Who is Marguerite d'Aragon?

By Loïck PORTELLI

Introduction

It is not impossible for a genealogist with ancestors in Malta to find a few forebears who held titles of nobility. Things become more complicated when one aspires to prove one's lineage with a royal family, even though certain websites dedicated to Maltese genealogy guarantee the most credulous of people kinships that would make a Windsor turn pale.

One of the rare ways to link one's Maltese family tree to a royal family is to descend from a certain Marguerite d'Aragon who lived in Malta in the 14th century. As said Marguerite had three daughters, this is within the realm of possibility. Once this first difficulty is resolved, the second consists of tracing Marguerite's ancestors. Let us see what tools are at our disposal.

What historians say.

Marguerite's ancestry is mysterious. The first to examine the question was Commander Giovanni Francesco Abela, historian of the Order of Malta, in 1647. He put forward two hypotheses: Marguerite was either the daughter of Guillaume d'Aragon, Count of Malta and natural son of King Frédéric III (figliuole del Conte Guglielmo d'Aragona, figliuol naturale del Re Federico Terzo), or the daughter of an illegitimate child of King Frédéric II (discendenti da' figliuoli illegitimamente nati del Re Federico Secondo di Sicilia).[1]

Making the right choice is no easy matter: First of all, both kings were named Frédéric, then they alternately used royal or imperial numbering (Frédéric II often calling himself Frédéric III in reference to his ancestor Emperor Frédéric II de Hohenstaufen). Finally, both had a son named Guillaume[2] who was Count of Malta.

In several works including that of Marquis Cassar-Desain in 1876, A Short Sketch of the Maltese Nobility[3], the choice often falls on the Frédéric III hypothesis. Let us delve back into the scant clues at our disposal to try to see more clearly…

Simplified family tree of the House of Aragon, sovereigns of Sicily.

Records of the Royal Chancellery of Palermo

The first documents attesting to the existence of Marguerite d'Aragon date from 1372. We are then right in the middle of the "Pellegrino affair"[4], named after the (overly) powerful husband of Marguerite, who has just been exiled by King Frédéric III of Sicily (1341-1377). Giacomo Pellegrino had indeed become the true master of Malta, governing the archipelago in a quasi-autonomous manner. This contempt for royal authority triggered a military intervention by said king, who landed in Malta with the assistance of the Genoese fleet and laid siege to Fort Saint-Ange and the capital Mdina for two months. Giacomo was finally exiled and his property was seized, thus plunging his family into sudden destitution.

It is in this context that we note that when the king returned to Messina, he was accompanied by the wife of Giacomo Pellegrino[5]. Even more curiously, the first official act of the king once back in Sicily on 20 November 1372 was to grant her an annual allowance to provide for her needs and those of her family ("Pro nobile Margarita uxore Jacobo de Peregrino militis […] Ad humilem supplicationem noviter Culmini nostro factam per Margaritam mulierem uxorem Jacobi de Peregrino militis consanguineam fidelem nostram … ").[6] The document is of great importance as it reveals Margarita's belonging to the nobility and her royal kinship ("our faithful kinswoman").

The second act issued in favour of Marguerite, dated 11 October 1373, tells us that following her intervention on behalf of her husband, the latter received a royal pardon. It also reveals Marguerite's identity: "nobilem Margaritam de Aragonia consorte Jacobj de Peregino militis consanguineam familiarem et fidelem nostram".

The testament of Marguerite

In June 1418 Marguerite drew up her will before the notary Antonio de Azzopardo: "I, Lady Margarita, widow of the Magnifico lord Giacomo de Peregrino, lying in my house, sick in body but sound in mind […], fearing a sudden divine judgment, lest I perhaps end my life in silence, without a will…". Its contents reveal that she is the mother of three daughters and grandmother of six grandchildren, one of whom is married.

Descendants of Marguerite d'Aragon

What can we conclude?

The study of the dates in our possession adds information to our two hypotheses.

Regarding the hypothesis supposing her to be the granddaughter of King Frédéric II (1272-1337) and the daughter of Guillaume II d'Athènes (1312-1338), this would mean she was about 80 years old at her death (1418).

Regarding the most widespread hypothesis supposing her to be the granddaughter of King Frédéric III (1341-1377) and the daughter of his natural son Guillaume d'Aragon (dates unknown), this would mean that when the king came to Malta in 1372 to drive out her husband, he was 31 years old. Could he be the grandfather of a married woman who was already a mother at that age? This seems hardly conceivable.

Published with the kind permission of Loïck PORTELLI

1. Maltese surnames, Joëlle Pawelczyk
2. Aspects of maltese surnames, Mario CASSAR
3. Weddings in Malta in the eighteenth century, Aurore Verié
4. Le sultan Djem et sa prétendue descendance maltaise, de Nicolas VELIN
5. Le légendaire Eugène Matteo d'Armenia, de Loïck PORTELLI
6. Jacques et Marguerite de Pellegrino, de Loïck PORTELLI
7. Headquarters Gozo in 1551 and repopulation of the island (excerpts), Stanley Fiorini
8. Marriage in Malta in the late eighteenth century (excerpts), Frans CIAPPARA
9. The three CUMBO brothers, by Georges GANDER and Nicolas VELIN
10. Nicola SOLTANA, the founder, by Nicolas VELIN
11. Le maréchal Davout est-il Maltais ?, de Loïck Portelli
12. Who is Marguerite d'Aragon?, by Loïck PORTELLI
13. Les Racines Maltaises de Gérald DARMANIN