Isabel Unknown (1082 - 1107)

Died 13 Sep 1107 at about age 25 in Denia, Alicante, Pais Valenciano, Spain

Problems/Questions Profile manager: John Atkinson [send private message]

Isabel Unknown was a member of the aristocracy in Europe.

Biography

Isabel was the fourth wife of Alfonso of Castile.

Name

• Isabel, also known as Elisabeth. ^[1]

1082 Birth and Parents

Isabel's parents are not known. ^[1] Since she married in the year 1100, estimate that she was aged 18 at the time and born, say, 1082.

Her origin is not known. Reilly assumes a French origin, speculating that she belonged to a younger branch of the house of Burgundy, but quotes no documentary evidence for this or any other French origin. It used to be widely accepted that she was the daughter of Louis VI King of France, based on a funerary inscription, but this is chronologically impossible. ^[1]

1100 Marriage

Isabel married, in the year 1100 before 14 May, as his fourth wife, Alfonso de Castilla y León,^[1]

The Chronicon Regum Legionensium names "Elizabeth" as the fourth of the "five legitimate wives" of King Alfonso, stating that she was the mother of "Sancha the wife of count Rodrigo and Elvira who married Duke Roger of Sicily"[508]. According to Reilly, her first documentary mention is dated 14 May 1100, but he does not cite the reference. ^[1]

Consent to Charters

"Adefonsus…totius Hispanie imperator" donated property to the monastery of San Salvador de Oña with the consent of "uxoris mee Helisabeth regine" by charter dated 12 Dec 1075, although this date is clearly incorrect. "Aldefonsus rex Yspaniarum…cum…coniuge mee Helisabeth regine" donated property to the monastery of San Salvador de Oña by charter dated 1086, also clearly misdated. "Adefonsus Rex Imperator Ispanie et Regina Elisabeth" protected the grazing rights of Valladolid Santa María by charter dated 1100. "Adefonsus totius Ispanie imperator" donated property to the monastery of San Salvador de Oña with the consent of "uxoris mee Helisabet regine" by charter dated 23 Mar 1103. ^[1]

1106 Death

She died before March 1106 and is buried in the Royal Pantheon of San Isidor de León). ^[1]

Research Notes: Isabel

Zaida and Isabel

It has been suggested that Alfonso's fourth wife, Isabel, was identical to Zaida ^[2][3][4][5]but this is still subject to scholarly debate, others making Queen Isabel distinct from the mistress^[6][7][8]or suggesting that Alfonso had two successive wives of this name, with Zaida being the second Queen Isabel.^[9]

Alfonso's daughters Elvira and Sancha, were by Queen Isabel, and hence may have been Zaida's.^[6][8][2][9]

Death

She died in childbirth, and it is unclear whether the child being delivered was Sancho, Sancha or Elvira (the younger of the two if Zaida is indeed identical to Queen Isabel, their order of birth not being known), or an additional child, otherwise unknown.^{[6][8] [2]}

Funerary Markers

A funerary marker once at Sahagun bore the inscription:

H.R. Regina Elisabeth, uxor regis Adefonsi, filia Benabet Regis Sevillae, quae prius Zayda, fuit vocata ("Queen Isabel, wife of King Alfonso, daughter of Aben-abeth, king of Seville; previously called Zayda.")

The tomb was later moved to Leon where the sepulchre and inscription can now be found. A second inscription memorializes Queen Isabel, making her daughter of Louis, King of France (although there was no such king in the generation prior to Queen Isabel). Both memorials are non-contemporary and neither is generally viewed as credible.^{[6] [7][8][2]}

Isabel's existence is questionable and it is possible that she was in fact the same person as Isabel née Zaïda, shown below as King Alfonso's fifth wife. The question of the separate existence of King Alfonso VI's fourth wife would be resolved if we knew there had been two different memorials to "Queen Elisabeth" in the Royal Pantheon, but it appears that a record of these memorials no longer exists. According to Reilly, she is last named in a charter dated 14 May 1107[515], but it is more likely that this document refers to Queen Isabel/Elisabeth née Zaïda ^[1]

Sources

^{[10] [6] [11] [7] [8] [2]}

1. ↑ ^{1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7} Charles Cawley. Foundation for Medieval Genealogy. Medieval Lands Database. Castile Isabel Accessed Sept 12, 2018 jhd
2. ↑ ^{2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4} Salazar y Acha, Jaime de (1992–1993). "Contribución al estudio del reinado de Alfonso VI de Castilla: algunas aclaraciones sobre su política matrimonial". Anales de la Real Academia Matritense de Heráldica y Genealogía. 2: 299–336. Cited by Wikipedia: Zaida of Seville Accessed Sept 10 2018 jhd
3. ↑ Martínez Díez, Gonzalo (2003). Alfonso VI: Señor del Cid, conquistador de Toledo. Cited by Wikipedia: Zaida of Seville Accessed Sept 10 2018 jhd
4. ↑ Salazar y Acha, Jaime de (2007). "De nuevo sobre la mora Zaida". Hidalguía: la Revista de Genealogía, Nobleza y Armas. 54: 225–242. Cited by Wikipedia: Zaida of Seville Accessed Sept 10 2018 jhd
5. ↑ Fernándes-Montes y Corrales, Luis Miguel (2017). "La Mora Zaida o la Reina Isabel, ¿De Concubina a Reina". Antigua, Cápsula Histórica. Cited by Wikipedia: Zaida of Seville Accessed Sept 10 2018 jhd
6. ↑ ^{6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4} Canal Sánchez-Pagín, José María (1991). "Jimena Muñoz, Amiga de Alfonso VI". Anuario de Estudios Medievales. 21: 11–40. Cited by Wikipedia: Zaida of Seville Accessed Sept 10 2018 jhd
7. ↑ ^{7.0 7.1 7.2} Montaner Frutos, Alberto (2005). "La Mora Zaida, entre historia y leyenda (con una reflexión sobre la técnica historiográfica alfonsí)". Historicist Essays on Hispano-Medieval Narrative: In Memory of Roger M. Walker. pp. 272–352. Cited by Wikipedia: Zaida of Seville Accessed Sept 10 2018 jhd
8. ↑ ^{8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 8.4} Palencia, Clemente (1988). "Historia y leyendas de las mujeres de Alfonso VI". Estudios sobre Alfonso VI y la reconquista de Toledo. pp. 281–90. Cited by Wikipedia: Zaida of Seville Accessed Sept 10 2018 jhd
9. ↑ ^{9.0 9.1} Reilly, Bernard F. (1988). The Kingdom of León-Castilla under King Alfonso VI, 1065–1109. Princeton University Press. Cited by Wikipedia: Zaida of Seville Accessed Sept 10 2018 jhd
10. ↑ Reilly, Bernard F. (1995). The Contest of Christian and Muslim Spain, 1031-1157. Blackwell. Cited by Wikipedia: Zaida of Seville Accessed Sept 10 2018 jhd
11. ↑ Lévi-Provençal, Évariste (1934). "La 'Mora Zaida' femme d'Alfonse VI de Castile et leur fils l'Infant D. Sancho". Hesperis. 18: 1–8,200–1.Cited by Wikipedia: Zaida of Seville Accessed Sept 10 2018 jhd