All went well until the accession, in 1335, of Pedro IV., son of Alfonso IV. and brother of Constance, the wife of Jayme III. of Majorca. She had another brother, Jayme, Count of Urgel, a far better man. Pedro was an odious character. Jayme III. came to Barcelona with his wife Constance, and did homage to his brother-in-law for his Balearic and Continental dominions, proceeding thence to Perpignan. There he was joined by Pedro, and the two Kings went together to Avignon--Pedro to do homage to the Pope for the new conquests of Sardinia and Corsica. On his return to Aragon Pedro soon began to show himself in his true character. From the first he coveted the Balearic Islands, and resolved to seize them in defiance of right and justice. With such a man, a hatred of his unfortunate brother-in-law and cousin, who stood in the way of his ambition, was the inevitable consequence of his greed. Pedro IV. combined the evil qualities of our two Henry Tudors. He had all the avarice and cunning meanness of the father and the heartless cruelty of the son, together with his love of display and magnificence. Hence he was called ‘Pedro the Ceremonious.’ He soon began to seek for excuses for his contemplated usurpation. His first accusation was that the King of Majorca allowed French money to circulate in his Continental dominions, which he alleged to be derogatory to his suzerainty. He then wrote letters to the Jurados of Majorca, accusing their King of contumacy. Their reply was that their King had done nothing opposed to the dignity, honour, or rights of the King of Aragon; but, on the contrary, that he had complied with all his obligations loyally and faithfully, and that they would stand by him as devoted subjects. This reply was dated June 18, 1342. Jayme III. had returned to Majorca, and his son, also named Jayme, was born in the Almudaina in 1334. Isabel, his daughter, followed in 1338, just when the dark clouds were gathering around their father’s horizon. Pedro found that the accusation about the currency was absurd and untenable. He therefore deliberately concocted an infamous lie, declaring that his brother-in-law intended to kidnap him at Barcelona and carry him off to a dungeon in Majorca. He added that God, Who never failed those that trusted in Him, had, by reason of the piety and goodness of the Ceremonious one, disclosed the treason. A fleet was prepared at Barcelona for the conquest of Majorca, and on February 21, 1343, Pedro published what he called the sentence, declaring the King of Majorca to be contumacious and guilty of treason against his suzerain, and that he was therefore deprived of all his dominions. Jayme III., through his procurator Pedro Pascual, published a complete refutation of the false statements in the so-called sentence, and a well-reasoned proof of his rights. Pedro’s aunt Sancha, the Queen of Naples, entreated him to refrain from hostilities and to let the questions be settled by arbitration.