French Records have marriages to wives in this order:

Mariage Ferdinand Ier le Grand avec Sancie Afonso de León

Fernando ou Ferdinand Ier le Grand épouse en 1032 ou 1033 Sancie Afonso de León. Leurs enfants sont :

   Urraca (1033-1101),

   Sanche Ferdinandez dit Sanche II le Fort (1037-1072), Roi de Castille et León,

   Elvira (1038-15 novembre 1101),

Alfonso ou Alphonse VI de Castille surnommé le Vaillant (1039 ou 1040-1er ou le 29 juillet 1109), Roi de Castille, de León de Tolède, de Galice, qui épousera :

 (1)      en 1069 Agnès de Poitou,

 (2)      en 1081 Constance de Bourgogne,

 (3)      en 1092 Isabelle ou Zaïda de Séville,

 (4)      en 1093 Berthe de Bourgogne-Comté,

  (5)     en 1108 Béatrice d'Aquitaine,

   Garcia Ferdinandez ou Garcia II de Castille (1042-1090), Roi de Galicie, Comte de Portugal.

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• http://fmg.ac/Projects/MedLands/CASTILE.htm#AlfonsoVIdied1109B
• https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alfonso_VI_de_Le%C3%B3n
• http://genealogics.org/getperson.php?personID=I00020895&tree=LEO

Alfonso VI (before June 1040 – June 29/July 1, 1109), nicknamed the Brave, was King of León from 1065 to 1109 and King of Castile from 1072 following his brother's death. As he was the first Alfonso to be King of Castile, he is sometimes referred to as Alfonso I of Castile. In 1077, he proclaimed himself "Emperor of All Hispania". Much romance has gathered around his name.

• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alfonso_VI_of_Castile

Alphonse VI de León et Castille1, surnommé le Brave, né avant juin 1040, mort le 1er juillet 1109, roi de León (1065-1109), roi de Castille (1072-1109) à la mort de son frère, roi de Tolède (1085-1109) par conquête et roi de Galice (1090-1109) à la mort de son autre frère. Il était le fils de Ferdinand Ier de Castille, de León et Asturies et de Sancha de León.

Lorsque Ferdinand Ier de Castille et de León, père d’Alphonse, meurt en 1065, le royaume est partagé entre ses trois fils. Alphonse, dit le Brave, reçoit le royaume de León. Après une guerre fratricide avec son aîné, Sanche II, il y asseoit son pouvoir et parvient à unifier le royaume castillan.

En 1069, il fait payer tribut à Abbad III, roi de Séville sous la dynastie des Abbadides.

Fort de ce succès, il se lance dans la reconquête de l’Espagne musulmane (ou Reconquista), divisée depuis l’effondrement du califat de Cordoue en principautés indépendantes (les taïfas de la première période). Soutenu par les moines de Cluny et le pape Grégoire VII, Alphonse, marié à Constance de Bourgogne, fait appel aux chevaliers bourguignons. En 1085, après un siège de quatre années, Tolède est prise.

Cependant, les princes musulmans appellent à leur secours les Almoravides qui franchissent le détroit de Gibraltar et mettent en déroute Alphonse VI à la bataille de Sagrajas, en octobre 1086. Mais les Almoravides ne réussissent pas à tirer avantage de leurs victoires militaires, comme celles de Consuegra (1097) et de Malagón (1100). Le Cid Campeador, au service d’Alphonse, symbolise cette résistance chrétienne à l’Islam.

Beaucoup de romans de chevalerie ont illustré son nom. Dans la chanson de geste du Cid , il joue le rôle attribué par le poète médiéval aux plus grands rois et à Charlemagne lui-même. Il est tour à tour l'oppresseur et la victime héroïque et obstinée - le type idéal de protecteur que chantaient les jongleurs et les troubadours. Il est le héros d'une chanson de geste qui tout comme les chants espagnols primitifs, les chansons de Bernard del Carpio et la légende des Infants de Lara n'existent plus que dans des fragments incorporés dans la Chronique d'Alphonse le Sage.

Avec un peu d'indulgence, Alphonse VI est présenté comme un homme fort qui agit comme un roi dont les intérêts sont la loi et l'ordre et qui est le chef d'une nation en reconquête. Alphonse s'est marié deux fois. Avant Constance de Bourgogne, il est fiancé avec Agathe, fille de Guillaume le Conquérant. Sous l'influence, dit-on, de sa femme Constance, il implante l'Ordre des Cisterciens dans son royaume, les établissant à Sahagún et choisit un cistercien français Bernard comme premier archevêque de Tolède après la reconquête.

Mariages et descendance

Ep. 1069 Agnès de Poitiers, fille Guillaume VI, duc Aquitaine, répudiée 1079.

Ep. .... Ximena de Guzman

Ep. 1081 Constance de Bourgogne, fille de Robert Ier duc Bourgogne et d’Ermengar de Hélie de Saumur

Ep. 1093 Berthe de Bourgogne, fille du comte palatin Guillaume Ier de Bourgogne et d'Étiennette de Bourgogne

Ep.(?) 1098 Zaïda, fille de l’émir Abulkasim Muhammad Ben Abbad Al'tanmid de Séville

Il marie ses filles Urraque, la légitime, et Thérèse de León, l'illégitime, avec des princes français et par tous moyens favorise l'influence française – la plus grande force civilisée en Europe. Il rapproche aussi son royaume de la papauté et décide de remplacer le vieux rite de saint Isidore, le rite mozarabe, par le rite romain. D'un autre côté, il est très ouvert à l'influence arabe, protège ses sujets maures et bat monnaie avec des inscriptions en lettres arabes. Après la mort de Constance, il s'est peut-être marié et a certainement vécu avec la princesse Zaïda. Sa femme Isabelle est peut-être cette princesse convertie au christianisme sous le nom de Marie ou d'Isabelle.

http://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alphonse_VI_de_Castille

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Alfonso VI de León y Castilla

De Wikipedia, la enciclopedia libre

Alfonso VI (1040 - 1 de julio de 1109), rey de León desde el 27 de diciembre de 1065, de Galicia y de Castilla desde el 6 de octubre de 1072, fue apodado el Bravo. Hijo de Fernando I el Magno, rey de León, Galicia y Castilla (1035-1065) y de Doña Sancha de León.

A la muerte de su padre en 1065 recibió el Reino de León, mientras que a su hermano primogénito Sancho le correspondió Castilla, y a su hermano menor, García, Galicia. Alfonso tuvo que enfrentarse desde muy pronto con los deseos expansionistas de su hermano Sancho. La paz solo duró mientras vivió su madre, la reina Sancha, pero tras su muerte (1067) comenzaron las disputas. Sancho no aceptó el testamento de su padre y quiso apoderarse de los territorios que habían pasado a sus hermanos. Destronó con facilidad a su hermano García, y después de las batallas de Llantada (1068) y Golpejera en 1072, Alfonso es hecho prisionero por Sancho, el cual se hace así con la corona leonesa.

Alfonso fue encarcelado en Burgos, de donde logra fugarse y se refugia bajo la protección del rey taifa de Toledo. Otras versiones dicen que se le peló y se le obligó a tomar la casulla en el monasterio de Sahagún de donde huyó con la ayuda del abad y del conde Pedro Ansúrez.

El asesinato de Sancho II, a manos de un caballero portugués, Vellido Dolfos en el asedio de Zamora, le permitió recuperar el trono y reclamar para sí el de Castilla, al no tener Sancho herederos. En este momento la leyenda sitúa la jura exculpatoria de su posible participación en la muerte de Sancho, que tomó El Cid a Alfonso en la iglesia de Santa Gadea de Burgos (Juras de Santa Gadea). Estos sucesos fueron aprovechados por García para recuperar el trono gallego, pero al año siguiente, en 1073, es nuevamente depuesto y encarcelado de por vida en el castillo de Luna (en donde falleció en 1090). A partir de este momento Alfonso se dedicó a engrandecer sus territorios, fundamentalmente a costa de los musulmanes, combinando la presión militar y la extorsión económica. En 1076, tras la muerte del monarca navarro Sancho Garcés IV se anexionó los territorios de Álava, Vizcaya, Guipúzcoa y La Bureba, adoptando en 1077 el título de Emperador.

Respecto a los musulmanes, en los primeros años de su reinado, Alfonso siguió con la práctica de explotación económica mediante el sistema de parias, consiguiendo que la mayor parte de los reinos de taifas de la España musulmana fuesen sus tributarios. Aprovechó el llamamiento de ayuda del rey taifa de Toledo contra un usurpador para poner sitio a Toledo, la cual cayó el 25 de mayo de 1085. Tras esta victoria, el monarca se tituló emperador de las dos religiones. La ocupación del reino de Toledo significó la incorporación a su reino del territorio situado entre el Sistema Central y el río Tajo. De esta forma, puede iniciar una gran actividad militar contra las taifas: Córdoba, Sevilla, Badajoz y Granada estaban directamente amenazadas por Alfonso.

En estas circunstancias, los reyes de taifas (Sevilla, Granada, Badajoz y Almería) decidieron pedir ayuda a los almorávides, los cuales desembarcan en la península. El emir almorávide Yusuf ibn Tasfin consiguió vencer a Alfonso VI en las batallas de Zalaca(1086), cerca de Badajoz, Consuegra (1097) y Salatrices (1106), donde Alfonso recibió una herida en la tibia izquierda de la que nunca curó, herida que todavía es perceptible en los restos de su esqueleto.

Los almorávides sitiaron varias veces Toledo, pero sin conseguir tomarla. En los últimos años de su reinado, Alfonso se esforzó en impedir que los almorávides se consolidasen en la España musulmana, sin éxito. Los reinos de taifas del sur de España, y el de Denia, fueron ocupados por los almorávides, que derrotaron de nuevo al monarca en Uclés (1108) donde además morirá Sancho Alfónsez, su único hijo varón. La corona terminaría por ello en manos de su hija, la infanta doña Urraca, aunque su otra hija, Teresa (mi ANCESTRO), se quedaría con el condado portucalense que bajo el mando de su hijo Alfonso Raimúndez se convirtió en el Reino de Portugal.

Murió en Toledo y fue enterrado en el Monasterio de Sahagún, villa ésta muy apreciada por el monarca, a la cual concedió ciertos privilegios en el denominado Fuero de Sahagún. Así mismo, fortaleció enormemente al monasterio de la orden de San Benito, alcanzándose bajo su reinado la mayor prosperidad de la villa y del monasterio, que bastantes años después llegaría a fundar incluso su propia universidad.

En el terreno cultural Alfonso VI fomentó la seguridad del Camino de Santiago e impulsó la introducción de la reforma cluniacense en los monasterios de León y de Castilla.

El monarca sustituyó la liturgia mozárabe o toledana por la romana.

Vida personal

—Primer Matrimonio: con Inés de Aquitania en 1069. Luego de 8 años de unión, en 1077, el rey obtiene la anulación de su boda alegando la esterilidad de Ines. Ella morirá un año más tarde, en 1078.

Tras su divorcio, entabla conversaciones para un posible matrimonio con Agatha de Normandía, hija del rey Guillermo I de Inglaterra, pero su muerte prematura en 1080 frustro el proyecto.

—Segundo Matrimonio: con Constanza de Borgoña en 1081. Ella era bisnieta de Hugo Capeto, rey de Francia, y además viuda, sin hijos, del conde Hugo II de Châlon. De este matrimonio (que duró hasta su muerte en 1093) nacieron 2 hijas:

Urraca (n. 1081 - m. 1126), la cual acabaría siendo la sucesora de su padre en el trono castellano-leones

Elvira (n. 1082 - m. joven).

—Tercer Matrimonio: con Berta de Borgoña-Maçon en 1093. Ella morirá en 1095 sin descendencia.

—Cuarto Matrimonio: con Zaida (bautizada Isabel), viuda del gobernador de Córdoba, Al-Mamun en 1091. De este matrimonio (que dura hasta la muerte de Zaida en 1107) nacieron 3 hijos:

Sancho (n. 1098 - m. 1108), único hijo varón y presunto heredero del rey; su prematura muerte en la batalla de Uclés aceleró el fin de su padre.

Elvira (n. 1100 - m. 8.2.1135), casada con Roger II, rey de Sicilia.

Sancha (n. 1101 - m. ?), casada con Rodrigo de Lara, conde de Liébana.

Otras teorías dicen que Zaida murió en 1093 o 1094 y que Elvira y Sancha son hijas de la reina Isabel, que tenía el mismo nombre que ella. Hay debate al respecto entre los historiadores. Según estas teorías, el matrimonio con la reina Isabel duró de 1100 a 1107 y Sancho debió nacer en el segundo semestre de 1093 o en el primero de 1094.

—Quinto Matrimonio: con Beatriz (su origen es dudoso, posible miembro de la casa de Este o de la casa ducal de Aquitania). Este enlace, celebrado en 1108, durará solo un año, hasta la muerte del rey. Muerto el rey, la reina regresó a su país.

Además, tuvo varias relaciones extra-matrimoniales, siendo la más notoria la que tuvo con:

Jimena Muñoz (o Nuñez de Guzmán o Núñez de Lara según algunos historiadores), la cual le dio 2 hijas:

Teresa de León (n. 1070 - m. 1132), condesa de Portugal como parte de su dote nupcial, casada con Enrique de Borgoña; el hijo de ambos, Alfonso I Enríquez, será el primer rey de Portugal.

Elvira (n. 1071 - m. 1151), casada con Raimundo IV, conde de Tolosa.

Alfonso VI, el conquistador de Toledo, el gran monarca europeizador, ve, en los últimos años de su reinado, cómo la gran obra política realizada se resquebraja ante el empuje almorávide y las debilidades internas. Alfonso VI había asumido plenamente la idea imperial leonesa y su apertura a la influencia europea le había hecho conocer las prácticas políticas feudales, que en la Francia de su tiempo, alcanzaban su expresión más acabada. En la conjunción de estos dos elementos, ve Claudio Sánchez-Albornoz la explicación de la concesión iure hereditario -anómala en la tradición histórica castellanoleonesa- de los gobiernos de los Reino de Galicia y Portugal a sus dos yernos borgoñones, Raimundo, primer marido de Urraca, y Enrique, casado con Teresa. De esa decisión, arrancó, a la vuelta de unos años, la independencia portuguesa y la perspectiva de una Galicia independiente bajo Alfonso Raimúndez, que luego no se hizo realidad al convertirse éste en Alfonso VII de Castilla y León.

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Alfonso, restregando el sueño de sus ojos, componiendo con los dedos sus revueltos cabellos, avanzó, la cabeza erguida y el orgullo en el alma: "¿Hasta cuándo me vais a engañar? ¿Qué queréis aquí?, fue su saludo. "Pues queríamos --respondieron ellos humildemente-- pedir auxilio a tal y tal de los reyes de taifas. Nos queda esta esperanza última." Y Alfonso, sin nada replicarles hirió nerviosamente el suelo con el pie, dio unas palmadas, y al que se presentó le dijo: "Que vengan los embajadores de Ben Abbed, de Sevilla." Los embajadores vinieron; arrastraban sus rozagantes ropas de gala; en sus bocas traían frases de gran rendimiento: "oído y obedecido", con todas las demás zalamerías que podían. El emperador no les dirigió sino palabras altaneras, y cuando los embajadores le presentaron multitud de tesoros preciosos, él, apartando con el pie todo aquello que le habían puesto delante, mandó a sus servidores retirarlo de allí. Después fue llamando a otros embajadores de los reyes de taifas, y a todos trató con igual desdén y de todos recogieron los sirvientes del cristiano dones en abundancia.

Los cuitados magnates toledanos se hartaron de admirar a qué grado de envilecimiento habían llegado todos los reyes de taifas, y con el más amargo desengaño salieron de la presencia del emperador para volverse a Toledo.

Allí se escondieron, solitarios, avergonzados, durante tres días, al cabo de los cuales la ciudad se entregó al sitiador.

Toledo se rindió el 6 de mayo de 1085.

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Alfonso gifta Minst fem gånger och hade Två älskarinnor och en fästmö

Other Spouses: Constance av Burgund

Alfonso VI (före juni 1040 - 1 juli 1109), med smeknamnet the Brave, var kung av León 1065 till 1109 och kung av Kastilien sedan 1072 efter sin brors död. Eftersom han var den första Alfonso att vara kung av Kastilien, är han ibland kallas Alfonso I av Kastilien. In 1077, utropade han sig till "Kejsare av alla Hispania". Mycket romantik har samlat kring hans namn.

Som den andra och favorit son till kung Ferdinand I av Kastilien och prinsessan Sancha i León, tilldelades Alfonso León, medan Kastilien fick hans äldste bror Sancho, och Galicien att hans yngste bror García. Sancho mördades år 1072. García avsattes och fängslades för livet följande år.

I cantar de Gesta Lay av Cid, spelar han den del förklaras enligt medeltida poeter till största kungar, och till Karl den store själv. Han är omväxlande förtryckare och offer för heroiska och egensinnig adeln - den idealiserade typer av beskyddare för vilka jongleurs och trubadurer sjöng. Han är hjälten i cantar de Gesta, som liksom alla utom ett fåtal av de tidiga spanska sånger, liksom cantar av Bernardo del Carpio och Infantes Lara, existerar nu bara i fragment ingår i krönika Alfonso den vise eller i ballad form.

Sin flykt från klostret Sahagún, där hans bror Sancho försökt fängsla honom, hans ridderliga vänskap för sin värd Almamun i Toledo, Caballero aunque Moro ", en riddare även om en mor", den passionerade lojalitet hans vasall, Pero (Pedro) Ansúrez, och hans broderlig kärlek till sin syster Urraca Zamora, kan vara skyldig till något till poeten som tog honom som en hjälte.

De är svaret på poeten adelsmän som företrädde kungen som har lämnats in till att ta ett förnedrande ed i händerna på Rodrigo Díaz de Vivar (El Cid) att förneka inblandning i sin brors död i kyrkan Santa Gadea i Burgos, och så har sedan förföljt den modige mannen som trotsade honom.

När varje utrymme annat, står Alfonso VI ut som en stark man kämpar som en kung vars intresse var lag och ordning, och som var ledare för nationen i återerövringen. Han imponerade sig på araberna som en mycket stark och listig fiende, utan som en innehavare av hans ord. En historia av muslimskt ursprung, vilket förmodligen inte mer historisk än ed Santa Gadea, berättar om hur han lät sig luras av Ibn Ammar, favoriten Al Mutamid, kungen av Sevilla. De spelade schack för en mycket vacker bord och uppsättning av män, som tillhör Ibn Ammar. Tabell och män skulle gå till kungen om han vann. Om Ibn Ammar fick han till namnet insatsen. Den senare segrade och krävde att den kristne kungen bör bespara Sevilla. Alfonso höll ord.

Oavsett sanningen kan ligga bakom den romantiska berättelser av kristna och muslimer, vi vet att Alfonso representerade på ett anmärkningsvärt sätt, de två stora influenser sedan forma karaktären och civilisationen i Spanien.

På uppmaning, sägs det, av hans hustru Constance, han väckte cisterciensordens ordning i Spanien, infört dem i Sahagun valde en fransk Cistersiensorderns, Bernard, som första ärkebiskop i Toledo efter återerövringen den 25 maj 1085. Han gifte sig med hans döttrar, Urraca, Teresa och Elvira till franska furstar, och på alla sätt vidarebefordrade spridningen av franska inflytandet - då störst civiliserande kraft i Europa. Han ritade även Spanien närmare påvedömet. Det var Alfonso beslut som upprättade den romerska ritualen i stället för den gamla bönboken Saint Isidore - den mozarabiska rit.

Å andra sidan var han mycket öppen för arabiska inflytande. Han skyddade muslimerna bland sina undersåtar och slog mynt med inskriptioner på arabiska bokstäver. Han medgav också att hans hov och till hans säng flyktingen muslimska prinsessan Zaida i Sevilla.

Alfonso besegrades den 23 oktober 1086, i slaget vid Zallaqa, i händerna på Yusuf ibn TashfiMarriages och childrenAlfonso gifta minst fem gånger och hade två älskarinnor och en fästmö:

Innan hans första äktenskap, han sägs ha varit förlovad med Agatha, en dotter till William I av England och Matilda av Flandern. Agatha dog innan äktenskapet kunde ske, enligt uppgift från förödmjukelse inför tanken på giftermål med Alfonso.

Hans första hustru var Agnes av Akvitanien, dotter till William VIII av Akvitanien och hans andra hustru Mateoda. De gifte sig 1069 och akademiskt åsikt delas om hon dog eller de frånskilda grund av blodsband, i slutet av 1070-talet. De hade inga barn.

Hans andra hustru, som han gifte sig 1081, var Constance av Burgund, mor till Alfonso äldsta legitima dotter Urraca.

1093 gifte han sig med Bertha, Toscana och Lombardiet. Hon hade inga barn.

Efter hennes död gifte Alfonso en Isabel, med vilken han fick två döttrar, Elvira, (som gifte sig med Roger II av Sicilien) och Sancha, (hustru till Rodrigo González de Lara). Senare källor säger att hon var dotter till en kung Ludvig av Frankrike, men det är kronologiskt omöjligt. Reilly spekulerade hon var burgundiska ursprung, men andra gör henne identisk älskarinna Zaida.

Hans sista hustru var Beatrice. Vissa källor hävdar att hon var släkt med Hisham III, den sista emiren av Cordoba. Alternativt har det föreslagits att hon var systerdotter till första hustru Agnes, och dotter till William IX av Akvitanien. Hon hade inga barn med Alfonso.

Han hade också två kända älskarinnor.

Genom Jimena Muñoz, en "mest ädla familj", hade han två illegitima döttrar, en annan Elvira (faktiskt hans äldsta barn) och Teresa.

En andra älskarinna var Zaida i Sevilla, sade spanska muslimska källor vara dotter-in-law Al Mutamid, den muslimska kung i Sevilla. Hon var mor till Alfonso ende son, Sancho, som, även oäkta, skulle heta faderns arvinge. Flera moderna källor har föreslagit att Zaida, döpta under namnet Isabella, är identisk med Alfonso hustru, drottning Isabella (eller att hon var en andra drottning Isabel som han gifte sig med följd att den första). Zaida / Isabel dog i barnsäng, men datumet är okänt, och det är oklart om barnet levereras var Sancho, Sancha (om Zaida var identisk med drottning Isabel), eller ett extra barn, annars okänd.

Alfonso utsedda efterträdare, hans son Sancho, stupade i slaget vid Uclés under 1108, vilket gör Alfonso änka dotter Urraca hans arvinge. För att stärka sin ställning som hans efterträdare, började Alfonso förhandlingar för henne att gifta sig med sin syssling, Alfonso I av Aragonien, men dog innan äktenskapet kunde ske.

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Alfonso VI (before June 1040 – June 29/July 1, 1109), nicknamed the Brave or the Valiant, was King of León from 1065 to 1109 and King of Castile from 1072 following the death of his brother Sancho II. In 1077 he proclaimed himself "Emperor of all Spain". Much romance has gathered around his name.

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Llamado Alfonso el Bravo, fue rey de León (1065 - 1109), de Galicia (1071 - 1072; 1072 - 1109) y de Castilla (1072 - 1109).

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Alfonso VI (before June 1040 – June 29/July 1, 1109), nicknamed the Brave (El Bravo) or the Valiant, was King of León from 1065, King of Castile and de facto King of Galicia from 1072, and self-proclaimed "Emperor of all Spain". Much romance has gathered around his name.

Contents [hide]

1 Accession

2 Strong fighter

3 Marriages and children

4 Ancestry

5 Notes

6 External links

7 References

[edit] Accession

As the middle of three sons of King Ferdinand I of León and Sancha of León, Alfonso was allotted León when the kingdom was divided following his father's death, while Castile was given to his elder brother Sancho, Galicia to younger brother García, and sisters Urraca and Elvira given the cities of Zamora and Toro respectively. Each of the brothers was also assigned a sphere of influence among the Taifa states. Alfonso appears to have taken the first step in violating this division, in 1068 invading the Galician client Taifa of Badajoz and extorting tribute. In response, Sancho attacked and defeated Alfonso at Llantada but three years later in 1071 they joined forces against García. Sancho over-marched Alfonso's León to conquer García's northern lands, while Alfonso himself is found issuing charters in the southern part of the Galician realm. García fled to taifa Seville, and the remaining brothers then turned on each other. This conflict culminated in the Battle of Golpejera in early January, 1072. Sancho proved victorious and Alfonso himself was forced to flee to his client Taifa of Toledo. Later that year as Sancho was mopping up the last of the resistance, besieging his sister Urraca at Zamora in October, he was assassinated, opening the way for Alfonso to return to claim Sancho's crown. García, induced to return from exile, was imprisoned by Alfonso for life, leaving Alfonso in uncontested control of the reunited territories of their father. In recognition of this and his role as the preeminent Christian monarch on the peninsula, in 1077 he proclaimed himself "Emperor of all Spain".

In the cantar de gesta The Lay of the Cid, he plays the part attributed by medieval poets to the greatest kings, and to Charlemagne himself. He is alternately the oppressor and the victim of heroic and self-willed nobles — the idealized types of the patrons for whom the jongleurs and troubadours sang. He is the hero of a cantar de gesta which, like all but a very few of the early Spanish songs, like the cantar of Bernardo del Carpio and the Infantes of Lara, exists now only in the fragments incorporated in the chronicle of Alfonso the Wise or in ballad form.

His flight from the monastery of Sahagún (Safagún in Leonese language), where his brother Sancho endeavoured to imprison him, his chivalrous friendship for his host Almamun of Toledo, caballero aunque moro, "a knight although a Moor", the passionate loyalty of his vassal, Pero (Pedro) Ansúrez, and his brotherly love for his sister Urraca of Zamora, may owe something to the poet who took him as a hero.

They are the answer to the poet of the nobles who represented the king as having submitted to taking a degrading oath at the hands of Rodrigo Díaz de Vivar (El Cid) to deny intervention in his brother's death in the church of Santa Gadea at Burgos, and as having then persecuted the brave man who defied him.

[edit] Strong fighter

When every allowance is made, Alfonso VI stands out as a strong man fighting as a king whose interest was law and order, and who was the leader of the nation in the reconquest. He impressed himself on the Arabs as a very fierce and astute enemy, but as a keeper of his word. A story of Muslim origin, which is probably no more historical than the oath of Santa Gadea, tells of how he allowed himself to be tricked by Ibn Ammar, the favourite of Al Mutamid, the King of Seville. They played chess for an extremely beautiful table and set of men, belonging to Ibn Ammar. Table and men were to go to the king if he won. If Ibn Ammar gained he was to name the stake. The latter did win and demanded that the Christian king should spare Seville. Alfonso kept his word.

Whatever truth may lie behind the romantic tales of Christian and Muslim, we know that Alfonso represented the two great influences then shaping the character and civilization of Hispania.

Alfonso showed a greater degree of continental integration than his predecessors. The marital practices of the Iberian royalty had been largely endogamous, previously limiting choice of partners to the peninsula and Gascony, but Alfonso married French and Italian wives, while marrying daughters to French princes and an Italian king. His second marriage was arranged, in part, through the influence of the French Cluniac Order, and Alfonso is said to have introduced them into Hispania, established them in Sahagun and choosing a French Cluniac, Bernard, as the first Archbishop of Toledo after its 1085 conquest. He also drew his kingdom nearer to the Papacy, a move which brought French crusaders to aid him in the reconquest, and it was Alfonso's decision which established the Roman ritual in place of the old missal of Saint Isidore — the Mozarabic rite.

On the other hand he was very open to Arabic influence. He protected the Muslims among his subjects and struck coins with inscriptions in Arabic letters. He also admitted to his court and to his bed the refugee Muslim princess Zaida of Seville.

Alfonso was defeated on October 23, 1086, at the battle of Sagrajas, at the hands of Yusuf ibn Tashfin, and Abbad III al-Mu'tamid, and was severely wounded in the leg.

[edit] Marriages and children

Alfonso married at least five times and had two mistresses and a fiancée:

In 1067, two brothers from Iberia are said to have competed for the hand of Agatha, one of the daughters of William I of England and Matilda of Flanders and formerly fiancee of Harold Godwinson. Alfonso proved successful, and was betrothed to Agatha. A nun at the time, Agatha is said to have prayed for death rather than being forced to marry Alphonso, and she died before the marriage could take place.

Epitaph of Jimena Muñoz, Alfonso's mistress and progenitor of the first Portuguese royal lineIn 1069, Alfonso married Agnes of Aquitaine, daughter of William VIII of Aquitaine and his second wife Mateoda. They last appear together in May 1077, and then Alfonso appears alone. This suggests that she had died, although Orderic Vitalis reports that in 1109 Alfonso's 'relict' Agnes remarried to Elias I of Maine, leading some to speculate that Alfonso and Agnes had divorced due to consanguinity. It seems more likely that Orderic gave the wrong name to Alfonso's widow, Beatrice. Agnes and Alfonso had no children.

Apparently between his first and second marriages he formed a liaison with Jimena Muñoz, a "most noble" (nobilissima) concubine "derived from royalty" (real generacion). She appears to have been put aside, given land in Ulver, at the time of Alfonso's remarriage. By her Alfonso had two illegitimate daughters, Elvira and Teresa.

His second wife, who he married by May 1080, was Constance of Burgundy, daughter of Robert I, Duke of Burgundy. This marriage initially faced papal opposition, apparently due to her kinship with Agnes. Her tenure as queen consort brought significant Cluniac influences into the kingdom. She died in September or October, 1093, the mother of Alfonso's eldest legitimate daughter Urraca, and of five other children who died in infancy.

Either before or shortly after Constance's death, Alfonso formed a liaison with a second mistress, Zaida of Seville, said by Iberian Muslim sources to be daughter-in-law of Al Mutamid, the Muslim King of Seville. She fled the fall of Seville for Alfonso's kingdom in 1091, and soon became his lover, having by him Alfonso's only son, Sancho, who, though illegitimate, was apparently not born of an adulterous relationship, and hence born after the death of Constance. He would be named his father's heir. Several modern sources have suggested that Zaida, baptised under the name of Isabel, is identical with Alfonso's later wife, Queen Isabel (or that she was a second queen named Isabel whom he married in succession to the first). Zaida/Isabel died in childbirth, but the date is unknown, and it is unclear whether the child being delivered was Sancho, an additional illegitimate child, otherwise unknown, or legitimate daughter Elvira (if Zaida was identical to Queen Isabel).

By April 1095, Alfonso married Bertha. Chroniclers report her as being from Tuscany, Lombardy, or alternatively, say she was French. Several theories have been put forward regarding her origin. Based on political considerations, proposals make her daughter of William I, Count of Burgundy or of Amadeus II of Savoy. She had no children and died in late 1099 (Alfonso first appears without her in mid-January 1100).

Within months, by May 1100, Alfonso again remarried, to Isabel, having by her two daughters, Sancha, (wife of Rodrigo González de Lara), and Elvira, (who married Roger II of Sicily). A non-contemporary tomb inscription says she was daughter of a "king Louis of France", but this is chronologically impossible. It has been speculated that she was of Burgundian origin, but others conclude that Alfonso married his former mistress, Zaida, who had been baptized as Isabel. (In a novel twist, Reilly suggested that there were two successive queens named Isabel: first the French (Burgundian) Isabel, mother of Sancha and Elvira, with Alfonso only later marrying his mistress Zaida (Isabel), after the death of or divorce from the first Isabel.) Alfonso was again widowed in mid-1107.

By May 1108, Alfonso married his last wife, Beatrice. She, as widow of Alfonso, is said to have returned home to France, but nothing else is known of her origin unless she is the woman Orderic named as "Agnes, daughter of William, Duke of Poitou", who as relict of Alfonso, (Agnetem, filiam Guillelmi, Pictavorum ducis, relictam Hildefonsi senioris, Galliciae regis), remarried to Elias of Maine. If this is the case, she is likely daughter of William IX of Aquitaine and niece of Alfonso's first wife. Beatrice had no children by Alfonso.

One other woman was reported by later sources to have been Alfonso's lover. The historian Abu Bakr Ibn al Sayraff, writing before 1161, stated that Alfonso abandoned Christianity for Zoroastrianism and had carnal relations with his sister Urraca, but then repented and was absolved, making pilgrimages to holy sites as penance. This has been followed by some later historians but others dismiss it as propaganda or misunderstanding.

Alfonso's designated successor, his son Sancho, was slain after being routed at the Battle of Uclés in 1108, making Alfonso's eldest legitimate daughter, the widowed Urraca as his heir. In order to strengthen her position as his successor, Alfonso began negotiations for her to marry her second cousin, Alfonso I of Aragon and Navarre, but died before the marriage could take place, Urraca succeeding.

[edit] Ancestry

Ancestors of Alfonso VI of León and Castile[hide]

 16. Sancho II of Navarre 

8. García II of Navarre
17. Urraca Fernández
4. Sancho III of Navarre
18. Ferdinand Vermúdez, Count of Cea
9. Jimena Fernández
19. Elvira Díaz
2. Ferdinand I of León and Castile
20. García Fernández, Count of Castile
10. Sancho García, Count of Castile
21. Ava of Ribagorza
5. Muniadona Mayor
22. Gómez Díaz, Count of Saldaña
11. Urraca Gómez
23. Muniadona Fernández
1. Alfonso VI of León and Castile
24. Ordoño III of León
12. Bermudo II of León
6. Alfonso V of León
26. García Fernández, Count of Castile
13. Elvira García
27. Ava of Ribagorza
3. Sancha of León
28. Gonçalo I Mendes, Count of Portugal
14. Mendo II Gonçalves, Count of Portugal
29. Ilduara (Ildonza) Peláez
7. Elvira Mendes
15. Tutadona Moniz (Portuguese)
[edit] Notes

[edit] External links

IX Centenary of Leon-Castilla's King Alfonso VI (1109-2009)

Alfonso VI on a Manuscript:.

[edit] References

This entry incorporates public domain text originally from the 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica.

The Kingdom of León-Castilla under King Alfonso VI, 1065-1109, by Bernard F. Reilly (Princeton University Press, 1988): full text online at LIBRO.

Portugal, A Country Study, by Louis R. Mortimer, ed. Washington, D.C.: Library of Congress, 1993.

Preceded by

Ferdinand I King of León

(first reign)

1065–1072 Succeeded by

Sancho II

Preceded by

García II King of Galicia (and Portugal)

(first reign)

jointly with Sancho II

1071–1072

Preceded by

Sancho II King of León (second reign),

Castile and Galicia

(and Portugal)

(second reign)

1072–1109 Succeeded by

Urraca

Vacant

Title last held by

Ferdinand I of León Emperor of Spain

1077 – 1109 Succeeded by

Urraca

suo jure

Alfonso I

jure uxoris

Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alfonso_VI_of_Le%C3%B3n_and_Castile"

Categories: 1040 births | 1109 deaths | House of Jiménez | Kings of León | Castilian monarchs | Kings of Galicia | Roman Catholic monarchs | 11th-century Spanish people | 12th-century Spanish people

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Alfonso VI (before June 1040 – June 29/July 1, 1109), nicknamed the Brave (El Bravo) or the Valiant, was King of León from 1065, King of Castile and de facto King of Galicia from 1072, and self-proclaimed "Emperor of all Spain". Much romance has gathered around his name.

Contents [hide]

1 Accession

2 Strong fighter

3 Marriages and children

4 Ancestry

5 Notes

6 External links

7 References

[edit] Accession

As the middle of three sons of King Ferdinand I of León and Sancha of León, Alfonso was allotted León when the kingdom was divided following his father's death, while Castile was given to his elder brother Sancho, Galicia to younger brother García, and sisters Urraca and Elvira given the cities of Zamora and Toro respectively. Each of the brothers was also assigned a sphere of influence among the Taifa states. Alfonso appears to have taken the first step in violating this division, in 1068 invading the Galician client Taifa of Badajoz and extorting tribute. In response, Sancho attacked and defeated Alfonso at Llantada but three years later in 1071 they joined forces against García. Sancho over-marched Alfonso's León to conquer García's northern lands, while Alfonso himself is found issuing charters in the southern part of the Galician realm. García fled to taifa Seville, and the remaining brothers then turned on each other. This conflict culminated in the Battle of Golpejera in early January, 1072. Sancho proved victorious and Alfonso himself was forced to flee to his client Taifa of Toledo. Later that year as Sancho was mopping up the last of the resistance, besieging his sister Urraca at Zamora in October, he was assassinated, opening the way for Alfonso to return to claim Sancho's crown. García, induced to return from exile, was imprisoned by Alfonso for life, leaving Alfonso in uncontested control of the reunited territories of their father. In recognition of this and his role as the preeminent Christian monarch on the peninsula, in 1077 he proclaimed himself "Emperor of all Spain".

In the cantar de gesta The Lay of the Cid, he plays the part attributed by medieval poets to the greatest kings, and to Charlemagne himself. He is alternately the oppressor and the victim of heroic and self-willed nobles — the idealized types of the patrons for whom the jongleurs and troubadours sang. He is the hero of a cantar de gesta which, like all but a very few of the early Spanish songs, like the cantar of Bernardo del Carpio and the Infantes of Lara, exists now only in the fragments incorporated in the chronicle of Alfonso the Wise or in ballad form.

His flight from the monastery of Sahagún (Safagún in Leonese language), where his brother Sancho endeavoured to imprison him, his chivalrous friendship for his host Almamun of Toledo, caballero aunque moro, "a knight although a Moor", the passionate loyalty of his vassal, Pero (Pedro) Ansúrez, and his brotherly love for his sister Urraca of Zamora, may owe something to the poet who took him as a hero.

They are the answer to the poet of the nobles who represented the king as having submitted to taking a degrading oath at the hands of Rodrigo Díaz de Vivar (El Cid) to deny intervention in his brother's death in the church of Santa Gadea at Burgos, and as having then persecuted the brave man who defied him.

[edit] Strong fighter

When every allowance is made, Alfonso VI stands out as a strong man fighting as a king whose interest was law and order, and who was the leader of the nation in the reconquest. He impressed himself on the Arabs as a very fierce and astute enemy, but as a keeper of his word. A story of Muslim origin, which is probably no more historical than the oath of Santa Gadea, tells of how he allowed himself to be tricked by Ibn Ammar, the favourite of Al Mutamid, the King of Seville. They played chess for an extremely beautiful table and set of men, belonging to Ibn Ammar. Table and men were to go to the king if he won. If Ibn Ammar gained he was to name the stake. The latter did win and demanded that the Christian king should spare Seville. Alfonso kept his word.

Whatever truth may lie behind the romantic tales of Christian and Muslim, we know that Alfonso represented the two great influences then shaping the character and civilization of Hispania.

Alfonso showed a greater degree of continental integration than his predecessors. The marital practices of the Iberian royalty had been largely endogamous, previously limiting choice of partners to the peninsula and Gascony, but Alfonso married French and Italian wives, while marrying daughters to French princes and an Italian king. His second marriage was arranged, in part, through the influence of the French Cluniac Order, and Alfonso is said to have introduced them into Hispania, established them in Sahagun and choosing a French Cluniac, Bernard, as the first Archbishop of Toledo after its 1085 conquest. He also drew his kingdom nearer to the Papacy, a move which brought French crusaders to aid him in the reconquest, and it was Alfonso's decision which established the Roman ritual in place of the old missal of Saint Isidore — the Mozarabic rite.

On the other hand he was very open to Arabic influence. He protected the Muslims among his subjects and struck coins with inscriptions in Arabic letters. He also admitted to his court and to his bed the refugee Muslim princess Zaida of Seville.

Alfonso was defeated on October 23, 1086, at the battle of Sagrajas, at the hands of Yusuf ibn Tashfin, and Abbad III al-Mu'tamid, and was severely wounded in the leg.

[edit] Marriages and children

Alfonso married at least five times and had two mistresses and a fiancée:

In 1067, two brothers from Iberia are said to have competed for the hand of Agatha, one of the daughters of William I of England and Matilda of Flanders and formerly fiancee of Harold Godwinson. Alfonso proved successful, and was betrothed to Agatha. A nun at the time, Agatha is said to have prayed for death rather than being forced to marry Alphonso, and she died before the marriage could take place.

Epitaph of Jimena Muñoz, Alfonso's mistress and progenitor of the first Portuguese royal lineIn 1069, Alfonso married Agnes of Aquitaine, daughter of William VIII of Aquitaine and his second wife Mateoda. They last appear together in May 1077, and then Alfonso appears alone. This suggests that she had died, although Orderic Vitalis reports that in 1109 Alfonso's 'relict' Agnes remarried to Elias I of Maine, leading some to speculate that Alfonso and Agnes had divorced due to consanguinity. It seems more likely that Orderic gave the wrong name to Alfonso's widow, Beatrice. Agnes and Alfonso had no children.

Apparently between his first and second marriages he formed a liaison with Jimena Muñoz, a "most noble" (nobilissima) concubine "derived from royalty" (real generacion). She appears to have been put aside, given land in Ulver, at the time of Alfonso's remarriage. By her Alfonso had two illegitimate daughters, Elvira and Teresa.

His second wife, who he married by May 1080, was Constance of Burgundy, daughter of Robert I, Duke of Burgundy. This marriage initially faced papal opposition, apparently due to her kinship with Agnes. Her tenure as queen consort brought significant Cluniac influences into the kingdom. She died in September or October, 1093, the mother of Alfonso's eldest legitimate daughter Urraca, and of five other children who died in infancy.

Either before or shortly after Constance's death, Alfonso formed a liaison with a second mistress, Zaida of Seville, said by Iberian Muslim sources to be daughter-in-law of Al Mutamid, the Muslim King of Seville. She fled the fall of Seville for Alfonso's kingdom in 1091, and soon became his lover, having by him Alfonso's only son, Sancho, who, though illegitimate, was apparently not born of an adulterous relationship, and hence born after the death of Constance. He would be named his father's heir. Several modern sources have suggested that Zaida, baptised under the name of Isabel, is identical with Alfonso's later wife, Queen Isabel (or that she was a second queen named Isabel whom he married in succession to the first). Zaida/Isabel died in childbirth, but the date is unknown, and it is unclear whether the child being delivered was Sancho, an additional illegitimate child, otherwise unknown, or legitimate daughter Elvira (if Zaida was identical to Queen Isabel).

By April 1095, Alfonso married Bertha. Chroniclers report her as being from Tuscany, Lombardy, or alternatively, say she was French. Several theories have been put forward regarding her origin. Based on political considerations, proposals make her daughter of William I, Count of Burgundy or of Amadeus II of Savoy. She had no children and died in late 1099 (Alfonso first appears without her in mid-January 1100).

Within months, by May 1100, Alfonso again remarried, to Isabel, having by her two daughters, Sancha, (wife of Rodrigo González de Lara), and Elvira, (who married Roger II of Sicily). A non-contemporary tomb inscription says she was daughter of a "king Louis of France", but this is chronologically impossible. It has been speculated that she was of Burgundian origin, but others conclude that Alfonso married his former mistress, Zaida, who had been baptized as Isabel. (In a novel twist, Reilly suggested that there were two successive queens named Isabel: first the French (Burgundian) Isabel, mother of Sancha and Elvira, with Alfonso only later marrying his mistress Zaida (Isabel), after the death of or divorce from the first Isabel.) Alfonso was again widowed in mid-1107.

By May 1108, Alfonso married his last wife, Beatrice. She, as widow of Alfonso, is said to have returned home to France, but nothing else is known of her origin unless she is the woman Orderic named as "Agnes, daughter of William, Duke of Poitou", who as relict of Alfonso, (Agnetem, filiam Guillelmi, Pictavorum ducis, relictam Hildefonsi senioris, Galliciae regis), remarried to Elias of Maine. If this is the case, she is likely daughter of William IX of Aquitaine and niece of Alfonso's first wife. Beatrice had no children by Alfonso.

One other woman was reported by later sources to have been Alfonso's lover. The historian Abu Bakr Ibn al Sayraff, writing before 1161, stated that Alfonso abandoned Christianity for Zoroastrianism and had carnal relations with his sister Urraca, but then repented and was absolved, making pilgrimages to holy sites as penance. This has been followed by some later historians but others dismiss it as propaganda or misunderstanding.

Alfonso's designated successor, his son Sancho, was slain after being routed at the Battle of Uclés in 1108, making Alfonso's eldest legitimate daughter, the widowed Urraca as his heir. In order to strengthen her position as his successor, Alfonso began negotiations for her to marry her second cousin, Alfonso I of Aragon and Navarre, but died before the marriage could take place, Urraca succeeding.

[edit] Ancestry

Ancestors of Alfonso VI of León and Castile[hide]

 16. Sancho II of Navarre 

8. García II of Navarre
17. Urraca Fernández
4. Sancho III of Navarre
18. Ferdinand Vermúdez, Count of Cea
9. Jimena Fernández
19. Elvira Díaz
2. Ferdinand I of León and Castile
20. García Fernández, Count of Castile
10. Sancho García, Count of Castile
21. Ava of Ribagorza
5. Muniadona Mayor
22. Gómez Díaz, Count of Saldaña
11. Urraca Gómez
23. Muniadona Fernández
1. Alfonso VI of León and Castile
24. Ordoño III of León
12. Bermudo II of León
6. Alfonso V of León
26. García Fernández, Count of Castile
13. Elvira García
27. Ava of Ribagorza
3. Sancha of León
28. Gonçalo I Mendes, Count of Portugal
14. Mendo II Gonçalves, Count of Portugal
29. Ilduara (Ildonza) Peláez
7. Elvira Mendes
15. Tutadona Moniz (Portuguese)
[edit] Notes

[edit] External links

IX Centenary of Leon-Castilla's King Alfonso VI (1109-2009)

Alfonso VI on a Manuscript:.

[edit] References

This entry incorporates public domain text originally from the 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica.

The Kingdom of León-Castilla under King Alfonso VI, 1065-1109, by Bernard F. Reilly (Princeton University Press, 1988): full text online at LIBRO.

Portugal, A Country Study, by Louis R. Mortimer, ed. Washington, D.C.: Library of Congress, 1993.

Preceded by

Ferdinand I King of León

(first reign)

1065–1072 Succeeded by

Sancho II

Preceded by

García II King of Galicia (and Portugal)

(first reign)

jointly with Sancho II

1071–1072

Preceded by

Sancho II King of León (second reign),

Castile and Galicia

(and Portugal)

(second reign)

1072–1109 Succeeded by

Urraca

Vacant

Title last held by

Ferdinand I of León Emperor of Spain

1077 – 1109 Succeeded by

Urraca

suo jure

Alfonso I

jure uxoris

Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alfonso_VI_of_Le%C3%B3n_and_Castile"

Categories: 1040 births | 1109 deaths | House of Jiménez | Kings of León | Roman Catholic monarchs | 11th-century Spanish people | 12th-century Spanish people

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Alfonso I (of Castile), called The Brave (1030-1109), King of Castile (1072-1109), and also King of León as Alfonso VI (1065-1109). His father, King Ferdinand I of Castile and León, died in 1065 and left his kingdom, divided into three parts, to his three sons. Alfonso received only León, but he succeeded to nearly all his father's dominions as a result of a war with his brothers, and he also added Toledo and New Castile to his holdings. In 1086 the Abbadids of Seville, with Almoravid help, defeated him at Zalaca and stopped the gradual reconquest of Spain by the Christian rulers. Alfonso regained some of his power, but in 1108, a year before his death, the Almoravids defeated him again and killed his only son.

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Alfonso VI (before June 1040 – July 1, 1109), nicknamed the Brave, was King of León from 1065 to 1109 and King of Castile since 1072 after his brother's death. As he was the first Alfonso to be King of Castile, he is sometimes referred to as Alfonso I of Castile. In 1077, he proclaimed himself "Emperor of All Hispania". Much romance has gathered around his name.

Alfonso VI. A 12th century painting at the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela.

Alfonso VI. A 12th century painting at the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela.

As the second and favorite son of King Ferdinand I of Castile and Princess Sancha of León, Alfonso was allotted León, while Castile was given to his eldest brother Sancho, and Galicia to his youngest brother García. Sancho was assassinated in 1072. García was dethroned and imprisoned for life the following year.

In the cantar de gesta The Lay of the Cid, he plays the part attributed by medieval poets to the greatest kings, and to Charlemagne himself. He is alternately the oppressor and the victim of heroic and self-willed nobles — the idealized types of the patrons for whom the jongleurs and troubadours sang. He is the hero of a cantar de gesta which, like all but a very few of the early Spanish songs, like the cantar of Bernardo del Carpio and the Infantes of Lara, exists now only in the fragments incorporated in the chronicle of Alfonso the Wise or in ballad form.

His flight from the monastery of Sahagún, where his brother Sancho endeavoured to imprison him, his chivalrous friendship for his host Almamun of Toledo, caballero aunque moro, "a knight although a Moor", the passionate loyalty of his vassal, Pero (Pedro) Ansúrez, and his brotherly love for his sister Urraca of Zamora, may owe something to the poet who took him as a hero.

They are the answer to the poet of the nobles who represented the king as having submitted to taking a degrading oath at the hands of Rodrigo Díaz de Vivar (El Cid) to deny intervention in his brother's death in the church of Santa Gadea at Burgos, and as having then persecuted the brave man who defied him.

When every allowance is made, Alfonso VI stands out as a strong man fighting as a king whose interest was law and order, and who was the leader of the nation in the reconquest. He impressed himself on the Arabs as a very fierce and astute enemy, but as a keeper of his word. A story of Muslim origin, which is probably no more historical than the oath of Santa Gadea, tells of how he allowed himself to be tricked by Ibn Ammar, the favourite of Al Mutamid, the King of Seville. They played chess for an extremely beautiful table and set of men, belonging to Ibn Ammar. Table and men were to go to the king if he won. If Ibn Ammar gained he was to name the stake. The latter did win and demanded that the Christian king should spare Seville. Alfonso kept his word.

Statue of Alfonso VI at the Sabatini Gardens in Madrid (F. Corral, 1753).

Statue of Alfonso VI at the Sabatini Gardens in Madrid (F. Corral, 1753).

Whatever truth may lie behind the romantic tales of Christian and Muslim, we know that Alfonso represented, in a remarkable way, the two great influences then shaping the character and civilization of Spain.

At the instigation, it is said, of his wife Constance, he brought the Cistercian Order into Spain, established them in Sahagun, chose a French Cistercian, Bernard, as the first Archbishop of Toledo after the reconquest on May 25, 1085. He married his daughters, Urraca, Teresa and Elvira to French princes, and in every way forwarded the spread of French influence — then the greatest civilizing force in Europe. He also drew Spain nearer to the Papacy. It was Alfonso's decision which established the Roman ritual in place of the old missal of Saint Isidore — the Mozarabic rite.

On the other hand he was very open to Arabic influence. He protected the Muslims among his subjects and struck coins with inscriptions in Arabic letters. He also admitted to his court and to his bed the refugee muslim princess Zaida of Seville.

Alfonso was defeated on October 23, 1086, at the battle of Zallaqa, at the hands of Yusuf ibn Tashfin, and Abbad III al-Mu'tamid, and was severely wounded in the leg.

[edit] Marriages and children

Alfonso married at least five times and had two mistresses and a fiancée:

   * His first wife was Agnes of Aquitaine, daughter of William VIII of Aquitaine and his second wife Matoeda. They married in 1069 and scholarly opinion is divided whether she died or they divorced due to consanguinity, in the late 1070s. They had no children.

* Prior to his next marriage, (and perhaps prior to his first) he was betrothed to Agatha, one of the daughters of William I of England and Matilda of Flanders. Agatha died before the marriage could take place, reportedly out of mortification at the prospect of her marriage to Alfonso.
* His second wife, who he married in 1081, was Constance of Burgundy, the mother of Alfonso's eldest legitimate daughter Urraca.
* In 1093, he married Bertha, hypothesized to have been daughter of William I, Count Palatine of Burgundy. She had no children.
* Following her death, Alfonso married an Isabel, by whom he had two daughters, Elvira, (who married Roger II of Sicily) and, Sancha, (wife of Rodrigo González de Lara).
* His final wife was Beatrice. Some sources state she was related to Hisham III, the last Emir of Cordoba. Alternatively, it has been suggested she was niece of first wife Agnes, and daughter of William IX of Aquitaine. She had no children by Alfonso.
* He also had two known mistresses.
o By Jimena Muñoz, of a "most noble family", he had two illegitimate daughters, another Elvira (actually his eldest child) and Teresa.
o A second mistress was Zaida, said by Spanish Muslim sources to be daughter-in-law of Al Mutamid, the Muslim King of Seville. She was mother of Alfonso's only son, Sancho, who, though illegitimate, would be named his father's heir. Several modern sources have suggested that Zaida, baptised under the name of Isabel, is identical with Alfonso's wife, queen Isabel (or that she was a second queen Isabel who he married in succession to the first), but Bishop Pelayo of Oviedo, writing within a few years of Alfonso's death, gives an account of Alfonso's family naming a sole queen Isabel and mistress Zaida/Isabel without any indication that they were the same woman. Zaida/Isabel died in childbirth, but the date is unknown, and it is unclear whether the child being delivered was Sancho, Sancha (if she was identical to Queen Isabel), or an additional child, otherwise unknown.
Alfonso's designated successor, his son Sancho, was slain in the Battle of Ucles in 1108, making Alfonso's widowed daughter Urraca his heir. In order to strengthen her position as his successor, Alfonso began negotiations for her to marry her second cousin, Alfonso I of Aragon and Navarre, but died before the marriage could take place.

[Alfonso VI on a Manuscript:[1]

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Alfonso VI of Castile

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Alfonso VI (before June 1040 – June 29/July 1, 1109), nicknamed the Brave, was King of León from 1065 to 1109 and King of Castile from 1072 following his brother's death. As he was the first Alfonso to be King of Castile, he is sometimes referred to as Alfonso I of Castile. In 1077, he proclaimed himself "Emperor of All Hispania". Much romance has gathered around his name.

As the second and favorite son of King Ferdinand I of Castile and Princess Sancha of León, Alfonso was allotted León, while Castile was given to his eldest brother Sancho, and Galicia to his youngest brother García. Sancho was assassinated in 1072. García was dethroned and imprisoned for life the following year.

In the cantar de gesta The Lay of the Cid, he plays the part attributed by medieval poets to the greatest kings, and to Charlemagne himself. He is alternately the oppressor and the victim of heroic and self-willed nobles — the idealized types of the patrons for whom the jongleurs and troubadours sang. He is the hero of a cantar de gesta which, like all but a very few of the early Spanish songs, like the cantar of Bernardo del Carpio and the Infantes of Lara, exists now only in the fragments incorporated in the chronicle of Alfonso the Wise or in ballad form.

His flight from the monastery of Sahagún, where his brother Sancho endeavoured to imprison him, his chivalrous friendship for his host Almamun of Toledo, caballero aunque moro, "a knight although a Moor", the passionate loyalty of his vassal, Pero (Pedro) Ansúrez, and his brotherly love for his sister Urraca of Zamora, may owe something to the poet who took him as a hero.

They are the answer to the poet of the nobles who represented the king as having submitted to taking a degrading oath at the hands of Rodrigo Díaz de Vivar (El Cid) to deny intervention in his brother's death in the church of Santa Gadea at Burgos, and as having then persecuted the brave man who defied him.

When every allowance is made, Alfonso VI stands out as a strong man fighting as a king whose interest was law and order, and who was the leader of the nation in the reconquest. He impressed himself on the Arabs as a very fierce and astute enemy, but as a keeper of his word. A story of Muslim origin, which is probably no more historical than the oath of Santa Gadea, tells of how he allowed himself to be tricked by Ibn Ammar, the favourite of Al Mutamid, the King of Seville. They played chess for an extremely beautiful table and set of men, belonging to Ibn Ammar. Table and men were to go to the king if he won. If Ibn Ammar gained he was to name the stake. The latter did win and demanded that the Christian king should spare Seville. Alfonso kept his word.

Whatever truth may lie behind the romantic tales of Christian and Muslim, we know that Alfonso represented, in a remarkable way, the two great influences then shaping the character and civilization of Hispania.

At the instigation, it is said, of his wife Constance, he brought the Cistercian Order into Hispania, established them in Sahagun, chose a French Cistercian, Bernard, as the first Archbishop of Toledo, after the reconquest on May 25, 1085. He married his daughters, Urraca, Teresa and Elvira to French princes, and in every way forwarded the spread of French influence — then the greatest civilizing force in Europe. He also drew Hispania nearer to the Papacy. It was Alfonso's decision which established the Roman ritual in place of the old missal of Saint Isidore — the Mozarabic rite.

On the other hand he was very open to Arabic influence. He protected the Muslims among his subjects and struck coins with inscriptions in Arabic letters. He also admitted to his court and to his bed the refugee Muslim princess Zaida of Seville.

Alfonso was defeated on October 23, 1086, at the battle of Sagrajas, at the hands of Yusuf ibn Tashfin, and Abbad III al-Mu'tamid, and was severely wounded in the leg.

Marriages and children

Alfonso married at least five times and had two mistresses and a fiancée:

His first wife was Agnes of Aquitaine, daughter of William VIII of Aquitaine and his second wife Mateoda. They married in 1069 and scholarly opinion is divided whether she died or they divorced due to consanguinity, in the late 1070s. They had no children.

Prior to his second marriage, he is said to have been betrothed to Agatha, one of the daughters of William I of England and Matilda of Flanders. Agatha died before the marriage could take place, reportedly out of mortification at the prospect of marriage to Alfonso (1079).

His second wife, who he married in 1081, was Constance of Burgundy, the mother of Alfonso's eldest legitimate daughter Urraca.

In 1093, he married Bertha, daughter of William I, Count of Burgundy. She had no children and died in 1097.

Following her death, Alfonso married an Isabel, by whom he had two daughters, Elvira, (who married Roger II of Sicily) and, Sancha, (wife of Rodrigo González de Lara). Later sources say she was daughter of a king Luis of France, but this is chronologically impossible. Reilly speculated she was of Burgundian origin, yet others make her identical to mistress Zaida.

His final wife was Beatrice. Some sources state she was related to Hisham III, the last Emir of Cordoba. Alternatively, it has been suggested she was niece of first wife Agnes, and daughter of William IX of Aquitaine. She had no children by Alfonso.

He also had two known mistresses.

By Jimena Muñoz, of a "most noble family", he had two illegitimate daughters, another Elvira (actually his eldest child) and Teresa.

A second mistress was Zaida of Seville, said by Hispania Muslim sources to be daughter-in-law of Al Mutamid, the Muslim King of Seville. She was mother of Alfonso's only son, Sancho, who, though illegitimate, would be named his father's heir. Several modern sources have suggested that Zaida, baptised under the name of Isabel, is identical with Alfonso's wife, queen Isabel (or that she was a second queen Isabel who he married in succession to the first). Zaida/Isabel died in childbirth, but the date is unknown, and it is unclear whether the child being delivered was Sancho, Sancha (if Zaida was identical to Queen Isabel), or an additional child, otherwise unknown.

Alfonso's designated successor, his son Sancho, was slain in the Battle of Ucles in 1108, making Alfonso's widowed daughter Urraca his heir. In order to strengthen her position as his successor, Alfonso began negotiations for her to marry her second cousin, Alfonso I of Aragon and Navarre, but died before the marriage could take place.

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Alfonso VI (before June 1040 – June 29/July 1, 1109), nicknamed the Brave, was King of León from 1065 to 1109 and King of Castile from 1072 following his brother's death. As he was the first Alfonso to be King of Castile, he is sometimes referred to as Alfonso I of Castile. In 1077, he proclaimed himself "Emperor of All Hispania". Much romance has gathered around his name.

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Alfonso VI (before June 1040 – June 29/July 1, 1109), nicknamed the Brave, was King of León from 1065 to 1109 and King of Castile from 1072 following his brother's death. As he was the first Alfonso to be King of Castile, he is sometimes referred to as Alfonso I of Castile. In 1077, he proclaimed himself "Emperor of All Hispania". Much romance has gathered around his name.

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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alfonso_VI_of_Castile

Alfonso VI of León and Castile

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 (Redirected from Alfonso VI of Castile)

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Alfonso VI

Alfonso VI. A 12th century painting at the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela.

Emperor of All Spain

Reign 1077–1109

Coronation 1077

Predecessor Ferdinand I

Successor Urraca & Alfonso

King of León

Reign 1065–1072

1072–1109

Predecessor Ferdinand I

Sancho II

Successor Sancho II

Urraca

King of Castile

Reign 1072–1109

Predecessor Sancho II

Successor Urraca

King of Galicia and Portugal

Reign 1071–1072 (jointly with Sancho)

1072–1109

Predecessor García II

Sancho II

Successor Sancho II

Urraca

Spouse Agnes of Aquitaine

Constance of Burgundy

Bertha

Isabel

Beatrice

Jimena Muñoz (mistress)

Zaida of Seville (mistress and perhaps wife)

Issue

Urraca

Sancho Alfónsez

Infanta Sancha

Elvira, Queen of Sicily

Elvira, Countess of Toulouse

Theresa, Countess of Portugal

House House of Jiménez

Father Ferdinand I of León and Castile

Mother Sancha of León

Born before June 1040

Compostela

Died June 29/July 1, 1109 (aged 68-69)

Toledo

Burial Sahagún, León, San Mancio chapel in the royal monastery of Santos Facundo y Primitivo

Alfonso VI (before June 1040 – June 29/July 1, 1109), nicknamed the Brave (El Bravo) or the Valiant, was King of León from 1065, King of Castile and de facto King of Galicia from 1072, and self-proclaimed "Emperor of all Spain". Much romance has gathered around his name.

Contents

[hide]

   * 1 Accession

* 2 Strong fighter
* 3 Marriages and children
* 4 Ancestry
* 5 Notes
o 5.1 Portrayal in Media
* 6 External links
* 7 References
[edit] Accession

As the middle of three sons of King Ferdinand I of León and Sancha of León, Alfonso was allotted León when the kingdom was divided following his father's death, while Castile was given to his elder brother Sancho, Galicia to younger brother García, and sisters Urraca and Elvira given the cities of Zamora and Toro respectively. Each of the brothers was also assigned a sphere of influence among the Taifa states. Alfonso appears to have taken the first step in violating this division, in 1068 invading the Galician client Taifa of Badajoz and extorting tribute. In response, Sancho attacked and defeated Alfonso at Llantada but three years later in 1071 they joined forces against García. Sancho over-marched Alfonso's León to conquer García's northern lands, while Alfonso himself is found issuing charters in the southern part of the Galician realm. García fled to taifa Seville, and the remaining brothers then turned on each other. This conflict culminated in the Battle of Golpejera in early January, 1072. Sancho proved victorious and Alfonso himself was forced to flee to his client Taifa of Toledo. Later that year as Sancho was mopping up the last of the resistance, besieging his sister Urraca at Zamora in October, he was assassinated, opening the way for Alfonso to return to claim Sancho's crown. García, induced to return from exile, was imprisoned by Alfonso for life, leaving Alfonso in uncontested control of the reunited territories of their father. In recognition of this and his role as the preeminent Christian monarch on the peninsula, in 1077 he proclaimed himself "Emperor of all Spain".

In the cantar de gesta The Lay of the Cid, he plays the part attributed by medieval poets to the greatest kings, and to Charlemagne himself. He is alternately the oppressor and the victim of heroic and self-willed nobles — the idealized types of the patrons for whom the jongleurs and troubadours sang. He is the hero of a cantar de gesta which, like all but a very few of the early Spanish songs, like the cantar of Bernardo del Carpio and the Infantes of Lara, exists now only in the fragments incorporated in the chronicle of Alfonso the Wise or in ballad form.

His flight from the monastery of Sahagún (Safagún in Leonese language), where his brother Sancho endeavoured to imprison him, his chivalrous friendship for his host Almamun of Toledo, caballero aunque moro, "a knight although a Moor", the passionate loyalty of his vassal, Pero (Pedro) Ansúrez, and his brotherly love for his sister Urraca of Zamora, may owe something to the poet who took him as a hero.

They are the answer to the poet of the nobles who represented the king as having submitted to taking a degrading oath at the hands of Rodrigo Díaz de Vivar (El Cid) to deny intervention in his brother's death in the church of Santa Gadea at Burgos, and as having then persecuted the brave man who defied him.

[edit] Strong fighter

When every allowance is made, Alfonso VI stands out as a strong man fighting as a king whose interest was law and order, and who was the leader of the nation in the reconquest. He impressed himself on the Arabs as a very fierce and astute enemy, but as a keeper of his word. A story of Muslim origin, which is probably no more historical than the oath of Santa Gadea, tells of how he allowed himself to be tricked by Ibn Ammar, the favourite of Al Mutamid, the King of Seville. They played chess for an extremely beautiful table and set of men, belonging to Ibn Ammar. Table and men were to go to the king if he won. If Ibn Ammar gained he was to name the stake. The latter did win and demanded that the Christian king should spare Seville. Alfonso kept his word.

Whatever truth may lie behind the romantic tales of Christian and Muslim, we know that Alfonso represented the two great influences then shaping the character and civilization of Hispania.

Alfonso showed a greater degree of continental integration than his predecessors. The marital practices of the Iberian royalty had been largely endogamous, previously limiting choice of partners to the peninsula and Gascony, but Alfonso married French and Italian wives, while marrying daughters to French princes and an Italian king. His second marriage was arranged, in part, through the influence of the French Cluniac Order, and Alfonso is said to have introduced them into Hispania, established them in Sahagun and choosing a French Cluniac, Bernard, as the first Archbishop of Toledo after its 1085 conquest. He also drew his kingdom nearer to the Papacy, a move which brought French crusaders to aid him in the reconquest, and it was Alfonso's decision which established the Roman ritual in place of the old missal of Saint Isidore — the Mozarabic rite.

On the other hand he was very open to Arabic influence. He protected the Muslims among his subjects and struck coins with inscriptions in Arabic letters. He also admitted to his court and to his bed the refugee Muslim princess Zaida of Seville.

Alfonso was defeated on October 23, 1086, at the battle of Sagrajas, at the hands of Yusuf ibn Tashfin, and Abbad III al-Mu'tamid, and was severely wounded in the leg.

[edit] Marriages and children

Alfonso married at least five times and had two mistresses and a fiancée:

       * In 1067, two brothers from Iberia are said to have competed for the hand of Agatha, one of the daughters of William I of England and Matilda of Flanders and formerly fiancee of Harold Godwinson. Alfonso proved successful, and was betrothed to Agatha. A nun at the time, Agatha is said to have prayed for death rather than being forced to marry Alphonso, and she died before the marriage could take place.

Epitaph of Jimena Muñoz, Alfonso's mistress and progenitor of the first Portuguese royal line

   * In 1069, Alfonso married Agnes of Aquitaine, daughter of William VIII of Aquitaine and his second wife Mateoda. They last appear together in May 1077, and then Alfonso appears alone. This suggests that she had died, although Orderic Vitalis reports that in 1109 Alfonso's 'relict' Agnes remarried to Elias I of Maine, leading some to speculate that Alfonso and Agnes had divorced due to consanguinity. It seems more likely that Orderic gave the wrong name to Alfonso's widow, Beatrice. Agnes and Alfonso had no children.

* Apparently between his first and second marriages he formed a liaison with Jimena Muñoz, a "most noble" (nobilissima) concubine "derived from royalty" (real generacion). She appears to have been put aside, given land in Ulver, at the time of Alfonso's remarriage. By her Alfonso had two illegitimate daughters, Elvira and Teresa.
* His second wife, who he married by May 1080, was Constance of Burgundy, daughter of Robert I, Duke of Burgundy. This marriage initially faced papal opposition, apparently due to her kinship with Agnes. Her tenure as queen consort brought significant Cluniac influences into the kingdom. She died in September or October, 1093, the mother of Alfonso's eldest legitimate daughter Urraca, and of five other children who died in infancy.
* Either before or shortly after Constance's death, Alfonso formed a liaison with a second mistress, Zaida of Seville, said by Iberian Muslim sources to be daughter-in-law of Al Mutamid, the Muslim King of Seville. She fled the fall of Seville for Alfonso's kingdom in 1091, and soon became his lover, having by him Alfonso's only son, Sancho, who, though illegitimate, was apparently not born of an adulterous relationship, and hence born after the death of Constance. He would be named his father's heir. Several modern sources have suggested that Zaida, baptised under the name of Isabel, is identical with Alfonso's later wife, Queen Isabel (or that she was a second queen named Isabel whom he married in succession to the first). Zaida/Isabel died in childbirth, but the date is unknown, and it is unclear whether the child being delivered was Sancho, an additional illegitimate child, otherwise unknown, or legitimate daughter Elvira (if Zaida was identical to Queen Isabel).
* By April 1095, Alfonso married Bertha. Chroniclers report her as being from Tuscany, Lombardy, or alternatively, say she was French. Several theories have been put forward regarding her origin. Based on political considerations, proposals make her daughter of William I, Count of Burgundy or of Amadeus II of Savoy. She had no children and died in late 1099 (Alfonso first appears without her in mid-January 1100).
* Within months, by May 1100, Alfonso again remarried, to Isabel, having by her two daughters, Sancha, (wife of Rodrigo González de Lara), and Elvira, (who married Roger II of Sicily). A non-contemporary tomb inscription says she was daughter of a "king Louis of France", but this is chronologically impossible. It has been speculated that she was of Burgundian origin, but others conclude that Alfonso married his former mistress, Zaida, who had been baptized as Isabel. (In a novel twist, Reilly suggested that there were two successive queens named Isabel: first the French (Burgundian) Isabel, mother of Sancha and Elvira, with Alfonso only later marrying his mistress Zaida (Isabel), after the death of or divorce from the first Isabel.) Alfonso was again widowed in mid-1107.
* By May 1108, Alfonso married his last wife, Beatrice. She, as widow of Alfonso, is said to have returned home to France, but nothing else is known of her origin unless she is the woman Orderic named as "Agnes, daughter of William, Duke of Poitou", who as relict of Alfonso, (Agnetem, filiam Guillelmi, Pictavorum ducis, relictam Hildefonsi senioris, Galliciae regis), remarried to Elias of Maine. If this is the case, she is likely daughter of William IX of Aquitaine and niece of Alfonso's first wife. Beatrice had no children by Alfonso.
One other woman was reported by later sources to have been Alfonso's lover. The historian Abu Bakr Ibn al Sayraff, writing before 1161, stated that Alfonso abandoned Christianity for Zoroastrianism and had carnal relations with his sister Urraca, but then repented and was absolved, making pilgrimages to holy sites as penance. This has been followed by some later historians but others dismiss it as propaganda or misunderstanding.
Alfonso's designated successor, his son Sancho, was slain after being routed at the Battle of Uclés in 1108, making Alfonso's eldest legitimate daughter, the widowed Urraca as his heir. In order to strengthen her position as his successor, Alfonso began negotiations for her to marry her second cousin, Alfonso I of Aragon and Navarre, but died before the marriage could take place, Urraca succeeding.

Notes

[edit] Portrayal in Media

   * Alfonso appears heavily in the PC game Age of Empires 2: The Conquers during the Spanish El Cid campaign. During the story line, Alfonso is portrayed as being jealous of El Cid's combat ability and popularity with the people, it is also suggested that Alfonso sends El Cid into battles hoping for him to be killed.

[edit] External links

   * IX Centenary of Leon-Castilla's King Alfonso VI (1109-2009)

* Alfonso VI on a Manuscript:.
[edit] References

   * This entry incorporates public domain text originally from the 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica.

* The Kingdom of León-Castilla under King Alfonso VI, 1065-1109, by Bernard F. Reilly (Princeton University Press, 1988): full text online at LIBRO.
* Portugal, A Country Study, by Louis R. Mortimer, ed. Washington, D.C.: Library of Congress, 1993.
Preceded by

Ferdinand I King of León

(first reign)

1065–1072 Succeeded by

Sancho II

Preceded by

García II King of Galicia (and Portugal)

(first reign)

jointly with Sancho II

1071–1072

Preceded by

Sancho II King of León (second reign),

Castile and Galicia

(and Portugal)

(second reign)

1072–1109 Succeeded by

Urraca

Vacant

Title last held by

Ferdinand I of León Emperor of Spain

1077 – 1109 Succeeded by

Urraca

suo jure

Alfonso I

jure uxoris

This page was last modified on 3 June 2010 at 04:53

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Alfonso VI (before June 1040 – June 29/July 1, 1109), nicknamed the Brave (El Bravo) or the Valiant, was King of León from 1065 to 1109, King of Galicia since 1073 and King of Castile since 1072 and following the death of his brother Sancho II in 1077 was the self-proclaimed "Emperor of all Spain". Much romance has gathered around his name.

Marriages and children

Alfonso married at least five times and had two mistresses and a fiancée:

       * In 1067, two brothers from Iberia are said to have competed for the hand of Agatha, one of the daughters of William I of England and Matilda of Flanders and formerly fiancee of Harold Godwinson. Alfonso proved successful, and was betrothed to Agatha. A nun at the time, Agatha is said to have prayed for death rather than being forced to marry Alphonso, and she died before the marriage could take place.

* In 1069, Alfonso married Agnes of Aquitaine, daughter of William VIII of Aquitaine and his second wife Mateoda. They last appear together in May 1077, and then Alfonso appears alone. This suggests that she had died, although Orderic Vitalis reports that in 1109 Alfonso's 'relict' Agnes remarried to Elias I of Maine, leading some to speculate that Alfonso and Agnes had divorced due to consanguinity. It seems more likely that Orderic gave the wrong name to Alfonso's widow, Beatrice. Agnes and Alfonso had no children.
* Apparently between his first and second marriages he formed a liaison with Jimena Muñoz, a "most noble" (nobilissima) concubine "derived from royalty" (real generacion). She appears to have been put aside, given land in Ulver, at the time of Alfonso's remarriage. By her Alfonso had two illegitimate daughters, Elvira and Teresa.
* His second wife, who he married by May 1080, was Constance of Burgundy, daughter of Robert I, Duke of Burgundy. This marriage initially faced papal opposition, apparently due to her kinship with Agnes. Her reign as queen brought significant Cluniac influences into the kingdom. She died in September or October, 1093, the mother of Alfonso's eldest legitimate daughter Urraca, and of five other children who died in infancy.
* Either late in Constance's reign or shortly after her death, Alfonso formed a liaison with a second mistress, Zaida of Seville, said by Iberian Muslim sources to be daughter-in-law of Al Mutamid, the Muslim King of Seville. She fled the fall of Seville for Alfonso's kingdom in 1091, and soon became his lover, having by him Alfonso's only son, Sancho, who, though illegitimate was apparently not born of an adulterous relationship, and hence born after the death of Constance. He would be named his father's heir. Several modern sources have suggested that Zaida, baptised under the name of Isabel, is identical with Alfonso's later wife, queen Isabel (or that she was a second queen Isabel who he married in succession to the first). Zaida/Isabel died in childbirth, but the date is unknown, and it is unclear whether the child being delivered was Sancho, an additional illegitimate child, otherwise unknown, or legitimate daughter Elvira (if Zaida was identical to Queen Isabel).
* By April 1095, Alfonso married Bertha. Chroniclers report her as being from Tuscany, Lombardy, or alternatively, say she was French. Several theories have been put forward regarding her origin. Based on political considerations, proposals make her daughter of William I, Count of Burgundy or of Amadeus II of Savoy. She had no children and died in late 1099 (Alfonso first appears without her in mid-January 1100).
* Within months, by May 1100, Alfonso again remarried, to Isabel, having by her two daughters, Sancha, (wife of Rodrigo González de Lara), and Elvira, (who married Roger II of Sicily). A non-contemporary tomb inscription says she was daughter of a "king Louis of France", but this is chronologically impossible. It has been speculated that she was of Burgundian origin, but others conclude that Alfonso married his former mistress, Zaida, who had been baptized as Isabel. (In a novel twist, Reilly suggested that there were two successive queens named Isabel: first the French (Burgundian) Isabel, mother of Sancha and Elvira, with Alfonso only later marrying his mistress Zaida (Isabel), after the death of or divorce from the first Isabel.) Alfonso was again widowed in mid-1107.
* By May 1108, Alfonso married his last wife, Beatrice. She, as widow of Alfonso, is said to have returned home to France, but nothing else is known of her origin unless she is the woman Orderic named as "Agnes, daughter of William, Duke of Poitou", who as relict of Alfonso, (Agnetem, filiam Guillelmi, Pictavorum ducis, relictam Hildefonsi senioris, Galliciae regis), remarried to Elias of Maine. If this is the case, she is likely daughter of William IX of Aquitaine and niece of Alfonso's first wife. Beatrice had no children by Alfonso.
Alfonso's designated successor, his son Sancho, was slain after being routed at the Battle of Uclés in 1108, making Alfonso's eldest legitimate daughter, the widowed Urraca as his heir. In order to strengthen her position as his successor, Alfonso began negotiations for her to marry her second cousin, Alfonso I of Aragon and Navarre, but died before the marriage could take place, Urraca succeeding.

References

   * This entry incorporates public domain text originally from the 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica.

* The Kingdom of León-Castilla under King Alfonso VI, 1065-1109, by Bernard F. Reilly (Princeton University Press, 1988): full text online at LIBRO.
* Portugal, A Country Study, by Louis R. Mortimer, ed. Washington, D.C.: Library of Congress, 1993.

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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alfonso_VI_of_Le%C3%B3n

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Born in the Spring; so born before June. Aka Alfonso 1st, King of Castile. Alfonso's 1st wife was Agnes. His 3rd wife was Berta & his 4th wife was Zayda.

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Alfonso VI (before June 1040 – June 29/July 1, 1109), nicknamed the Brave (El Bravo) or the Valiant, was King of León from 1065 to 1109, King of Galicia since 1073 and King of Castile since 1072 and following the death of his brother Sancho II in 1077 was the self-proclaimed "Emperor of all Spain".

As the second and favorite son of King Ferdinand I of León and Princess Sancha of León

Alfonso married at least five times and had two mistresses and a fiancée:

       * In 1067, two brothers from Iberia are said to have competed for the hand of Agatha, one of the daughters of William I of England and Matilda of Flanders and formerly fiancee of Harold Godwinson. Alfonso proved successful, and was betrothed to Agatha. A nun at the time, Agatha is said to have prayed for death rather than being forced to marry Alphonso, and she died before the marriage could take place.

* In 1069, Alfonso married Agnes of Aquitaine, daughter of William VIII of Aquitaine and his second wife Mateoda. They last appear together in May 1077, and then Alfonso appears alone. This suggests that she had died, although Orderic Vitalis reports that in 1109 Alfonso's 'relict' Agnes remarried to Elias I of Maine, leading some to speculate that Alfonso and Agnes had divorced due to consanguinity. It seems more likely that Orderic gave the wrong name to Alfonso's widow, Beatrice. Agnes and Alfonso had no children.
* Apparently between his first and second marriages he formed a liaison with Jimena Muñoz, a "most noble" (nobilissima) concubine "derived from royalty" (real generacion). She appears to have been put aside, given land in Ulver, at the time of Alfonso's remarriage. By her Alfonso had two illegitimate daughters, Elvira and Teresa.
* His second wife, who he married by May 1080, was Constance of Burgundy, daughter of Robert I, Duke of Burgundy. This marriage initially faced papal opposition, apparently due to her kinship with Agnes. Her reign as queen brought significant Cluniac influences into the kingdom. She died in September or October, 1093, the mother of Alfonso's eldest legitimate daughter Urraca, and of five other children who died in infancy.
* Either late in Constance's reign or shortly after her death, Alfonso formed a liaison with a second mistress, Zaida of Seville, said by Iberian Muslim sources to be daughter-in-law of Al Mutamid, the Muslim King of Seville. She fled the fall of Seville for Alfonso's kingdom in 1091, and soon became his lover, having by him Alfonso's only son, Sancho, who, though illegitimate was apparently not born of an adulterous relationship, and hence born after the death of Constance. He would be named his father's heir. Several modern sources have suggested that Zaida, baptised under the name of Isabel, is identical with Alfonso's later wife, queen Isabel (or that she was a second queen Isabel who he married in succession to the first). Zaida/Isabel died in childbirth, but the date is unknown, and it is unclear whether the child being delivered was Sancho, an additional illegitimate child, otherwise unknown, or legitimate daughter Elvira (if Zaida was identical to Queen Isabel).
* By April 1095, Alfonso married Bertha. Chroniclers report her as being from Tuscany, Lombardy, or alternatively, say she was French. Several theories have been put forward regarding her origin. Based on political considerations, proposals make her daughter of William I, Count of Burgundy or of Amadeus II of Savoy. She had no children and died in late 1099 (Alfonso first appears without her in mid-January 1100).
* Within months, by May 1100, Alfonso again remarried, to Isabel, having by her two daughters, Sancha, (wife of Rodrigo González de Lara), and Elvira, (who married Roger II of Sicily). A non-contemporary tomb inscription says she was daughter of a "king Louis of France", but this is chronologically impossible. It has been speculated that she was of Burgundian origin, but others conclude that Alfonso married his former mistress, Zaida, who had been baptized as Isabel. (In a novel twist, Reilly suggested that there were two successive queens named Isabel: first the French (Burgundian) Isabel, mother of Sancha and Elvira, with Alfonso only later marrying his mistress Zaida (Isabel), after the death of or divorce from the first Isabel.) Alfonso was again widowed in mid-1107.
* By May 1108, Alfonso married his last wife, Beatrice. She, as widow of Alfonso, is said to have returned home to France, but nothing else is known of her origin unless she is the woman Orderic named as "Agnes, daughter of William, Duke of Poitou", who as relict of Alfonso, (Agnetem, filiam Guillelmi, Pictavorum ducis, relictam Hildefonsi senioris, Galliciae regis), remarried to Elias of Maine. If this is the case, she is likely daughter of William IX of Aquitaine and niece of Alfonso's first wife. Beatrice had no children by Alfonso.
Alfonso's designated successor, his son Sancho, was slain after being routed at the Battle of Uclés in 1108, making Alfonso's eldest legitimate daughter, the widowed Urraca as his heir. In order to strengthen her position as his successor, Alfonso began negotiations for her to marry her second cousin, Alfonso I of Aragon and Navarre, but died before the marriage could take place, Urraca succeeding.

[edit] Notes

[edit] External links

   * IX Centenary of Leon-Castilla's King Alfonso VI (1109-2009)

* Alfonso VI on a Manuscript:.
References

   * This entry incorporates public domain text originally from the 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica.

* The Kingdom of León-Castilla under King Alfonso VI, 1065-1109, by Bernard F. Reilly (Princeton University Press, 1988): full text online at LIBRO.
* Portugal, A Country Study, by Louis R. Mortimer, ed. Washington, D.C.: Library of Congress, 1993.

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Afonso VI

Rei de Leão, Castela, Toledo e Galiza; Imperador de toda a Hispânia

Afonso VI de Leão e Castela, o Bravo (1039 — 1 de Julho de 1109) foi, até à sua morte, rei de Leão desde 27 de Dezembro de 1065, rei de Castela desde 6 de Outubro de 1072, rei da Galiza desde 1073, intitulado Imperator totius Hispaniæ (imperador de toda Hispânia) desde 1077 e rei de Toledo desde 1085.

Afonso VI terá casado cinco vezes e ficado noivo uma outra vez, para além de ter tido diversas ligações extra-matrimoniais:

O primeiro casamento em 1069 foi com Inês da Aquitânia, filha de Guilherme VIII, Duque da Aquitânia, matrimónio do qual não houve descendência, sendo anulado em 1077 devido à esterilidade da esposa.

Afonso negociou um noivado com Águeda da Normandia, filha de Guilherme I da Inglaterra, mas com o falecimento desta em 1080 - segundo algumas versões por desgosto com a perspectiva de casar com Afonso - o projecto foi frustrado.

O segundo casamento foi em 8 de Maio de 1081 com Constança da Borgonha, bisneta de Hugo Capeto. Até à sua morte em 1093, ela terá tido seis filhos, dos quais se conhecem:

1. Urraca (c. 1081-1126), dada em matrimónio a Raimundo da Borgonha e futura rainha de Leão e Castela
2. Elvira (1082-?), morreu jovem, tal como seus demais irmãos.

O terceiro casamento se realizou em 25 de Novembro de 1093 com Berta de Borgonha-Macon, filha de Guilherme I, Conde da Borgonha, que morreria sem gerar descendência.

O quarto casamento foi em 1098 com Isabel. Alguns historiadores defendem que seria uma nobre cristã, outros que seria a moura Zaida, viúva do rei Al-Mutamid da taifa de Sevilha, baptizada Isabel. Uma ou outra, até à sua morte em 1107 dar-lhe-ia três filhos:

1. Sancho Afonses (1098-1108), putativo herdeiro, morto na batalha de Uclés
2. Elvira (1100-1135), casada com Rogério II da Sicília
3. Sancha de Castela (1080 - 1134) casada com Rodrigo Gonzalez de Lara, conde de Liébana

O seu quinto e último casamento terá sido com Beatriz, possivelmente da Casa de Este ou da Aquitânia (talvez meio-irmã da primeira esposa dele, Inês), em 1108. Durante o ano de casados até à morte do monarca, não tiveram descendência.

De uma ligação ilegítima com Ximena Moniz, uma senhora galega, Afonso VI teve duas filhas bastardas:

1. Elvira de Castela (1071-1151), casada com o conde cruzado Raimundo IV de Toulouse
2. Teresa de Leão (c. 1080-1132), condessa de Portugal casada com Henrique de Borgonha, Conde de Portugal e mãe de D. Afonso Henriques

Fora do casamento, e de outra ligação ilegítima teve pelo menos uma filha:

1. N… Afonso de Leão (1045 —?) que foi casada com Fernão Mendes de Antas filho de Mendo Alão, Senhor de Bragança.

in: Wikipédia, a enciclopédia livre <http://pt.wikipedia.org/wiki/Afonso_VI_de_Le%C3%A3o_e_Castela>

Veja também:

• Alfonso VI of León and Castile <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alfonso_VI_of_Castile>
• El-Rei D. Afonso VI de LEÃO <http://www.barrosbrito.com/1943.html>
• Selected Families and Individuals <http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~hwbradley/aqwg879...>

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Nota: Rey de León 1065 - 1109, de Castilla 1072 - 1109, proclamado Emperador de España 1077. Fue derrotado por su hermano Sancho, heredero de Castilla, en las batallas de Llantada en 1068 y Golpejera en 1072, A raíz de esta batalla ALfonso fue desterrado a Toledo; pero a la muerte de Sancho en el cerco de Zamora en 1072, recuperó los reinos de León, Castilla y Galicia, y ocupó La Rioja.

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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alfonso_VI_of_Le%C3%B3n_and_Castile

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http://genealogy.euweb.cz/iberia/iberia7.html#A6

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Predecessor Ferdinand I Successor Urraca & Alfonso

King of León Reign: 1065–1072 1072–1109 Predecessor Ferdinand I, Sancho II Successo Sancho II, Urraca

King of Castile Reign: 1072–1109 Predecessor Sancho II Successor Urraca

King of Galicia and Portugal Reign: 1071–1072 (jointly with Sancho) 1072–1109 Predecessor García II, Sancho II Successor Sancho II, Urraca

Spouses: Agnes of Aquitaine, Constance of Burgundy, 3 more...

Issue

Urraca Sancho Alfónsez Infanta Sancha Elvira, Queen of Sicily Elvira, Countess of Toulouse Theresa, Countess of Portugal

House

House of Jiménez

Father: Ferdinand I of León and Castile

Mother: Sancha of León

Alfonso VI nicknamed the Brave (El Bravo) or the Valiant, was King of León from 1065, King of Castile and de facto King of Galicia from 1072. After the conquest of Toledo he also self-proclaimed victoriosissimo rege in Toleto, et in Hispania et Gallecia Much romance has gathered around his name.

Family

Alfonso was the second son of Ferdinand the Great and Sancha of León, the daughter of Alfonso the Noble and sister to Bermudo III of León. His father was King of Castile-León and Emperor of Spain. Alfonso was allotted León when the kingdom was divided following his father's death. Castile was given to his elder brother Sancho and Galicia to his younger brother García.

Accession

Political situation in the Northern Iberian Peninsula around 1065: Garcia II´s domains (Galicia) Badajoz, owing tribute to Garcia Seville, owing tribute to Garcia Alfonso VI´s domains (León) Toledo, owing tribute to Alfonso Sancho II´s domains (Castile) Zaragoza, owing tribute to Sancho

As the middle of three sons of King Ferdinand I of León and Sancha of León, Alfonso was allotted León when the kingdom was divided following his father's death, while Castile was given to his elder brother Sancho, Galicia to younger brother García, and sisters Urraca and Elvira given the cities of Zamora and Toro respectively. Each of the brothers was also assigned a sphere of influence among the Taifa states. Alfonso appears to have taken the first step in violating this division, in 1068 invading the Galician client Taifa of Badajoz and extorting tribute. In response, Sancho attacked and defeated Alfonso at Llantada but three years later in 1071 they joined forces against García. Sancho over-marched Alfonso's León to conquer García's northern lands, while Alfonso himself is found issuing charters in the southern part of the Galician realm. García fled to taifa Seville, and the remaining brothers then turned on each other. This conflict culminated in the Battle of Golpejera in early January, 1072. Sancho proved victorious and Alfonso himself was forced to flee to his client Taifa of Toledo. Later that year as Sancho was mopping up the last of the resistance, besieging his sister Urraca at Zamora in October, he was assassinated, opening the way for Alfonso to return to claim Sancho's crown. García, induced to return from exile, was imprisoned by Alfonso for life, leaving Alfonso in uncontested control of the reunited territories of their father. In recognition of this and his role as the preeminent Christian monarch on the peninsula, in 1077 Alfonso proclaimed himself "Emperor of all Spain".

In the cantar de gesta The Lay of the Cid, he plays the part attributed by medieval poets to the greatest kings, and to Charlemagne himself. He is alternately the oppressor and the victim of heroic and self-willed nobles — the idealized types of the patrons for whom the jongleurs and troubadours sang. He is the hero of a cantar de gesta which, like all but a very few of the early Spanish songs, like the cantar of Bernardo del Carpio and the Infantes of Lara, exists now only in the fragments incorporated in the chronicle of Alfonso the Wise or in ballad form.

His flight from the monastery of Sahagún (Safagún in Leonese language), where his brother Sancho endeavoured to imprison him, his chivalrous friendship for his host Almamun of Toledo, caballero aunque moro, "a knight although a Moor", the passionate loyalty of his vassal, Pero (Pedro) Ansúrez, and his brotherly love for his sister Urraca of Zamora, may owe something to the poet who took him as a hero.

They are the answer to the poet of the nobles who represented the king as having submitted to taking a degrading oath at the hands of Rodrigo Díaz de Vivar (El Cid) to deny intervention in his brother's death in the church of Santa Gadea at Burgos, and as having then persecuted the brave man who defied him.

Strong fighter

When every allowance is made, Alfonso VI stands out as a strong man fighting as a king whose interest was law and order, and who was the leader of the nation in the reconquest. He impressed himself on the Arabs as a very fierce and astute enemy, but as a keeper of his word. A story of Muslim origin tells of how he allowed himself to