Alfonso the Magnanimous (1396-1458), King of Aragon, Valencia, Majorca, Sardinia and Corsica. Alfonso was born at Medina del Campo, son of Ferdinand I of Aragon. In 1421 he was adopted by the childless Queen Joan II of Naples and named as her heir. However, she later repudiated this and named Louis III of France her heir instead. Over the next 20 years Alfonso undertook military expeditions in France and Italy, culminating in the successful 1442 siege of Naples. As a leading light of the early renaissance Alfonso favoured men of letters at his court. He made his army pay respect to the birthplace of Livy as they passed and was devoted to the classics. However, he also indulged the sport of having itinerant scholars berate eachother in scolding matches conducted in the most filthy Latin. This woodcut comes from Giovio's Elogia vivorum bellica virtute illustrium printed at Basle in 1596.