known as Alfonso the Wise
born Nov. 23, 1221, Burgos, Castile
died April, 2, 1284, Sevilla
King of Castile and León (1252–84).
He crushed revolts by Muslims (1252) and nobles (1254), and he annexed Murcia after repelling an invasion by Morocco, Granada, and Murcia (1264). He claimed the title of Holy Roman emperor (1256), but Gregory X persuaded him to renounce the claim. His second son became his successor as Sancho IV . Alfonso's court was a center of culture, producing an influential law code, the Siete Partidas, and establishing the form of modern Castilian Spanish.