Week 21
House of Trastámara. John II ( 1405 – 1454) was King of Castile from 1406 to 1454. He was the son of Henry III of Castile and his wife Catherine of Lancaster, daughter of John of Gaunt, 1st Duke of Lancaster by Constance of Castile, daughter of King Peter of Castile. Juan looked like his English grandfather, blond, blue eyed, tall and handsome, but it was only in appearance that there was any resemblance. John of Gaunt was decisive and one of the most important figures of the whole of the fourteenth century. His Castilian grandson was one of the most ineffectual rulers ever, anywhere. And worse, he sat on the throne of Castile for almost half a century. So the story of central Spain, that is Castile, begins the fifteenth century with a disastrous fifty year period of drift and civil chaos.
REQUIRED READING
The Story of Spain: The Dramatic History of Europe's Most Fascinating Country,
Golden Era Books,
ISBN 0970696930
PART TWO: A Visit to CASTILE
Castile and the city of LEON