Alfonso X (1221–1284), known as “the Wise,” was the son of Ferdinand III “the Saint” and Beatrice of Swabia. He received a thorough education and participated from a young age in his father’s military campaigns, particularly in the conquest of Murcia (1243) and the reconquest of Andalusia. He inherited the throne in 1252, when the kingdom’s territorial integrity had already been consolidated. His reign was marked by efforts to promote legal unification and strengthen royal power. He promoted the Fuero Real and the Siete Partidas, a legal code that laid the foundations of Castilian law. This centralizing policy clashed with the privileges of the nobility and the clergy, generating constant tensions. As the son of Beatrice of Swabia, he claimed rights to the throne of the Holy Roman Empire, but failed to secure the support of the papacy. In addition, he was a great patron of the arts: he supported the School of Translators in Toledo, where works such as the Tablas Alfonsíes, the Lapidario, the Libro de los juegos, and the Cantigas de Santa María were produced. The final years of his reign were marked by a serious dynastic crisis. His eldest son had died in 1275, a situation that prompted the monarch to defend the rights of his grandchildren. However, his second son, Sancho, laid claim to the throne and was recognized as heir by much of the nobility. Finally, Alfonso X died in Seville in 1284.
Violante of Aragon (1236–1300) was the daughter of James I the Conqueror and Violante of Hungary. In 1246, she married Prince Alfonso, the future Alfonso X the Wise. She played a very active role at court, especially during the succession disputes that arose following the death of her eldest son in 1275. While the king supported his grandchildren, the queen chose to back Sancho, her second son. This stance led to a rift between the two, and she even succeeded in having the king deposed in favor of her son. Violante of Aragon died in 1300 at the monastery of Roncesvalles.
Bibliography
DÍAZ LARA, Carmen (2023): "Violante de Aragón y María de Molina en el tablero político: el uso del patronazgo en conflictos dinásticos", en Ideología y legitimación del linaje en la Edad Media: sucesión, familia y memoria, Ediciones de La Ergástula, Madrid.
FUENTE PÉREZ, María Jesús (2017): "Violante de Aragón. Reina de Castilla", vol. 6, Anejos de la Revista de Historiografía.
GONZÁLES JIMÉNEZ, Manuel (1993): Alfonso X el Sabio: 1252-1284, Diputación Provincial de Palencia, Palencia.