Peter IV (Aragon)

Peter IV of Aragon, detail of his tomb in the Poblet monastery

Peter IV called the Solemn , in Catalan Pere el Cerimoniós , in Aragonese Pero o Ceremonioso , in Spanish Pedro el Ceremonioso , (born September 5, 1319 in Balaguer ; † January 6, 1387 in Barcelona ) was King of Aragon from 1336 to 1387 , when Peter I was also King of Sardinia and Duke of Athens and Neopatria since 1381.

Life

Peter IV was the son of Alfonso IV and his wife Teresa d'Entença , Countess of Urgell . He was a premature baby and throughout his life sickly but energetic. He succeeded his father in 1336 to the throne in Aragón .

He took away the great estates given to them by Alfons from his stepmother Eleanor of Castile and his brothers and snatched away from his cousin James III in 1342-44 . the kingdom of Mallorca , which he reunited with Aragon, could not completely conquer Sardinia after a long battle with the Genoese .

In 1348 he subjugated the rebellious nobility in his kingdoms, who opposed a female succession regulation (Peter had no sons until 1350), and he strengthened royal power through various administrative reforms. Later, however, he had to confirm the “Privilegio General” of 1283, which he demonstratively cut up after his victory on the Cortes of Saragossa (“Dagger King”). This granted the representatives of the estates more political power.

In 1354, Peter, a patron of science and the arts, founded the University of Huesca . He got his nickname through the introduction of a strict court protocol.

He later supported Heinrich von Trastamara in the fight against Peter the Cruel of Castile, but then got into a dispute with Heinrich himself and had to renounce his Castilian conquests in the Peace of Almazán in 1375 .

War, plague and bad harvests had shattered the state finances in Peter's reign, in addition to the break with the heir to the throne because of Peter's fourth wife, whose family members increasingly gained political influence.

progeny

Peter IV was married four times. His first marriage was in 1338 with Maria (around 1326-1347), daughter of King Philip III. from Navarre , with whom he had the following children:

• Konstanze (1343–1363) ⚭ 1361 King Friedrich III. of Sicily
• Johanna (1344–1385) ⚭ 1373 Johann von Aragon, Count of Ampurias
• Maria (1345 / 6–1348)
• Peter (* / † 1347)

After Mary's death in 1347 he married Eleonore (1328-1348), daughter of King Alfonso IV of Portugal , who died the following year. In 1349 he married Eleonore (1325-1375), daughter of King Peter II of Sicily , with whom he had the following children:

• John I (1350–1396), King of Aragón
• Martin I (1356–1410), King of Aragon
• Eleonore (1358–1382) ⚭ 1375 King John I of Castile - This marriage established the claim to the throne of the Castilian Infante Ferdinand, later Ferdinand I of Aragon, to the Aragonese throne in 1410.
• Alfons (* 1362, † 1364)

His fourth and last wife was Sibilla († 1406) in 1377, daughter of Bernardo de Fortia, with whom he had two sons and a daughter:

• Alfons (* 1376; † young), legitimized 1377, Count of Morella
• Peter (* / † 1379)
• Isabel (1380–1424) ⚭ 1407 Count Jacob II of Urgell

literature

• Klaus Herbers : History of Spain in the Middle Ages , Kohlhammer, Stuttgart 2006, ISBN 3-17-018871-2 , p. 243 ff.

Web links

Commons : Peter IV of Aragón  - collection of images, videos and audio files

predecessor	Office	successor
Alfons IV	King of Aragón Count of Barcelona King of Valencia 1336–1387	Johann I.
Maria	Duke of Neopatria 1381-1387	Johann I.
Maria	Duke of Athens 1381-1387	Nerio I. Acciaiuoli
Alfons I.	King of Sardinia 1336–1383	Eleonora di Arborea