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Henry IV of Castile

Enrique IV (5 January 1425 - 11 December 1474), King of Castile, nicknamed the Impotent (ruled 1454-1474), was the last of the weak late medieval kings of Castile. During Enrique's reign the nobles increased in power and the nation became less centralised. He was born in 1425 and was the son of John II of Castile and Maria of Aragon, daughter of King Ferdinand I of Aragon.

At the age of fifteen he was married to Blanca of Navarre (1420-1464) . Blanca was considered to have remained a virgin, not only on her wedding night, but for the rest of her marriage. After thirteen years, Enrique sought a divorce. An official examination confirmed the virginity of Blanca, and a priest questioned the prostitutes of Segovia, who confirmed that Henry was sexually capable. Blanca was sent home, eight years later became Queen of Navarre, then, her family imprisoned her, and she was later killed under strange circumstances in 1464 (supposedly, poisoned, but this has not been confirmed).

Castilian and Leonese royalty
House of Trastámara

Henry II and I of Leon Children include    John I    Eleanor, Queen of Navarre John I Children include    Henry III of Castile and II of Leon)    Ferdinand I of Aragon, Valencia and Sicily Henry III and II of Leon Children include    John II    Maria, Queen of Aragon, Valencia, Sicily and Naples John II Children include    Henry IV of Castile and III of Leon    Isabella I    Alfonso, Prince of Asturias Henry IV and III of Leon Children    Joan, Queen of Portugal Isabella I with Ferdinand V Children    Isabella, Queen of Portugal    Juan, Prince of Asturias    Joanna I    Maria, Queen of Portugal    Catherine, Queen of England Joanna

In 1455, Enrique married Princess Juana, sister of Afonso V of Portugal. After six years of marriage, in 1462, she gave birth to a daughter, Joanna, also Juana, nicknamed "La Beltraneja". Six years after the birth of the throne's heir, part of the nobility of Castile revolted against the king. The rebels claimed that the princess was not the daughter of the king, but actually the daughter of Beltrán de La Cueva, 1st Duke of Alburquerque. This hypothesis was reinforced when the Queen had another child with the nephew of a Bishop. It is probable that the father of the first daughter of the Queen was the King, but is almost sure that the second one was not the King's. Townsend Miller maintains that the question of her paternity cannot be answered. However, contemporary Historians assure Henry was impotent.

The doubt of her legitimacy as an heir, the weakness of the king, the adultery of the queen, and the unruliness of the nobility all set the stage for a struggle for succession after Enrique's death. Enrique divorced his wife after her scandalous behavior with Bishop Fonseca's nephew. After a long period of conflict between the rival factions, Enrique finally agreed to name Isabella his successor, in Guisando (Avila), provided she allow him to arrange her strategic marriage. Isabella would go on to break this stipulation of the agreement.

In 1474 Henry IV of Castile was entombed at Santa María de Guadalupe, next to his mother.

After the death of the king war started in Castile. Juana was supported by Portugal, while the eventual winner, his half-sister Isabella of Castile had the support of Aragon via her husband Ferdinand and, later in the war, France. Today, the succession of the Crown of Castile is still a polemic topic between historians.

Henry IV of Castile

Miller, Townsend: The Castles and the Crown. Coward-McCann, New York, 1963.

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