Philip of Aragon (born between 1449 and 1456, died 1488) was the Archbishop of Palermo from 31 January 1477, when he received confirmation of his election from Sixtus IV until he renounced his see in 1485.
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Birth and early childhood
Philip was the eldest son of Charles, Prince of Viana, by his third known mistress, Brianda de Vega. His father was the heir of the kingdom of Navarre as the son of King John II and Queen Blanche I. Philip and his mother are both mentioned for the first time in a document of 13 January 1456, when they were living in Pamplona, in a house owned by the prior of Larraga. Already by that time, Philip had been granted the title Count of Beaufort. By February, Charles had provided his son with a room in the royal palace.
Philip was born in the diocese of Pamplona, but the date of his birth is unclear. According to some sources, he was twenty-seven years old when he was elected archbishop, which places his birth in 1449 or 1450. According to others, his birth most likely took place shortly before he and his mother were first recognised in an official document of the prince's in January 1456.
Philip spent most of his childhood in Barcelona. He and his mother were first summoned there by Charles in 1461, arriving by June. According to Jerónimo Zurita, writing a century later, they lived in the house of Charles's sister, Blanche. Zurita also claims that Charles placed Philip in the charge of a knight named Bernat Sapila and separated him from his mother, although there is little evidence of this in the primary sources. In September, Charles died. On 5 October, in his first known public appearance, Philip took part in the funeral cortege through the streets of Barcelona.
