Ferdinand IV of Castile

Ferdinand IV
Statue of Fernando IV in Madrid's Parque del Buen Retiro.
King of Castile and León
Reign	25 April 1295 – 7 September 1312
Predecessor	Sancho IV
Successor	Alfonso XI
Born	(1285-12-06)6 December 1285 Seville
Died	Jaén
Burial	Real Colegiata de San Hipólito
Consort	Constance of Portugal
Issue	Eleanor, Queen of Aragon Alfonso XI, King of Castile
House	House of Ivrea Burgundy
Father	Sancho IV, King of Castile
Mother	María de Molina
Religion	Roman Catholicism

Ferdinand IV, El Emplazado or "the Summoned," (6 December 1285 – 7 September 1312) was a king of Castile (1295–1312) and León and Galicia (1301–1312). He was a son of Sancho El Bravo and his wife Maria de Molina.

Life

His strange title is given to him in the chronicles because of a story in which he tyrannically puts to death two brothers named Carvajal, and was given a time (plazo) by them in which to answer for his crime in the next world. But the tale is not contemporary, and is an obvious copy of the story told of Jacques de Molay, grand-master of the Temple, and Philip IV of France.

His reign came at a time of anarchy. From 1296 to 1301 the Kingdom of León was independent under Juan I of León, being crowned as King of León, Galicia and Seville. He owed his escape from the violence of competitors and nobles, partly to the tact and undaunted bravery of his mother Maria de Molina, and partly to the loyalty of the citizens of Ávila, who gave him refuge within their walls. As a king he proved ungrateful to his mother, and weak as a ruler.

In 1302 he married Constance, daughter of King Denis of Portugal. Their children were:

1. Eleanor (1307–1359), married King Alfonso IV of Aragon
2. Constance (1308–1310)
3. Alfonso XI of Castile (1311–1350)

In 1309 he captured Gibraltar from the Moors (who had held it since 711) with the help of Alonso Pérez de Guzmán of Aragón. He died suddenly in his tent at Jaén when preparing for a raid into the Emirate of Granada on 7 September 1312.

Ancestry

Family of Ferdinand IV of Castile

16. Alfonso IX of León               8. Ferdinand III of Castile                       17. Berengaria of Castile               4. Alfonso X of Castile                             18. Philip of Swabia               9. Elisabeth of Hohenstaufen                       19. Irene Angelina               2. Sancho IV of Castile                                   20. Peter II of Aragon               10. James I of Aragon                       21. Maria of Montpellier               5. Violant of Aragon                             22. Andrew II of Hungary               11. Violant of Hungary                       23. Yolanda de Courtenay               1. Ferdinand IV of Castile                                         24. Ferdinand II of León               12. Alfonso IX of Leon                       25. Urraca of Portugal               6. Alfonso of Molina                             26. Alfonso VIII of Castile               13. Berengaria of Castile                       27. Eleanor of England               3. María de Molina                                   28. Alfonso Téllez II de Menezes, 2nd Lord of Menezes, 1st Lord of Albuquerque               14. Alfonso Téllez de Meneses, 4th Lord of Meneses                       29. Teresa Rodríguez Girón               7. Mayor Alfonso Tellez, 6th Lady of Menezes                             30. Joao Fernandes de Lima               15. Maria Anes de Lima                       31. Maria Pais Ribeira

References

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Ferdinand IV of Castile House of Ivrea Born: 6 December 1285 Died: 7 September 1312
Regnal titles
Preceded by Sancho IV	King of Castile and León 1295–1312	Succeeded by Alfonso XI