon, or Simon, apostle of Jesus * Pope Peter I of Alexandria (died 311), revered as a saint * Peter I of Armenia (died 1058), Catholico ...

. She became the mistress of Jean de Moustry, Grand Admiral of Cyprus.

Family

She was born in Cyprus in 1341, the only child of Ferdinand, Viscount of Omélas, and Eschive de Lusignan, eldest daughter of King

and

Alix of Ibelin Alix of Ibelin (1304/1306 – after 6 August 1386), was Queen consort of Cyprus and nominal Queen consort of Jerusalem as the second wife of King Hugh IV of Cyprus. She was queen from 31 March 1324 until Hugh's abdication on 24 November 1358. ...

. Her paternal grandfather was

Ferdinand Ferdinand is a Germanic name composed of the elements "protection", "peace" (PIE "to love, to make peace") or alternatively "journey, travel", Proto-Germanic , abstract noun from root "to fare, travel" (PIE , "to lead, pass over"), and "co ...

, son of King

. At the time of her birth, her mother was being held in captivity by her grandfather King Hugh as a result of the latter's violent quarrel with Alice's father, Fernando, who had been expelled from the kingdom. The King had accused Ferdinand's mother, Isabella of Ibelin, of having practised

sorcery Sorcery may refer to: * Magic (supernatural), the application of beliefs, rituals or actions employed to subdue or manipulate natural or supernatural beings and forces ** Witchcraft, the practice of magical skills and abilities * Magic in fiction, ...

. As her father died in exile in Omélas, sometime between the time of her birth and 1347, Alice never knew him.

Marriage

On 26 July 1355, she married, as his second wife, one of her kinsmen, Philip of Ibelin, son of Balian. As they were related within the prohibited degrees, a papal dispensation was required for their marriage. Her uncle, who in 1358 had succeeded Hugh IV as King Peter I of Cyprus, was much displeased with Philip's marriage to Alice, who being his niece, was a close member of the Cypriot royal family. The King, in retaliation for Philip's temerity in marrying Alice, banished him from the kingdom. Alice was forcibly detained on the island, and forbidden to follow her husband in exile. It is not known whether or not she had any children by Philip. Her mother had died in 1363 during an outbreak of

plague Plague or The Plague may refer to: Agriculture, fauna, and medicine *Plague (disease), a disease caused by ''Yersinia pestis'' * An epidemic of infectious disease (medical or agricultural) * A pandemic caused by such a disease * A swarm of pe ...

. Four years later, in 1367, Philip returned to Cyprus, and in 1369 assumed the role as leader of a revolt against King Peter, and of the group of barons who subsequently assassinated him. After the

regicide Regicide is the purposeful killing of a monarch or sovereign of a polity and is often associated with the usurpation of power. A regicide can also be the person responsible for the killing. The word comes from the Latin roots of ''regis'' ...

, Peter's son,

Peter Peter may refer to: People * List of people named Peter, a list of people and fictional characters with the given name * Peter (given name) ** Saint Peter (died 60s), apostle of Jesus, leader of the early Christian Church * Peter (surname), a sur ...

, who was a minor, succeeded him, with his mother

Eleanor 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 his uncles

John John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Secon ...

and

James James is a common English language surname and given name: *James (name), the typically masculine first name James * James (surname), various people with the last name James James or James City may also refer to: People * King James (disambiguati ...

acting as his regents. Eleanor suspected John and James of having been part of the plot to murder Peter II. Philip was immediately appointed seneschal of Cyprus; however, following the Genoese invasion in 1373 (which Queen Eleanor had secretly arranged), he was first imprisoned at Famagusta, then sent to prison in Genoa, where he was beheaded in 1374/76.

Love affairs

In 1370, according to Rudt-Collenberg, Alice became the mistress of Jean de Moustry, the Grand Admiral of Cyprus. As with her husband, it is not recorded whether any children were born to her as a result of her affair with the admiral. There were also rumours that she had an affair with Genoese Admiral Pietro di Campo Fregosa, who had connived at her husband's death. It was recorded in the ''Chronicle of Amadi'' that Alicia was so in love with the Genoese admiral that she had failed to intervene on Philip's behalf in order to save him from execution. Alice died on an unrecorded date sometime after 1376.

References

{{Infantas of Aragon 1341 births Year of death unknown House of Aragon House of Ibelin 14th-century Cypriot people Women of the Crusader states