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Afonso was the only son and heir of king John II of Portugal by his marriage with Leonor of Viseu, princess of Portugal. The king was very fond of him and named the smaller island of São Tomé and Príncipe after him (Príncipe meaning Prince in Portuguese language).
As a boy, Afonso was married to princess Isabella of Aragon, the eldest daughter of the catholic royal couple, reyes catolicos. Isabella I of Castile and Ferdinand II of Aragon had a male heir - Juan prince of the Asturias - but he was a feeble child and not expected to survive. Princess Isabella was thus the probable heiress to the joint throne of CastileA former kingdom of Spain, Castile comprises the two regions of Old Castile in north-western Spain, and New Castile in the centre of the country. Previously an eastern county of the kingdom of Leon, Castile in the 11th century became an independent realm and AragonComunidad Autonoma de Aragon Capital Zaragoza Area total % of Spain Ranked 4th 47 719 km² 9,4% Population Total (2003) % of Spain Density Ranked 11th 1 217 514 2,9% 25,51/km² Demonym English Spanish Aragonese aragones Statute of Autonomy August 16, 1982 I and, by being married to the heir of Portugal that meant a union of the Iberian kingdoms in Portuguese hands. The Spanish monarchs apparently desired this not to happen. They tried every diplomatic channel to have the wedding dissolved, without success, due to Portuguese influence with the PopeThis article is about the Catholic pope. See Pope (disambiguation) for other meanings of the word pope. The Pope is the Catholic bishop and patriarch of Rome, and ex officio supreme spiritual leader of what might be called the Catholic Communion (that is,. Their cause was apparently lost, when an accident saved Aragon and Castile from future annexation.
Afonso died from a horse fall in mysterious circumstances, during a ride in the Tagus. Murder was never proved but the Spaniards had much to gain from his disappearence. Moreover, the prince's valet, an exiled Castilian boy, disappeared in the same day after being the only eyewitness of the event.
After his death, John II was left with no legitimate male heirs and the crown then went to Manuel I of PortugalManuel I of Portugal the Fortunate fourteenth king of Portugal, was born in Alcochete in May 31 1469 and died in Lisbon in December 13 1521. He was the son of prince Fernando of Portugal, duke of Viseu, by his wife, Beatrice of Aveiro, princess of Portuga in 1495Events February 22 King Charles VIII of France enters Naples to claim the city's throne. A few months later, he decides to return to France, and leaves Naples with most of his army, leaving a force under his cousin Gilbert, Count of Montpensier as Viceroy, when king John died. Afonso's widow Isabella was married to Manuel, thus again creating the possibility of union of all Iberian kingdoms. Isabella bore a son, Miguel (born 1498 and died 1500). Manuel's possibilities to become the king-consort of Spain vanished by the death of Isabella in 1498. After the death of prince Juan of the Asturias, baby Miguel of Portugal became heir to the Spanish crowns and was recognized as Prince of the Asturias. His death 1500 put the final end to possibility of this union, and Joan the Mad (Miguel's aunt) became the heiress of Spain, eventually bringing those kingdoms to the Hapsburgs. The union took place about a hundred years later, 1580, when the Hapsburg king of Spain, Philip II, grandson of Joan the Mad and grandson of Manuel of Portugal, annexed Portugal and its dominions.