Catalina Gómez de Sandoval y Mendoza (1616–1686) was the 8th Duchess of the Infantado, gaining the title after the death of her brother in 1657. She held the title until her own death in 1686. She also served in various important palace roles at the court of

Charles II of Spain Charles II of Spain (''Spanish: Carlos II,'' 6 November 1661 – 1 November 1700), known as the Bewitched (''Spanish: El Hechizado''), was the last Habsburg ruler of the Spanish Empire. Best remembered for his physical disabilities and the War ...

. She was also the Duchess Consort of Pastrana.

Family Origins

As a member of the prestigious Mendoza family, Catalina was next in line to receive the Dukedom of the Infantado after the death of her brother, Rodrigo Díaz de Vivar Gómez de Sandoval y Mendoza, the 7th Duke who was childless. The Dukedom had been in the hands of the Mendoza family since the very first duke, Diego Hurtado de Mendoza y Figueroa. The Mendoza family rose to power when it merged with the

House of Lasso de la Vega The House de la Vega, Laso de la Vega or Lasso de la Vega (sometimes even Garci Lasso de la Vega or Garcilaso de la Vega depending on the family member referenced) is a Spanish noble line from the Kingdom of Castile. The family origins lie in the ...

through the marriage of

Leonor Lasso de la Vega Leonor Lasso de la Vega (b. before 1367 - d. 1432) was a Spanish noble woman from Cantabria and head of the prestigious House of Lasso de la Vega from 1367 - 1432. Family origins Leonor was the paternal great-granddaughter of Garci Lasso de ...

, the last direct member of that line, and Admiral Diego Hurtado de Mendoza, the admiral of Castile.

Biography

Catalina preferred to live in Pastrana with her husband rather than Guadalajara, the traditional seat of the Dukes of the Infantado. She filed suit for the Dukedom of Lerma against Diego Gómez de Sandoval, the Conde de Saldaña, the only nephew of the first Duke of Lerma and son of Catalina's father. Of issue was the fact that Diego had remarried. in 1659 at the house of the Duke of Alba, it was announced that the 5th Duke of Lerma would be Diego Gómez de Sandoval, but as he had no line of succession for lack of heirs, the Dukedom would pass, upon his death, to his sister Catalina. In 1668, Diego Gómez de Sandoval died and Catalina Gómez de Sandoval y Mendoza who was already the Duchess of the Infantado and of Pastrana, gained the Dukedom of Lerma as well. The Duke of Medinaceli continued to fight against this decision until 1677 when all matters were settled in favor of Catalina. In addition to amassing hereditary titles, Catalina also built the Convento de los Capuchinos de Jadraque, Donated much to the

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of Guadalajara (Where her daughter Leonor became a member), and bought a house for the Dukes of the Infantado in Chamartín de la Rosa,

Madrid Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the Largest cities of the Europ ...

where in 1808,

Napoleon Bonaparte Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader wh ...

would stay when his troops occupied the city.

Marriage

In 1630, Catalina married Rodrigo Díaz de Vivar de Silva y Mendoza, the fourth Duke of Pastrana. This made her the Duchess Consort of Pastrana and united both dukedoms under one house. They had the following children: * Gregorio María de Silva y Mendoza, 9th Duke of the Infantado, inherited from his mother. * Leonor de Silva y Mendoza, joined the

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of Guadalajara. * José de Silva y Mendoza * Gaspar de Silva y Mendoza

References

*Much of the information on this page was translated from its Spanish equivalent. {{DEFAULTSORT:Gomez De Sandoval Y Mendoza, Catalina 1616 births 1686 deaths 8

Catalina Catalina may refer to: Arts and media * ''The Catalina'', a 2012 American reality television show * ''Catalina'' (novel), a 1948 novel by W. Somerset Maugham * Catalina (''My Name Is Earl''), character from the NBC sitcom ''My Name Is Earl'' ...