Alfonso V el Magnánimo, rey de Aragón

-https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alfonso_V_of_Aragon

Alfonso V de Aragón (* Medina del Campo, 1396 - Nápoles, 27 de junio de 1458). Llamado también Alfonso I de Trastámara, Alfonso I el Magnánimo y Alfonso I el Sabio, entre 1416 y 1458 fue Rey de Aragón, de Valencia (Alfonso III), de Mallorca (Alfonso I), de Sicilia (Alfonso I) de Cerdeña (Alfonso II) y conde de Barcelona (Alfonso IV); y entre 1442 - 1458 rey de Nápoles (Alfonso I) .

Hijo primogénito del regente de Castilla Fernando de Antequera y de la condesa Leonor de Alburquerque pertenecía, por tanto, a la Casa de Trastámara por vía paterna y a la Casa de Aragón por vía materna.

El 28 de junio de 1412 se convierte en heredero al trono de la Corona de Aragón cuando su padre fue proclamado rey tras el llamado Compromiso de Caspe y tres años más tarde, el 12 de junio de 1415, en la catedral de Valencia, contrae matrimonio con su prima la infanta María hija de Enrique III de Castilla y de Catalina de Lancaster.

El 2 de abril de 1416, tras el fallecimiento de su padre le sucede como rey de Aragón y de los demás reinos de los que era titular.

Tabla de contenidos

1 Politica interior

1.1 Cataluña

1.2 Castilla

2 Política exterior

2.1 Sicilia

2.2 Cerdeña

2.3 Córcega

2.4 Nápoles

3 Política cultural

4 Otros hechos

5 Nupcias

6 Sucesión

7 Véase también

Politica interior 

Cataluña
Inmediatamente se dirige a Cataluña instalándose en la ciudad condal donde en las Cortes de 1416 tendrá un primer encontronazo con sus súbditos catalanes ya que jurará los privilegios utilizando el castellano lo que hará que el arzobispo de Tarragona le responda "si vis amaris, ama" (si queréis ser amado, amad).

En las Cortes de 1419 tendrá un nuevo enfrentamiento cuando la nobleza catalana formó una liga de barones, villas y ciudades reclamando a Alfonso V que redujera el elevado número de miembros de la nobleza castellana elegidos para cargos de gobierno lo que hizo que el monarca redujera y reorganizará la Casa Real.

En 1448, Alfonso V dicta desde Nápoles donde había instalado la corte, una provisión que permitía a los payeses reunirse en un sindicato para tratar la supresión de los malos usos. Los propietarios de las tierras se oponen a la medida y la hacen fracasar. El tema volverá sin embargo en 1455 cuando Alfonso dicta la conocida como “Sentencia interlocutoria” en la que suspende las servidumbres y los malos usos, medida que en 1462, ya reinando Juan II de Aragón provocará la primera guerra remensa.

Castilla 

Juan II ocupaba el trono castellano desde 1406 tras la muerte de su padre Enrique III quien en su testamento y debido a que al acceder al trono Juan sólo contaba con poco más de un año de edad, había dispuesto que la regencia del reino la desempeñaran su viuda Catalina de Lancaster y el infante Fernando de Trastámara.

Al ser coronado Fernando rey de Aragón en el Compromiso de Caspe 1412 dejó a sus hijos, los infantes de Aragón Juan II de Navarra y Enrique como sus lugartenientes en Castilla para defender sus intereses.

En 1419, Juan II de Castilla alcanza la mayoría de edad y pretende librarse dela influencia de los Infantes. Tras el golpe de Tordesillas y el fracasado cerco del castillo de la Puebla de Montalbán a finales de 1420, delega todo el poder en el nuevo Condestable de Castilla Álvaro de Luna, lo que dará lugar a una larga e intermitente guerra civil entre dos bandos: el primero formado por don Álvaro y la pequeña nobleza, y el segundo formado por los infantes de Aragón y la alta nobleza, apoyados por Alfonso V desde Aragón.

Sin embargo, el enfrentamiento que surge entre los propios infantes por el poder provoca que la influencia aragonesa en Castilla corra peligro, por lo que Alfonso V, que se encontraba en Nápoles, decide retornar a la Península en 1425 donde tras acusar a Álvaro de Luna de usurpador del gobierno, logra reconciliar a sus hermanos los infantes y, aunque consigue en un primer momento, 1427, que el Condestable de Castilla sea desterrado a Cuéllar, no pudo evitar su retorno vencedor al año siguiente.

Alfonso V, entre 1429 y 1430, se enzarza en una guerra contra su primo Juan II de Castilla y la política del valido Álvaro de Luna para apoyar a sus hermanos los infantes pero, cuando ambos bandos se encontraban, cerca de Jadraque, frente a frente para entablar batalla, la intervención personal de la reina castellana María de Aragón, hermana de Alfonso V, la evitó.

En 1432 Alfonso retorna a Italia y, en 1436, se firma la paz con Castilla mediante un tratado en el que los infantes abandonaban el reino castellano a cambio de percibir rentas anuales.

Política exterior  

Mapa de la Corona de Aragón en 1443.

Sicilia  

Bendicto XIII había investido Fernando I de Aragón rey de Sicilia en 1412 y este había nombrado a su hijo Juan como lugarteniente general de la isla. Al fallecer Fernando I, los sicilianos intentaron que el trono siciliano fuera ocupado por Juan, por lo que prácticamente la primera medida de política exterior que tomó Alfonso V fue acabar con las ansias independentistas sicilianas para lo que reclamó la presencia de su hermano Juan en la corte para posteriormente enviarlo junto a su otro hermano Enrique en la lucha que éste mantenía por hacerse con el poder en Castilla.

Cerdeña  

Desactivado el peligro independentista siciliano, el siguiente objetivo de Alfonso fue la isla de Cerdeña, territorio sobre el que la corona aragonesa reivindicaba su soberanía desde que en 1297 el papa Bonifacio VIII concedio la isla en feudo a Jaime II de Aragón, y que a la sazón se encontraba inmerso en una rebelión instigada por los genoveses.

Alfonso se dirigió a la isla al frente de una escuadra de 24 galeras que zarparía, en mayo de 1420, desde Los Alfaques con dirección a Alguer con la intención de someter a las ciudades que se habían rebelado. La llegada de la flota hizo que los rebeldes se sometieran sin presentar resistencia alguna.

Córcega  

Desde Cerdeña, Alfonso se dirigió con su escuadra a la isla de Córcega donde logró tomar la ciudad de Calvi y puso sitio a la ciudad de Bonifacio.

Nápoles  

Alfonso V abandona el sitio de Bonifacio en 1421 cuando recibe la petición de ayuda de Juana II de Nápoles ante el sitio que estaba sufriendo por parte de las tropas de Luis III de Anjou comandadas por Muzio Attendolo Sforza. El monarca aragonés acude en ayuda de Juana que en agradecimiento le adopta como hijo y heredero y le nombra duque de Calabria y, tras fijar su residencia en Nápoles nombra regente de Aragón a su esposa María.

Los sucesivos éxitos militares y políticos de Alfonso V en el escenario mediterráneo levantaron el recelo del duque de Milán Filippo María Visconti quien, aprovechando el enfriamiento de las relaciones entre la reina Juana y Alfonso cuando este hizo detener al primer ministro napolitano y amante de aquella, alentó una revuelta encabezada por Sforza que obligó a Alfonso a refugiarse, el 30 de mayo de 1423, en la fortaleza napolitana de Castel Nuovo hasta que la llegada de una flota catalana de 22 galeras le permitió recuperar Nápoles y obligar a Juana a buscar refugio en Aversa y después en Nola donde revocará la adopción de Alfonso y nombrará nuevo heredero de Luis de Anjou.

Tras recibir noticias de la Península acerca de las dificultades que atraviesan sus hermanos en su enfrentamiento con Castilla, y al necesitar refuerzos económicos y militares para continuar con su política de expansión, Alfonso decide dejar Nápoles al mando de su hermano Pedro y, tras destruir en puerto de Marsella en territorio de los Anjou, retornar a sus reinos peninsulares donde permanecerá hasta 1432.

La ausencia de Alfonso de Italia permite al duque de Milán conquistar, en 1423, Gaeta, Procida, Sorrento y Castellammare; y tras poner sitio a Nápoles permitir a Francesco Sforza tomar la ciudad en 1424 obligando a Pedro a buscar refugio en Sicilia.

Alfonso V retorna a Italia en 1432 pero debe posponer la toma de Nápoles debido a la liga militar que, con el apoyo del papa Eugenio IV y del emperador Segismundo, forman Venecia, Florencia y Milán y que le obliga a firmar en 1433 una tregua de diez años con Juana II de Nápoles.

La tregua permite a Alfonso fijar su atención en África donde ya, en 1432, había dirigido una expedición militar contra la isla de Yerba. Su interés se reanuda en 1434 con una nueva expedición a Trípoli, sin embargo las muertes de sus rivales napolitanos hace que su atención vuelva a centrarse en Italia.

En efecto, en 1434 fallece Luis III de Anjou por lo que la reina Juana nombra nuevo heredero al trono de Nápoles al hermano de aquel, Renato. Sin embargo la muerte de Juana al año siguiente, el papa Eugenio IV no da su aprobación por lo que Alfonso ve llegado el momento de conquistar Nápoles. Acompañado de sus hermanos Juan, Enrique y Pedro toma la ciudad de Capua y pone sitio a Gaeta en cuyo auxilio acudió una flota genovesa que derrotara a la aragonesa en la batalla que se desarrolla el 4 de agosto de 1435 frente en la isla de Ponza y en la que fueron hechos prisioneros el propio rey y sus hermanos Juan II de Navarra y Enrique de Aragón que son entregados al duque de Milán Filippo María Visconti.

En 1436, el duque liberó a Juan de Navarra quien regresa a la Península y sustituye a la esposa de Alfonso V como regente del reino de Aragón, por lo que María quedó únicamente al frente del principado catalán.

Alfonso negocia su libertad y llega con Visconti a un acuerdo por el cual el duque de Milán por el que ambos firman una alianza que le permitirá volver a conquistar Capua y Gaeta en 1436 y poner sitio a Nápoles en el que fallecerá en 1438 su hermano Pedro. Tras tomar Calabria, Cosenza y Brisignano entrará triunfalmente en Nápoles el 23 de febrero de 1443 obteniendo el reconocimiento de Eugenio IV a cambio de que Alfonso le apoyara en su enfrentamiento contra los Sforza

Alfonso no regresaría nunca más a sus reinos de la Corona de Aragón estableciendo su corte en la fortaleza de Castel Nuovo que mando remodelar al arquitecto mallorquín Guillermo Sagrera.

Política cultural 

Alfonso V puede considerarse como un genuino príncipe del Renacimiento ya que desarrolló un importante mecenazgo cultural y literario que el valió el sobrenombre de “el Sabio” y que convertiría a Nápoles en el foco principal de la entrada del humanismo renacentista en el ámbito de la Corona de Aragón. Fruto de este mecenazgo fue un círculo de poetas de cancionero cuya obra recoge el Cancionero de Stúñiga.

Su devoción hacia los clásicos fue excepcional. En sus propias palabras dijo: “los libros son, entre mis consejeros, los que más me agradan, porque ni el temor ni la esperanza les impiden decirme lo que debo hacer". Se dice igualmente que Alfonso detenía a su ejército en piadoso respeto ante el lugar de nacimiento de un escritor latino, llevaba a Tito Livio o a César en sus campañas y su panegirista Panormita no consideraba una increíble mentira el decir que el rey fue curado de una enfermedad cuando se le leyeron unas páginas de la biografía de Alejandro Magno escrita por Quintus Curtius Rufus. Sin embargo, los clásicos no habían refinado sus gustos, y se divertía incitando a los eruditos, que abarrotaban su corte, a vituperarse unos contra otros con un indescriptible y sucio latín, en escaramuzas dialécticas que estaban de moda por entonces.

Retrato de Alfonso V de Aragón, de Mino da Fiesole.

Otros hechos  

Tuvo contactos diplomáticos con el imperio de Etiopía. En 1428, recibió una carta de Yeshaq I de Etiopía, entregada en mano por dos dignatarios, en la cual le proponía una alianza contra los musulmanes, sellada por un doble matrimonio, el del infante Don Pedro con la hija de Yeshaq, a condición de que éste llevara a Etiopía a un grupo de menestrales. No está claro si Alfonso respondió a esta carta ni en qué términos, aunque un mensaje enviado al sucesor de Yeshaq, Zara Yagob en 1450, escribía que estaría encantado de enviarlos si se garantizaba su seguridad, ya que en una ocasión anterior toda una partida de trece de sus súbditos habían perecido en el viaje.

Su reinado se acaba con dos nuevas guerras: una contra su primo y cuñado, Juan II de Castilla, entre los años 1445 y 1454, y otra contra Génova que se inició en 1454 y continuó hasta su muerte, ocurrida el 27 de junio de 1458 en el castillo del Ovo (Nápoles).

En 1671 Pedro Antonio de Aragón, virrey de Nápoles obtuvo el permiso para trasladar desde allí los restos de Alfonso el Magnánimo y depositarlos en los Sepulcros Reales del monasterio de Poblet. Se construyó una tumba con gran pedestal junto a los sepulcros reales, en el crucero, en el lado del Evangelio. Sólo queda en la actualidad (año 2007) la base o pedestal restaurado.

Nupcias  

En 1408 Alfonso se comprometió con María de Castilla (1401-1458), hija de Enrique III el Doliente, y prima suya. El matrimonio se celebró en la catedral de Valencia el 12 de junio de 1415. No tuvieron descendencia.

De su relación con Giraldona de Carlino, tuvo tres hijos naturales:

Fernando (1423 - 1494), su sucesor en el reino de Nápoles con el nombre de Fernando I;

María (? -1449);

Leonor (¿? - ¿?).

Sucesión  

En la corona de Aragón, Sicilia y Cerdeña, le sucedió su hermano Juan. El reino de Nápoles quedó en manos de su hijo bastardo Fernando.

Predecesor:

Fernando I Rey de Aragón y de Sicilia

1416 - 1458 Sucesor:

Juan II

Predecesor:

Renato I Rey de Nápoles

1442 - 1458 Sucesor:

Fernando I

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Alfonso V of Aragon

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Alfonso the Magnanimous (also Alphonso; Catalan: Alfons) (1396 – 27 June 1458) was the King of Aragon (as Alfonso V), Valencia (as Alfonso III), Majorca, Sardinia and Corsica (as Alfonso II), and Sicily and Count of Barcelona (as Alfonso IV) from 1416 and King of Naples (as Alfonso I) from 1442 until his death. He was one of the most prominent figures of the early Renaissance.

Biography

He was the son of Ferdinand I of Aragon (known as Ferdinand of Antequera) and Eleanor of Alburquerque. He represented the old line of the counts of Barcelona only through women, and was on his father's side descended from the House of Trastamara, a noble family of Castile. By hereditary right he was king of Sicily and disputed the island of Sardinia with Genoa. Alfonso was also in possession of much of Corsica by the 1420s.

In 1421 Queen Joanna II of Naples, who had no children, adopted and named him as heir to the Kingdom of Naples, and Alfonso went to Naples. Here he hired the famous condottiero Braccio da Montone with the task of reducing the resistance of the other pretender, Louis III of Anjou, and his forces led by Muzio Attendolo Sforza. As Pope Martin V supported Sforza, Alfonso switched religious allegiance to the Aragonese antipope Benedict XIII. When Sforza also abandoned Louis, Alfonso seemed to have all his problems solved; however, his relationship with Joanna suddenly worsened, and in May 1423 he had her lover, and a powerful figure in the Neapolitan court, Gianni Caracciolo, arrested. After an attempt to arrest the queen herself failed, Joanna called Sforza who defeated the Aragonese milices near Castel Capuano in Naples. Alfonso fled to Castel Nuovo, but the help of a fleet of 22 galleys led by Giovanni da Cardona improved his situation. Sforza and Joanna ransomed Caracciolo and retreated to the fortress of Aversa. Here she repudiated her earlier adoption of Alfonso and, with support from Martin V, named Louis III as her heir instead. The Milanese Filippo Maria Visconti joined the anti-Aragonese coalition. Alfonso requested support from Braccio da Montone, who was besieging Joanna's troops in L'Aquila, but had to set sail for Spain, where a war had broken out between his brothers and the Kingdom of Castile. On his way towards Barcelona, he destroyed Marseille, a possession of Louis III.

In the late 1423 the Genoese fleet of Visconti moved in the southern Tyrrhenian Sea and easily conquered Gaeta, Procida, Castellammare and Sorrento. Naples, which was held by Alfonso's brother, Pedro, was besieged in 1424 by the Genoese ships and Joanna's troops, now led by Francesco Sforza, son of Muzio (who had died at L'Aquila). The city fell in the April of that year. Pedro, after a short resistance in Castel Nuovo, fled to Sicily in August. Joanna II and Louis III again took possession of the realm, although the true power was in the hands of Gianni Caracciolo.

An opportunity for Alfonso to reconquer Naples occurred in 1432, when Caracciolo was killed in a conjure. Alfonso tried to regain the favour of the queen, but failed, and had to wait for the death of both Louis (at Cosenza in 1434) and Joanna herself (February 1435). In her will, she bequeathed her realm to René of Anjou, Louis III's brother. This solution was opposed by the new pope, Eugene IV, who was nominal feudal lord of the King of Naples. As the Neapolitans had called for the French, Alfonso decided to intervene and, with the support of several barons of the kingdom, captured Capua and besieged the important sea fortress of Gaeta. His fleet of 25 galleys was met by the Genoese ships sent by Visconti, led by Biagio Assereto. In the battle that ensued, Alfonso was defeated and taken prisoner.

In Milan, however, he impressed his captor with his cultured demeanor and persuaded him to let him go by making it plain that it was not in Milan's interest to prevent the victory of the Aragonese party in Naples. Helped by a Sicilian fleet, Alfonso recaptured Capua and set his base in Gaeta in the February of 1436. Papal troops had invaded the Neapolitan kingdom, but Alfonso corrupted the cardinal Giovanni Vitelleschi, who commanded them, and his successes waned.

In the meantime, René had managed to reach Naples on May 19, 1438. Alfonso tried to besiege the city in the following September, but failed. His brother Pedro was killed during the battle. Castel Nuovo, where an Aragonese garrison resisted, fell to the Angevine mercenaries in the August of 1439. After the death of his condottiero Jacopo Caldora, however, René's fortune started to wane: Alfonso could easily capture Aversa, Salerno, Benevento, Manfredonia and Bitonto. René, whose possession included now only part of the Abruzzi and Naples, obtained 10,000 men from the pope, but the cardinal leading them signed a truce with Alfonso. Giovanni Sforza came with a reduced corps, as troops sent by Eugene IV had halted his father Francesco in the Marche.

Alfonso, who was provided with the most impressive artillery of the time, again besieged Naples. The siege began on November 10, 1441, and ended on June 2 of the following year. After the return of René to Provence, Alfonso easily reduced the remaining resistance and made his triumphal entrance in Naples on February 26, 1443, as the monarch of a pacified kingdom. In 1446 he conquered also Sardinia, becoming the head of the most important kingdom of western Europe.

Alfonso had been betrothed to María de Castilla (1401–1458; sister of Juan II of Castile) in Valladolid in 1408; the marriage was celebrated in Valencia during 1415. They failed to produce children. Alfonso had been in love with a woman of noble family named Lucrezia d'Alagno, who served as a de facto queen at the Neapolitan court as well as an inspiring muse.

His Spanish possessions were ruled for him by his brother John. Alfonso, by formally submitting his reign to the Papacy, obtained the consent of Pope Eugene IV that the Kingdom of Naples would go to his immature son Ferdinand. He died in Castel dell'Ovo in 1458, while he was planning the conquest of Genoa. At the time, Alfonso was at odds with Calixus III, who died shortly thereafter.

Sicily and Sardinia were inherited by his brother John, who survived him.

He was also a powerful and consistent supporter of Scanderbeg, whom he decided to take under his protection as a vassal in 1451, shortly after the latter had scored his second victory against Murad II. In addition to financial assistance, he supplied the Albanian leader with troops, military equipment, and sanctuary for himself and his family if such a need should arise. This was because in 1448, while Scanderbeg was victoriously fighting off the Turkish invasions, three military columns, commanded by Demetrio Reres along with his sons Giorgio and Basilio, were dispatched to help Alfonso V defeat the barons of Naples who had rebelled against him.

[edit]Art and administration

Like a true prince of the Renaissance he favoured men of letters whom he trusted to preserve his reputation to posterity. He founded the Academy of Naples and, for his entrance in the city in 1443, had a magnificent triumphal arch added to the main gate of Castel Nuovo. This edifice, considered the most important civil piece of art of the time, was designed by Francesco Laurana. His devotion to the classics was exceptional even for the time. For example, Alfonso halted his army in pious respect before the birthplace of a Latin writer, carried Livy or Caesar on his campaigns with him, and his panegyrist Panormita even stated that the king was cured of an illness when a few pages of Quintus Curtius Rufus' history of Alexander the Great were read to him. However, the classics had not refined his taste, for he was amused by setting itinerant scholars, who swarmed to his court, to abuse one another in the indescribably filthy Latin scolding matches which were then the fashion.

After his conquest of Naples in 1442, Alfonso ruled by his mercenary soldiers and mercenary men of letters. In his Italian kingdom, he maintained the former political and administrative institutions; a unified General Chanchellorship for the whole Aragonese reign was set in Naples, although the main functionaries were of Aragonese nationality. Apart from financial, administrative and artistical improvements, his other accomplishments in the Sicilian kingdom include the restoration of the aqueducts, the drainage of marshy areas, and the pavement of streets.

[edit]Connection with Ethiopia

Alfonso was the object of diplomatic contacts from the empire of Ethiopia. In 1428, he received a letter from Yeshaq I of Ethiopia, borne by two dignitaries, which proposed an alliance against the Muslims and would be sealed by a dual marriage that would require the Infante Don Pedro to bring a group of artisans to Ethiopia where he would marry Yeshaq's daughter. In return, Alfonso sent a party of 13 craftsmen, all of whom perished on the way to Ethiopia.[1] He later sent a letter to Yeshaq's successor Zara Yaqob in 1450, in which he wrote that he would be happy to send artisans to Ethiopia if their safe arrival could be guaranteed, but it probably never reached the Emperor.[2][3]

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Alfonso the Magnanimous (also Alphonso; Catalan: Alfons) (1396 – 27 June 1458) was the King of Aragon (as Alfonso V), Valencia (as Alfonso III), Majorca, Sardinia and Corsica (as Alfonso II), and Sicily and Count of Barcelona (as Alfonso IV) from 1416 and King of Naples (as Alfonso I) from 1442 until his death. He was one of the most prominent figures of the early Renaissance and a knight of the Order of the Dragon.

Biography

He was the son of Ferdinand I of Aragon (known as Ferdinand of Antequera) and Eleanor of Alburquerque. He represented the old line of the counts of Barcelona only through women, and was on his father's side descended from the House of Trastamara, a noble family of Castile. By hereditary right he was king of Sicily and disputed the island of Sardinia with Genoa. Alfonso was also in possession of much of Corsica by the 1420s.

In 1421 Queen Joan II of Naples, who had no children, adopted and named him as heir to the Kingdom of Naples, and Alfonso went to Naples. Here he hired the famous condottiero Braccio da Montone with the task of reducing the resistance of the other pretender, Louis III of Anjou, and his forces led by Muzio Attendolo Sforza. As Pope Martin V supported Sforza, Alfonso switched religious allegiance to the Aragonese antipope Benedict XIII. When Sforza also abandoned Louis, Alfonso seemed to have all his problems solved; however, his relationship with Joanna suddenly worsened, and in May 1423 he had her lover, and a powerful figure in the Neapolitan court, Gianni Caracciolo, arrested. After an attempt to arrest the queen herself failed, Joanna called Sforza who defeated the Aragonese milices near Castel Capuano in Naples. Alfonso fled to Castel Nuovo, but the help of a fleet of 22 galleys led by Giovanni da Cardona improved his situation. Sforza and Joanna ransomed Caracciolo and retreated to the fortress of Aversa. Here she repudiated her earlier adoption of Alfonso and, with support from Martin V, named Louis III as her heir instead. The Milanese Filippo Maria Visconti joined the anti-Aragonese coalition. Alfonso requested support from Braccio da Montone, who was besieging Joanna's troops in L'Aquila, but had to set sail for Spain, where a war had broken out between his brothers and the Kingdom of Castile. On his way towards Barcelona, he destroyed Marseille, a possession of Louis III.

In the late 1423 the Genoese fleet of Visconti moved in the southern Tyrrhenian Sea and easily conquered Gaeta, Procida, Castellammare and Sorrento. Naples, which was held by Alfonso's brother, Pedro, was besieged in 1424 by the Genoese ships and Joanna's troops, now led by Francesco Sforza, son of Muzio (who had died at L'Aquila). The city fell in the April of that year. Pedro, after a short resistance in Castel Nuovo, fled to Sicily in August. Joanna II and Louis III again took possession of the realm, although the true power was in the hands of Gianni Caracciolo.

An opportunity for Alfonso to reconquer Naples occurred in 1432, when Caracciolo was killed in a conjure. Alfonso tried to regain the favour of the queen, but failed, and had to wait for the death of both Louis (at Cosenza in 1434) and Joanna herself (February 1435). In her will, she bequeathed her realm to René of Anjou, Louis III's brother. This solution was opposed by the new pope, Eugene IV, who was nominal feudal lord of the King of Naples. As the Neapolitans had called for the French, Alfonso decided to intervene and, with the support of several barons of the kingdom, captured Capua and besieged the important sea fortress of Gaeta. His fleet of 25 galleys was met by the Genoese ships sent by Visconti, led by Biagio Assereto. In the battle that ensued, Alfonso was defeated and taken prisoner.

In Milan, however, he impressed his captor with his cultured demeanor and persuaded him to let him go by making it plain that it was not in Milan's interest to prevent the victory of the Aragonese party in Naples. Helped by a Sicilian fleet, Alfonso recaptured Capua and set his base in Gaeta in the February of 1436. Papal troops had invaded the Neapolitan kingdom, but Alfonso corrupted the cardinal Giovanni Vitelleschi, who commanded them, and his successes waned.

In the meantime, René had managed to reach Naples on may 19, 1438. Alfonso tried to besiege the city in the following September, but failed. His brother Pedro was killed during the battle. Castel Nuovo, where an Aragonese garrison resisted, fell to the Angevine mercenaries in the August of 1439. After the death of his condottiero Jacopo Caldora, however, René's fortune started to wane: Alfonso could easily capture Aversa, Salerno, Benevento, Manfredonia and Bitonto. René, whose possession included now only part of the Abruzzi and Naples, obtained 10,000 men from the pope, but the cardinal leading them signed a truce with Alfonso. Giovanni Sforza came with a reduced corps, as troops sent by Eugene IV had halted his father Francesco in the Marche.

Alfonso, who was provided with the most impressive artillery of the time, again besieged Naples. The siege began on November 10, 1441, and ended on June 2 of the following year. After the return of René to Provence, Alfonso easily reduced the remaining resistance and made his triumphal entrance in Naples on February 26, 1443, as the monarch of a pacified kingdom. In 1446 he conquered also Sardinia, becoming the head of the most important kingdom of western Europe.

Alfonso had been betrothed to María de Castilla (1401–1458; sister of Juan II of Castile) in Valladolid in 1408; the marriage was celebrated in Valencia during 1415. They failed to produce children. Alfonso had been in love with a woman of noble family named Lucrezia d'Alagno, who served as a de facto queen at the Neapolitan court as well as an inspiring muse.

His Spanish possessions were ruled for him by his brother John. Alfonso, by formally submitting his reign to the Papacy, obtained the consent of Pope Eugene IV that the Kingdom of Naples would go to his immature son Ferdinand. He died in Castel dell'Ovo in 1458, while he was planning the conquest of Genoa. At the time, Alfonso was at odds with Callixtus III, who died shortly thereafter.

Sicily and Sardinia were inherited by his brother John, who survived him.

He was also a powerful and consistent supporter of Scanderbeg, whom he decided to take under his protection as a vassal in 1451, shortly after the latter had scored his second victory against Murad II. In addition to financial assistance, he supplied the Albanian leader with troops, military equipment, and sanctuary for himself and his family if such a need should arise. This was because in 1448, while Scanderbeg was victoriously fighting off the Turkish invasions, three military columns, commanded by Demetrio Reres along with his sons Giorgio and Basilio, were dispatched to help Alfonso V defeat the barons of Naples who had rebelled against him.

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http://hu.wikipedia.org/wiki/V._Alfonz_arag%C3%B3niai_kir%C3%A1ly

Aragon és nápolyi kiraly.

Hatalmas építkezéseket csináltatott Nápolyban

Több dombormüvön van rajta arcképe

Egyedül Ariosto Fülöp által festve,johannita rend nagymesteri ruhájában levő festménye nem tudni,hogy hol van a vilagon

Naturalis gyermekeinek anyja nem ismert!

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Fél Nápolyt ő építtette.

Törvényes nejétől nincs gyermeke.

Naturális gyermekeinek anyja nem ismert.

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Mátyás magyar király nagyapósa is ő.(Unokája Estei Beatrix senior is.)

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Pelo lado materno representava a antiga linhagem dos condes de Barcelona e, pelo lado paterno, descendia da Casa de Trastâmara, de Castela. Foi uma das figuras mais conspícuas do princípio da Renascença. Ninguém em seu tempo teve tão amplo espectro de “virtudes” – qualidades assim denominadas pelos italianos. Foi Afonso V rei de Aragão em 1416, Afonso I de Nápoles em 1435 e das Duas Sicílias em 1442.

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• Reference: Ancestry Genealogy - SmartCopy: Aug 23 2017, 12:04:27 UTC