Alba, Fadrique Alvarez de Toledo (1537)

The second son of the famous Spanish commander and grand Fernando Alvarez de Toledo ( 1507 - 1582 ), 3rd Duke of Alba ( 1531 - 1582 ), and Maria Enriquez de Toledo and Guzman (d. 1583 ).

In 1555, Fadrique Alvarez de Toledo married Gyomar de Aragon ( 1540 - 1557 ), the daughter of Alfonso of Aragon, 2nd Duke of Segorbe , and Duchess of Juan de Cardon . In 1562, he remarried with Maria Pimentel, daughter of the 3rd Duke of Benavente (1514-1575). Thanks to his second marriage, he inherited the title of Duke of Huescar . From two marriages, Fadrique Alvarez de Toledo had no children.

In the years 1557 - 1558, during the absence of his father, Fadrique Alvarez de Toledo served as Viceroy of Naples.

In 1566, Fadrique promised to marry Magdalen de Guzmán, the court lady of the Spanish Queen Anne of Austria , but refused his promise. In response to royal orders, he was arrested and imprisoned in the castle de La Mota (city of Medina del Campo , province of Valladolid ). Magdalena de Guzmán was imprisoned in the convent of Santa Fe in Toledo . The following year, he was released from prison in exchange for a three-year military service in the Spanish fortress of Oran in Algeria . But in April 1568, the king of Spain ordered Fadrique Alvarez de Toledo to serve under the command of his father, the Duke of Alba, who was appointed governor of the Spanish Netherlands.

Don Fadrique Alvarez de Toledo was commander of the Spanish army in the most bloody phase of the war in the Netherlands. He commanded the Spanish forces that took and ravaged the Dutch cities of Mechelen , Zutphen and Naarden , as well as during the sieges of Haarlem and Alkmaar.

In 1573, Fadrique Alvarez de Toledo was unable to take the city of Alkmaar and was forced to retreat. His father Fernando Alvarez de Toledo did not approve of the actions of his son, who lost the support of the Spanish king Philip II . In 1574, father and son returned to Madrid .

In 1578, at the request of Magdalena de Guzmán, the King of Spain Philip II ordered a review of the lawsuit against Fadrique, during which it was discovered that in order to prevent a marriage with Magdalena de Guzmán, he secretly married his second cousin Maria de Toledo, daughter Garcia Alvarez de Toledo and Osorio ( 1514 - 1577 ), 4th Marquis of Villafranca del Bierzo . Fadrique married with the permission of his father, the Duke of Alba, thereby violating the royal will. Fadrique was arrested a second time and imprisoned in the castle of Tordesillas , then again in the castle of de La Mota , and his father was expelled from the yard and sent into exile in the city of Ouceda .

Due to poor health and poor conditions of his detention in May 1580, Fadrique was released from prison on condition of permanent residence in his hometown of Alba de Tormes , from which he was forbidden to leave.

From his third marriage with Maria de Toledo, he had a son who died in infancy in 1582 .

In December 1582, after the death of his father, Fadrique Alvarez de Toledo inherited the titles and possessions of the Duke of Alba (1582-1583). In December of the following year he died, leaving no posterity. His nephew Antonio Alvarez de Toledo ( 1568 - 1639 ), who became the 5th Duke of Alba ( 1583 - 1639 ), inherited his titles and possessions.

• Hobbs, Nicolas (2007). Grandes de España
• Instituto de Salazar y Castro (2012). Elenco de Grandezas y Títulos Nobiliarios Españoles. periodic publication. Hidalguia Ediciones. ISBN 9788493931339