Henry III. (Castile)

Henry III's tomb

Henry III. ( Spanish Enrique III , also called El Doliente ("the sickly"); * October 4, 1379 in Burgos , † December 25, 1406 in Toledo ) was from 1390 to 1406 King of Castile and León . He was a son of John I of Castile and León and Leonor of Aragón .

Life

Heinrich was born in Burgos, the coronation city of the kings of Castile. Before he became king, he was the first Castilian heir to the throne to hold the title of Prince of Asturias, created by his father in 1388 and carried to this day by the Spanish crown princes . At the age of eleven he ascended the throne, at 14 he was declared of age and took over the business of government. During his reign he was able to assert himself against the nobility and strengthen the royal power base.

During his reign, the Castilian naval force defeated the English fleet and in 1400 destroyed the pirate stronghold of Tetuan in North Africa. Shortly afterwards (1402) Jean de Béthencourt began to colonize the Canary Islands on behalf of the king .

In 1388 Heinrich married Catherine of Lancaster , the daughter of John of Gaunt, 1st Duke of Lancaster and Constance of Castile , the eldest daughter of Peter I. This marriage ended the decades-long conflict between the two dynasties . After Heinrich's death, his wife took over the reign of their underage son.

progeny

• Maria (1401–1458) ∞ Alfonso V , King of Aragón
• Catherine of Castile (1403–1439) ∞ Heinrich von Trastámara Infante of Aragon , 1st Duke of Villena, Count of Alburquerque
• John II (1405-1454)

literature

• Luis Suárez-Fernández: Henry III . In: Lexicon of the Middle Ages (LexMA). Volume 4, Artemis & Winkler, Munich / Zurich 1989, ISBN 3-7608-8904-2 , Sp. 2057 f.

Web links

Commons : Heinrich III. (Castile)  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

predecessor	Office	successor
The title was recreated by Johann I in 1388 .	Prince of Asturias 1388–1390	Mary of Trastámara and Lancaster
Johann I.	King of Castile and León 1390–1406	Johann II.