Home > Alfonso VIII of Castile

His personal history is that of many medieval kings. He succeeded to the throne, in infancy, on the death of his father, Sancho . Though proclaimed king, he was regarded as a mere name by the unruly nobles to whom a minority was convenient. The devotion of a squire of his household, who carried him on the pommel of his saddle to the stronghold of San Esteban de Gormaz , saved him from falling into the hands of the contending factions of Castro and Lara, or of his uncle Ferdinand of León, who claimed the regency.

The loyalty of the town of Ávila protected his youth. He was barely fifteen when he came forth to do a man's work by restoring his kingdom to order. It was only by a surprise that he recovered his capital Toledo from the hands of the Laras. His marriage with Leonora of Aquitaine, daughter of Henry II of England, brought him under the influence of the greatest governing intellect of his time. Alfonso VIII was the founder of the first Spanish university, the studium generale of Palencia, which, however, did not survive him.

During his reign, Castile annexed the province of Logroño.

In 1176, Alfonso married Eleonor Plantagenet, daughter of King Henry II of England and his wife Eleonor of Aquitaine. They had 12 children:

• Berenguela, or Berenguaria, Queen of Castile (1180-1246), married to Conrad of HohenstaufenHohenstaufen was a dynasty of Kings of Germany, many of whom were also crowned Holy Roman Emperor and Dukes of Swabia. The proper name, taken from their castle in Swabia, is Staufen. When the last member of the Salian dynasty, Henry IV, Holy Roman Emperor, Duke of SwabiaSwabia (German Schwaben is a historic region in Germany and a language area. The area consists largely of the present-day state of Baden-Wurttemberg, as well as the Bavarian administrative district of Swabia. In the Middle Ages, most of modern Switzerland, and then to Alfonso IX, King of LeónThe city of Leon was founded by the Roman Seventh Legion (for unknown reasons always written as Legio Septima Gemina or 'twin seventh legion'). It was the headquarters of that legion in the late empire and was a center for trade in gold which was mined at; succeeded her brother, Henry I
• Sancho, prince of Castile (1181)
• Sancha, princess of Castile (1182-1184)
• Urraca, princess of Castile (1186-1220), married to Alfonso II of Portugal
• Blanche, a.k.a Blanche of CastileBlanche of Castile ( 1188- 1252), wife of Louis VIII of France, third daughter of Alfonso VIII, king of Castile, and of Eleanor of England, daughter of Henry II, was born at Valencia. In consequence of a treaty between Philip Augustus and John of England,, princess of Castile (1188-1252), married to Louis VIII of FranceLouis VIII ("The Lion") ( September 5, 1187 November 8, 1226) reigned as King of France from 1223 to 1226. He was a member of the Capetian dynasty. Louis was born in Paris, France, the son of King Philippe II Auguste and Isabelle of Hainaut. As a prince,
• Ferdinand, prince of Castile (1189-1211)
• Mafalda, princess of Castile (1191-1204)
• Henry, prince of Castile (1192 - 1190s)
• Constance or Constanza, princess of Castile (1196 - late 1190s)
• EleonorThe name "Eleanor" in English is usually a form of "Helen" (or "Ellen" or "Elaine"), derived from the Greek for "light", and has many variants in various languages. Among the women known to history as Queen Eleanor are: Eleanor of Aquitaine (~ 1122- 1204) or Eleanor, princess of Castile (1202-1244), married to James I of Aragon
• Henry I of Castile (1204-1217) succeeded his father.
• Constance or Constanza, princess of Castile (?-1243), abbess of Las Huelgas

This article incorporates text from the public domain 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica. 1911 Britannica