Íñigo De Alfaro
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Fray Íñigo de Alfaro ( 1396–1435) was an Aragonese nobleman and
Knight Hospitaller The Order of Knights of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem, commonly known as the Knights Hospitaller (), is a Catholic military order. It was founded in the crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem in the 12th century and had headquarters there u ...
. He was the defending commander at the
Siege of Smyrna The siege of Smyrna (December 1402) was fought between the Knights of Rhodes, who held the harbour and sea-castle of Smyrna (now İzmir) in western Anatolia, and the army of the Turco-Mongol emir Timur. The Turco-Mongols blockaded the harbour ...
in 1402 against the
Turco-Mongol The Turco-Mongol or Turko-Mongol tradition was an ethnocultural synthesis that arose in Asia during the 14th century among the ruling elites of the Golden Horde and the Chagatai Khanate. The ruling Mongol elites of these khanates eventually ass ...
conqueror
Timur Timur, also known as Tamerlane (1320s17/18 February 1405), was a Turco-Mongol conqueror who founded the Timurid Empire in and around modern-day Afghanistan, Iran, and Central Asia, becoming the first ruler of the Timurid dynasty. An undefeat ...
. He later played a key role in the
Compromise of Caspe The 1412 Compromise of Caspe (''Compromiso de Caspe'' in Spanish, ''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 V ...
that settled the Aragonese interregnum in 1412.


Rhodes and Smyrna

Íñigo was born into a noble family of
Logroño Logroño ( , , ) is the capital of the autonomous community of La Rioja (Spain), La Rioja, Spain. Located in the north of the Iberian Peninsula, primarily in the right (South) bank of the Ebro River, Logroño has historically been a place of pa ...
. During the rule of Grand Master
Juan Fernández de Heredia Juan Fernández de Heredia (in Aragonese ''Johan Ferrández d'Heredia'', pronounced ; – 1396) was a knight from the Crown of Aragon who served as Grand Master of the Knights Hospitaller from 24 September 1377 to his death. His tenure was ...
, a fellow Aragonese, he spent time at the Hospitaller headquarters in
Rhodes Rhodes (; ) is the largest of the Dodecanese islands of Greece and is their historical capital; it is the List of islands in the Mediterranean#By area, ninth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. Administratively, the island forms a separ ...
. One of three coats of arms carved into the lintel above the doorway to the chapel of Saint George on Rhodes has been tentatively identified as Íñigo's. The other two belonged to Heredia and his lieutenant, Pierre Culant. Íñigo rose in the ranks to become lieutenant of the
draper Draper was originally a term for a retailer or wholesaler of cloth that was mainly for clothing. A draper may additionally operate as a cloth merchant or a haberdasher. History Drapers were an important trade guild during the medieval period ...
(one of the high officials of the central convent), who was also a Spaniard, and then lieutenant to the commander of the island of
Kos Kos or Cos (; ) is a Greek island, which is part of the Dodecanese island chain in the southeastern Aegean Sea. Kos is the third largest island of the Dodecanese, after Rhodes and Karpathos; it has a population of 37,089 (2021 census), making ...
, where he can be traced between 20 March 1400 and 17 February 1401. Íñigo was appointed castellan or captain of
Smyrna Smyrna ( ; , or ) was an Ancient Greece, Ancient Greek city located at a strategic point on the Aegean Sea, Aegean coast of Anatolia, Turkey. Due to its advantageous port conditions, its ease of defence, and its good inland connections, Smyrna ...
, a city in western
Anatolia Anatolia (), also known as Asia Minor, is a peninsula in West Asia that makes up the majority of the land area of Turkey. It is the westernmost protrusion of Asia and is geographically bounded by the Mediterranean Sea to the south, the Aegean ...
and one of the last crusader outposts in Asia, probably on 1 March 1401. Only three documents—22 February, 8 March and 2 May 1402—show him as castellan of Smyrna, but appointment to the office was annual and customarily took place on 1 March. It is for this reason that he is thought to be the castellan in power during the siege of the city in December 1402, since no document that mentions that castellan names him. It would be highly unusual, however, if the castellan in charge in May were not there in December. The lower town of Smyrna, with the harbour and sea-castle, was under the control of the Hospitallers on behalf of the
Papacy The pope is the bishop of Rome and the Head of the Church#Catholic Church, visible head of the worldwide Catholic Church. He is also known as the supreme pontiff, Roman pontiff, or sovereign pontiff. From the 8th century until 1870, the po ...
. The upper town with its fortress was under Ottoman control. In 1400–02,
Timur Timur, also known as Tamerlane (1320s17/18 February 1405), was a Turco-Mongol conqueror who founded the Timurid Empire in and around modern-day Afghanistan, Iran, and Central Asia, becoming the first ruler of the Timurid dynasty. An undefeat ...
attacked the Ottoman Empire and invaded Anatolia. With the Ottomans utterly defeated and the sultan captured at the
Battle of Ankara The Battle of Ankara or Angora () was fought on 28 July 1402, at the Çubuk plain near Ankara, between the forces of the Ottoman sultan Bayezid I and the emir of the Timurid Empire, Timur. The battle was a major victory for Timur, and it led to ...
, he turned on Smyrna. Although the defences had been greatly improved in a series of projects going back to 1392, Íñigo had only 200 knights under his command. The siege began on 2 December 1402, and they resisted for two weeks before the walls were breached. At least some of the Hospitallers, Íñigo included, reached their ships and managed to escape, while the population was slaughtered. Despite the loss, Íñigo received treatment befitting a victor when he landed in
Genoa Genoa ( ; ; ) is a city in and the capital of the Italian region of Liguria, and the sixth-largest city in Italy. As of 2025, 563,947 people live within the city's administrative limits. While its metropolitan city has 818,651 inhabitan ...
. He informed King
Martin of Aragon 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 th ...
of the loss of Smyrna by February 1403, perhaps having already returned to Aragon by then.


Aragon


Compromise of Caspe

After Íñigo returned to Aragon. he was made commander of the fortress of Ricla in 1407. That same year, the Avignonese pope Benedict XIII appointed him ambassador of the Holy See to the court of King
Martin I of Sicily Martin I of Sicily (c. 1374/1376 – 25 July 1409), called the Younger, was King of Sicily from his marriage to Maria, Queen of Sicily, Queen Maria in 1390 until his death in 1409. Martin's father was the future King Martin I of Aragon, and hi ...
in 1407. On 31 May 1410, King Martin of Aragon died and the succession was disputed. It was decided that a parliament of representatives from the three components of the crown—Aragon,
Catalonia Catalonia is an autonomous community of Spain, designated as a ''nationalities and regions of Spain, nationality'' by its Statute of Autonomy of Catalonia of 2006, Statute of Autonomy. Most of its territory (except the Val d'Aran) is situate ...
and
Valencia Valencia ( , ), formally València (), is the capital of the Province of Valencia, province and Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Valencian Community, the same name in Spain. It is located on the banks of the Turia (r ...
—would meet to settle the issue. When the parliament opened in
Calatayud Calatayud (; 2014 pop. 20,658) is a Municipalities of Spain, municipality in the Province of Zaragoza, within Aragón, Spain, lying on the river Jalón (river), Jalón, in the midst of the Sistema Ibérico mountain range. It is the second-largest ...
on 8 February 1411, Íñigo de Alfaro escorted the governor and justiciar of Aragon, Juan Ximénez Cerdán and Gil Ruiz de Lihori, respectively, into the assembly. The castellan of Amposta, Pedro Ruiz de Moros, the most powerful Hospitaller in Aragon strongly favoured the candidacy of
James II, Count of Urgell James II (in Catalan language, Catalan ''Jaume II d'Urgell'' or ''Jaume el Dissortat'' ("James the unlucky"), in Spanish ''Jaime II el desafortunado'') (1380 – 1 June 1433) was the Count of Urgell (1408–1413), Viscount of Àger, and lord of An ...
. The choice of Íñigo to escort the presidents of the assembly may have been designed to show that the Hospitallers were not united behind any single candidate. Íñigo was subsequently sent by this parliament as an emissary to Valencia. When a second parliament convened at
Alcañiz Alcañiz () is a town and municipality of Teruel province in the autonomous community of Aragon, Spain. The town is located on the banks of the river Guadalope. Alcañiz is the unofficial capital of the Lower Aragon historical region. It lies ...
, Íñigo shared responsibility for the defence of the town with the castellan, Guillem Ramon Alemany de Cervelló, a grand commander of the
Order of Calatrava The Order of Calatrava (, ) was one of the Spanish military orders, four Spanish military orders and the first Military order (society), military order founded in Kingdom of Castile, Castile, but the second to receive papal approval. The papal bu ...
. Íñigo attended the final parliament met at
Caspe Caspe is a municipality in the province of Zaragoza, part of the autonomous community of Aragon, in Spain, seat of the comarca of Bajo Aragón-Caspe. As of 2018 it had a population of 9,525 inhabitants (INE 2018) and its municipality, of 5 ...
, and was present when the famous compromise was publicly read on 28 June 1412. He and Guillem Ramon were then charged with bringing the news to the newly elected king, Ferdinand I. He kissed the king's hand at the ceremony of proclamation and took the oath of homage on behalf of the Aragonese kingdom. He was probably present at the coronation in the Seo de Zaragoza on 11 February 1413.


Trial of the castellan of Amposta

The castellan of Amposta refused to recognise the new king. Ferdinand thus suspended him from the castellany in 1413, and placed it under the regency of Íñigo. The Catalan ''corts'' that met in
Tortosa Tortosa (, ) is the capital of the '' comarca'' of Baix Ebre, in Catalonia, Spain. Tortosa is located at above sea level, by the Ebro river, protected on its northern side by the mountains of the Cardó Massif, of which Buinaca, one of the hi ...
in 1413 summoned Íñigo as "the regent of the Castellany of Amposta" (''regenti Castellaniam Emposte''). He was still regent in Amposta as of 11 January 1416, but shortly thereafter Pedro Ruiz was deposed and Gonzalo de Funes appointed in his place. In 1414, a tribunal was convoked by Benedict XIII to try Pedro Ruiz. The tribunal was not limited to his refusal to obey Ferdinand and accept the compromise of Caspe. Íñigo and another Hospitaller, Pascasi de Morralla, prior of
Monzón Monzón () is a small city and municipality in the autonomous community of Aragon, Spain. Its population was 17,176 as of 2014. It is located at the confluence of the Cinca and Sosa rivers, in the Cinca Media comarca of the province of Huesca. ...
, were charged by the tribunal with conducting an inquiry "into the said lord Fray Pedro, castellan, and his houses and rooms in various places in the said castellany" (''in dicto domino fratre Petro, castellano, et suis castris seu cameris ac locis dicte Castellanie''). In the process of this inquiry into his lifestyle and business dealings, the Hospitallers took down the testimony of 67 witnesses. In the end, Pedro Ruiz was convicted of everything from concubinage to robbery. Following the removal of Pedro Ruiz and the promotion of Gonzalo de Funes, Íñigo replaced Gonzalo as commander of the castle at Aliaga. He was seriously ill when, on 3 April 1427, an administrator was appointed for him. He was still ill seven years later on 16 August 1434, when the grand master, a Catalan, Antoni de Fluvià, expressed concern. He is last mentioned on 28 March 1435.


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* * * * * * * {{refend 14th-century births 15th-century deaths 15th-century Aragonese nobility Christians of the Crusades Knights Hospitaller Medieval Smyrna People from Logroño Year of birth unknown Year of death unknown