Constance of Sicily, Queen of Aragon

Constance II of Sicily (c. 1249 – 9 April 1302) was Queen consort of Aragon as the wife of Peter III of Aragon and a pretender to the Kingdom of Sicily from 1268 to 1285.[1] She was the only daughter of Manfred of Sicily and his first wife, Beatrice of Savoy.[2]

Constance II of Sicily
Constance II depicted in a miniature
Queen consort of Aragon and Valencia Countess consort of Barcelona
Tenure	27 July 1276 – November 1285
Queen consort of Sicily
Tenure	4 September 1282 – November 1285
Queen regnant of Sicily
Tenure	c. 1268 – November 1285
Born	c. 1249 Kingdom of Sicily
Died	9 April 1302 (aged 52–53) Barcelona, Crown of Aragon
Burial	Barcelona Cathedral
Spouse	Peter III of Aragon
Issue	Alfonso III of Aragon James II of Aragon Elizabeth, Queen of Portugal Frederick III of Sicily Yolande, Duchess of Calabria Peter of Aragon
House	Hohenstaufen
Father	Manfred of Sicily
Mother	Beatrice of Savoy
Religion	Catholicism

Arms of Constance II of Sicily

Life

Constance was largely raised by Bella d'Amichi, who remained her favorite and confidante as queen.[3] On 13 June 1262, Constance married Peter, eldest son of James I of Aragon. Her father was killed in the Battle of Benevento (26 February 1266) while fighting against his rival, Charles of Anjou. She inherited his claim to the Sicilian throne.

James I died on 27 July 1276 and Peter succeeded to the throne, with Constance as queen. During the War of the Sicilian Vespers (1282–1302), Peter and then their sons claimed the throne of Sicily in her right. The war resulted in the partition of the Kingdom of Sicily and the creation of the Kingdom of Trinacria under her heirs and the Kingdom of Naples under the heirs of Charles of Anjou.

Peter III died on November 1285. Constance died as a nun in Barcelona.

Children

Constance and Peter III of Aragon had six children:

• Alfonso III of Aragon (4 November 1265 – 18 June 1291).
• James II of Aragon (10 August 1267 – 2 November 1327).
• Elizabeth, Queen of Portugal (c. 1271 – 4 July 1336). Married Denis of Portugal.
• Frederick III of Sicily (13 December 1272 – 25 June 1337).
• Yolande, Duchess of Calabria (c. 1273 – August 1302). Married Robert of Naples.
• Peter of Aragon (c. 1275 – 25 August 1296). Married Guillemette of Béarn, daughter of Gaston VII, Viscount of Béarn.

Ancestry

Constance's ancestors in three generations

Constance II of Sicily	Father: Manfred of Sicily	Paternal grandfather: Frederick II, Holy Roman Emperor	Paternal great-grandfather: Henry VI, Holy Roman Emperor
			Paternal great-grandmother: Constance of Sicily
		Paternal grandmother: Bianca Lancia	Paternal great-grandfather: Unknown
			Paternal great-grandmother: Unknown
	Mother: Beatrice of Savoy	Maternal grandfather: Amadeus IV of Savoy	Maternal great-grandfather: Thomas I of Savoy
			Maternal great-grandmother: Margaret of Geneva
		Maternal grandmother: Marguerite of Burgundy	Maternal great-grandfather: Hugh III of Burgundy
			Maternal great-grandmother: Béatrice of Albon

References

1. Runciman 1958, p. 202.
2. George 1875, p. table XIII.
3. «Diccionari Biogràfic de Dones: Bella, d'Amichi»

Sources

• George, Hereford Brooke (1875). Genealogical Tables Illustrative of Modern History. Oxford at the Clarendon Press.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
• Runciman, Steven (1958). The Sicilian Vespers: A History of the Mediterranean World in the Later Thirteenth Century. Cambridge University Press.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)