Alfonso V of Aragon
Encyclopedia
Alfonso the Magnanimous KG
(also Alphonso; ; 1396 – 27 June 1458) was the King of Aragon (as Alfonso V), Valencia (as Alfonso III), Majorca
, Sardinia and Corsica
(as Alfonso II), and Sicily
and Count of Barcelona (as Alfonso IV) from 1416 and King of Naples (as Alfonso I) from 1442 until his death. He was one of the most prominent figures of the early Renaissance
and a knight of the Order of the Dragon
.
, he was the son of Ferdinand I of Aragon
(known as Ferdinand of Antequera) and Eleanor of Alburquerque
. He represented the old line of the counts of Barcelona
only through women, and was on his father's side descended from the House of Trastamara, a noble family of Castile
. By hereditary right he was king of Sicily
and disputed the island of Sardinia
with Genoa
. Alfonso was also in possession of much of Corsica
by the 1420s.
In 1421 Queen Joan II of Naples
, who had no children, adopted and named him as heir to the Kingdom of Naples
, and Alfonso went to Naples
. Here he hired the famous condottiero Braccio da Montone
with the task of reducing the resistance of the other pretender, Louis III of Anjou, and his forces led by Muzio Attendolo Sforza. As Pope Martin V supported Sforza, Alfonso switched religious allegiance to the Aragonese antipope Benedict XIII
. When Sforza also abandoned Louis, Alfonso seemed to have all his problems solved; however, his relationship with Joan suddenly worsened, and in May 1423 he had her lover, and a powerful figure in the Neapolitan court, Gianni Caracciolo, arrested.
After an attempt to arrest the queen herself failed, Joan called Sforza who defeated the Aragonese milices near Castel Capuano
in Naples. Alfonso fled to Castel Nuovo, but the help of a fleet of 22 galleys led by Giovanni da Cardona improved his situation. Sforza and Joan ransomed Caracciolo and retreated to the fortress of Aversa
. Here she repudiated her earlier adoption of Alfonso and, with support from Martin V, named Louis III as her heir instead.
The Milanese Filippo Maria Visconti
joined the anti-Aragonese coalition. Alfonso requested support from Braccio da Montone, who was besieging Joan's troops in L'Aquila
, but had to set sail for Spain, where a war had broken out between his brothers and the Kingdom of Castile
. On his way towards Barcelona, he destroyed Marseille
, a possession of Louis III.
In the late 1423 the Genoese fleet of Visconti moved in the southern Tyrrhenian Sea
and easily conquered Gaeta
, Procida
, Castellammare
and Sorrento
. Naples, which was held by Alfonso's brother, Pedro de Aragon, was besieged in 1424 by the Genoese ships and Joan's troops, now led by Francesco Sforza, son of Muzio (who had died at L'Aquila). The city fell in the April of that year. Pedro, after a short resistance in Castel Nuovo, fled to Sicily
in August. Joan II and Louis III again took possession of the realm, although the true power was in the hands of Gianni Caracciolo.
An opportunity for Alfonso to reconquer Naples occurred in 1432, when Caracciolo was killed in a conjure. Alfonso tried to regain the favour of the queen, but failed, and had to wait for the death of both Louis (at Cosenza in 1434) and Joan herself (February 1435). In her will, she bequeathed her realm to René of Anjou
, Louis III's brother. This solution was opposed by the new pope, Eugene IV, who was nominal feudal lord of the King of Naples. As the Neapolitans had called for the French, Alfonso decided to intervene and, with the support of several barons of the kingdom, captured Capua
and besieged the important sea fortress of Gaeta. His fleet of 25 galleys was met by the Genoese ships sent by Visconti, led by Biagio Assereto
. In the battle
that ensued, Alfonso was defeated and taken prisoner.
In Milan, however, he impressed his captor with his cultured demeanor and persuaded him to let him go by making it plain that it was not in Milan's interest to prevent the victory of the Aragonese party in Naples. Helped by a Sicilian fleet, Alfonso recaptured Capua and set his base in Gaeta in the February of 1436. Papal troops had invaded the Neapolitan kingdom, but Alfonso corrupted the cardinal Giovanni Vitelleschi
, who commanded them, and his successes waned.
In the meantime, René had managed to reach Naples on 19 May 1438. Alfonso tried to besiege the city in the following September, but failed. His brother Pedro was killed during the battle. Castel Nuovo, where an Aragonese garrison resisted, fell to the Angevine mercenaries in the August of 1439. After the death of his condottiero Jacopo Caldora
, however, René's fortune started to wane: Alfonso could easily capture Aversa
, Salerno
, Benevento
, Manfredonia
and Bitonto
. René, whose possession included now only part of the Abruzzi and Naples, obtained 10,000 men from the pope, but the cardinal leading them signed a truce with Alfonso. Giovanni Sforza came with a reduced corps, as troops sent by Eugene IV had halted his father Francesco in the Marche
.
Alfonso, who was provided with the most impressive artillery of the time, again besieged Naples. The siege began on 10 November 1441, and ended on 2 June of the following year. After the return of René to Provence, Alfonso easily reduced the remaining resistance and made his triumphal entrance in Naples on 26 February 1443, as the monarch of a pacified kingdom. In 1446 he conquered also Sardinia.
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Alfonso, by formally submitting his reign to the Papacy, obtained the consent of Pope Eugene IV that the Kingdom of Naples would go to his immature son Ferdinand
. He died in Castel dell'Ovo
in 1458, while he was planning the conquest of Genoa
. At the time, Alfonso was at odds with Callixtus III
, who died shortly thereafter.
His Spanish possessions were ruled for him by his brother John, later king John II of Aragon
. Sicily and Sardinia
were inherited by his brother John, who survived him.
He was also a powerful and consistent supporter of Scanderbeg, whom he decided to take under his protection as a vassal in 1451, shortly after the latter had scored his second victory against Murad II
. In addition to financial assistance, he supplied the Albania
n leader with troops, military equipment, and sanctuary for himself and his family if such a need should arise. This was because in 1448, while Scanderbeg was victoriously fighting off the Turkish invasions, three military columns, commanded by Demetrio Reres along with his sons Giorgio and Basilio, were dispatched to help Alfonso V defeat the barons of Naples who had rebelled against him.
(1401–1458; sister of John II of Castile
) in Valladolid
in 1408; the marriage was celebrated in Valencia
on 12 June 1415. They failed to produce children. Alfonso had been in love with a woman of noble family named Lucrezia d'Alagno
, who served as a de facto queen at the Neapolitan court as well as an inspiring muse
.
Genealogical trackings indicate however that the royal talamus of Aragon stranged king Alfonso V was occupied many times by Giraldona Carlino, the mother of :
under Giovanni Pontano and, for his entrance in the city in 1443, had a magnificent triumphal arch added to the main gate of Castel Nuovo
. This edifice, considered the most important civil piece of art of the time, was designed by Francesco Laurana
. His devotion to the classics
was exceptional even for the time.
For example, Alfonso halted his army in pious respect before the birthplace of a Latin writer, carried Livy
or Caesar
on his campaigns with him, and his panegyrist Panormita even stated that the king was cured of an illness when a few pages of Quintus Curtius Rufus
' history of Alexander the Great were read to him. However, the classics had not refined his taste, for he was amused by setting itinerant scholars, who swarmed to his court, to abuse one another in the indescribably filthy Latin scolding matches which were then the fashion.
After his conquest of Naples in 1442, Alfonso ruled by his mercenary soldiers and mercenary men of letters. In his Italian kingdom, he maintained the former political and administrative institutions.
A unified General Chancellorship for the whole Aragonese reign was set in Naples
, although the main functionaries were of Aragonese nationality. Apart from financial, administrative and artistical improvements, his other accomplishments in the Sicilian kingdom include the restoration of the aqueducts, the drainage of marshy areas, and the pavement of streets.
. In 1428, he received a letter from Yeshaq I of Ethiopia
, borne by two dignitaries, which proposed an alliance against the Muslim
s and would be sealed by a dual marriage that would require the Infante Don Pedro to bring a group of artisans to Ethiopia where he would marry Yeshaq's daughter.
In return, Alfonso sent a party of 13 craftsmen, all of whom perished on the way to Ethiopia. He later sent a letter to Yeshaq's successor Zara Yaqob
in 1450, in which he wrote that he would be happy to send artisans to Ethiopia if their safe arrival could be guaranteed, but it probably never reached the Emperor.
Order of the Garter
The Most Noble Order of the Garter, founded in 1348, is the highest order of chivalry, or knighthood, existing in England. The order is dedicated to the image and arms of St...
(also Alphonso; ; 1396 – 27 June 1458) was the King of Aragon (as Alfonso V), Valencia (as Alfonso III), Majorca
Kingdom of Majorca
The Kingdom of Majorca was founded by James I of Aragon, also known as James The Conqueror. After the death of his first-born son Alfonso, a will was written in 1262 which created the kingdom in order to cede it to his son James...
, Sardinia and Corsica
Kingdom of Sardinia
The Kingdom of Sardinia consisted of the island of Sardinia first as a part of the Crown of Aragon and subsequently the Spanish Empire , and second as a part of the composite state of the House of Savoy . Its capital was originally Cagliari, in the south of the island, and later Turin, on the...
(as Alfonso II), and Sicily
Kingdom of Sicily
The Kingdom of Sicily was a state that existed in the south of Italy from its founding by Roger II in 1130 until 1816. It was a successor state of the County of Sicily, which had been founded in 1071 during the Norman conquest of southern Italy...
and Count of Barcelona (as Alfonso IV) from 1416 and King of Naples (as Alfonso I) from 1442 until his death. He was one of the most prominent figures of the early Renaissance
Renaissance
The Renaissance was a cultural movement that spanned roughly the 14th to the 17th century, beginning in Italy in the Late Middle Ages and later spreading to the rest of Europe. The term is also used more loosely to refer to the historical era, but since the changes of the Renaissance were not...
and a knight of the Order of the Dragon
Order of the Dragon
The Order of the Dragon was a monarchical chivalric order for selected nobility,founded in 1408 by Sigismund, King of Hungary and later Holy Roman Emperor The Order of the Dragon (Latin Societas Draconistrarum) was a monarchical chivalric order for selected nobility,founded in 1408 by Sigismund,...
.
Biography
Born at Medina del CampoMedina del Campo
Medina del Campo is a town located in the middle of the Spanish Meseta Central, in the province of Valladolid, Castile-Leon autonomous region, 45 km from Valladolid. It is the capital of a farming area, far away from the great economic centres.-History:...
, he was the son of Ferdinand I of Aragon
Ferdinand I of Aragon
Ferdinand I called of Antequera and also the Just or the Honest) was king of Aragon, Valencia, Majorca, Sardinia and Corsica and king of Sicily, duke of Athens and Neopatria, and count of Barcelona, Roussillon and Cerdanya...
(known as Ferdinand of Antequera) and Eleanor of Alburquerque
Eleanor of Alburquerque
Eleanor, 2nd Countess of Alburquerque became Queen consort of Aragon by her marriage to Ferdinand I of Aragon. In Spanish, she is known as Leonor Urraca de Castilla, condesa de Alburquerque.- Family :...
. He represented the old line of the counts of Barcelona
Barcelona
Barcelona is the second largest city in Spain after Madrid, and the capital of Catalonia, with a population of 1,621,537 within its administrative limits on a land area of...
only through women, and was on his father's side descended from the House of Trastamara, a noble family of Castile
Castile (historical region)
A former kingdom, Castile gradually merged with its neighbours to become the Crown of Castile and later the Kingdom of Spain when united with the Crown of Aragon and the Kingdom of Navarre...
. By hereditary right he was king of Sicily
Sicily
Sicily is a region of Italy, and is the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. Along with the surrounding minor islands, it constitutes an autonomous region of Italy, the Regione Autonoma Siciliana Sicily has a rich and unique culture, especially with regard to the arts, music, literature,...
and disputed the island of Sardinia
Sardinia
Sardinia is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea . It is an autonomous region of Italy, and the nearest land masses are the French island of Corsica, the Italian Peninsula, Sicily, Tunisia and the Spanish Balearic Islands.The name Sardinia is from the pre-Roman noun *sard[],...
with Genoa
Genoa
Genoa |Ligurian]] Zena ; Latin and, archaically, English Genua) is a city and an important seaport in northern Italy, the capital of the Province of Genoa and of the region of Liguria....
. Alfonso was also in possession of much of Corsica
Corsica
Corsica is an island in the Mediterranean Sea. It is located west of Italy, southeast of the French mainland, and north of the island of Sardinia....
by the 1420s.
In 1421 Queen Joan II of Naples
Joan II of Naples
Joan II was Queen of Naples from 1414 to her death, upon which the senior Angevin line of Naples became extinct. As a mere formality, she used the title of Queen of Jerusalem, Sicily, and Hungary....
, who had no children, adopted and named him as heir to the Kingdom of Naples
Kingdom of Naples
The Kingdom of Naples, comprising the southern part of the Italian peninsula, was the remainder of the old Kingdom of Sicily after secession of the island of Sicily as a result of the Sicilian Vespers rebellion of 1282. Known to contemporaries as the Kingdom of Sicily, it is dubbed Kingdom of...
, and Alfonso went to Naples
Naples
Naples is a city in Southern Italy, situated on the country's west coast by the Gulf of Naples. Lying between two notable volcanic regions, Mount Vesuvius and the Phlegraean Fields, it is the capital of the region of Campania and of the province of Naples...
. Here he hired the famous condottiero Braccio da Montone
Braccio da Montone
frame|Braccio da Montone.Braccio da Montone , born Andrea Fortebracci, and also known as Braccio Fortebraccio, was an Italian condottiero.-Biography:...
with the task of reducing the resistance of the other pretender, Louis III of Anjou, and his forces led by Muzio Attendolo Sforza. As Pope Martin V supported Sforza, Alfonso switched religious allegiance to the Aragonese antipope Benedict XIII
Antipope Benedict XIII
Benedict XIII, born Pedro Martínez de Luna y Pérez de Gotor , known as in Spanish, was an Aragonese nobleman, who is officially considered by the Catholic Church to be an antipope....
. When Sforza also abandoned Louis, Alfonso seemed to have all his problems solved; however, his relationship with Joan suddenly worsened, and in May 1423 he had her lover, and a powerful figure in the Neapolitan court, Gianni Caracciolo, arrested.
After an attempt to arrest the queen herself failed, Joan called Sforza who defeated the Aragonese milices near Castel Capuano
Castel Capuano
Castel Capuano is a castle in Naples, southern Italy. It takes its name from the fact that it was at that point in the city walls where the road led out to the city of Capua...
in Naples. Alfonso fled to Castel Nuovo, but the help of a fleet of 22 galleys led by Giovanni da Cardona improved his situation. Sforza and Joan ransomed Caracciolo and retreated to the fortress of Aversa
Aversa
Aversa is a town and comune in the Province of Caserta in Campania southern Italy, about 15 kilometres north of Naples. It is the centre of an agricultural district, the agro aversano, producing wine and cheese...
. Here she repudiated her earlier adoption of Alfonso and, with support from Martin V, named Louis III as her heir instead.
The Milanese Filippo Maria Visconti
Filippo Maria Visconti
Filippo Maria Visconti was ruler of Milan from 1412 to 1447.-Biography:Filippo Maria Visconti, who had become nominal ruler of Pavia in 1402, succeeded his assassinated brother Gian Maria Visconti as Duke of Milan in 1412. They were the sons of Gian Galeazzo Visconti, Gian Maria's predecessor, by...
joined the anti-Aragonese coalition. Alfonso requested support from Braccio da Montone, who was besieging Joan's troops in L'Aquila
L'Aquila
L'Aquila is a city and comune in central Italy, both the capital city of the Abruzzo region and of the Province of L'Aquila. , it has a population of 73,150 inhabitants, but has a daily presence in the territory of 100,000 people for study, tertiary activities, jobs and tourism...
, but had to set sail for Spain, where a war had broken out between his brothers and the Kingdom of Castile
Kingdom of Castile
Kingdom of Castile was one of the medieval kingdoms of the Iberian Peninsula. It emerged as a political autonomous entity in the 9th century. It was called County of Castile and was held in vassalage from the Kingdom of León. Its name comes from the host of castles constructed in the region...
. On his way towards Barcelona, he destroyed Marseille
Marseille
Marseille , known in antiquity as Massalia , is the second largest city in France, after Paris, with a population of 852,395 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Marseille extends beyond the city limits with a population of over 1,420,000 on an area of...
, a possession of Louis III.
Tyrrhenian Sea
The Tyrrhenian Sea is part of the Mediterranean Sea off the western coast of Italy.-Geography:The sea is bounded by Corsica and Sardinia , Tuscany, Lazio, Campania, Basilicata and Calabria and Sicily ....
and easily conquered Gaeta
Gaeta
Gaeta is a city and comune in the province of Latina, in Lazio, central Italy. Set on a promontory stretching towards the Gulf of Gaeta, it is 120 km from Rome and 80 km from Naples....
, Procida
Procida
Procida is one of the Flegrean Islands off the coast of Naples in southern Italy. The island is between Cape Miseno and the island of Ischia. With its tiny satellite island of Vivara, it is a comune of the province of Naples, in the region of Campania. The population is about ten...
, Castellammare
Castellammare di Stabia
Castellammare di Stabia is a comune in the province of Naples, Campania region, southern Italy. It is situated on the Bay of Naples about 30 kilometers southeast of Naples, on the route to Sorrento.-History:...
and Sorrento
Sorrento
Sorrento is the name of many cities and towns:*Sorrento, Italy*Sorrento, Florida, United States*Sorrento, Louisiana, United States*Sorrento, Maine, United States*Sorrento, Victoria, a township on the Mornington Peninsula, Victoria, Australia...
. Naples, which was held by Alfonso's brother, Pedro de Aragon, was besieged in 1424 by the Genoese ships and Joan's troops, now led by Francesco Sforza, son of Muzio (who had died at L'Aquila). The city fell in the April of that year. Pedro, after a short resistance in Castel Nuovo, fled to Sicily
Sicily
Sicily is a region of Italy, and is the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. Along with the surrounding minor islands, it constitutes an autonomous region of Italy, the Regione Autonoma Siciliana Sicily has a rich and unique culture, especially with regard to the arts, music, literature,...
in August. Joan II and Louis III again took possession of the realm, although the true power was in the hands of Gianni Caracciolo.
An opportunity for Alfonso to reconquer Naples occurred in 1432, when Caracciolo was killed in a conjure. Alfonso tried to regain the favour of the queen, but failed, and had to wait for the death of both Louis (at Cosenza in 1434) and Joan herself (February 1435). In her will, she bequeathed her realm to René of Anjou
René I of Naples
René of Anjou , also known as René I of Naples and Good King René , was Duke of Anjou, Count of Provence , Count of Piedmont, Duke of Bar , Duke of Lorraine , King of Naples , titular King of Jerusalem...
, Louis III's brother. This solution was opposed by the new pope, Eugene IV, who was nominal feudal lord of the King of Naples. As the Neapolitans had called for the French, Alfonso decided to intervene and, with the support of several barons of the kingdom, captured Capua
Capua
Capua is a city and comune in the province of Caserta, Campania, southern Italy, situated 25 km north of Naples, on the northeastern edge of the Campanian plain. Ancient Capua was situated where Santa Maria Capua Vetere is now...
and besieged the important sea fortress of Gaeta. His fleet of 25 galleys was met by the Genoese ships sent by Visconti, led by Biagio Assereto
Biagio Assereto
Biagio Assereto was an Italian admiral at the service of the Republic of Genoa.-Biography:He was born at Recco, the son of a smith. He was noticed by Francesco Spinola, lord of the city, who took him as a page. In 1423 he moved to Genoa starting a military career...
. In the battle
Battle of Ponza (1435)
The naval battle of Ponza took place on August 5, 1435. The battle resulted in the Genoese defeating and capturing Alfonso V of Aragon, his brother John II of Aragon, and all the nobles of Aragon Another of Alfonso's brothers, Pedro, managed to escape....
that ensued, Alfonso was defeated and taken prisoner.
In Milan, however, he impressed his captor with his cultured demeanor and persuaded him to let him go by making it plain that it was not in Milan's interest to prevent the victory of the Aragonese party in Naples. Helped by a Sicilian fleet, Alfonso recaptured Capua and set his base in Gaeta in the February of 1436. Papal troops had invaded the Neapolitan kingdom, but Alfonso corrupted the cardinal Giovanni Vitelleschi
Giovanni Vitelleschi
Giovanni Maria Vitelleschi was an Italian cardinal and condottiere.-Biography:Vitelleschi was born in Corneto , some kilometers north to Rome. He received a military education, which he refined as apostolic protonotary under Pope Martin V...
, who commanded them, and his successes waned.
In the meantime, René had managed to reach Naples on 19 May 1438. Alfonso tried to besiege the city in the following September, but failed. His brother Pedro was killed during the battle. Castel Nuovo, where an Aragonese garrison resisted, fell to the Angevine mercenaries in the August of 1439. After the death of his condottiero Jacopo Caldora
Jacopo Caldora
-Biography:Caldora was born in Castel del Giudice , into a feudatory family. He began his military career under Braccio da Montone, and, returned to his lands, expanded them by hiring mercenaries from the surrounding mountains...
, however, René's fortune started to wane: Alfonso could easily capture Aversa
Aversa
Aversa is a town and comune in the Province of Caserta in Campania southern Italy, about 15 kilometres north of Naples. It is the centre of an agricultural district, the agro aversano, producing wine and cheese...
, Salerno
Salerno
Salerno is a city and comune in Campania and is the capital of the province of the same name. It is located on the Gulf of Salerno on the Tyrrhenian Sea....
, Benevento
Benevento
Benevento is a town and comune of Campania, Italy, capital of the province of Benevento, 50 km northeast of Naples. It is situated on a hill 130 m above sea-level at the confluence of the Calore Irpino and Sabato...
, Manfredonia
Manfredonia
Manfredonia is a town and comune of Puglia, Italy, in the province of Foggia, from which it is 35 kilometres northeast by rail. Manfredonia is situated on the coast, facing east, to the south of Monte Gargano, and giving its name to the gulf to the east of it...
and Bitonto
Bitonto
Bitonto is a city and comune in the province of Bari , Italy. It is nicknamed the "City of Olives" due to the numerous olive groves surrounding the city.-Geography:...
. René, whose possession included now only part of the Abruzzi and Naples, obtained 10,000 men from the pope, but the cardinal leading them signed a truce with Alfonso. Giovanni Sforza came with a reduced corps, as troops sent by Eugene IV had halted his father Francesco in the Marche
Marche
The population density in the region is below the national average. In 2008, it was 161.5 inhabitants per km2, compared to the national figure of 198.8. It is highest in the province of Ancona , and lowest in the province of Macerata...
.
Alfonso, who was provided with the most impressive artillery of the time, again besieged Naples. The siege began on 10 November 1441, and ended on 2 June of the following year. After the return of René to Provence, Alfonso easily reduced the remaining resistance and made his triumphal entrance in Naples on 26 February 1443, as the monarch of a pacified kingdom. In 1446 he conquered also Sardinia.
Ferdinand I of Naples
Ferdinand I , also called Don Ferrante, was the King of Naples from 1458 to 1494. He was the natural son of Alfonso V of Aragon by Giraldona Carlino.-Biography:...
. He died in Castel dell'Ovo
Castel dell'Ovo
Castel dell'Ovo is a castle located on the former island of Megaride, now a peninsula, on the gulf of Naples...
in 1458, while he was planning the conquest of Genoa
Genoa
Genoa |Ligurian]] Zena ; Latin and, archaically, English Genua) is a city and an important seaport in northern Italy, the capital of the Province of Genoa and of the region of Liguria....
. At the time, Alfonso was at odds with Callixtus III
Pope Callixtus III
Pope Callixtus III , né Alfons de Borja, was Pope from April 8, 1455 to his death in 1458.-Biography:...
, who died shortly thereafter.
His Spanish possessions were ruled for him by his brother John, later king John II of Aragon
John II of Aragon
John II the Faithless, also known as the Great was the King of Aragon from 1458 until 1479, and jure uxoris King of Navarre from 1425 until his death. He was the son of Ferdinand I and his wife Eleanor of Alburquerque...
. Sicily and Sardinia
Sardinia
Sardinia is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea . It is an autonomous region of Italy, and the nearest land masses are the French island of Corsica, the Italian Peninsula, Sicily, Tunisia and the Spanish Balearic Islands.The name Sardinia is from the pre-Roman noun *sard[],...
were inherited by his brother John, who survived him.
He was also a powerful and consistent supporter of Scanderbeg, whom he decided to take under his protection as a vassal in 1451, shortly after the latter had scored his second victory against Murad II
Murad II
Murad II Kodja was the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1421 to 1451 ....
. In addition to financial assistance, he supplied the Albania
Albania
Albania , officially known as the Republic of Albania , is a country in Southeastern Europe, in the Balkans region. It is bordered by Montenegro to the northwest, Kosovo to the northeast, the Republic of Macedonia to the east and Greece to the south and southeast. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea...
n leader with troops, military equipment, and sanctuary for himself and his family if such a need should arise. This was because in 1448, while Scanderbeg was victoriously fighting off the Turkish invasions, three military columns, commanded by Demetrio Reres along with his sons Giorgio and Basilio, were dispatched to help Alfonso V defeat the barons of Naples who had rebelled against him.
Family
Alfonso had been betrothed to Maria of CastileMaria of Castile
Maria of Castile was Queen consort of Aragon and Naples as the spouse of Alfonso V of Aragon. Maria acted as the regent of Aragon during the reign of her spouse, as he was absent during most of his reign; her regencies lasted between 1420 and 1423 and between 1432 and 1458...
(1401–1458; sister of John II of Castile
John II of Castile
John II was King of Castile from 1406 to 1454.He was the son of Henry III of Castile and his wife Catherine of Lancaster, daughter of John of Gaunt, 1st Duke of Lancaster by Constance of Castile, daughter of King Peter of Castile.-Regency:He succeeded his father on 25 December 1406, at the age of...
) in Valladolid
Valladolid
Valladolid is a historic city and municipality in north-central Spain, situated at the confluence of the Pisuerga and Esgueva rivers, and located within three wine-making regions: Ribera del Duero, Rueda and Cigales...
in 1408; the marriage was celebrated in Valencia
Valencia (city in Spain)
Valencia or València is the capital and most populous city of the autonomous community of Valencia and the third largest city in Spain, with a population of 809,267 in 2010. It is the 15th-most populous municipality in the European Union...
on 12 June 1415. They failed to produce children. Alfonso had been in love with a woman of noble family named Lucrezia d'Alagno
Lucrezia d'Alagno
Lucrezia d'Alagno was a woman of noble birth with whom King Alphonso V of Naples had fallen in love in 1448. Lucrezia was daughter of Nicholas d'Alagno and Covella Toraldo. Her father, of Amalfitan origin, was lord of Torre Annunziata.Alfonso gave Lucrezia and her family lands, titles, and wealth...
, who served as a de facto queen at the Neapolitan court as well as an inspiring muse
Muse
The Muses in Greek mythology, poetry, and literature, are the goddesses who inspire the creation of literature and the arts. They were considered the source of the knowledge, related orally for centuries in the ancient culture, that was contained in poetic lyrics and myths...
.
Genealogical trackings indicate however that the royal talamus of Aragon stranged king Alfonso V was occupied many times by Giraldona Carlino, the mother of :
- his successor in Naples, bastard born king Ferdinand I of NaplesFerdinand I of NaplesFerdinand I , also called Don Ferrante, was the King of Naples from 1458 to 1494. He was the natural son of Alfonso V of Aragon by Giraldona Carlino.-Biography:...
, (1423 - king 1458 - 1494). - Maria d'Aragona (died 1449, aged around 15 or 16). She had married in 1444 Leonello d'Este, deceased 1450.
- Leonora d'Aragona, who married circa 1443, Mariano Marzano, Duke of Squillace, Prince of Rossano.
Art and administration
Like a true prince of the Renaissance he favoured men of letters whom he trusted to preserve his reputation to posterity. He founded the Academy of NaplesNaples
Naples is a city in Southern Italy, situated on the country's west coast by the Gulf of Naples. Lying between two notable volcanic regions, Mount Vesuvius and the Phlegraean Fields, it is the capital of the region of Campania and of the province of Naples...
under Giovanni Pontano and, for his entrance in the city in 1443, had a magnificent triumphal arch added to the main gate of Castel Nuovo
Castel Nuovo
Castel Nuovo , often called Maschio Angioino, is a medieval castle in the city of Naples, southern Italy. It is the main symbol of the architecture of the city...
. This edifice, considered the most important civil piece of art of the time, was designed by Francesco Laurana
Francesco Laurana
Francesco Laurana, also known as Francesco de la Vrana was a Dalmatian-born sculptor and medallist. He is considered as both Croatian and Italian sculptor.-Life and works:...
. His devotion to the classics
Classics
Classics is the branch of the Humanities comprising the languages, literature, philosophy, history, art, archaeology and other culture of the ancient Mediterranean world ; especially Ancient Greece and Ancient Rome during Classical Antiquity Classics (sometimes encompassing Classical Studies or...
was exceptional even for the time.
For example, Alfonso halted his army in pious respect before the birthplace of a Latin writer, carried Livy
Livy
Titus Livius — known as Livy in English — was a Roman historian who wrote a monumental history of Rome and the Roman people. Ab Urbe Condita Libri, "Chapters from the Foundation of the City," covering the period from the earliest legends of Rome well before the traditional foundation in 753 BC...
or Caesar
Julius Caesar
Gaius Julius Caesar was a Roman general and statesman and a distinguished writer of Latin prose. He played a critical role in the gradual transformation of the Roman Republic into the Roman Empire....
on his campaigns with him, and his panegyrist Panormita even stated that the king was cured of an illness when a few pages of Quintus Curtius Rufus
Quintus Curtius Rufus
Quintus Curtius Rufus was a Roman historian, writing probably during the reign of the Emperor Claudius or Vespasian. His only surviving work, Historiae Alexandri Magni, is a biography of Alexander the Great in Latin in ten books, of which the first two are lost, and the remaining eight are...
' history of Alexander the Great were read to him. However, the classics had not refined his taste, for he was amused by setting itinerant scholars, who swarmed to his court, to abuse one another in the indescribably filthy Latin scolding matches which were then the fashion.
A unified General Chancellorship for the whole Aragonese reign was set in Naples
Naples
Naples is a city in Southern Italy, situated on the country's west coast by the Gulf of Naples. Lying between two notable volcanic regions, Mount Vesuvius and the Phlegraean Fields, it is the capital of the region of Campania and of the province of Naples...
, although the main functionaries were of Aragonese nationality. Apart from financial, administrative and artistical improvements, his other accomplishments in the Sicilian kingdom include the restoration of the aqueducts, the drainage of marshy areas, and the pavement of streets.
Connection with Ethiopia
Alfonso was the object of diplomatic contacts from the empire of EthiopiaEthiopia
Ethiopia , officially known as the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. It is the second-most populous nation in Africa, with over 82 million inhabitants, and the tenth-largest by area, occupying 1,100,000 km2...
. In 1428, he received a letter from Yeshaq I of Ethiopia
Yeshaq I of Ethiopia
Yeshaq I or Isaac was of Ethiopia. A member of the Solomonic dynasty, he was the second son of Dawit I.-History:Yeshaq's reign was marked by a revolt of the Beta Israel...
, borne by two dignitaries, which proposed an alliance against the Muslim
Muslim
A Muslim, also spelled Moslem, is an adherent of Islam, a monotheistic, Abrahamic religion based on the Quran, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God as revealed to prophet Muhammad. "Muslim" is the Arabic term for "submitter" .Muslims believe that God is one and incomparable...
s and would be sealed by a dual marriage that would require the Infante Don Pedro to bring a group of artisans to Ethiopia where he would marry Yeshaq's daughter.
In return, Alfonso sent a party of 13 craftsmen, all of whom perished on the way to Ethiopia. He later sent a letter to Yeshaq's successor Zara Yaqob
Zara Yaqob
Zar'a Ya`qob or Zera Yacob was of Ethiopia , and a member of the Solomonic dynasty...
in 1450, in which he wrote that he would be happy to send artisans to Ethiopia if their safe arrival could be guaranteed, but it probably never reached the Emperor.