kids encyclopedia robot

William II, Duke of Athens facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts
Quick facts for kids
William II
prince of Sicily
Coat of Arms of Eleanor of Sicily, Queen of Aragon.svg
Coat of arms of Aragonese Sicily
Duke of Athens & Neopatria
Reign 1317–1338
Predecessor Manfred, Duke of Athens
Successor John, Duke of Randazzo
Born 1312
Died 22 August 1338
Trapani
Buried Dominican church of Trapani
Noble family of Barcelona
Spouse(s) María Álvarez de Jérica
Father Frederick II of Sicily
Mother Eleanor of Anjou

William II (1312 – 22 August 1338) was the third son of Frederick III of Sicily and Eleanor of Anjou. He inherited the Duchy of Athens after the death of his elder brother Manfred on 9 November 1317.

During his minority, his Greek possessions were governed by his illegitimate elder brother Alfonso Frederick, who in 1319 added the Duchy of Neopatria to the Catalan domains. In 1330, Alfonso returned from Greece and William ceded the counties of Malta and Gozo to him. Nicola Lanza replaced him in Greece.

In 1335, William married María Álvarez de Jérica, a descendant of Roger of Lauria, without papal dispensation, as both John XXII and Benedict XII wanted to check the power of Frederick his father. Two years later, his father willed him the Principality of Taranto, the county of Calatafimi, the honour of Monte Sant'Angelo, and various castles and lands in Noto, Spaccaforno, Capo Passero, and Avola when his mother, Eleanor, daughter of Charles II of Naples, died. She died in 1341, but William died first on 22 August 1338. He left his library to the Dominicans of Palermo and was buried in the cathedral there.

Sources

  • Fiske, H. Acta Aragonensia. Berlin-Leipzig, 1908.
  • Ghisalberti, Alberto M. Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani: III Ammirato – Arcoleo. Rome, 1961.
Preceded by
Manfred
Duke of Athens
1317–1338
Succeeded by
John of Randazzo
New title Duke of Neopatria
1319–1338
kids search engine
William II, Duke of Athens Facts for Kids. Kiddle Encyclopedia.