Alfonso VIII, King of Castile (1155-1214)

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Alfonso VIII of Castile ‡
Birth:	11 November 1155
Death:	5 October 1214
Father:	Sancho III, King of Castile (1134-1158)
Mother:	Blanca Garcés of Navarre (aft1133-1156)
Spouse / partner:	Eleanor of England (1162-1214)
Wedding:	September 1176
Sex:
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• 1158-1214: King of Castile
• AKA: Alfonzo, the Noble Sanchez

Alfonso VIII Ivrea of Castile was born 11 November 1155 to Sancho III, King of Castile (1134-1158) and Blanca Garcés of Navarre (aft1133-1156) and died 5 October 1214 of unspecified causes. He married Eleanor of England (1162-1214) September 1176 ^JL .

Biography

Alfonso VIII was the King of Castile from 1158 until his death in 1214. He was born in Soria, Spain, in November 1155, and was the only son of Sancho III, the king of Castile. When his father died in 1158, Alfonso was only three years old and his mother, Blanche of Navarre, acted as regent until he reached the age of majority.

Alfonso VIII's reign was marked by several significant events. One of the most important was the Battle of Las Navas de Tolosa in 1212, in which he played a decisive role. The battle was fought between the forces of Alfonso VIII and the combined armies of the Almohad caliphate, a Muslim dynasty that ruled over much of North Africa and the Iberian Peninsula. Alfonso's victory in this battle is considered to be a turning point in the Reconquista, the centuries-long Christian reconquest of the Iberian Peninsula from Muslim rule.

During his reign, Alfonso VIII also promoted the growth of towns and cities, established a code of laws known as the Fuero de Cuenca, and initiated construction projects such as the fortified city of Ávila. He also developed a close relationship with the Church and was instrumental in the establishment of several monasteries and convents.

Alfonso VIII died on October 5, 1214, in Gutierre-Muñoz, Spain. He was succeeded by his son, Henry I. Overall, Alfonso VIII is remembered as a strong and effective king who played a crucial role in the Reconquista and helped to shape the political and cultural landscape of medieval Spain.

Family

His wife was Eleanor of England, the daughter of King Henry II and Queen Eleanor of Aquitaine. They were married in 1170 and had several children, including their eldest son, Henry, who succeeded Alfonso as king of Castile.

With Eleanor of England, Alfonso had 11 children:

1. Berenguela of Castile (1180-1246) Married firstly in Seligenstadt on 23 April 1188 with Duke Conrad II of Swabia, but the union (only by contract and never solemnized) was later annulled. Married in Valladolid between 1/16 December 1197 with King Alfonso IX of León as his second wife. After their marriage was dissolved on grounds of consanguinity in 1204, she returned to her homeland and became regent of her minor brother King Henry I. Queen of Castile in her own right after the death of Henry I in 1217, quickly abdicated in favor of her son Ferdinand III of Castile who would re-unite the kingdoms of Castile and León.
2. Sancho of Castile (1181-1181) - Heir of the throne since his birth, died aged three months.
3. Sancha of Castile (1182-1184)' - died in infancy
4. Henry of Castile (1184-1184) - Heir of the throne since his birth, died either shortly after being born or in infancy. His existence is disputed among sources.
5. Urraca of Castile (1186-1220), Queen of Portugal - Queen of Afonso II of Portugal
6. Blanca of Castile (1188-1252), Queen of France - Married to Louis VIII of France, connecting the house of Castile, House of Normandy and the Capetian dynasty.
7. Fernando of Castile (1189-1211) - Heir of the throne since his birth. On whose behalf Diego of Acebo and the future Saint Dominic travelled to Denmark in 1203 to secure a bride. Ferdinand was returning through the San Vicente mountains from a campaign against the Muslims when he contracted a fever and died.
8. Mafalda of Castile (1191-1204) - Betrothed in 1204 to Infante Ferdinand of Leon, eldest son of Alfonso IX and stepson of her oldest sister.
9. Constance of Castile (1195-1198) - died young
10. Eleanor of Castile (1202-1244) - Married in Ágreda on 6 February 1221 with James I of Aragon.
11. Constanza of Castile (1203-1243) - A nun at the Cistercian monastery of Santa María la Real at Las Huelgas in 1217, she became known as the Lady of Las Huelgas, a title shared with later royal family members who joined the community.
12. Henry I of Castile (1204-1217) - Only surviving son, he succeeded his father in 1214 aged ten under the regency firstly of his mother and later his oldest sister. He was killed when he was struck by a tile falling from a roof.

Through his daughters, Berengaria and Blanche, he was the grandfather of two monarchs who became saints of the Roman Church.

Children

Offspring of Alfonso VIII of Castile and Eleanor of England (1162-1214)
Name	Birth	Death	Joined with
Berenguela of Castile (1180-1246)	1180 Segovia, Spain	8 November 1246 Burgos, Spain	Alfonso IX, King of León (1171-1230)
Sancho of Castile (1181-1181)
Sancha of Castile (1182-1184)
Henry of Castile (1184-1184)
Urraca of Castile (1186-1220)	1186	3 November 1220	Afonso II of Portugal (1185-1223)
Blanca of Castile (1188-1252)	4 March 1188 Palencia, Spain	26 October 1252 Paris, France	Louis VIII Capet (1187-1226)
Fernando of Castile (1189-1211)
Mafalda of Castile (1191-1204)
Constance of Castile (1195-1198)
Eleanor of Castile (1202-1244)	1202	1244	Jaime I de Aragón (1208-1276)
Constanza of Castile (1203-1243)	1202	1243 Las Huelgas, Spain
Henry I of Castile (1204-1217)	14 April 1204 Valladolid, Spain	6 June 1217 Palencia, Spain	Mafalda of Portugal (c1195-1256)

Siblings

Offspring of Sancho III, King of Castile (1134-1158) and Blanca Garcés of Navarre (aft1133-1156)
Name	Birth	Death	Joined with
Alfonso VIII, King of Castile (1155-1214)	11 November 1155	5 October 1214	Eleanor of England (1162-1214)
Garcia of Castile (1156-1156)

See Also

• Charlemagne Family Ancestry
• House of Normandy - pretender to the English throne thru his wife.
• wikipedia:en:Alfonso VIII of Castile
• Alfonso VIII of Castile at thePeerage
• Kings of Castile and Leon - Foundation for Medieval Genealogy
• Alfonso VIII of Castile - Geni.com
• Linehan, Peter (2011). Spain, 1157-1300: A Partible Inheritance. Blackwell Publishing Ltd. 
• Gómez, Miguel; Lincoln, Kyle C.; Smith, Damian (2018). King Alfonso VIII of Castile. Government, Family, and War. Fordham University Press. ISBN 978-0823284146. https://www.fordhampress.com/9780823284146/king-alfonso-viii-of-castile/. 
• Marrache, Abraham S. (2009). La Historia de Fermosa, la amante de Alfonso VIII. Madrid: Hebraica Ediciones. http://www.casadellibro.com/libro-la-historia-de-fermosa-la-amante-de-alfonso-viii/9788461289301/1336401. 
• Osma, Juan (1997). "Chronica latina regum Castellae". In Brea, Luis Charlo. Chronica Hispana Saeculi XIII. Turnhout: Brepols. 
• Pérez Monzón, Olga (2002). "Iconografía y poder real en Castilla: las imágenes de Alfonso VIII" (in es). Anuario del Departamento de Historia y Teoría del Arte XIV: 19–41. ISSN 1130-5517. 
• Rogers, Clifford J. (2010). The Oxford Encyclopedia of Medieval Warfare and Military Technology: Vol. 1. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0195334036. https://books.google.com/books?id=mzwpq6bLHhMC&q=Alfonso+X+of+Castile. 
• Roth, Norman (1994). Muslims in Medieval Spain: Cooperation and Conflict. Brill. 
• Shadis, Miriam (2010). Berenguela of Castile (1180–1246) and Political Women in the High Middle Ages. Palgrave Macmillan. ISBN 978-0-312-23473-7. 
• Túy, Lucas (2003). Rey, Emma Falque. ed. Chronicon mundi. Turnhout: Brepols. 
• Vann, Theresa M. (2003). "Alfonso VIII, King of Castile". In Gerli, E. Michael. Medieval Iberia: An Encyclopedia. Routledge. 
• Vicaire, M.-H. (1938). "Une ambassade dans les Marches". In Mandonnet, Pierre. Saint Dominique: l'idée, l'homme et l'oeuvre Vol. 1. Paris: Desclée De Brouwer. 
• Wright, Roger (2000). El tratado de Cabreros (1206): estudio sociofilológico de una reforma ortográfica. London: Queen Mary and Westfield College. 
• COSTA, Ricardo da. "Love and Crime, Chastisement and Redemption in Glory in the Crusade of Reconquest: Alfonso VIII of Castile in the battles of Alarcos (1195) and Las Navas de Tolosa (1212)". In: OLIVEIRA, Marco A. M. de (org.). Guerras e Imigrações. Campo Grande: Editora da UFMS, 2004, pp. 73–94 ISBN 85-7613-023-8.

Contemporary References

There are several contemporary references for Alfonso VIII, King of Castile. These offer valuable insights into Alfonso VIII's life and reign, and provide a glimpse into the cultural and political context of medieval Spain:

• The Chronicles of the Kings of Castile: These chronicles, written in the 13th century, provide detailed accounts of the reigns of several Castilian monarchs, including Alfonso VIII.
• The Song of Almeria: This poem, written in the late 12th century, celebrates Alfonso VIII's victory over the Almohads at the Battle of Almeria in 1147.
• The Chronicles of the Almohad Caliphate: These chronicles, written by Muslim historians in the 12th and 13th centuries, provide a perspective on the Almohad side of the conflict with Alfonso VIII and the Christian kingdoms of Spain.
• The Cathedral of Burgos: The cathedral, which was begun during Alfonso VIII's reign, contains several references to the king, including a statue of him on horseback in the Puerta de la Coronería.
• The Codex Calixtinus: This medieval manuscript, also known as the Liber Sancti Jacobi, contains a section on Alfonso VIII's pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela in 1188.

References

Alfonso VIII, King of Castile (1155-1214) Castilian House of Ivrea Cadet branch of the House of Ivrea Born: 11 November 1155 Died: 5 October 1214
Regnal titles
Preceded by Sancho III	King of Castile 1158–1214	Succeeded by Henry I

Footnotes (including sources)

‡ General

wikipedia:en:Alfonso VIII of Castile

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