Alonso de Fonseca I.

Alonso de Fonseca I. or Alonso de Fonseca y Ulloa (* 1418 in Toro ; † 18 May 1473 in Coca ), landlord of the cities of Alaejos and Coca, was temporarily bishop of Ávila (1445-1454), archbishop of Seville (1454– 1465 and 1469–1473) and by Santiago de Compostela (1465–1469). For a time he was also the adviser to the Castilian kings John II (ruled 1406 / 1419–1454) and Henry IV (ruled 1454–1474). He is also known as the builder of the Castillo de Coca .

Castillo de Coca

Life

family

Alonso de Fonseca was the second-born son of Juan Alonso de Ulloa, advisor to King John II of Castile, and of Beatriz Rodríguez de Fonseca, a Portuguese grandee, whose name he took on. Several famous figures in Spanish history emerged from the family.

resume

Alonso de Fonseca made a career as a cleric and was initially Archdeacon of Sanlés at the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela . A few years later he took over the education of Infante Heinrich. Around 1448 he became - like his father - advisor to Johann II; the king gave him the cities of Alaejos and Coca as fiefdoms and soon afterwards Alonso began building two castles. He was probably involved in the overthrow of the nobility leader and quasi-regent Álvaro de Luna in 1453. In May 1454 he married the new King Henry IV of Castile and his second wife Joanna of Portugal . In the same year he donated the episcopal ordination to Pedro González de Mendoza , who later became Archbishop of Toledo and adviser to the Catholic Kings Isabella I of Castile and Ferdinand II of Aragon . He became an advisor to Henry IV of Castile and León , but in 1468 had to witness his quasi abdication and the end of his marriage - brought about by pressure from the nobility. He himself fell out of favor with the increasingly powerful nobles, but remained Bishop of Seville until his death.

His final resting place is in the parish church of Coca with a reclining figure (yacente) designed by the sculptor Bartolomé Ordóñez .

Web links

• Alonso de Fonseca I. - Information (Spanish)
• Alonso de Fonseca I. - picture + info (spanish)
• Tombs of Fonseca in the Church of Coca - photos

predecessor	Office	successor
Lope de Barrientos	Bishop of Ávila 1445–1454	Alonso Fernández de Madrigal
Juan de Cervantes	Archbishop of Seville 1454–1465	Alonso de Fonseca II.
Rodrigo de Luna	Archbishop of Santiago de Compostela 1465–1469	Alonso de Fonseca II.
Alonso de Fonseca II.	Archbishop of Seville 1469–1473	Pietro Riario