A Kingdom of Lions and Castles: An Alternate History of Spain

[Sevarics]

Chapter One
In 1134, King Alfonso VII of León and Castile became a widower. The 29-year-old monarch had been expecting the birth of his first child. Unfortunately, his Queen, Berenguela of Barcelona, suffered from complications and gave birth to a stillborn son shortly before passing away herself. Without a bride, the double monarch began the process of searching for a new wife to give him an heir to his kingdoms. Within a few months of becoming a widower, Alfonso had reached an agreement with William X, Duke of Aquitaine, Duke of Gascony, and, Count of Poitou. Alfonso would be betrothed to William’s daughter, Eleanor, and wed her when Eleanor reached the age of 15. In the meantime, William would assist Alfonso with his wars against the Moors and pledge troops to his future son-in-law as he attempted to assert control over the neighboring Christian states in Iberia.

The first test of this new alliance would come about in the fall of 1134 when Alfonso the Battler, King of Aragon and Navarre, passed away in battle against the Muslims at the Battle of Fraga, bequeathing both kingdoms to military orders in his will. When the nobility of Aragon and Navarre balked at the thought of military orders ruling their kingdoms, they set about finding a suitable successor, with some wanting Alfonso the Battler’s only brother, Ramiro, a Benedictine monk, to rule and others wanting descendants of illegitimate sons of previous monarchs. Alfonso VII of Castile and Leon put forward his name as the stepson of Alfonso the Battler and a legitimate descendant of Sancho III of Navarre. However, there was little support in either kingdom for Alfonso VII, fearing Leonese hegemony. Nevertheless, with his newfound future father-in-law’s pledge of support, Alfonso VII intended to solidify his claim to both Navarre and Aragon and unify the various Iberian kingdoms under his reign.

As a result, as 1134 drew to a close and 1135 began, Alfonso VII would begin his invasion of Navarre from Castile, while William X of Aquitaine led his troops through passes in the Pyrenees, linking up with Alfonso in Western Navarre after Biscay had already surrendered to their new king. In February of 1135, Alfonso and William besieged Najera, giving García Ramírez, the newly proclaimed king of Navarre an ultimatum, renounce his claims to Navarre and proclaim Alfonso its rightful ruler or death. After a failed attempt to rebuff the Leonese advances, García abdicated, renouncing his claims to Navarre, and proclaimed Alfonso the rightful ruler of Navarre. For bending the knee, García Ramírez was made Duke of Najera by Alfonso and joined his new king as Alfonso and William moved eastward toward Pamplona. As news of the fall of Najera spread across Navarre, the lords of Navarre organized themselves outside of Pamplona in an attempt to repel Alfonso and his attempts to incorporate Navarre into Leon.

Alfonso VII of León and Castile​

 

[BlueFlowwer]

Hopefully Eleanor don't raise a rebellion against Alfonso as she did for Henry. Btw who does Henry FitzEmpress marry in this TL?

 

[SlyDessertFox]

I'm intrigued.

 

[The Professor]

So Duke William and his son survive?
Only way to stop his overlord Louis VI of France acquiring Eleanor for his son Louis.

 

[Sevarics]

Hopefully Eleanor don't raise a rebellion against Alfonso as she did for Henry. Btw who does Henry FitzEmpress marry in this TL?

I haven’t decided yet. Who would be a good match?

So Duke William and his son survive?
Only way to stop his overlord Louis VI of France acquiring Eleanor for his son Louis.

William died in 1137 in OTL so only his little son, William Aiget is dead as of this point in time.

 

[The Professor]

William died in 1137 in OTL so only his little son, William Aiget is dead as of this point in time.

Then how did he get away with betrothing his daughter outside of France?
Or does Louis invade Aquitaine on William's death?

 

[Sevarics]

Then how did he get away with betrothing his daughter outside of France?
Or does Louis invade Aquitaine on William's death?

Louis didn’t intend on marrying Eleanor to his son until his eldest son died and then William died and left Louis in charge of finding Eleanor a husband

 

[kasumigenx]

Gascony was not even a fief of france at that time, expect a Mary of Burgundy like ending..

 

[The Professor]

Louis didn’t intend on marrying Eleanor to his son until his eldest son died and then William died and left Louis in charge of finding Eleanor a husband

So you say but does not a liege have guardianship over a vassal in their minority if there isn't a close relative? And wouldn't a liege have some say in their marriage?
That all needs to be indicated to show how Alfonso got Eleanor without her King's influence. Louis VII went to war against Henry II for doing the same thing even though Eleanor was of age and Henry was a vassal himself.

I hope I'm not being too argumentative I'm just trying to clear up plotholes!

 

[Sevarics]

So you say but does not a liege have guardianship over a vassal in their minority if there isn't a close relative? And wouldn't a liege have some say in their marriage?
That all needs to be indicated to show how Alfonso got Eleanor without her King's influence. Louis VII went to war against Henry II for doing the same thing even though Eleanor was of age and Henry was a vassal himself.

I hope I'm not being too argumentative I'm just trying to clear up plotholes!

William is still alive so guardianship doesn’t apply at this point. Yes France will cause a ruckus eventually

 

[Sevarics]

Chapter Two
In May of 1135, the forces loyal to Alfonso VII met the Navarrese loyalists who wished to remain independent of Leon-Castile. In a pitched battle outside of Pamplona, the Navarrese managed to route several Leonese advances. However, these early victories caused the Navarrese to overconfidently assume that God was on their side, leading to a reckless charge toward Alfonso. As the Navarrese made their way toward the man who claimed to be their king, the Leonese unfettered a barrage of arrows upon them, taking out many of the Navarrese noblemen before the Leonese cavalry charged on the remnants. With the Navarrese leadership decapitated, their ranks began to break and many retreated into Pamplona, hoping that reinforcements would arrive and drive off the Leonese. However, reinforcements did not arrive and the city had not prepared for a long siege. As sickness began to spread throughout the city, defectors within Pamplona opened the gates and let in Alfonso and his men, whereupon the defenders ultimately decided to surrender rather than be executed. Ultimately, Alfonso was recognized and proclaimed as the King of Navarre on June 14, 1135 when the last Navarrese holdouts bent the knee to their new king.

With Navarre under his heel, Alfonso and William made their way into Aragon to challenge the rule of Ramiro and proclaim Alfonso the king of Aragon. As a Benedictine monk, Ramiro was not prepared to rule over Aragon and had not even found a wife to give him an heir. In fact, Ramiro, during his short reign, had already alienated the Aragonese nobility, who had thought that they could control him until he proved unwilling to bend so easily. As news of Alfonso's victories in Navarre spread to the lords of Aragon, word spread among the nobility that Ramiro would not be able to protect them. To this end, certain lords began to whisper of removing Ramiro back to his monastery and offering the crown of Aragon to the Count of Barcelona. When word of these whispers reached Ramiro, an impasse was reached. While Ramiro wished to return to his life as a monk, he did not want to be forced into it. As a result, he moved to arrest the ringleaders who were plotting against him.

As tensions rose throughout Aragon, several of the lords rose in rebellion against Ramiro ahead of the forces he had sent to arrest them. Ramiro's rule was quickly becoming tumultuous and royal authority was rapidly deteriorating. While Ramiro attempted to quell the rebellious nobles, he saw that that was an impossible task. Ultimately, Ramiro sent word to Alfonso that he would entertain talks of bending the knee to his step-nephew. As rumors of this letter spread among those who had remained loyal to Ramiro in the face of the noble revolt, the forces against him grew in court. On August 3rd, 1135, Ramiro was assassinated while deep in prayer.

Ramiro's assassination caused the Aragon to become embedded in civil war as various nobles put forward their claim to the throne and the Count of Barcelona began his invasion at the behest of certain nobles. Yet, as Alfonso and William made their way into Aragon, the nobles who had remained loyal to Ramiro decided to follow with the decision that they believed he was about to make and bent the knee to Alfonso, further dividing Aragon between various forces but giving Alfonso the edge he needed to compete. With the combined forces of Leon-Castile, Navarre, Aquitaine and the nobles loyal to Ramiro, Alfonso was able to capture Zaragoza, the Aragonese capital, in October of 1135, where he was quickly crowned the King of Aragon even though half of the country still remained in rebel or Catalan hands.

From Zaragoza, Alfonso and his forces moved onward toward Huesca, which upon seeing the vast hosts of the newly crowned King of Aragon, bent the knee in November of 1135. From Huesca, Alfonso moved toward Barbastro and defeated a group of Aragonese lords who were attempting to assert one of their own as the new King of Aragon. As 1135 drew to a close and 1136 began, Alfonso began to engage in battle with the forces of the Count of Barcelona, who had more or less consolidated the anti-Alfonso Aragonese lords under his leadership. A few early victories for the forces of the Count of Barcelona were soon followed by a decisive victory by the overwhelming numerical superiority of Alfonso's forces at the Battle of Jaca, after which the Count of Barcelona was forced to continuously retreat closer the borders of County of Barcelona. With the Lord of Urgell dead, the Count of Barcelona had lost one of his powerful bannerman, and, after another loss inside the County of Barcelona, Ramon Berenguer IV also lost his life. With the death of their Count, the lords of Barcelona issued a temporary peace while Berenguer Ramon, Count of Provence, was brought back to Barcelona as the new Count of Barcelona, Berenguer Ramon III. After his crowning as the new Count, Berenguer Ramon made peace with Alfonso, recognizing him as the rightful King of Aragon and ultimately with Barcelona as a vassal of Alfonso.

With these successes under him, Alfonso returned to Leon-Castile, where in 1137 he wed Eleanor on her 15th birthday and, on the same day, was crowned Emperor of All Spain by the Archbishop of Toledo with the affirmation and consent of the Pope.

 

[Sevarics]

Chapter Three
Prior to his marriage to Eleanor, Alfonso VII's heir had been Afonso Henriques, Condo of Portugal, Alfonso VII's cousin. Following his marriage to Eleanor, his new bride quickly became pregnant and gave birth to a son and heir, Sancho. Afonso began to grow jealous as he had grown accustomed to being the heir of Leon y Castile during the many years that Alfonso had been childless. When Sancho's birth was followed by the birth of another son, Ferdinand, in 1138, Afonso rebelled, claiming that the Condado of Portugal would no longer bow before Alfonso and his Empire of All Spain.

Emperor Alfonso quickly appealed to his father-in-law for assistance and William happily obliged. In September of 1138, Alfonso VII and Duke William led their forces into the rebellious Condado of Portugal at its northern border with Leon along the River Vez. Alfonso placed great faith in Conde Ramiro Fróilaz de Ulver in leading cavalry against Afonso Henriques while Alfonso and William readied their men. As Conde de Ulver harried the Portuguese soldiers, Alfonso and William were able to come at the Portuguese forces from opposing sides, piercing the Portuguese defense. While an effective tactic, the Portuguese defenses did not crumble amidst the maneuver and struck back at Duke William. As the Emperor's father-in-law lead his charge against the Portuguese flank, a spear pierced through his steed and he was flung to the ground, his legs crushed beneath his horse. While William's men rushed to his defense, the Portuguese advanced and repulsed the Aquitanian forces.

The Portuguese advance against one flank, however, led to confusion on the other flank, as the men thought that the other side was retreating. This enabled Alfonso's men to push against the Portuguese while Conde de Ulver came toward the middle of the Portuguese forces, crushing through the foot soldiers on his cavalry and ultimately causing the Portuguese defenses to crumble. As his men began to give way to Alfonso and de Ulver's knights, Afonso Henriques ordered a retreat from the River Vez, hoping to regroup and repulse the Leonese forces at a later date.

Seeing his chance, de Ulver urged his cavalry onward and continued toward Afonso Henriques, cutting down the knights who were defending their would be King. Surrounded, Afonso Henriques surrendered to de Ulver and was taken to Alfonso for judgment. While Alfonso wished to execute his rebellious vassal, he was above kin slaying and instead had his cousin stripped of Portugal and forced into a monastery. Unfortunately for Alfonso, the capture of Afonso Henriques did not cause the Portuguese Rebellion to cease and his men had to continue into the Condado, laying siege to castles and towns that failed to submit to the rule of their Emperor. Thus, it was not until 1142 that the Condado was successfully re-integrated into the Leonese Empire of Spain with Conde Ramiro Fróilaz de Ulver acting as its governor.

This would not be the end of troubles for Alfonso, however. Duke William's injuries in battle would prove deadly and he would not survive the Battle of Vez. With his death, Aquitaine rightfully belonged to Alfonso's wife, Empress Eleanor. However, the French king challenged her inheritance upon finding out about William's death and attempted to seize the territory for himself, invading Aquitaine in the Spring of 1139.

 

[Geordie]

This looks very interesting.

I've always had a soft spot for trans-Pyrenean realms.

 

[Sevarics]

This looks very interesting.

I've always had a soft spot for trans-Pyrenean realms.

Thanks.

It was an idea that came about due to a WI I saw about alternate spouses for Eleanor and since I love Spanish history I figured I’d give it a go.

 

[altwere]

please keep this going.

 

[Sevarics]

please keep this going.

I plan on it. I have a lot of ideas.

 

[Sevarics]

Chapter Four

As the forces loyal to the French king made their way into Aquitaine, Alfonso and Eleanor led a contingent of Leonese troops into the contested duchy, hoping to resolve the conflict as quickly as they could. In the southern reaches of the territory, however, the County of Toulouse was raiding Aquitaine, harassing forces loyal to Eleanor in attempts to stifle the Leonese march to the north. Forced to deal with the Counts of Toulouse, Eleanor saw an opportunity and, while her husband led his forces to challenge the French King, she rallied her vassals to defeat Toulouse.

For Eleanor, defeating Toulouse was a matter of personal pride. Her grandfather had mortgaged away her father’s maternal inheritance to the County of Toulouse in order to fund a Crusade in the Holy Land. By aiding the French King, the Counts of Toulouse had given Eleanor the perfect opportunity to regain Toulouse for her descendants from the grips of her distant cousins.

At Auch, Eleanor gathered a large contingent of knights and foot soldiers from across Gascony, poising them to march on the city of Toulouse itself and decapitate the County’s head in one swift stroke. With 25,000 knights, the crafty Empress made her way into her cousin’s lands, forgoing other castles on the way and besieging Alphonse and his son and heir, Raymond, in the city. While Toulouse was pinned in siege, she ordered smaller contingents of her host to make way to nearby towns and castles and bring them under her control.

For weeks, forces loyal to Eleanor rained destruction on Toulouse by a variety of siege craft, such as mangonels and onagers. After the fifth week, one lucky shot hit the seigniorial castle that Alphonse and his family were in, causing the roof to collapse and crush them. With the Count dead, the remaining aristocrats and wealthy merchants of Toulouse opted to surrender, rather than subject the city to continued attach. On August 21st, 1139, the city surrendered to Eleanor on the terms that the citizens would be spared and property rights would be respected. With the fall of the city of Toulouse, the remaining castles and towns declared their allegiance to Eleanor one by one and by the middle of October, the County had fallen securely into Eleanor’s hands, allowing the Empress to turn her attention to the north where her husband was engaged in battle with the King of France.

Leaving Toulouse in the hands of a Gascon governor, Eleanor made her way to Bordeaux in Aquitaine with a contingent of 43,000 knights and foot soldiers, many of whom were Tolosans that had sworn fealty to the Empress following the surrender of Toulouse. From Poitiers, Eleanor gathered more Guianese men and headed toward Poitiers where Alfonso was engaged in battle with the King of France.

 

[Sevarics]

I realized that an end result of this marriage is going to be a Hispania that looks a lot like the Visigothic Kingdom of Toulouse

 

[hitcho11]

I'm liking it so far... Once the Iberians conquer the reminding Muslims in Iberia (if they do, but I guess they will), will they push into North Africa?

 

[Sevarics]

I'm liking it so far... Once the Iberians conquer the reminding Muslims in Iberia (if they do, but I guess they will), will they push into North Africa?

Yeah. Reconquista zeal will lead to attempts to make inroads in North Africa