Alfonso IV of León

Alfonso IV (c. 890s – 933), called the Monk, was King of León from 925 (or 926) and of Galicia from 929, until he abdicated in 931.

When Ordoño II died in 924 it was not one of his sons who ascended to the throne of León but rather his brother Fruela II of Asturias. The exact circumstances of the succession upon Fruela's death one year later are unclear, but apparently it was the son of Fruela, Alfonso Froilaz, who became king. Sancho Ordóñez, Alfonso, and Ramiro, the sons of Ordoño II, claimed to be the rightful heirs and rebelled against their cousin. With the support of king Jimeno Garcés of Pamplona, they drove Alfonso Froilaz to the eastern marches of Asturias and divided the kingdom among themselves, Alfonso receiving the crown of León and Froilaz being left in Galicia, which Sancho inherited within a year.

Alfonso IV resigned the crown to his brother Ramiro in 931 and went into a religious house. One year later he took up arms with Fruela's sons Ordoño and Ramiro against his own brother Ramiro, having repented of his renunciation of the world. He was defeated, blinded, and sent back to die in the cloister of Sahagún. Ordoño IV of León was his son.

References

*1911

External links

*Genealogy trees are [http://genealogy.euweb.cz/iberia/iberia3.html#H here] and [http://www.stirnet.com/HTML/genie/ancient/il/iberia01.htm#link2 here] .
*Spanish language articles are [http://members.fortunecity.es/edepaz/siglox1.htm here] and [http://www.diariodeleon.es/especiales/2004/historialeon/noticia.jsp?TEXTO=2928803 here] .
* [http://home.freeuk.net/liwf/history/europe/iberia/leonk.htm List of Kings of León] .

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