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The Cruel Reign of Pedro I of Castile

Type Event Region Europe Time 1350–1359

After Alfonso XI died in 1350, Pedro I ('the Cruel') became king of Castile and León, notorious in the 1350s for bloody purges and feuds that foresha…

Timeline

  1. 1350Seville · AndalusiaAlfonso XI died in March 1350, and the sixteen-year-old Pedro I succeeded him as king of Castile and León, beginning a reign of nearly twenty years.
  2. 1351–1355Burgos · CastilePedro I executed or exiled noble opponents by cruel means, including favorites of his mother Queen Maria and magnates opposed to royal power; the nickname 'the Cruel' spread, and the rift between crown and nobility deepened.
  3. 1356–1359Northern Castilian frontier · CastileHis half-brother Enrique de Trastámara repeatedly rose against Pedro in the 1350s, with support from Granada and other Muslim powers. Pedro won the Battle of Alaviana in 1359 but failed to eradicate the roots of rebellion.

Sources