Biography of Peter II King Aragon 1178-1213

Paternal Family Tree: Barcelona

Peter II King Aragon and Marie Montpellier Queen Consort Aragon were married. She by marriage Queen Consort Aragon. He the son of Alfonso II King Aragon and Sancha Ivrea Queen Consort Aragon.

In July 1178 Peter II King Aragon was born to [his father] Alfonso II King Aragon [age 21] and [his mother] Sancha Ivrea Queen Consort Aragon [age 23].

In 1185 [his brother] Alfonso Barcelona II Count Provence [age 11] was appointed II Count Provence by his father [age 27].

In 1193 [his brother] Alfonso Barcelona II Count Provence [age 19] and [his sister-in-law] Gersenda II Sabran Countess Provence [age 13] were married. She by marriage Countess Provence. He the son of [his father] Alfonso II King Aragon [age 35] and [his mother] Sancha Ivrea Queen Consort Aragon [age 38].

On 25th April 1196 [his father] Alfonso II King Aragon [age 39] died. His son Peter [age 17] succeeded II King Aragon.

In 1208 [his mother] Sancha Ivrea Queen Consort Aragon [age 53] died.

On 2nd February 1208 [his son] James I King Aragon was born to Peter II King Aragon [age 29] and Marie Montpellier Queen Consort Aragon. He married (1) Violant Árpád Queen Consort Aragon and had issue (2) Teresa Gil Vidaure Queen Consort Aragon (3) his half second cousin Eleanor Ivrea Queen Consort Aragon, daughter of Alfonso VIII King Castile and Eleanor Plantagenet Queen Consort Castile, and had issue.

In February 1209 [his brother] Alfonso Barcelona II Count Provence [age 35] died at Palermo [Map] whilst accompanying his sister Constance [age 30] to her wedding. His son Raymond [age 11] succeeded IV Count Provence.

Chronicum Anglicanum by Ralph Coggeshall. The king of Aragon, while imprudently giving aid to the count of Toulouse against the Catholics, having joined battle¹, was, miraculously indeed, but wretchedly, destroyed together with his whole army.

Rex Arragonensis, dum imprudenter comiti Tolosano contra catholicos auxiliatur, conserto prælio, miraculose quidem, sed miserabiliter, cum toto exercitu suo absorbetur.

Note 1. The Battle of Muret, the last major battle of the Albigensian Crusade, was fought on 12th September 1213 near Muret, 25 km south of Toulouse between the armies of King Peter II of Aragon [age 35] and Simon Montfort the Elder, 5th Earl of Leicester [age 38]. The Aragonese forces were heavily defeated.

William the Breton: "After the barons and prelates had returned to France, the King of Aragon, the Count of Saint-Gilles [age 56], the Count of Foix, and many other barons of the land laid siege to the count in the castle of Muret. They had gathered a great host and inflicted wrongs, as they were of the country, and the count had only sixty knights, mounted sergeants, and pilgrims on foot, all unarmed, around him. After the count [Simon de Montfort] and his people had devoutly heard mass, confessed their sins, and invoked the grace of the Holy Spirit, they came out of the castle, bold as lions, as those armed with faith and belief, and valiantly fought against their enemies. They killed the King of Aragon and about 18,000 of his people. After they had won the battle and their enemies were all killed or driven away, they found that they had only lost eight pilgrims from all their company. Never had such a victory been heard of in this world, nor such a marvellous battle where so great a miracle should be noted. This Count Simon was called in the land the 'strong count,' for his marvellous strength. For, although he was very noble in arms, he was so devout that he heard mass and his canonical hours every day; always armed, always in danger. He had entirely left and renounced his country, in service to Our Lord, on this pilgrimage, to earn God's love and the joy of Paradise."

Battle of Muret

The Battle of Muret, the last major battle of the Albigensian Crusade, was fought on 12th September 1213 between the armies of Peter II King Aragon [age 35] and Simon "Elder" Montfort 5th Earl of Leicester [age 38]. The Argonese forces were heavily defeated. Peter II King Aragon was killed. His son James [age 5] succeeded I King Aragon.

Les Grandes Chroniques de France. [12th September 1213]. After the barons and prelates had returned to France, the King of Aragon [age 35], the Count of Saint-Gilles [age 56], the Count of Foix, and many other barons of the land laid siege to the count in the castle of Muret. They had gathered a great host and inflicted wrongs, as they were of the country, and the count had only sixty knights, mounted sergeants, and pilgrims on foot, all unarmed, around him. After the count [Simon "Elder" Montfort 5th Earl of Leicester [age 38]] and his people had devoutly heard mass, confessed their sins, and invoked the grace of the Holy Spirit, they came out of the castle, bold as lions, as those armed with faith and belief, and valiantly fought against their enemies. They killed the King of Aragon and about 18,000 of his people. After they had won the battle and their enemies were all killed or driven away, they found that they had only lost eight pilgrims from all their company. Never had such a victory been heard of in this world, nor such a marvelous battle where so great a miracle should be noted. This Count Simon was called in the land the 'strong count,' for his marvelous strength. For, although he was very noble in arms, he was so devout that he heard mass and his canonical hours every day; always armed, always in danger. He had entirely left and renounced his country, in service to Our Lord, on this pilgrimage, to earn God's love and the joy of Paradise.

Après ce que li baron et li prelat s'en furent retorné en France, li rois d'Arragon, li cuens de Saint Gyle, li cuens de Fois, et maint autre baron du païs assistrent le conte ou chastel de Muriaus. Grant ost et tort avoient assemblé, come cil qui du pais estoient, et li cuens n'avoit que ce et lx chevaliers, d serjanz à cheval, et pèlerins à piè, toz desarmez, entor vif. Après ce que li cuens et sa gent orent la messe oie par L;rant dévotion, et il orent leur péchiez confessez et apelée la grâce du Saint Esperit, il issirent du chastel hardi comme lyon, come cil qui estoient armé de foi et de créance, et se combatirent à leur anemis vertueusement. Le roi d'Arragon occistrent et bien xviii de sa gent. Après ce que il orent la bataille vaincue et toz leur anemis occis et chaciez, il troverent que il n'orent perdu de tote leur gent que viii pèlerins tant seulement. Si ne fu ainques oie tel victoire en cest siècle ne si merveilleuse, ne bataille où l'on deust noter si grant miracle. Icil cuens Symons estoit apelez ou pais cuens forz, pour sa mervelleuse force. Car com il fust très nobles en armes, il estoit si preuzdons que il ooit chascun jor sa messe et ses houres kanoniaus; toz jors armez, toz jors en péril. Si avoit du tôt guerpi et adossé son pais, pour le servise Nostre Seigneur, en ceste voie de pérégrination, pour deservir l'amor de Dieu et la joie de Paradis.

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Jean de Waurin's Chronicle of England Volume 6 Books 3-6: The Wars of the Roses

Jean de Waurin was a French Chronicler, from the Artois region, who was born around 1400, and died around 1474. Waurin’s Chronicle of England, Volume 6, covering the period 1450 to 1471, from which we have selected and translated Chapters relating to the Wars of the Roses, provides a vivid, original, contemporary description of key events some of which he witnessed first-hand, some of which he was told by the key people involved with whom Waurin had a personal relationship.

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[his father] Alfonso II King Aragon and [his mother] Sancha Ivrea Queen Consort Aragon were married. She by marriage Queen Consort Aragon. She the daughter of [his grandfather] Alfonso VII King Castile VII King Leon and [his grandmother] Richeza Unknown Queen Consort Castile Queen Consort Leon. He the son of Raymond V Count Barcelona and Petronilla Jiménez Queen Aragon. They were half third cousin once removed.