Three Who Ruled

CHAPTER 2 Three Who Ruled 1 Introduction The battle of Nájera traces back to the relationship between three Iberian monarchs, all of whom ruled during the second half of the fourteenth century— Pedro I of Castile (r. 1350–1366/1367–1369); his successor, Enrique II (r. 1366– 1367/1369–1379); and their counterpart in the eastern realm of Aragon/ Catalonia, Pere III (r. 1336–1387).1 Each of the three was a remarkable figure in his own right. The Castilian king, Pedro I, is best-known by contrasting sobriquets as Pedro the Cruel or Pedro the Just—one’s choice depends upon just how one views his sanguinary activities. Pedro’s deadly enemy to the east, one of those few medieval monarchs who played an integral role in writing his own chronicle, was known in the realms he ruled by different names and numbers: in the kingdom of Aragon proper, he was Pedro IV, in the principality of Catalonia, his subjects referred to him by the Catalan equivalent, Pere, third of that name to rule there. In both realms, his fastidious attention to royal pomp and protocol led to his being dubbed by his subjects “the Ceremonious.”2 The last of the three monarchs was Pedro the Cruel’s elder, but illegitimate half-brother, Enrique de Trastámara, “the Bastard,” who waged a long and ultimately successful struggle to supplant his hated sibling on the throne.3 This chapter will briefly introduce the three royal figures whose quarrels ultimately led to the battle. 1 To help avoid confusion on the part of readers, throughout this book we shall reserve the name Pedro for the Castilian king while his Aragonese counterpart will be referred to by the Catalan form of that name, Pere. 2 For the origin of this unusual royal sobriquet, see J.H. Hillgarth’s fine introduction to the English translation of Pere III’s chronicle in Pere III of Catalonia/Pedro IV of Aragon, Chronicle, trans. Mary Hillgarth, 2 vols. (Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1980), p. 98. Pere was also known as “he of the little dagger” (el del punyalet), coined in reference to an event that occurred early in his reign. See, for example: Manuel Dualde Serrano, “Tres episodios de la lucha entre ‘Pere el del Punyalet’ y la Unión aragonesa relatados por el monarca a su tio, Pedro Conde de Ribagorza,” EEMCA 2 (1946): 295–377. 3 He was also know as el de las mercedes, roughly “the gift giver,” for his profligacy in rewarding supporters. © koninklijke brill nv, leiden, ��7 | doi ��.��63/9789004345805_004 Ferdinand “el Santo” Three WhoRuled King of Castile (1217–1252) King of Leon (1230–1252) Alfonso = Yolanda (1252–1284) dau. of Jaume “the Conqueror” of Aragon Fernando de la Cerda = Blanche of France Beatriz = Alfonso Sancho = María de Molina of Portugal “the Brave” (1284–1296) Fernando Alfonso de la Cerda Fernando = Constance Beatriz = Alfonso (1296–1312) of Portugal of Castile of Portugal Blanca = Juan Manuel Leonor de Guzmán ~ Alfonso x = Maria of Portugal Pedro (1357–1367) (1312–1350) King of Portugal Juana Manuel = Enrique de Trastámara Fernando Tello Sancho Fernando Blanche de = Pedro “the Cruel” ~ María de Padilla (1366–67/1369–79) (d.i.) Bourbon (1350–1366/1367–1369) (d.w.i. 1361) (1) (2) Leonor of Aragon = Juan = Beatriz of Portugal Beatriz Constanza Isabel (dau. of Pere ) (1379–1390) (m. John of Gaunt (m. Edmund Langley Duke of Lancaster) Duke of York) Enrique = Catherine of Fernando de Antequera Catherine of Lancaster Philippa of Lancaster (1390–1406) Lancaster King of Aragon (1412–1416) (m. Enrique ) (m. Joao of Portugal) Abbreviations: = signies “married”; ~ signies a non-married sexual liaison; d.i. means “died in infancy”; d.w.i. means “died without issue” 59 2 Rulers of late medieval Castile. GENEALOGY 2 Rulers of late medieval Castile..

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