Manfred (1306 – 9 November 1317), ''

infante Infante (, ; f. ''infanta''), also anglicised as "infant" or translated as "prince", is the title and rank given in the Iberian kingdoms of Spain (including the predecessor kingdoms of Aragon, Castile, Navarre, and León) and Portugal to the ...

'' of

Sicily Sicily (Italian language, Italian and ), officially the Sicilian Region (), is an island in the central Mediterranean Sea, south of the Italian Peninsula in continental Europe and is one of the 20 regions of Italy, regions of Italy. With 4. ...

, was the second son of

Frederick III of Sicily Frederick III (also Frederick II, ', ', '); 13 December 1272 – 25 June 1337) was the regent of the Kingdom of Sicily from 1291 until 1295 and subsequently King of Sicily from 1295 until his death. He was the third son of Peter III of Ara ...

and

Eleanor of Anjou Eleanor of Anjou (August 1289 – 9 August 1341) was Queen of Sicily as the wife of King Frederick III of Sicily, Frederick III of Sicily. She was a member of the Capetian House of Anjou by birth. She was the third daughter of King Charles II of ...

. He was appointed

Duke of Athens The Duchy of Athens (Greek language, Greek: Δουκᾶτον Ἀθηνῶν, ''Doukaton Athinon''; Catalan language, Catalan: ''Ducat d'Atenes'') was one of the Crusader states set up in Greece after the conquest of the Byzantine Empire during ...

and

Neopatria The Duchy of Neopatras (; ; ; ) was a principality in southern Thessaly, established in 1319. Officially part of the Kingdom of Sicily, itself part of the Crown of Aragon, the duchy was governed in conjunction with the neighbouring Duchy of Athe ...

in 1312 by his father at the request of the knights of the

Catalan Company The Catalan Company or the Great Catalan Company (; , , , or ) was a company of mercenaries led by Roger de Flor in the early 14th century and hired by Byzantine Emperor Andronikos II Palaiologos to combat the increasing power of the Anatolian b ...

then in control of

Athens Athens ( ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Greece, largest city of Greece. A significant coastal urban area in the Mediterranean, Athens is also the capital of the Attica (region), Attica region and is the southe ...

. Manfred was only five when he was named duke. His father sent

Berenguer Estanyol Berenguer Estanyol d'Empúries () was the vicar general of the Duchy of Athens for four years from 1312 to 1316. He was sent there by Frederick II of Sicily to rule on behalf of his five-year-old son Manfred, who was installed as per the request of ...

as his

regent In a monarchy, a regent () is a person appointed to govern a state because the actual monarch is a minor, absent, incapacitated or unable to discharge their powers and duties, or the throne is vacant and a new monarch has not yet been dete ...

. In 1316,

Alfonso Fadrique Don Alfonso Fadrique (; ; died 1338) was the eldest and illegitimate son of Frederick II of Sicily. He served as vicar generalHe is referred to with the magniloquent title ''magnificus dominus, dominus Alfonsus, excellentissimi domini, domini Fe ...

, Manfred's elder (but illegitimate) brother, was appointed

vicar general A vicar general (previously, archdeacon) is the principal deputy of the bishop or archbishop of a diocese or an archdiocese for the exercise of administrative authority and possesses the title of local ordinary. As vicar of the bishop, the vica ...

of Athens. The young Duke never set foot in his realm, however, for he died in a fall from his horse before his twelfth birthday. He died in

Trapani Trapani ( ; ; ) is a city and municipality (''comune'') with 54,887 inhabitants, on the west coast of Sicily, in Italy. It is the capital of the Province of Trapani. Founded by Elymians, the city is still an important fishing port and the mai ...

and was buried in the Dominican church located there. His younger brother

William William is a masculine given name of Germanic languages, Germanic origin. It became popular in England after the Norman Conquest, Norman conquest in 1066,All Things William"Meaning & Origin of the Name"/ref> and remained so throughout the Middle ...

succeeded him as duke.

References

*Fiske, H. ''Acta Aragonensia''. Berlin-Leipzig, 1908. * * * *Setton, Kenneth M. ''Catalan Domination of Athens 1311–1380''. Revised edition. Variorum: London, 1975. {{Infantes of Aragon 1306 births 1317 deaths Dukes of Athens House of Barcelona (Sicily) Deaths by horse-riding accident in Italy Sons of kings