Reign
James was born at Valencia.
He succeeded his father as King of Sicily in 1285. Upon the death of his brother Alfonso III in 1291, he succeeded also to the throne of the Crown of Aragon. he spent May of that year in Catania, inspiring the local monk Atanasiu di Iaci to write the Vinuta di re Iapicu about his time there. By a peace treaty with Charles II of Anjou in 1296, he agreed to give up Sicily, but the Sicilians instead installed his brother Frederick on the throne.
Due to the fact that his brother, Frederick, would not withdraw from the island, Pope Boniface VIII asked James II, along with Charles II of Naples, to remove him. As an enticement to do this the Pope invested James II with the title to Sardinia and Corsica, as well as appointing him papal gonfalonier. Because of his inability to disguise his apathy on the matter, he returned to Aragon. Frederick reigned there until his death in 1337.
By the Treaty of Anagni in 1295, he returned the Balearic Islands to his uncle James II of Majorca. Aragon retained control over the continental territories of the Majorca kingdom — Montpellier and Roussillon — throughout James's reign. In 1298, by the Treaty of Argilers, James of Majorca recognised the suzerainty of James of Aragon.
During the period that followed his return to Aragon, James II wanted to gain access to the Muslim world in the south, from which Castile restricted Aragon. In order to achieve this goal and assisted by his Admiral Don Bernat de Sarrià, Baron of Polop, he formed an alliance with the enemies of the adolescent king of Castile, Ferdinand IV. James II wanted Murcia in order to give his kingdom access to Granada. The allied forces entered from all directions in 1296, where James II was victorious in capturing Murcia and held it until 1304
Read more about this topic: James II Of Aragon
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