Henry II (Castile)
![](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2c/Enrique_II_de_Castilla.jpg/220px-Enrique_II_de_Castilla.jpg)
Heinrich II , also Heinrich von Trastámara , ( Spanish Enrique de Trastámara , born January 13, 1334 in Seville , † May 29, 1379 in Santo Domingo de la Calzada ) was King of Castile and León (1369-1379). He was the illegitimate son of Alfonso XI. and Leonor de Guzmán , a high Castilian nobleman who was partly of Jewish descent. Thus he was half-brother of his lifelong enemy and predecessor Peter I.
Life
His father Alfonso XI. Henry had made Count of Trastámara and given him a few villages in Galicia . After the unexpected death of his father and his legitimate successor, Peter I saw the opportunity to take action against his mother's rival and her descendants.
After decades of feuds between Henry and his arch-enemy Peter I, which forced him to leave the country several times and seek protection and help in Portugal and France , he was proclaimed king in Calahorra in 1366 . In the following year, however, his army, allied with the French under Bertrand du Guesclin , suffered a crushing defeat in the Battle of Nájera (1367). Two years later, Henry II won the decisive victory in the Battle of Montiel (1369) with renewed help from the French military leader Bertrand du Guesclin. He dethroned his half-brother and imprisoned him; then he murdered Peter himself. In the Hundred Years War he sided with France and thus against Portugal and England.
He died on May 29, 1379 in Santo Domingo de la Calzada and was buried in Toledo Cathedral.
Persecution of the Jews
Despite his partly Jewish ancestry on his mother's side, Heinrich was the first ruler to use anti-Judaism as a political tool in Spain ; Among other things, he let the rumor spread that his predecessor was in reality an exchanged child of Jewish parents. After gaining royal power, however, he placed the Jews under his personal protection. A good century later, the persecution of converted Jews by the Spanish Inquisition began , which ultimately led to their expulsion (see: History of the Jews in Spain ).
progeny
![](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/87/Sepulcro_de_Enrique_II%2C_rey_de_Castilla_y_Le%C3%B3n._Capilla_de_los_Reyes_Nuevos_de_la_Catedral_de_Toledo.jpg/300px-Sepulcro_de_Enrique_II%2C_rey_de_Castilla_y_Le%C3%B3n._Capilla_de_los_Reyes_Nuevos_de_la_Catedral_de_Toledo.jpg)
Heinrich was married to Juana, the daughter of Juan Manuel de Villena , a member of a branch of the House of Castile, and had three children with her, including their son John I , who succeeded him.
He was also the father of the children:
- Eleonore Señora de Cifuentes ∞ Diniz, Titular King of Portugal
- Konstanze Señora de Alba de Tormes ∞ Johann, Titular King of Portugal
- Johanna ∞ Peter of Aragón, Marques de Villena
- Henry of Castile, Duke of Medina-Sidonia (1378–1404)
- Ferdinand Señor de Puenas and Alcaçovas (1365–1438)
- Isabella, nun
- Beatrix ∞ Juan Alfonso de Guzmán, Señor de Niebla
- Mary of Castile ∞ Diego Hurtado de Mendoza
- Alfons Enrique, Count de Gijón y Noreña (1355–1395)
- Frederick of Castile, Duke of Benavente
literature
- Julio Valdeón: Henry II. Trastámara . In: Lexicon of the Middle Ages (LexMA). Volume 4, Artemis & Winkler, Munich / Zurich 1989, ISBN 3-7608-8904-2 , Sp. 2056 f.
Web links
predecessor | Office | successor |
---|---|---|
Peter I. |
King of Castile and León 1369–1379![]() |
Johann I. |
personal data | |
---|---|
SURNAME | Henry II |
ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Henry of Trastámara; Enrique de Trastámara |
BRIEF DESCRIPTION | King of Castile and León (1369–1379) |
DATE OF BIRTH | January 13, 1334 |
PLACE OF BIRTH | Seville |
DATE OF DEATH | May 29, 1379 |
Place of death | Santo Domingo de la Calzada |