Sancho IV of Castile
Encyclopedia
Sancho IV the Brave was the King of Castile
, León
and Galicia
from 1284 to his death. He was the second son of Alfonso X
and Yolanda
, daughter of James I of Aragon
.
, died in November 1275, and in 1282 Sancho assembled a coalition of nobles to declare for him against Ferdinand's son Alfonso, then took control of the kingdom when Alfonso X died in 1284. This was all against the wishes of their father, but Sancho was crowned in Toledo
nevertheless.
Sancho was recognised and supported by the majority of the nobility and the cities, but a sizable minority opposed him throughout his reign and worked for the heirs of Ferdinand de la Cerda. One of the leaders of the opposition was his uncle John, who united to his cause the lord of Biscay, Lope Díaz III de Haro. Sancho responded by executing the Lord of Biscay and incarcerating his uncle. According to the chroniclers, he cemented his hold on power by executing 4,000 other followers of Infante Alfonso, son of Ferdinand de la Cerda, in Badajoz
. He executed 400 more in Talavera
and more in Ávila and Toledo.
Upon dispensing with this opposition, Sancho pardoned his uncle, who was released. John bided his time before fomenting revolt again: the conflict over Tarifa
. He called in the aid of the Marinid
s of Morocco
and besieged Guzmán the Good
in his castle (1291). At this siege occurred that famous act of heroism, the innocent death of the son of Guzmán. Tarifa was faithfully defended until Sancho could rescue it and the Marinids retreated to Morocco. The intent of both John and the King of Morocco (to invade) was foiled.
When James II
succeeded to the Crown of Aragon
, he endeavoured to bind the two crowns more closely and to unite in the Reconquista
. Indeed, both of James' predecessors had tried to do likewise. Sancho was also the friend and tutor of Juan Manuel, Lord of Villena
.
Just before succumbing to a fatal illness, he appointed his queen, María de Molina
, to act as regent for his nine year-old son, Ferdinand IV
. He died in 1295 in Toledo
.
in 1282 and they had the following children:
He had three illegitimate children before his marriage.
by an unknown woman:
by Doña María Alfonso Téllez de Menezes (d. Toro
), wife of Juan García, señor de Usero:
by María Pérez:
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...
, León
Kingdom of León
The Kingdom of León was an independent kingdom situated in the northwest region of the Iberian Peninsula. It was founded in AD 910 when the Christian princes of Asturias along the northern coast of the peninsula shifted their capital from Oviedo to the city of León...
and Galicia
Kingdom of Galicia
The Kingdom of Galicia was a political entity located in southwestern Europe, which at its territorial zenith occupied the entire northwest of the Iberian Peninsula. Founded by Suebic king Hermeric in the year 409, the Galician capital was established in Braga, being the first kingdom which...
from 1284 to his death. He was the second son of Alfonso X
Alfonso X of Castile
Alfonso X was a Castilian monarch who ruled as the King of Castile, León and Galicia from 1252 until his death...
and Yolanda
Violant of Aragon
Violant or Violante of Aragon, also known as Yolanda of Aragon , was Queen consort of Castile and León from 1252 to 1284 as the wife of King Alfonso X.- Life :...
, daughter of James I of Aragon
James I of Aragon
James I the Conqueror was the King of Aragon, Count of Barcelona, and Lord of Montpellier from 1213 to 1276...
.
Biography
His elder brother, Ferdinand de la CerdaFerdinand de la Cerda, Infante of Castile
Don Ferdinand de la Cerda was the Crown Prince of Castile, eldest son of King Alfonso X of Castile and Violant of Aragon. His nickname, de la Cerda, means "of the bristle" in Spanish, a reference to being born with a strand of thick hair running down his chest.In November 1268 he married Princess...
, died in November 1275, and in 1282 Sancho assembled a coalition of nobles to declare for him against Ferdinand's son Alfonso, then took control of the kingdom when Alfonso X died in 1284. This was all against the wishes of their father, but Sancho was crowned in Toledo
Toledo, Spain
Toledo's Alcázar became renowned in the 19th and 20th centuries as a military academy. At the outbreak of the Spanish Civil War in 1936 its garrison was famously besieged by Republican forces.-Economy:...
nevertheless.
Sancho was recognised and supported by the majority of the nobility and the cities, but a sizable minority opposed him throughout his reign and worked for the heirs of Ferdinand de la Cerda. One of the leaders of the opposition was his uncle John, who united to his cause the lord of Biscay, Lope Díaz III de Haro. Sancho responded by executing the Lord of Biscay and incarcerating his uncle. According to the chroniclers, he cemented his hold on power by executing 4,000 other followers of Infante Alfonso, son of Ferdinand de la Cerda, in Badajoz
Badajoz
Badajoz is the capital of the Province of Badajoz in the autonomous community of Extremadura, Spain, situated close to the Portuguese border, on the left bank of the river Guadiana, and the Madrid–Lisbon railway. The population in 2007 was 145,257....
. He executed 400 more in Talavera
Talavera
Talavera may refer to the following:Places* Talavera de la Reina, a city in Toledo province, Spain, where two battles took place:** Battle of Talavera, during the Peninsular War** Battle of Talavera de la Reina , during the Spanish Civil War...
and more in Ávila and Toledo.
Upon dispensing with this opposition, Sancho pardoned his uncle, who was released. John bided his time before fomenting revolt again: the conflict over Tarifa
Tarifa
Tarifa is a small town in the province of Cádiz, Andalusia, on the southernmost coast of Spain. The town is located on the Costa de la Luz and across the Straits of Gibraltar facing Morocco. The municipality includes Punta de Tarifa, the southernmost point in continental Europe. There are five...
. He called in the aid of the Marinid
Marinid
The Marinid dynasty or Benemerine dynasty was a Zenata Berber dynasty of Morocco. The Marinid dynasty overtook the Almohads in controlling Morocco in 1244. They controlled most of the Maghreb from the mid-14th century to the 15th century and supported the Kingdom of Granada in Al-Andalus in the...
s of Morocco
Morocco
Morocco , officially the Kingdom of Morocco , is a country located in North Africa. It has a population of more than 32 million and an area of 710,850 km², and also primarily administers the disputed region of the Western Sahara...
and besieged Guzmán the Good
Alonso Pérez de Guzmán El Bueno
Alonso de Guzmán , known as Guzmán el Bueno , was a Spanish nobleman, was the founder of the line which the dukes of Medina Sidonia belonged to.-Biography:...
in his castle (1291). At this siege occurred that famous act of heroism, the innocent death of the son of Guzmán. Tarifa was faithfully defended until Sancho could rescue it and the Marinids retreated to Morocco. The intent of both John and the King of Morocco (to invade) was foiled.
When James II
James II of Aragon
James II , called the Just was the King of Sicily from 1285 to 1296 and King of Aragon and Valencia and Count of Barcelona from 1291 to 1327. In 1297 he was granted the Kingdom of Sardinia and Corsica...
succeeded to the Crown of Aragon
Crown of Aragon
The Crown of Aragon Corona d'Aragón Corona d'Aragó Corona Aragonum controlling a large portion of the present-day eastern Spain and southeastern France, as well as some of the major islands and mainland possessions stretching across the Mediterranean as far as Greece...
, he endeavoured to bind the two crowns more closely and to unite in the Reconquista
Reconquista
The Reconquista was a period of almost 800 years in the Middle Ages during which several Christian kingdoms succeeded in retaking the Muslim-controlled areas of the Iberian Peninsula broadly known as Al-Andalus...
. Indeed, both of James' predecessors had tried to do likewise. Sancho was also the friend and tutor of Juan Manuel, Lord of Villena
Juan Manuel, Lord of Villena
Juan Manuel was the son of Ferdinand III of Castile and his wife Elisabeth of Hohenstaufen....
.
Just before succumbing to a fatal illness, he appointed his queen, María de Molina
María de Molina
María de Molina was the wife of Sancho IV of Castile. She was queen consort of Castile and León from 1284 to 1295 and then regent until the coming of age of her son Ferdinand IV.- Biography :...
, to act as regent for his nine year-old son, Ferdinand IV
Ferdinand IV of Castile
Ferdinand IV, El Emplazado or "the Summoned," was a king of Castile and León and Galicia...
. He died in 1295 in Toledo
Toledo, Spain
Toledo's Alcázar became renowned in the 19th and 20th centuries as a military academy. At the outbreak of the Spanish Civil War in 1936 its garrison was famously besieged by Republican forces.-Economy:...
.
Family
Sancho married Maria de MolinaMaría de Molina
María de Molina was the wife of Sancho IV of Castile. She was queen consort of Castile and León from 1284 to 1295 and then regent until the coming of age of her son Ferdinand IV.- Biography :...
in 1282 and they had the following children:
- IsabellaIsabella of Castile, Duchess of BrittanyInfanta Isabella of Castile , Viscountess of Limoges, was the first Queen consort of James II of Aragon and the second wife of John III, Duke of Brittany.-Family:...
(1283–1328). Married first James II of AragonJames II of AragonJames II , called the Just was the King of Sicily from 1285 to 1296 and King of Aragon and Valencia and Count of Barcelona from 1291 to 1327. In 1297 he was granted the Kingdom of Sardinia and Corsica...
and secondly John III, Duke of BrittanyJohn III, Duke of BrittanyJohn III the Good was duke of Brittany, from 1312 to his death. He was son of Duke Arthur II and Mary of Limoges, his first wife...
. - Ferdinand IVFerdinand IV of CastileFerdinand IV, El Emplazado or "the Summoned," was a king of Castile and León and Galicia...
(1285–1312). - Alfonso (1286–1291)
- Peter (1290–1319) married MariaMaria of Aragon (1299-1316)Maria of Aragon was a daughter of James II of Aragon and his second wife Blanche of Anjou.She married the Infante Peter of Castile , son of Sancho IV of Castile. Their daughter, Blanche of Castile , married and later divorced Peter I of Portugal. Maria died at Sijena in 1316....
daughter of James II of Aragon - Henry (1288–1299)
- Philip (1292–1327). Married his cousin Margarita de la Cerda, daughter of Alfonso de la Cerda (1270-1333)Alfonso de la Cerda (1270-1333)Alfonso de la Cerda, , called "the disinherited,, was the elder son of Ferdinand de la Cerda and his wife Blanche of France, and was a grandson of Alfonso X of Castile. Alfonso and his brother Fernando were candidates for the Castilian-Leonese crown during the reigns of Sancho IV of Castile,...
. - Beatrice (1293–1359). Married Afonso IV of PortugalAfonso IV of PortugalAfonso IV , called the Brave , was the seventh king of Portugal and the Algarve from 1325 until his death. He was the only legitimate son of King Denis of Portugal by his wife Elizabeth of Aragon.-Biography:...
.
He had three illegitimate children before his marriage.
by an unknown woman:
- Teresa Sánchez, who married Dom João Afonso de Menezes (died 5 May 1304), 1st Conde de BarcelosBarcelos, PortugalBarcelos is a city in Barcelos Municipality in Braga District. The city has a population of 20,625.-History:Originally a Roman settlement, it expanded and became the seat of the First Duke of Bragança in the 15th century...
in PortugalPortugalPortugal , 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...
, the first Portuguese hereditary Count, 4th Lord of AlburquerqueAlburquerque, BadajozAlburquerque is a town in the province of Badajoz in Spain. It has 5,600 inhabitants. It is very close to the border with Portugal and was an ancient dominion of the kings of this country...
in Castille and 29th Mordomo-Mór of Portugal, and had female issue, and Rui Gil de Vilalobos, and had female issue
by Doña María Alfonso Téllez de Menezes (d. Toro
Toro, Zamora
Toro is a town and municipality in the province of Zamora, part of the autonomous community of Castile and León, Spain. It is located on a fertile high plain, northwest of Madrid at an elevation of 740 meters....
), wife of Juan García, señor de Usero:
- Violante Sánchez (died bef. 1327), who held the dowry of Usero as its lady, married in 1293 Fernando Rodríguez de Castro, Lord of Lemos.
by María Pérez:
- Alfonso Sánchez, who married as her second husband María Díaz de Haro, without issue.