Diego Martínez de Villamayor (died 5 November 1176) was a noble of the Kingdom of Castile from the house of the counts of Bureba, who was very influential at court. He was the advisor of Alfonso VII and Sancho III, and treasurer of

Alfonso VIII Alfonso VIII (11 November 11555 October 1214), called the Noble (''El Noble'') or the one of Las Navas (''el de las Navas''), was King of Castile from 1158 to his death and King of Toledo. After having suffered a great defeat with his own army at ...

. Diego Martínez de Villamayor was the son of Martín Díaz of the house of Salvadores. His mother is sometimes given as María García of the house of Villamayor and sometimes as Jimena Pérez. He inherited land at Benevívere from his mother. He married María Ponce de Minerva, daughter of

Ponce de Minerva Ponce de Minerva (1114/1115 – 27 July 1175) was a nobleman, courtier, governor, and general serving, at different times, the kingdoms of León and Castile. Originally from Occitania, he came as a young man to León (1127), where he was raised ...

and Estefanía Sánchez. After losing his wife Diego Martínez decided to retire and devote himself to the contemplative life. He helped restore the monasteries of San Andrés de Valvení,

Santiago de la Tola Santiago (, ; ), also known as Santiago de Chile, is the capital and largest city of Chile as well as one of the largest cities in the Americas. It is the center of Chile's most densely populated region, the Santiago Metropolitan Region, whose ...

and Sandoval. He laid the foundation of the

Abbey of Santa María de Benevívere An abbey is a type of monastery used by members of a religious order under the governance of an abbot or abbess. Abbeys provide a complex of buildings and land for religious activities, work, and housing of Christian monks and nuns. The conc ...

in 1169. He gave it the rule of Saint Augustine and a

Cistercian The Cistercians, () officially the Order of Cistercians ( la, (Sacer) Ordo Cisterciensis, abbreviated as OCist or SOCist), are a Catholic religious order of monks and nuns that branched off from the Benedictines and follow the Rule of Saint ...

liturgy, and established a hospital dedicated to San Torcuato attached to it. Before 1173 he appointed as its first prior Pascual Rustan. The monastery's church building was not completed at his death. In his will, dated 22 October 1176, he left it to this brother, Rodrigo, the "second founder of Benevívere", to complete. Diego's sepulchre bears the inscription: "Here lies Diego Martínez of venerable memory, builder of the house of Benevívere, patron of the house, whose soul rests in peace." The ''Poema de Benevívere'' (Poem of Benevívere) was written in Latin around the end of the thirteenth century in 758 verses. The poem tells the story of Diego Martínez de Villamayor, who aspired to be a saint, and King

Alfonso VIII of Castile Alfonso VIII (11 November 11555 October 1214), called the Noble (''El Noble'') or the one of Las Navas (''el de las Navas''), was King of Castile from 1158 to his death and King of Toledo. After having suffered a great defeat with his own army at ...

. It contrasts the religious and secular goals and ideals, and shows their intimate relationship.

References

Citations Sources * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Villamayor, Diego Martinez de 1176 deaths Castilian nobility Year of birth unknown