Alfonso VII of Castile

Reign: 1126 – 1157
Life: 1105–1157

Alfonso, born Alfonso Raimúndez, first used the title Emperor of All Spain, alongside his mother Urraca, once she vested him with the direct rule of Toledo in 1116. Alfonso later held another investiture in 1135 in a grand ceremony reasserting his claims to the imperial title. Alfonso was a dignified and somewhat enigmatic figure. His rule was characterised by the renewed supremacy of the western kingdoms of Christian Iberia over the eastern (Navarre and Aragón) after the reign of Alfonso the Battler. Though he sought to make the imperial title meaningful in practice to both Christian and Muslim populations, his hegemonic intentions never saw fruition. He was a patron of poets, including, probably, the troubadour Marcabru.

During Alfonso VII of Castile's reign, Afonso I of Portugal ruled Portugal, Emperor Gaozong of Song ruled China, and David I of Scotland ruled Scotland.

Further reading: A History of Medieval Spain by Joseph F. O'Callaghan

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Alfonso VII of Castile

The World During Their Reign

Meanwhile in history

Further Reading

A History of Medieval Spain