Henry II of Castile
| Henry II | |
|---|---|
Henry II.
|
|
| King of Castile and León | |
| Reign | 13 March 1366 – 3 April 1367 |
| Coronation | 29 March 1366, Las Huelgas |
| Predecessor | Peter |
| Successor | Peter |
| Reign | 23 March 1369 – 29 May 1379 |
| Predecessor | Peter |
| Successor | John I |
| Born |
13 January 1334 Seville |
| Died | 29 May 1379 (aged 45) Santo Domingo de la Calzada |
| Burial | Cathedral of Toledo |
| Consort | Juana Manuel |
| Issue among others... |
John I Eleanor, Queen of Navarre Infanta Joanna |
| House | Trastámara |
| Father | Alfonso XI of Castile |
| Mother | Eleanor de Guzmán |
| Religion | Roman Catholicism |
Henry II (13 January 1334 – 29 May 1379), called the Fratricidal (el Fratricida) or the one of las Mercedes (el de las Mercedes), was the first King of Castile and León from the House of Trastámara. He became king in 1369 by defeating his half-brother, Peter the Cruel, after numerous rebellions and battles. As king he was involved in the Ferdinand Wars and the Hundred Years' War.
Henry was the fourth of ten illegitimate children of King Alfonso XI of Castile and Eleanor de Guzmán, a great-granddaughter of Alfonso IX of León. He was born a twin to Fadrique Alfonso, Lord of Haro, and was the first boy born to the couple that survived to adulthood.
At birth, he was adopted by Rodrigo Álvarez de las Asturias. Rodrigo died the following year and Henry inherited his lordship of Noreña. His father later made him Count of Trastámara and lord over Lemos and Sarria in Galicia, and the towns of Cabrera and Ribera, which constituted a large and important heritage in the northeast of the peninsula. It made him the head of the new Trastámara dynasty, arising from the main branch of Burgundy-Ivrea.
While Alfonso XI lived, his lover Eleanor gave a great many titles and privileges to their sons. This caused discontent among many of the noblemen and in particular the queen, Maria of Portugal, and her son, Pedro, known as Pedro the Cruel and the Just.
They had a chance for revenge when Alfonso XI died unexpectedly from a fever in the siege of Gibraltar in March, 1350. They pushed Eleanor, her sons and their supporters aside, and Henry and his brothers fled and scattered. They were fearful of what their brother, the new king Pedro I of Castile, could do to them. The late king had not even been buried.
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