John II of Castile

John II (March 6 1405 – July 20 1454) was King of Castile from 1406 to 1454. He was the son of Henry III of Castile and his wife Katherine of Lancaster, daughter of John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster by Constance of Castile, daughter of King Pedro of Castile (known as 'Pedro the Cruel'). He was thus great-grandson of King Edward III of England through the maternal line.He succeeded his father on December 25, 1406, at the age of a year and ten months, and united in his person the claims of Pedro the Cruel and of Henry of Trastamara. His mother Katherine and his uncle, Ferdinand, were co-regents during his minority. When Ferdinand died in 1416, his mother was sole regent until she died as well, in 1418.

It was one of the many misfortunes of Castile that the long reign of John II—forty-nine years—should have been granted to one of the least capable of her kings. Juan was amiable, weak, and dependent on those about him. He had no taste except for ornament and no serious interest except in amusements such as verse-making, hunting, and tournaments.

He was entirely under the influence of his favourite, Álvaro de Luna, until his second wife, Isabella of Portugal, obtained control of his feeble will. At her instigation, he dismissed his faithful and able favorite, an act which is said to have caused him much remorse. He died on July 20, 1454, at Valladolid.

John II of Castile declared the Valladolid laws, which restricted the social rights of Jews. Among many other restrictions the laws forced Jews to wear distinctive clothes and denied from them any administrative positions.

Ancestors

Family and children

In 1418, John married his cousin Maria of Aragon, daughter of Ferdinand I of Aragon and Eleanor of Alburquerque. The marriage produced four children but only one son, the future Henry IV of Castile, survived infancy. John was widowed in 1445 and remarried to Isabel de Portugal, daughter of Infante João of Portugal, with whom he had two children: the future Queen Isabella of Castile and the Infante Alfonso (1453-1468).

References

*1911|article=John II|url=http://www.1911encyclopedia.org/John_II_Of_Castile