Alfonso IX of León 1 2 3
- Born: 15 Aug 1171, Zamora
- Marriage (1): Teresa of Portugal
- Marriage (2): Berengaria of Castile in 1197 in Valladolid, Spain
- Died: 24 Sep 1230, Villanueva de Sarria aged 59
General Notes:
He was first married to his cousin Teresa of Portugal, who bore him two daughters, and a son who died young.
The marriage was declared null by the pope, to whom Alfonso paid no attention till he was presumably tired of his wife. It cannot have been his conscience which constrained him to leave Teresa.
In 1197 he married Berengaria, daughter of his first cousin King Alfonso VIII of Castile and granddaughter of King Henry II of England. Pope Innocent III annulled the marriage in 1214 because of the family relationship of Alfonso and Berengaria. Alfonso founded the University of Salamanca and captured Cáceres, Badajoz, and Mérida from the Muslim Almohads.
The pope was, however, compelled to modify his measures by the threat that if the people could not obtain the services of religion they would not support the clergy, and that heresy would spread. The king was left under interdict personally, but to that he showed himself indifferent, and he had the support of his clergy. Berenguela left him after the birth of five children, and the king then returned to Teresa, to whose daughters he left his kingdom by will.
Noted events in his life were:
• Acceded: 1188. King of León.
Alfonso married Teresa of Portugal, daughter of Sancho I Martino of Portugal and Dulcia of Barcelona. (Teresa of Portugal was born in 1181 and died on 18 Jun 1250.)
Alfonso next married Berengaria of Castile, daughter of Alfonso VIII of Castile and Eleanor Plantagenet, in 1197 in Valladolid, Spain. (Berengaria of Castile was born in Aug 1181 and died on 8 Nov 1246 in Las Huelgas.)
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