The King for Aragon

In Eastern Hungary, the wedding of Catalina of Aragon and John Albert Zápolya was celebrated in 1580, when the bride was 12 years old. She did not, however, travel to her husband, due to political unrest the followed the death of the King, thus making John III Albert Zápolya the new King. He would not, however, find it easy to transition to the throne, and for the next 4 years, he would wage a war for his crown, ultimately winning in early 1584, signing the treaty, and dying three weeks later. Thus, his younger brother, Jan I Wenceslaus Zápolya, rose to the throne, and the Queen of Eastern Hungary in Aragon was left a widow, at 18, having never met her husband nor stepped foot in her country. Her sister, Sancha, was offered as a bride for the new King, and Catalina was left without a husband. That would not last long, as in 1585, she married Sigismund III Welf of Poland as his wife, after negotiations with England and France had both fallen through for the new King.
 
The marriage of Ferdinand, Prince of Girona and Juana of Castile was considered by failure at her death in 1586. Married for 6 years, they’d never produced a child, or even the hint of a pregnancy, and the young man was more often seen out from court than in his marriage bed. The Princess of Girona was popular with her father-in-law, but he also knew that his son was hard to reach, and the meekness of the Infanta Juana was not necessarily the right fit for him. Thus, in 1588, the Prince of Girona married Elizabeth Báthory, and in 1590 their first child was born.

The death of Luis I of Aragon occurred in 1589, during his involvement in the French Wars of Religion. Choosing to insert himself into the conflict, he travelled to Paris to meet with his sister and his brother-in-law, in hopes of bringing religious unity to the court, as an example for the French people. It was a naïve hope, and he walked away empty handed, although he was able to meet his nephew, the Dauphin, and the only surviving child of the royal couple. The King of Aragon began his exit from France, only to die at the hands of a Huguenot rebel, convinced he had come to bring support to the Catholics.

The death of Luis I of Aragon in France was the final straw, and in 1590, Ferdinand III of Aragon stormed into France with the support of the Pope and in 1591, unified with the Duke of Guise to lead the Huguenot Massacre, sometimes called the Massacre of Paris. Not a single even, over the course of 6 months, the King of Aragon saw 15,000 civilian men suspected of being Huguenots killed, and only then did he depart France, with the thanks of Henri III of France and the fear of the French people forever. It was an expensive and somewhat foolish endeavour, and those with more foresight might have not done such a thing. But the King of Aragon was not one to think forward.
 
The King of Eastern Hungary married Sancha of Aragon by proxy in 1594, shortly after seeing his sister off to France, to marry the Dauphin. After years of war, the Zápolya Dynasty was seen as a somewhat safe bet, and since the Holy Roman Emperor was not at war with Jan I Wenceslaus Zápolya, it seemed a good time to expand their basis of power.

The War of Milan in 1596 started very minorly, over the dispute of a landowner in Milan. During the argument, one Carlos Luiz Gonzaga, a distant relative to the noble family, claimed the farm of one Juana Gonzaga, who had inherited it from her father. His claim was that, under French law, as seen in the inheritance of the French Throne, women were unable to inherit property, while his cousin considered the property hers by right of birth and being the only legitimate child of the previous landowner, as by Spanish, specifically Aragonese, law. Thus, this argument was taken much further than anticipated, until it reached the ears of both Henri III of France and Ferdinand III of France.

Now Milan had, nominally, been a potential political hot seat for over 60 years. Minor wars, mostly theoretical and legal, had been waged over the title “Duke of Milan”, and the Kings of Castile, Aragon and France all had it amongst their titles. In effect, the land had mostly been considered tied to the French as of late, but there was strong claims to be made for all three men, particularly those claims made by Ferdinand III of Aragon. His claims stemmed from blood, both through the claims of Ferdinand II of Aragon, and that of the Sforza family, that he had through his mother and grandmother, due to both his grandmothers being daughters of Bona Sforza. In addition to this, he had papers from two separate Popes, claiming he was the rightful Duke. Thus, he marched on Milan, and began what would be 10 years of war against his brother-in-law.
 
The death of the Archbishop of Zaragoza in 1599 left an empty spot in the church hierarchy, and there to fill it was Juan of Aragon, middle Infante of Aragon and the one that had been sent to the church. Barely 30, the Prince was young, handsome, and intelligent enough to have climbed the ranks of priesthood, even as he left a string of bastards through Europe. He never did, however, claim a single one, and publicly claimed celibacy and private holiness. Thus, he was granted the office, and in 1600, was the one to baptise the heir to the throne, little Juan, Prince of Girona. Considered a miracle son, he had been born ten years after his sister, the Infanta Beatrice, when his mother was nearing 40. The birth of a Prince meant that the pressure was taken away from the Infante Sancho to marry, and thus his rumoured engagement to the Duke of Savoy’s sister was called off, leaving her able to marry the Duke of Lorraine.

In Savoy, the current, reigning Duchess, Catherine de Bourbon, had failed to deliver a son after 20 years of marriage. The single pregnancy of the Navarrese Princess had resulted in a daughter, born in 1594, who had died a week later. Since the Duchess was healthy, it seemed possible that the Duke might never had a son. His brother, the unmarried Prince Ferdinand of Savoy, thus needed to marry. However, he had fallen in love with Catherine de Guise, who would have been perfectly acceptable as a bride of the second son of Savoy, if she was not already married to a French nobleman. Thus, he was married instead to Eleanor of Salm, a minor noblewoman of the Holy Roman Empire. The man wasn’t happy.
 
The death of Philip II of Castile was the final split of Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor’s personal Empire. The line of Ferdinand of Austria ruled, well, Austria, Philip II of Castile’s eldest son, Philip III of Castile, now ruled Castile, and the younger Prince of Castile, the Infante Carlos, became Charles III, Duke of Burgundy. The sons of Philip II of Castile and Margaret of France, their own families were already in place, and both would find themselves somewhat uncomfortable in their positions. The new King of Castile had not realised the split of inheritance would be happening, and was understandably shocked when half his empire was given to his younger brother. In the case of the Duke, he had somewhat expected the outcome, but found the atmosphere of the court at Brussels both too informal and open, and despite his wife’s attempts to intergrate him to the German peoples, herself being a daughter of the Duke of Jülich-Cleves-Berge, but he was a man of little social grace.

The main loser of all this was, of course, the King’s third wife, Anna of Austria, whose son was left without a fief, herself forgotten in the shuffle of power, and who would quietly find herself pushed into a Nunnery, living out the rest of her days in reflection of everything that had happened in her life. Her son, the Infante Diego, mysteriously died soon after his father’s death, and it’s possible he was assassinated by his brother, in a Castilian tradition.
 
Back in Aragon, the marriage of Beatrice of Aragon was of immense importance to the royal family, and their first choice was Henry Stuart, Prince of Wales and a boy 4 years her junior and the future King of England. However, there was an issue: the King of England didn’t want the Infanta of Aragon, but Philip III of Castile’s youngest child, Maria of Castile, for his son. Granted, this was a good match for an heir, and one Ferdinand III of Aragon was going for as well, but regardless, he was most annoyed his daughter was being ignored. Thus, as a partial fuck you to England, and a way to end the war with France, he negotiated a peace over Milan, granting his rights to the Duchy to Beatrice, if she should marry the son of the Dauphin, Francis, Duke of Anjou. It was an agreement that sat badly on the French King, who did not want it recognised that the King of Aragon had any right to the Duchy, but France was broke, and this way, he won. His grandson thus married the Infanta Beatrice, and in 1610, he died, and Ferdinand III of Aragon’s daughter became the Dauphin, his cousin the Queen, and his aunt the Queen Dowager.

The death of Maria of Aragon, the eldest daughter of Juan III of Aragon, came as Savoy’s family welcomed twin sons, in the form of Philibert and Victor of Savoy, sons of Ferdinand of Savoy and his bride, Eleanor of Salm. The twins arrived in late 1610, when their mother was 40. Yes, the marriage meant to bring many children to Savoy had failed many times over, and it had taken a miracle, twin birth to give the Duchy heirs. Granted, Maria Beatrice’s Lorraine children would have been next, but that would have meant a personal union, and the Duke of Savoy prided himself on Savoy’s independence.

The Duchess of Lorraine’s death in 1613 was not shocking to anyone. Her husband, the Duke of Lorraine, would refer to her as “my dead wife, the living Maria Beatrice”. Indeed, it seems the Princess of Savoy had been ill for many years, and her complaining had been unwelcome to her family. The Duchess of Lorraine had died in the care of her eldest daughter, the nun Nicole of Lorraine, as her next two eldest daughters were both married, and the youngest children, Marguerite and Charles of Lorraine, were both kept away from the illness.
 
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The birth of a Isabella Maria Welf, also known as Isabella of Poland, might have spelt great things for the Polish Royal family, had her mother’s accident with her next child not happened. Heavily pregnant with her second child, the Princess Bona of Poland, Catalina of Aragon was to almost die in a carriage accident, forcing an early, and unsuccessful, birth and ending her ability to carry a child to term. The Princess Bona would go on to live 3 hours following her birth, and by 1606, when the Queen of Poland died, it seemed King Sigismund III of Poland would be the end to a short dynasty. However, he did not give up hope, and in 1608 did himself a double marriage, himself to a second Catalina of Aragon, daughter of Jaime of Aragon and his deceased wife, Isabella de Medici, and his daughter to that same, widowed Prince.

It was a good match for a few reasons, the main of which being Jaime of Aragon was an unattached Prince, and if Sigismund III of Poland was unable to produce an heir with his second wife, which was entirely possible, then the Infante Jaime would stand to possibly inherit the Polish Throne, and thus secure his line. This wasn’t greatly received everywhere, and in particular, the Holy Roman Emperor considered it a snub against his youger brother, Leopold, who had been considered and at one time betrothed to the Princess of Poland.
 
The death of Charles III, Duke of Burgundy in 1611 meant that the heir to the Dukedom of Burgundy and all its associated titles were left on the shoulders of the infant Maximilian I, Duke of Burgundy, only son of the Duke’s son Philip of Burgundy, and his wife Constance of Austria. Thus, the new heir was the new Duke’s eldest sister, Christina of Burgundy, currently the wife of Philip IV of Castile, but formerly, having produced a son, the wife of Cosimo II de Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany. Thus, the next Duke of Burgundy might have be young Ferdinando II de Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany.

In Castile, the royal family found themselves split. On one side stood the King, his wife, and their young daughter, Marianna of Castile, the newborn Infanta and current Princess of Asturias. On the other side stood the Infante Diego, the younger brother of Philip IV of Castile, and his two sons by Isabella of Viseu, the Infantes Maximilian and Philip of Castile. Now, the reason for this divide was complicated, but in simple terms, the brothers were the result of two different marriages for their father, the King to Elisabeth of Austria and the Infante Diego to the Princess Christina of Bavaria, currently the Queen Dowager. The two had almost 15 years between them, and were actually their father’s only surviving children, but by 1611, when the two were odds, mostly due to the issues surrounding the Infanta Marianna’s birth. For, with her birth, Diego went from the heir to Castile and Portugal to just it’s Infante.

Now, this feud had been ongoing since the death of Philip III of Castile, in 1603. His health had never been good, and by the time he had died, he had seen his eldest son’s first marriage, to the Lady Margherita Gonzaga, fall apart in a series of mistresses, betrayals and miscarriages. Thus, when the two rose to the throne, it seemed that Diego, or at least his line, would inherit the throne, and he was married to the Portuguese/Aragonese Princess Isabella of Viseu. However, when Margherita Gonzaga followed her father-in-law to the grave in 1609, Philip IV of Castile had seen his chance to keep his line on the throne, and had shortly after married the recently widowed Grand Duchess of Tuscany, in 1610.

Now, the royal family was at odds, and in early 1612, it came to an odd head, with Philip IV on one side, backed by the Duke of Burgundy, and Diego on the other, citing his brother’s lack of competence, on the other side, backed by the King of Aragon. Now this was important, because, as part of their alliance, “King Diego I of Castile” promised to cede Portugal to Juan of Viseu, a cousin to the King of Aragon and Afonso of Aragon’s eldest son, currently married to Beatrice d’Aragona, a niece of his grandfather’s mistress, Maria d’Aragona.
 
In Eastern Hungary, Jan I Wenceslaus Zápolya and his Queen, Sancha of Aragon, were happily enjoying the birth of their first grandchild, after their son’s first marriage, to Maria Magdalena of Austria is finalised. The Prince-Heir to Eastern Hungary, also known as Jan, had been betrothed originally to Constance of Austria, then, during issues with the Hapsburgs, had been betrothed to Charlotte of Lorraine, before actually marrying Eleanora de Medici, who died in 1605, without having given birth to any children. Thus, they turned again to Austria, and negotiation led to the marriage of Jan Sigismund Zápolya and Maria Magdalena of Austria. This eldest grandchild, Barbara Maria Zápolya, was born in the first days of 1610, with her brother following the next year, in the form of Sigismund Jan Zápolya. Of the King’s other sons, the Prince Albert married the youngest child of the Marquis del Vasto, an Italian nobleman. His bride, Lavinia Francesca de Ávalos Aquino y Gonzaga, came to him as a love match of sorts, and the two would have two surviving daughters through the 1610’s: Maria Renata Zápolya (b.1612) and Sophia Zápolya (b.1617).

The wars with the Hapsburgs seemed to be over, despite issues surrounding borders. However, as the Zápolya Dynasty found themselves in with the Hapsburgs, they found themselves on the outs with Aragon. For, simply, Ferdinand III of Aragon was not a man of many loyalties, and despite his overlapping heritage to Jan I Wenceslaus Zápolya. The King of Aragon, however, was in need of allies for his cousin’s war for Portugal, and thus called upon the King of Eastern Hungary, who quickly and lightly declined. Of course, the King of Aragon was much annoyed, and with the death of his Queen Elizabeth Báthory and the loss of her calming influence, he fully cut off diplomatic ties with the Eastern Hungarians and began his invasion of Castile on behalf of Diego of Castile, with the Duke of Viseu sending some of his own troops, although less than expected. He claimed to be lacking in funds, but most likely, he liked the idea of Diego winning, but wasn’t willing to bankrupt himself in the case of failure.

The French, meanwhile, saw this as a chance to further split the Hapsburg powers and gain two powerful allies, in the forms of a Castile under Diego and Portugal under the Duke of Viseu. Thus, they sent their own troops and began an invasion, annoying Henry III of Navarre, who found that the invasion went straight through his country. He was an old man, but one who had the welfare of his country to think of, and thus he infuriated the King of France by refusing to join the war as the King of Navarre. Granted, as the Duke of Bourbon he sent his share of troops, but Navarre sent none.
 
In Poland, the Welf dynasty was finally thriving, as the 1620’s began. At least, Sigismund III of Poland had sons. Four of them, to be exact, two elder ones, and a set of twins: Sigismund John Welf (b.1610), Albert Maximilian Welf (b.1613), Casimir Augustus and ) Louis Alexander Welf (b.1615). He even had a grandson, in the form of Sigismund of Aragon (b.1609), only son of Isabella of Poland with Jaime of Aragon, who’s death in 1610 was a tragic accident and not at all a response to some unsavoury rumours surrounding the rape of a servant girl. Isabella of Poland evidently didn’t miss her husband very much, considering that she would attempt to make a marriage with a lowborn Polish Nobleman, only to die from her own, actual, accident in 1612, rumoured to be pregnant by her lover.

Thus, the King of Poland felt quite happy, particularly when his eldest son was betrothed to Sophie de Valois, the eldest daughter of the Dauphin. However, the King himself held some issue with the politics of his country, compared to his idolisation of the Duchy of Brunswick-Lüneburg. Basically put, he wanted what he for his country, thus, in 1620, at 68, he began a process to change the voting rights for the Polish Parliament, pushing for majority voting rather than unanimity voting. His reason was simple: Poland was stagnating politically, and no matter how amazing the plans put forward were for urbanization or wealth development were, the Parliament would always vote him down. However, this was seen by the Polish Parliament and the nobility as “the German’s” attempt to change Polish policy. Thus, the Herburt Rebellion was begun, and quickly ended. The King’s plans were obviously unpopular, but in 1625, they were officially written into law, and in 1627, knowing he was growing old, the King officially abdicated after seeing that his son was formally named King Sigismund IV of Poland. He would be married by proxy later than year, and his bride would arrive in early 1628, just in time to meet her father-in-law before his death.

Now, the new King of Poland did have his own rival, in the form of Sigismund I of Sweden, his cousin and a man who believed he had now twice been robbed of his birth right. He had vied for the hand of Isabella of Poland in the early 1600s, believing that their union would easily put him on the thrones of both Sweden and Poland. When that failed, he had offered his son, Vladislaus of Sweden, to the firstborn daughter of either the King of Poland or his daughter, so that he might have a chance at the crown. When, in 1610, a son had been born, he had been furious, and in 1615, after four sons of the King had come, he had betrothed his son to Cecilia Renata of Austria. The move was political, to ensure that the Hapsburgs were allied with Sweden rather than Poland, but since the Polish King was more focused on inner policy at the time, few took notice.
 
Juan III of Aragon (b.1509: d.1572) m. Isabella Jagiellon of Poland (b.1519: d.1552) (a), Mary I of England (b.1516: d.1558) (b), Maria of Portugal, Duchess of Viseu (b.1521: d.1577) (c), p. Maria d’Aragona (c.1510: d.1560) (d)

1a) Ferdinand, Prince of Girona (b.1540: d.1555)

2d) Catalina Beatrice of Aragon (b.1540: d.1613)

3a) Sancho of Aragon (b.1541: d.1555)

4a) Maria of Aragon (b.1543: d.1610) m. Emmanuel Philibert, Duke of Savoy (b.1528: d.1580) (a)

1a) Charles IV Victor, Duke of Savoy (b.1566: d.1619) m. Catherine of Navarre (b.1559: d.1623) (a)

1a) Isabel of Savoy (b.1594: d.1594)
2a) Philibert Jean of Savoy (b.1568: d.1572)

3a) Ferdinand of Savoy (b.1568: d.1615) m. Eleanor of Salm (b.1570) (a)

1a) Stillborn Son (c.1598)

2a) Isabel of Savoy (b.1601: d.1602)

3a) Stillborn Son (c.1604)

4a) Philibert III, Duke of Savoy (b.1610)

5a) Victor of Savoy (b.1610)
4a) Maria Beatrice of Savoy (b.1573: d.1615) m. Henry II, Duke of Lorraine (b.1563: d.1624) (a)

1a) Nicole of Lorraine (b.1590: d.1650) - nun

2a) Charlotte of Lorraine (b.1592: d.1613) m. John George I, Elector of Saxony (b.1585) (a)

1a) John George II, Elector of Saxony (b.1608)

2a) Anne of Saxony (b.1610)

3a) Christian Augustus of Saxony (b.1613)
3a) Claude of Lorraine (b.1593: d.1627) m. Frederick Ulrich, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg (b.1591: d.1634) (a)

4a) Marguerite of Lorraine (b.1594) m. Charles I of England (b.1600) (a)

1a) Mary Stuart, Princess of England (b.1618)

2a) Charles Stuart, Prince of Wales (b.1620)

3a) Robert Stuart, Duke of York (b.1621)

4a) Margaret Stuart, Duke of York (b.1624: d.1625)

5a) Sophia Stuart, Princess of England (b.1627)

6a) Henry Stuart, Duke of Albany (b.1630: d.1631)

7a) Margaret Stuart, Princess of England (b.1633)
5a) Charles III, Duke of Lorraine (b.1597: d.1631) m. Christine Marie of Navarre (b.1610) (a)

1a) Marie Christine of Lorraine (b.1627)

2a) Gaston I, Duke of Lorraine (b.1630)
5a) Luis I of Aragon (b.1545: d.1589) m. Katherine Zápolya, Princess of Eastern Hungary (b.1541) (a)

1a) Ferdinand III of Aragon (b.1566) m. Juana of Castile (b.1562: d.1586) (a), Elizabeth Báthory (b.1561: d.1614) (a)

1b) Beatrice of Aragon (b.1590) m. Francis de Valois, Dauphin of France (b.1594) (a)

1a) Sophie de Valois (b.1611)​

2a) Louis de Valois, Duke of Anjou (b.1613)​

3a) Francis de Valois, Duke of Orleans (b.1616)​

4a) Gaston de Valois, Duke of Alençon(b.1618: d.1619)​

5a) Anne de Valois (b.1621)​

6a) Charles de Valois, Duke of Alençon(b.1622)​

7a) Victoria de Valois (b.1625: d.1629)​

8a) Elisabeth de Valois (b.1628)​

9a) Sybille de Valois (b.1631)
2b) Juan, Prince of Girona (b.1600) m. Barbara Maria Zápolya (b.1610) (a)
2a) Stillborn Son (c.1567)

3a) Catalina of Aragon (b.1568: d.1606) m. John III Albert Zápolya (b.1559: d.1584) (a), Sigismund III of Poland (b.1552: d.1620) (b)

1b) Isabella Welf (b.1587: d.1612) m. Jaime of Aragon (b.1571: d.1610) (a)

1a) Sigismund of Aragon (b.1609)
2b) Bona Welf (b.1590: d.1592)
4a) Juan of Aragon, Archbishop of Zaragoza (b.1569: d.1614)

5a) Sancha of Aragon (b.1570: d.1623) m. Jan I Wenceslaus Zápolya (b.1575) (a)

1a) Jan I Sigismund Zápolya (b.1590) m. Eleanora de Medici (b.1591: d.1605) (a), Maria Magdalena of Austria (b.1589) (b)

1a) Barbara Maria Zápolya (b.1610)

2a) Sigismund Jan Zápolya (b.1611)
2a) Albert Wenceslaus Zápolya (b.1593) m. . Lavinia Francesca de Ávalos Aquino y Gonzaga (b.1589) (a)

1a) Catherine Maria Zápolya (b.1605: d.1610)

2a) Barbara Louise Zápolya (b.1608: d.1608)

3a) Wenceslaus Zápolya (b.1610: d.1613)

4a) Maria Renata Zápolya (b.1612)

5a) Jan Albert Zápolya (b.1615: d.1617)

6a) Sophia Zápolya (b.1617)
3a) Stephen Ferdinand Zápolya (b.1597)
6a) Jaime of Aragon (b.1571: d.1610) m. Isabella de medici 9b.1572: d.1603) (a), Isabella Welf (b.1587: d.1612) (b)

1a) Catherine of Aragon (b.1572: d.1621) m. Sigismund III of Poland (b.1552: d.1568) (a)

1a) Sigismund John Welf (b.1610)

2a) Albert Maximilian Welf (b.1613)

3a) Casimir Augustus Welf (b.1615)

4a) Louis Alexander Welf (b.1615)
2b) Sigismund of Aragon (b.1609)
7a) Stillborn Son (c.1572)

8a) Stillborn Daughter (c.1574)

9a) Sancho of Aragon (b.1576: d.1635)
6a) Stillborn Daughter (c.1547)

7a) Stillborn Daughter (c.1547)

8a) Anna of Aragon (b.1550: d.1614) m. Henri III of France, previously I of Poland (b.1551: d.1610) (a)

1a) Stillborn Son (c.1570)

2a) Charles X of France (b.1574) m. Sibylla Maria Zápolya (b.1578) (a)

1a) Francis de Valois, Dauphin of France (b.1594) m. Beatrice of Aragon (b.1590) (a)

1a) Sophie de Valois (b.1611)

2a) Louis de Valois, Duke of Anjou (b.1613)

3a) Francis de Valois, Duke of Orleans (b.1616)

4a) Gaston de Valois, Duke of Alençon(b.1618: d.1619)

5a) Anne de Valois (b.1621)

6a) Charles de Valois, Duke of Alençon(b.1622)

7a) Victoria de Valois (b.1625: d.1629)

8a) Elisabeth de Valois (b.1628)

9a) Sybille de Valois (b.1631)
3a) Stillborn Son (c.1578)
9a) Juan of Aragon (b.1551: d.1562)

10c) Afonso of Aragon, Duke of Viseu (b.1561: d.1609) m. Maria Theresa de Tovar y Velasco (b.1561: d.1630) (a)

1a) Juan IV of Portugal (b.1579) m. Beatrice d'Aragona (b.1584) (a)

1a) Manuel of Portugal, Prince of Portugal (b.1597)

2a) Juan of Portugal, Duke of Beja (b.1598: d.1598)

3a) Maria Victoria of Portugal (b.1600)

4a) Ferdinand of Portugal, Duke of Beja (b.1601)

5a) Stillborn Son (c.1604)

6a) Stillborn Son (c.1606)

7a) Juana of Portugal (b.1608)

8a) Beatrice of Portugal (b.1611)

9a) Stillborn Son (c.1612)

10a) Catherine of Portugal (b.1615)

11a) Juan of Portugal, Duke of Guarda (b.1618)

12a) Stillborn Son (c.1620)

13a) Eleanora of Portugal (b.1621)
2a) Martin of Viseu, Archbishop of Lisbon (b.1583)

3a) Luiz of Viseu (b.1586) m. Louise Marie de Joyeuse (b.1598) (a)

1a) Margaret of Viseu (b.1615)

2a) James of Viseu (b.1622)​

4a) Isabella of Viseu (b.1588) n. Diego I of Castile (b.1593) (a)

1a) Maximilian of Castile (b.1606)

2a) Philip of Castile (b.1608)​
 
In Castile, the War of Castilian Succession waged on, with Philip IV of Castile losing more ground day after day. The loss of three children in quick succession did little to bring his peace, and when his sweet daughter died in 1617, it’s said the King gave his throne up out of spite for those who might have wanted him to war on, for God and the Pope. Thus, despite Christina of Burgundy’s protests, he not only gave up his crown, but left Castile entirely, to begin his life as a priest. His Queen and Wife, meanwhile, was stuck in Madrid, married to a priest, furious at the whole situation. She would return to Brussels in 1619, and in 1620 was named Regent for her nephew after his mother’s mysterious death. It was she who married betrothed him to Italian Princess Maria Gonzaga, 7 years his senior and a cousin to the Dukes of Mantua. The reason why was partially to support Christina of Burgundy’s son’s interests with the Gonzaga family, and she herself would, during this time direct a betrothal suggestion between her nephew and the Princess Anne of France (b.1621) away from her nephew and to her son. As the new King Diego I of Castile would say: "The Lady of Burgundy is slippery and cruel when need be."

However, what went on in Burgundy was the least of Diego I of Castile’s problems. You see, he never truly believed he’d have to abdicate his Portuguese Throne to the Duke of Viseu, but now he’s one, he is expected to. Thus, when arrangements are made to coronate him as King of Portugal, he is annoyed to here that Juan of Viseu is not only pushing for his rights, but has travelled to Lisbon to have himself crowned King. And so, having won the war for Castile, he now entered the War of Portuguese Independence, against his former allies. And he lost hard.

The new King of Portugal, Juan IV of Portugal, now chose this time to treat with the King of Castile, offering peace for a double marriage, his daughter Juana and Beatrice to Diego’s sons Maximilian and Philip. His request was met with some trepidation, but in 1623, Juana was betrothed to Maximilian, although Beatrice was not betrothed to Philip. Instead, she was betrothed, in 1624, to Sigismund Jan Zápolya (b.1611), and their eldest brother, the heir to the throne, was betrothed in 1625 to 10 year old Maria Caterina Farnese, in order to ensure Italian recognition for their reign. In addition, the Infanta Maria Victoria had married the Duke of Mantua in 1613, and now, as a young widow, was offered to Fernández Juan de Tovar y Velasco, Lord of Berlanga and Duke of Frias, and a distant cousin. Indeed, this was a second marriage for both of them, and in 1625, she married for the second time, leaving her son, Ludovicio Gonzaga, Duke of Mantua to his carers, and left for Naples, where her husband acted as Regent for the King of Aragon.
 
That same King of Aragon would, in 1627, die of a fatal heart attack, leaving his 27 year old son, Juan IV of Aragon, as both the new King and the most eligible bachelor in Europe. Unmarried due to issues with alliances, the new King would, in 1628, be married to Catherine of Portugal, the 13 year old Princess of Portugal. She had not been his first choice, as the Princess Beatrice, the elder sister, had originally been offered to the King. However, the young girl was considered unsuitable for unknown reasons, and shortly after, her sister would arrive as the King’s new Queen.

Now the reason the Princess Beatrice was labelled as unsuitable for a major marriage was twofold. The first issue, and the bigger issue, was that she had actually, two years prior, undergone an affair with the youngest son of the Duke of Braganza, and henceforth was deemed unsuitable by her father. This issue led into the next problem for Beatrice as a foreign bride, in that she had both a terrible level of impulse control, and a bad attitude to most things. Now living in Lisbon, her father denied her hand for many men, and in 1630, to prevent further embarrassment, he married her to a court favourite, Luiz Perez de Guzman, her to the Dukedom of Medina Sidonia. An unhappy marriage, the two would remain together long enough for their son, Manuel de Guzman, to be born, before separating in 1632.
 
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