Eleanor of Alburquerque
Eleanor | |
---|---|
Countess of Alburquerque | |
![]() Eleanor's tomb effigy | |
Queen consort of Aragon | |
Tenure | 3 September 1412 – 2 April 1416 |
Born | 1374 Aldeadávila de la Ribera |
Died | 16 December 1435 (aged 61) Medina del Campo |
Burial | |
Spouse | Ferdinand I of Aragon |
Issue | |
House | Trastámara |
Father | Sancho, Count of Alburquerque |
Mother | Beatrice of Portugal |
![](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/9a/Coat_of_Arms_of_Eleanor_of_Alburquerque%2C_Queen_of_Aragon.svg/220px-Coat_of_Arms_of_Eleanor_of_Alburquerque%2C_Queen_of_Aragon.svg.png)
Eleanor of Alburquerque(1374 – 16 December 1435) was a Castilian noblewoman, Countess of Alburquerque, who becameQueen of Aragonby her marriage toFerdinand I of Aragon.She was the regent of Aragon during the absence of her son the king in 1420.[1]
Family[edit]
Eleanor was born inAldeadávila de la Ribera,province of Salamanca.Her father wasSancho Alfonso, 1st Count of Alburquerque,who was an illegitimate son of KingAlfonso XI of Castile[2]and his mistressEleanor of Guzman,and a brother of KingHenry II of Castile.Her mother wasInfanta Beatrice, Countess of Alburquerque,who was daughter ofPeter I of PortugalandInes de Castro.[2]
Marriage and queenship[edit]
Eleanor was originally betrothed to Frederick, illegitimate son ofHenry II of Castile,however this engagement was broken off.
Upon the death ofJohn I of Castileon 9 October 1390, the Regency Council addressed the issue of the heir presumptive,Infante Henry,at the time eleven years of age and his brother,Infante Ferdinand,who was then ten years old. It was agreed that Ferdinand could not marry before his brother Henry reached the age of fourteen. Then he would be granted the political and social privileges of majority.
Peter I of Castilewas murdered in March 1369 by his bastard brotherHenry.The representatives of the clergy, the nobility, the state of the gentry and merchants, as well as the authorized legal representatives of some Castilian cities agreed that Henry's grandson Infante Henry should marry the granddaughter of the murdered Peter, the English princessCatherine of Lancaster,daughter ofJohn of Gaunt.And as soon as the eldest brother, Henry III, met these requirements, his younger brother, Prince Ferdinand, would marry a good, honorable and rich wife.
Eleanor of Alburquerque was the chosen one, as she was sixteen and old enough to marry. She expressed her agreement to the marriage, although it could not take place immediately as Ferdinand was still ten years old. She owned the towns of Haro, Briones, Vilforado, Ledesma with the five towns, Albuquerque, the Codesera, Azagala, Alconchel, Medellin, Alconétar and Villalon, a gift from her cousinJohn I of Castile.This made Eleanor a very attractive offer to Ferdinand.
In 1394, Eleanor and Ferdinand were married. The marriage is described as a happy one. In 1412, Ferdinand and Eleanor became King and Queen ofAragonafter theCompromise of Caspe.Eleanor was crowned in 1414.
Later life[edit]
Ferdinand died in 1416, aged 35 years. Eleanor, who was then 42 years old, retired toMedina del Campo.When her son the king left for Italy in 1420, he appointed her to act as his regent during his absence.
The Royal Palace ofMedina del Campo,birthplace of her husband and her children, was transformed into theConvent of Santa María la Real.There, Eleanor witnessed her children fighting against the royalist party led byÁlvaro de Luna.[3]Eleanor lost some of her possessions as a benefit for the latter.
In 1435 her sons, the princes of Aragon were taken prisoners by theGenoeseafter the navalbattle of Ponza.
Eleanor died inMedina del Campo,province of Valladolid,in 1435. She is buried in the Convent of Santa María la Real, in a simple grave on the floor. It has a tombstone made from a dark stone fromToledo,with the royal coat of arms carved into it.
Issue[edit]
She had seven children:
- Alfonso V of Aragon(1394–1458), also king ofSicilyandNaples[4]
- Maria of Aragon,first wife ofJohn II of Castile,(1396–1445)
- John II of Aragon(1398–1479)[2]
- Henry of Aragon, Duke of Villena,Count of Alburquerque,[2]Count of Empuries and Grand Master of the Order of Santiago (1400–1445)
- Sancho of Aragon(c.1400–March 1416). Created Grand Master of the Orders of Calatrava and Alcántara after 1412.
- Eleanor of Aragon,who marriedEdward I of Portugal,(1402–1445)
- Pedro of Aragon, Count of Alburquerqueand Duke of Noto (1406–1438)
Ancestors[edit]
Ancestors of Eleanor of Alburquerque[5][better source needed] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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References[edit]
- ^"Leonor Urraca de Castilla | Real Academia de la Historia".
- ^abcdEarenfight 2015,p. 142.
- ^"Aragonese Encyclopedia".Archived fromthe originalon 2016-07-08.Retrieved2010-07-22.
- ^Earenfight 2015,p. 143.
- ^de Sousa, Antonio Caetano (1735).Historia genealogica da casa real portugueza[Genealogical History of the Royal House of Portugal] (in Portuguese). Vol. 2. Lisboa Occidental. p. 497.
Sources[edit]
- Earenfight, Theresa (2015). "Trastamara Kings, Queens, and the Gender Dynamics of Monarchy". In Todesca, James (ed.).The Emergence of León-Castile c.1065-1500: Essays Presented to J.F. O'Callaghan.Ashgate. p. 141-160.
- https://web.archive.org/web/20110707104223/http://www.aldeadavila.com/historia/la-historia-de-leonor-de-alburquerque-y-ledesma/
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- 1374 births
- 1435 deaths
- House of Trastámara
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