DBWI: Fernando of Castile prevails over James III of Aragon in the Compromise of Caspe?

[30PrincesAndAKing]

As we all know, James II, count of Urgell succeeded to the throne of Aragon as King James III after the death of his cousin Martin. Although it looked like a close run thing for a moment (due to parliamentary debate over which claimant had the best claim) James ended up winning the most votes by a slim majority (most likely because he promised freedoms to many Aragonese magnates). James wasn't the most effective Aragonese monarch, but his remarriage in1414 allowed the House of Barcelona to persist, at least.

Yet what if one of James's supporters had done something stupid like assassinate the Archbishop of Zaragoza? Would that damage Urgell's candidacy enough to pave the way for the claim of Fernando of Castile to be taken more seriously?

Even though Fernando had one of the weakest blood claims (apparently our Fernando didn't learn from Edward III of England that claiming a throne by male-preference proximity as a foreigner was fruitless when domestic male-line claimant(s) existed at home), he was James's strongest opponent by-far, and history gives him a half-decent reputation as regent for his nephew Juan II of Castile. How would Fernando have fared as King of Aragon?

 

[Zygmunt Stary]

Even though Fernando had one of the weakest blood claims (apparently our Fernando didn't learn from Edward III of England that claiming a throne by male-preference proximity as a foreigner was fruitless when domestic male-line claimant(s) existed at home), he was James's strongest opponent by-far, and history gives him a half-decent reputation as regent for his nephew Juan II of Castile. How would Fernando have fared as King of Aragon?

I think Fernando might aim to conquer Naples (or his son, Alfonso who was one of the best Castilian generals of the time) unlike James IV of Aragon who was an inept monarch, who didn't have conquering ambition, which allowed Angevin dynasty in person of Louis III of Anjou and later his brother Rene I establish itself in Naples, paving way towards towards it's personal union with France.
So attaching Naples to Aragon instead of France (James IV was oferred the throne in Naples, but declined) would be pretty much big change and probably could prevent "The Century of Decline" during which monarchs from James V until Peter VI were pretty much puppets of France.
Also maybe Castile would enter union with Aragon here, not with Portugal as IOTL.

 

[30PrincesAndAKing]

I think Fernando might aim to conquer Naples (or his son, Alfonso who was one of the best Castilian generals of the time) unlike James IV of Aragon who was an inept monarch, who didn't have conquering ambition, which allowed Angevin dynasty in person of Louis III of Anjou and later his brother Rene I establish itself in Naples, paving way towards towards it's personal union with France.
So attaching Naples to Aragon instead of France (James IV was oferred the throne in Naples, but declined) would be pretty much big change and probably could prevent "The Century of Decline" during which monarchs from James V until Peter VI were pretty much puppets of France.

An Aragonese union with Naples does seem sensible, given that the crown of Aragon already held Sicily. A reunion of the Regno might help with Aragon's Mediterranean ambitions. Hopefully such a union wouldn't cause strife within Fernando's family, however: we wouldn't want two rival lines of Trastamaras running around (three if you count our OTL Castilian line). Hopefully Alfonso proves smart enough to keep the claims united, rather than divide them up between multiple heirs (we wouldn't want him doing something foolhardy like willing Naples to his bastard or anything).

 

[Zygmunt Stary]

An Aragonese union with Naples does seem sensible, given that the crown of Aragon already held Sicily. A reunion of the Regno might help with Aragon's Mediterranean ambitions. Hopefully such a union wouldn't cause strife within Fernando's family, however: we wouldn't want two rival lines of Trastamaras running around (three if you count our OTL Castilian line). Hopefully Alfonso proves smart enough to keep the claims united, rather than divide them up between multiple heirs (we wouldn't want him doing something foolhardy like willing Naples to his bastard or anything).

Well why Alfonso should do something like that? It seems like major moron act on his part and he wasn't a moron afaik. And we forgot about Minorca and Mallorca who basically went independent under infante John, son of James IV who allied with barbary pirates and became major pirate on Mediterranean Sea.

 

[kasumigenx]

Ferdinand's eldest son would not have been the one who becomes the second husband of Blanche I of Navarre.

 

[30PrincesAndAKing]

Well why Alfonso should do something like that? It seems like major moron act on his part and he wasn't a moron afaik. And we forgot about Minorca and Mallorca who basically went independent under infante John, son of James IV who allied with barbary pirates and became major pirate on Mediterranean Sea.

Well, hopefully Alfonso wouldn't do something silly like that, but Italy (and Sicily in general) has always been a little lax on bastards, so perhaps by exposure to the culture, Alfonso would become 'convinced' such a thing was 'acceptable.' I still hope he doesn't do it though lol. Though I won't lie, it would be interesting to see Naples stay independent, even if it's just for a little while longer...

I guess we haven't talked about Minorca and Mallorca because my interest lies mainly in Naples and Sicily lol

Ferdinand's eldest son would not have been the one who becomes the second husband of Blanche I of Navarre.

Perhaps. What do you envision happening to Navarre in this scenario? IOTL, Navarre managed to take advantage of Aragon's weakness to create a pseudo-Iberian hegemony. Aragon, Castile, and Portugal all remained nominally independent, of course (even taking into account Castile's union with Portugal), but for a good stretch there Navarre was the strongest state in the peninsula. I wonder how much of that would change here...

 

[kasumigenx]

Well, hopefully Alfonso wouldn't do something silly like that, but Italy (and Sicily in general) has always been a little lax on bastards, so perhaps by exposure to the culture, Alfonso would become 'convinced' such a thing was 'acceptable.' I still hope he doesn't do it though lol. Though I won't lie, it would be interesting to see Naples stay independent, even if it's just for a little while longer...

I guess we haven't talked about Minorca and Mallorca because my interest lies mainly in Naples and Sicily lol

Perhaps. What do you envision happening to Navarre in this scenario? IOTL, Navarre managed to take advantage of Aragon's weakness to create a pseudo-Iberian hegemony. Aragon, Castile, and Portugal all remained nominally independent, of course (even taking into account Castile's union with Portugal), but for a good stretch there Navarre was the strongest state in the peninsula. I wonder how much of that would change here...

Perhaps Blanche could marry Humphrey of England but that is just wishful thinking.