Alfonso II

Alfonso II c. 2907

**Alfonso II** (Alfonso Martell; 19 June 2868 - 23 March 2908) was King of Rockfield following the succession crisis of 2899. His reign came following the death of his long reigning father, Charles V, and came following a political battle in court over whether he should succeed to the throne over his elder sister, Isabel. Alfonso reigned for nine years, before dying of cancer without any living heirs. His sister succeeded him to the throne, becoming Queen Isabel.

Alfonso was born on 19 June 2868 as the second child of King Charles V. Charles had been married to several women throughout his life. His third marriage, with Queen Matilda Rouge resulted in his only child, Isabel. However, in 2867, Charles divorced Matilda and married Queen Catherine of Burgundy. Catherine was a considerably older woman with many expecting her to be unable to produce an heir. However, in 2868, she gave birth to Charles' only healthy male heir. Catherine died four years later, but Alfonso continued to live and would ascend to the throne. Alfonso's birth came as a surprise to many in court, most of whom had presumed Isabel to be the heir. There was serious contention for the first years of his life over the question of succession. Rockfield law, to this point, did not specify a solution in this instance and, given Catherine's narrow support in court, many suspected that Isabel would remain the heir. The uncertainty continued until 2894 when Charles, thought to be on his deathbed, declared Alfonso his rightful heir. The division strained Alfonso and Isabel's relationship, with most believing that the two did not contact each other at all (besides Charles V's funeral) during Alfonso's nine-year reign.

Alfonso ascended to the throne, being coronated on 25 December 2899. Specifically on Christmas Day, Alfonso was a fundamentalist Christian. His belief, as supported by his mother's supporters in court, was that he was selected by God to fulfil Rockfield's destiny. Alfonso envisioned a Balancín Empire and personally believed that he would go down in history as one of the greatest men ever. Towards the end of his life, Alfonso lobbied the Pontifical Church to have him canonized as a saint but was refused by Pontifex Ibragimov.

Alfonso died in 2908 after two-years of prolonged illness. Alfonso often refused treatment, citing his trust in God to heal him. Towards the end, Alfonso gained the nickname "Alfonso the Ill" and "Alfonso the Delusional". Due to his long history of illness, including the cancer which he battled for much of his reign, Alfonso never had any children. His death left the throne open, with his older sister ascending to the throne as Queen Isabel.

In recent years, Alfonso is often forgotten as a minor King of Rockfield's history and has never seemed to make any significant impact on historians in general.

## Titles, styles, honours and arms

### **Titles and styles**

* 19 June 2868 - 3 June 2889: *His Royal Highness The Prince Alfonso*
* 3 June 2899 - 6 October 2899: *His Royal Highness The Prince Alfonso, Duke of Talaga*
* 6 October 2899 - 23 March 2908: *His Majesty* The King

As King of Rockfield, Alfonso's full title was:

> Alfonso of the House Martell, second of his name, by Grace of God, of the Rock and of the Balancín people, King, Lord of the Iberian Palace and Defender of the Faith
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