Berenguela of León
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Berenguela of Leon (1204 - 12 April 1237) was the third wife but only Empress consort of John of Brienne, Latin Emperor of Constantinople.
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[edit] Family
According to the chronicle of Alberic of Trois-Fontaines, Berenguela was a daughter of Alfonso IX of León and his second wife Berenguela of Castile. She was a younger sister of Ferdinand III of Castile and Alfonso of Molina.
Their paternal grandparents were Ferdinand II of León and Urraca of Portugal. Their maternal grandparents were Alfonso VIII of Castile and Leonora of England.
[edit] Marriage
In 1217, Ferdinand III had inherited the throne of the Kingdom of Castile while remaining the heir apparent of the Kingdom of León. Alfonso IX wished to prevent a personal union of the two Kingdoms under his son. He planned to disinherit Ferdinand and leave the throne to Sancha, his eldest daughter from a previous marriage to Teresa of Portugal.
In 1223, John of Brienne, former King of Jerusalem, visited Santiago de Compostela, Alfonso invited him to marry Sancha and through her inherit the Leonese throne. However Berenguela of Castile, main advisor of Ferdinand III, offered one of her own daughters to John instead. John chose Berenguela of Leon, who was a decade younger than her half-sister Sancha. The marriage took place at Toledo in 1224.
[edit] Empress
In 1229, the throne of the Latin Empire had been inherited by Baldwin II of Courtenay, a twelve-year -old boy. The barons of the Empire decided to secure the safety of the Empire by appointing a regent-Emperor for Baldwin. They chose John who accepted the assignment. In April 1229, John was proclaimed regent at Perugia. They did not arrive at Constantinople until 1231, when John was officially crowned in his new city.
Baldwin II remained the junior co-emperor and only heir to the throne. By agreement, Baldwin had been betrothed to Marie of Brienne since 19 April 1229 to firmly establish the dynastic alliance of the two co-emperors. The marriage did not take place until 1234, when Marie was about nine-years-old.
Alberic of Trois-Fontaines records that John died on 27 March 1237. The "Obituaires de Sens Tome" of the Abbey of Maubuisson record that Berenguela died on 12 April, 1237, surviving her husband by sixteen days.
[edit] Children
Berenguela and John of Brienne had four known children:
- Marie of Brienne (1225-1275), who married Emperor Baldwin II of Constantinople.
- Alphonso of Brienne (c. 1228-1270), who married Marie d'Issoudon, countess of Eu, and became count of Eu in right of his wife, and was also Great Chamberlain of France. Died of a plague while involved in the Eighth Crusade.
- Jean (John) de Brienne (c. 1230-1296), who in 1258 became Grand Butler of France. Married Marie de Coucy as his first wife. Second wife was Jeanne, daughter of Geoffrey VI, Viscount of Chateaudun.
- Louis of Acre (c. 1235-1263), who married Agnes of Beaumont and became Viscount of Beaumont in her right.
| Royal titles | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Lady of Neuville |
Latin Empress consort of Constantinople 1229 - 1237 with Marie of Brienne (1234–1237) |
Succeeded by Marie of Brienne |
[edit] External links
[edit] References
- Szabolcs de Vajay, "From Alfonso VIII to Alfonso X" in Studies in Genealogy and Family History in Tribute to Charles Evans on the Occasion of his Eightieth Birthday, 1989, pp. 366-417.
