Frederick of Pettorano (''c''. 1212/3 – after 1240) was the eldest illegitimate son of Frederick II, king of

Sicily (man) it, Siciliana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = Ethnicity , demographics1_footnotes = , demographi ...

and

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

. He was born on Sicily to an

Italo-Norman The Italo-Normans ( it, Italo-Normanni), or Siculo-Normans (''Siculo-Normanni'') when referring to Sicily and Southern Italy, are the Italian-born descendants of the first Norman conquerors to travel to southern Italy in the first half of th ...

noblewoman after his father's first marriage to

Constance of Aragon Constance of Aragon (1179 – 23 June 1222) was an Aragonese infanta who was by marriage firstly Queen of Hungary, and secondly Queen of Germany and Sicily and Holy Roman Empress. She was regent of Sicily from 1212 to 1220. She was the second c ...

. This mistress's name is unknown, but she came from a family of Norman counts on Sicily and had a relationship with the teenage Frederick between 1211 and 1212. Their relationship ended when King Frederick went to Germany and in 1213 took up with another woman, a certain Adelaide. Besides Frederick of Pettorano, Frederick II probably named two other sons after himself: another illegitimate son, Frederick of Antioch, and a legitimate son by his wife

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 unincorpor ...

. This last is known only by the initial "F." and died young.Ernst Voltmer
"Federico d'Antiochia"
''Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani'' 45 (1995). The illegitimate Frederick does not seem to have been well-treated by his father. He received only the meagre castle of Pettorano in the Abruzzi, in the northern mainland of the Sicilian kingdom. Perhaps out of dissatisfaction, he seems to have become involved in plots against his father. Around 1240, he left Sicily with his family for the court of

Ferdinand III of Castile Ferdinand III ( es, Fernando, link=no; 1199/120130 May 1252), called the Saint (''el Santo''), was King of Castile from 1217 and King of León from 1230 as well as King of Galicia from 1231. He was the son of Alfonso IX of León and Berenguel ...

, who had married his cousin, Elisabeth. He does not appear again in any surviving records."Federico II, figli"
''Enciclopedia Federiciana'' (Istituto dell'Enciclopedia Italiana, 2005).

Notes

{{Reflist 1210s births Hohenstaufen Illegitimate children of Holy Roman Emperors Children of Frederick II, Holy Roman Emperor Sons of emperors