John I of Castile
Encyclopedia
John I (24 August 1358 – 9 October 1390) was the king of Crown of Castile
, was the son of Henry II and of his wife Juana Manuel of Castile
, daughter of Juan Manuel, Prince of Villena, head of a younger branch of the royal house of Castile. He was the last Spanish monarch to receive a formal coronation
.
His first marriage, with Eleanor of Aragon on June 18, 1375, produced most of his issue, including the future Kings Henry III of Castile
and Ferdinand I of Aragon
.
He ransomed Leon VI, the last reigning king of Armenia, from the Mamluks and out of pity granted him the lifetime lordship of Madrid
, Villa Real
and Andújar
in 1383.
He had engaged in hostilities with Portugal
. His first quarrel with Portugal was settled in 1382, and later, on May 14, 1383, he married with Beatrice of Portugal
, daughter of King Ferdinand I of Portugal
. On the death of his father-in-law (October 22, 1383), John endeavoured to enforce the claims of his wife, Ferdinand's only child, to the crown of Portugal. The 1383-1385 Crisis, a period of civil unrest and anarchy in Portugal, followed. He was resisted by supporters of the rival for the throne John I of Portugal
, and was utterly defeated at the battle of Aljubarrota
, on August 14, 1385.
He also had to contend with the hostility of John of Gaunt, 1st Duke of Lancaster
, who claimed the crown of Castile by right of his wife Constance
, the eldest daughter of Peter of Castile. The king of Castile finally bought off the claim of his English competitor by arranging a marriage between his son Henry
and Catherine
, daughter of Constance and John of Gaunt, in 1387.
King John was killed at Alcalá
on October 9, 1390 when he fell off his horse, while he was riding in a fantasia with some of the light horsemen known as the farfanes, who were mounted and equipped in the Arab style. His tomb is in the Chapel of the New Monarchs of the Cathedral of Toledo
in Spain.
Crown of Castile
The Crown of Castile was a medieval and modern state in the Iberian Peninsula that formed in 1230 as a result of the third and definitive union of the crowns and parliaments of the kingdoms of Castile and León upon the accession of the then King Ferdinand III of Castile to the vacant Leonese throne...
, was the son of Henry II and of his wife Juana Manuel of Castile
Juana Manuel of Castile
Juana Manuel was from 1369 the Queen consort of Castile. She also was the heiress of Escalona, Villena, Peñafiel and Lara as well as the sovereign lady of Biscay .- Family :...
, daughter of Juan Manuel, Prince of Villena, head of a younger branch of the royal house of Castile. He was the last Spanish monarch to receive a formal coronation
Coronation
A coronation is a ceremony marking the formal investiture of a monarch and/or their consort with regal power, usually involving the placement of a crown upon their head and the presentation of other items of regalia...
.
His first marriage, with Eleanor of Aragon on June 18, 1375, produced most of his issue, including the future Kings Henry III of Castile
Henry III of Castile
Henry III KG , sometimes known as Henry the Sufferer or Henry the Infirm , was the son of John I and Eleanor of Aragon, and succeeded him as King of the Castilian Crown in 1390....
and 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...
.
He ransomed Leon VI, the last reigning king of Armenia, from the Mamluks and out of pity granted him the lifetime lordship of Madrid
History of Madrid
Although the site of modern-day Madrid has been occupied since prehistoric times, and there are archeological remains of a small Visigoth village near the modern location, the first historical data from the city comes from the 9th century, when Muhammad I of Córdoba ordered the construction of a...
, Villa Real
Ciudad Real
Ciudad Real is a city in Castile-La Mancha, Spain, with a population of c. 74,000. It is the capital of the province of Ciudad Real. It has a stop on the AVE high-speed rail line and has begun to grow as a long-distance commuter suburb of Madrid, located 115 miles to the north. A high capacity...
and Andújar
Andújar
Andújar is a Spanish municipality of 38,539 people in the province of Jaén, in Andalusia. The municipality is divided by the Guadalquivir River. The northern part of the municipality is where the Natural Park of the Sierra de Andújar is situated. To the south are agricultural fields and...
in 1383.
He had engaged in hostilities with Portugal
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
. His first quarrel with Portugal was settled in 1382, and later, on May 14, 1383, he married with Beatrice of Portugal
Beatrice of Portugal
Beatrice was the only surviving child of King Ferdinand I of Portugal and his wife, Leonor Telles de Menezes. She married King John I of Castile. In the absence of a male heir, she claimed the throne of Portugal, supported by her husband. This led to the 1383–1385 Crisis, in which the Portuguese...
, daughter of King Ferdinand I of Portugal
Ferdinand I of Portugal
Ferdinand I , sometimes referred to as the Handsome or rarely as the Inconstant , was the ninth King of Portugal and the Algarve, the second son of Peter I and his wife, Constance of Castile...
. On the death of his father-in-law (October 22, 1383), John endeavoured to enforce the claims of his wife, Ferdinand's only child, to the crown of Portugal. The 1383-1385 Crisis, a period of civil unrest and anarchy in Portugal, followed. He was resisted by supporters of the rival for the throne John I of Portugal
John I of Portugal
John I KG , called the Good or of Happy Memory, more rarely and outside Portugal the Bastard, was the tenth King of Portugal and the Algarve and the first to use the title Lord of Ceuta...
, and was utterly defeated at the battle of Aljubarrota
Battle of Aljubarrota
The Battle of Aljubarrota was a battle fought between the Kingdom of Portugal and the Crown of Castile on 14 August 1385. Forces commanded by King John I of Portugal and his general Nuno Álvares Pereira, with the support of English allies, opposed the army of King John I of Castile with its...
, on August 14, 1385.
He also had to contend with the hostility of John of Gaunt, 1st Duke of Lancaster
John of Gaunt, 1st Duke of Lancaster
John of Gaunt, 1st Duke of Lancaster , KG was a member of the House of Plantagenet, the third surviving son of King Edward III of England and Philippa of Hainault...
, who claimed the crown of Castile by right of his wife Constance
Constance of Castile (1354-1394)
Constance of Castile was claimant of the Castilian throne after the death of her father Peter the Cruel, her mother being María de Padilla, whom Peter had secretly married but was then forced to repudiate, only to keep her as a mistress...
, the eldest daughter of Peter of Castile. The king of Castile finally bought off the claim of his English competitor by arranging a marriage between his son Henry
Henry III of Castile
Henry III KG , sometimes known as Henry the Sufferer or Henry the Infirm , was the son of John I and Eleanor of Aragon, and succeeded him as King of the Castilian Crown in 1390....
and Catherine
Catherine of Lancaster
-Coat of arms:The following are Armorials of the House of Lancaster under her father, John of Gaunt.-References:* Anthony Goodman: "Katherine of Lancaster" in Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. Vol. 30 , p. 890-891....
, daughter of Constance and John of Gaunt, in 1387.
King John was killed at Alcalá
Alcalá de Henares
Alcalá de Henares , meaning Citadel on the river Henares, is a Spanish city, whose historical centre is one of UNESCO's World Heritage Sites, and one of the first bishoprics founded in Spain...
on October 9, 1390 when he fell off his horse, while he was riding in a fantasia with some of the light horsemen known as the farfanes, who were mounted and equipped in the Arab style. His tomb is in the Chapel of the New Monarchs of the Cathedral of Toledo
Cathedral of Toledo
The Primate Cathedral of Saint Mary of Toledo is a Roman Catholic cathedral in Toledo, Spain, seat of the Metropolitan Archdiocese of Toledo....
in Spain.