The Government of Aragon wants to locate the exact location of the remains of Queen Petronila, that being still a girl made the origin of the Crown of Aragon.
As he left written in his testament, the sovereign was buried in the Cathedral of Barcelona, but he would find himself in a grave with the wrong name.
Therefore, the Aragonese executive has requested the archbishopric of Barcelona to be able to practice a DNA test to check their genetic remains with those of their ancestors.
Petronila’s historical evolution dates back to 1134 when, after being injured in the battle, Alfonso I dies without descent, the Kingdom of Aragon leaves the orders of the hospital, the Templars and the Holy Sepulcher.
In order to avoid it, it was called to occupy the throne to his brother Ramiro, who wore all his life in a monastery and had just been named Bishop of Barbastro.
Ramiro II The monk to guarantee the legitimate succession had to give an heir and he searched for a wife for the king.
The chosen one was the French France of Poitou, a widow of 30 years who had been a mother of three male sons, with which she fertility was guaranteed.
Ramiro and Inés’s wedding was held in Huesca on November 13, 1135 and nine months later the queen gave birth to a girl, who called Petronila.
On that date, marriage had not yet been admitted as legitimate by the Pope, due to the ecclesiastical condition of the king.
Ramiro II had fulfilled the mission of giving the kingdom an heir, but, as he was a girl, who could transmit through his blood, but could not reign, he supposed a new problem.
Inés de Poitou had also fulfilled, so when Petronila he was three months he returned to Aquitaine and never saw his daughter again.
Ramiro II had before him a new challenge, look for a husband for his daughter and the elected one was Ramón Berenguer IV, Count of Barcelona since 1131.
After the relevant negotiations, Ramiro II, King of Aragon, and Ramón Berenguer IV, Earl of Barcelona, signed some matrimonial capitulations, based on an institution of the Aragonese private law, called “Marriage at home”, through which Ramiro II handed over
Petronila, just over a year old, as Future Wife of Ramón Berenguer.
With these capitulations, the Earl of Barcelona became an administrator of the Kingdom of Aragon, but without assuming the title of King who retained Ramiro II for itself.
Petronila provided the old kingdom of Aragon, formed by the territories of Aragon, Sobrarbe and Ribagorza, the County of Arán and the Muslim kingdom of Zaragoza.
For his part, Ramón Berenguer did him with the counties of Barcelona, Gerona, Ausona, Besalú and Sardinia Sur.
After the matrimonial capitulations, the Count of Barcelona returned to his land, Petronila remained the care of the Aragonese nobles and Ramiro II retired to monastic life.
According to historians, the agreement seemed very fragile, but gave rise to one of the most stable and longevous political formations of the history of Europe, the so-called Corona de Aragón.
The Count of Barcelona was married, at 37, with Petronila who had just turned 14, the legal age to contract canonical marriage among women.
In April of 1152, the Queen, who had not fully reached 16 years old, gave birth to a child.
Shortly before birth, and to foresee that it could die during childbirth, Petronila made a testament in which she gave her son, from which she says she is still in her uterus, and therefore nor was sex nor knew, “all
The Kingdom of Aragon, with all his possessions. ”
The child, called Alfonso Ramón Berenguer, the future Alfonso II, was the first king of the crown of Aragon.
Petronila, Queen of the Aragonese and Countess of the Barcelonians, died in 1173 in Barcelona, in whose cathedral, according to his desire, was buried.
However, it is believed that the tomb, which in theory belongs to the countess almodis of the brand, deceased a century before, is badly labeled.
Therefore, the Aragonese government has requested the archbishopric of Barcelona to practice a DNA test and compare the bones with the genetic information of his father, Ramiro II, whose remnants were buried in San Pedro El Viejo de Huesca.
The only thing that is intended with this operation is to know if they are effectively their remains or not, and compare them with those of the Aragonian royal lineage that have been obtained so far.
The pretension is limited to this analysis and would not affect a hypothetical transfer of the remains, since Petronila wanted to be buried in the Cathedral of Barcelona and there will be left.
