Alfonso Enríquez de Santo Tomás (9 June 1631 in
Vélez-Málaga – 30 July 1692 in
Málaga
Málaga (; ) is a Municipalities in Spain, municipality of Spain, capital of the Province of Málaga, in the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Andalusia. With a population of 591,637 in 2024, it is the second-most populo ...
) was a Catholic prelate who served as
Bishop of Osma (1661-1663),
Bishop of Plasencia (1664–1664) and
Bishop of Malaga (1664–1692). He was an illegitimate son of King
Felipe IV of Spain.
He was officially the "legitimate and natural son" of José Enríquez de Guzmán y de Porres, gentleman of the King's chambers, and Constanza de Ribera y Orozco, lady-in-waiting to Queen
Isabel de Borbón. The reality was very different: the child was the fruit of a love affair of King
Felipe IV of Spain with the aforementioned lady. His legal father was forced to marry Constance in a hurry, for which he was rewarded by the monarch.
At seventeen, the young aristocrat decided to embrace Dominican religious life and renounce his noble titles. He first became
Bishop of Osma and
Bishop of Plasencia, before being appointed
Bishop of Malaga, a position he would hold for 28 years until his death.
Sources
Real Academia de la Historia
{{DEFAULTSORT:Santo Tomás, Alfonso Enríquez de
1631 births
1692 deaths
Bishops of Málaga
Bishops of Osma
Dominican bishops
17th-century Roman Catholic bishops in Spain
Bishops appointed by Pope Alexander VII
Illegitimate children of Spanish monarchs
Children of Philip IV of Spain
Sons of kings
Sons of dukes
Sons of counts