Fernando (or Fernán) Sánchez de Tovar (died 1384) was a Castilian soldier and admiral.

Soldier of Castile

During the Castilian Civil War, Sánchez de Tovar initially supported King

Peter the Cruel Peter (; 30 August 133423 March 1369), called Peter the Cruel () or the Just (), was King of Castile and List of Leonese monarchs, León from 1350 to 1369. Peter was the last ruler of the main branch of the House of Ivrea. He was excommunicated ...

, who appointed him ''adelantado mayor'' of Castile in 1360 and '' frontero mayor'' of

Murcia Murcia ( , , ) is a city in south-eastern Spain, the Capital (political), capital and most populous city of the autonomous community of the Region of Murcia, and the Ranked lists of Spanish municipalities#By population, seventh largest city i ...

in 1364.Alfonso Franco Silva
"Sánchez de Tovar, Fernán"
'' Diccionario Biográfico Español'' (2018). In 1366, he betrayed the King and delivered the city of

Calahorra Calahorra (; ; ) is a municipality in the Spanish autonomous community and province of La Rioja. During Ancient Roman times, Calahorra was a municipium known as ''Calagurris Nassica Iulia''. Location The city is located on a hill at an altitude ...

to Pedro's brother and enemy,

Henry of Trastámara Henry II (13 January 1334 – 29 May 1379), called Henry of Trastámara or the Fratricidal (''el Fratricida''), was the first King of Castile and León from the House of Trastámara. He became king in 1369 by defeating his half-brother Peter the ...

. One year later, Fernando Sánchez de Tovar fought on Henry's side in the

Battle of Nájera The Battle of Nájera, also known as the Battle of Navarrete, was fought on 3 April 1367 to the northeast of Nájera, in the province of La Rioja, Castile. It was an episode of the first Castilian Civil War which confronted King Peter of Ca ...

. Around 1366, Henry rewarded Sánchez de Tovar with the lordship of Astudillo. After the assassination of Peter in 1369, Henry bestowed on him the lordship of

Gelves Gelves is a city located in the province of Seville, in Andalusia, Spain. According to the 2006 census ( INE), the city has a population of 8,325 inhabitants. It lies on the west bank of the Guadalquivir river. The city of Gelves is not to be con ...

and made him his '' guarda mayor''.

Admiral

In 1374, Sánchez de Tovar succeeded

Ambrosio Boccanegra Ambrosio Boccanegra (died 1373) was a Castilian sailor of Genoese origin from the Boccanegra family. He was the nephew of Simone Boccanegra, the first Doge of Genoa, son of Egidio Bocanegra, who in 1341 went to Castile with a fleet in support of K ...

Admiral of Castile Admiral of Castile was the representative of the King of Castile at the head of the Navy. It was a dignity created in 1247 that lasted until 1705. Admiral of Castile The title of Admiral of Castile was created by King Ferdinand III the Saint in ...

.Díaz González, Calderón Ortega (2001), p. 344-45 Due to the hostile politics of

John of Gaunt, 1st Duke of Lancaster John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster (6 March 1340 – 3 February 1399), was an English royal prince, military leader and statesman. He was the fourth son (third surviving) of King Edward III of England, and the father of King Henry IV. Because ...

, the new king, Henry II of Castile joined the French side during the

Hundred Years' War The Hundred Years' War (; 1337–1453) was a conflict between the kingdoms of Kingdom of England, England and Kingdom of France, France and a civil war in France during the Late Middle Ages. It emerged from feudal disputes over the Duchy ...

and declared war on

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

. In the port of Brest, the Count of Salisbury burnt seven Castilian merchant ships killing all their sailors. Sánchez de Tovar led an punishment expedition fleet along with the French

Jean de Vienne Jean de Vienne (; 1341 – 25 September 1396) was a French knight, general and Admiral of France during the Hundred Years' War. Early life Jean de Vienne was born at Dole in the Franche-Comté, then part of the Holy Roman Empire. As a noblem ...

to South

and sacked and burned the

Isle of Wight The Isle of Wight (Help:IPA/English, /waɪt/ Help:Pronunciation respelling key, ''WYTE'') is an island off the south coast of England which, together with its surrounding uninhabited islets and Skerry, skerries, is also a ceremonial county. T ...

and the English ports of

Rye Rye (''Secale cereale'') is a grass grown extensively as a grain, a cover crop and a forage crop. It is grown principally in an area from Eastern and Northern Europe into Russia. It is much more tolerant of cold weather and poor soil than o ...

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Lewes Lewes () is the county town of East Sussex, England. The town is the administrative centre of the wider Lewes (district), district of the same name. It lies on the River Ouse, Sussex, River Ouse at the point where the river cuts through the Sou ...

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Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port city status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Hampshire, England. Most of Portsmouth is located on Portsea Island, off the south coast of England in the Solent, making Portsmouth the only city in En ...

and

Hastings Hastings ( ) is a seaside town and Borough status in the United Kingdom, borough in East Sussex on the south coast of England, east of Lewes and south east of London. The town gives its name to the Battle of Hastings, which took place to th ...

. The joint forces defeated Sussex's levies led by the

Earl of Arundel Earl of Arundel is a title of nobility in England, and one of the oldest extant in the English peerage. It is currently held by the Duke of Norfolk, and it is used (along with the earldom of Surrey) by his heir apparent as a courtesy title ...

. In 1380 the joint fleet sailed up the Thames and burned Gravesend, over 20 miles east of

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

. In 1381, Sánchez de Tovar returned to the

Iberian Peninsula The Iberian Peninsula ( ), also known as Iberia, is a peninsula in south-western Europe. Mostly separated from the rest of the European landmass by the Pyrenees, it includes the territories of peninsular Spain and Continental Portugal, comprisin ...

to fight against England's ally,

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country on the Iberian Peninsula in Southwestern Europe. Featuring Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point in continental Europe, Portugal borders Spain to its north and east, with which it share ...

, and defeated a Portuguese squadron at the Battle of the Saltes Island during the Third Ferdinand War.

John I of Castile John I (; 24 August 1358 – 9 October 1390) was King of Castile and List of Leonese monarchs, León from 1379 until 1390. He was the son of Henry II of Castile, Henry II and of his wife Juana Manuel of Castile. John ascended to the throne in 137 ...

, son and successor of Henry II, created him Lord of Belves. In 1382 he travelled to France and joined the army of Charles VI during the siege of

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, ruled by the rebel Philip van Artevelde, but he soon returned to Castile.

Ferdinand I of Portugal Ferdinand I (; 31 October 1345 – 22 October 1383), sometimes called the Handsome () or occasionally the Inconstant (), was the King of Portugal from 1367 until his death in 1383. He was also briefly made King of Galicia, in 1369 (a claim whi ...

died in 1383 without heir and John I of Castile claimed the Portuguese throne because he was married to the only daughter of the late king,

Beatrice of Portugal Beatrice (, ; 7–13 February 1373 – ) was the only surviving legitimate child of King Ferdinand I of Portugal and his wife, Leonor Teles. She became Queen consort of Castile by marriage to King John I of Castile. Following her father's d ...

. However, the Master of the

Order of Aviz The Military Order of Aviz (), known previously to 1910 as the Royal Military Order of Saint Benedict of Aviz (), and before 1789 as the Knights of Saint Benedict of Aviz () or ''Friars of Santa Maria of Évora'', is one of the four former ancien ...

, Ferdinand's bastard brother, John of Avis, also claimed the throne and Castile declared war against him, starting the 1383–1385 crisis. In this new campaign, Sánchez de Tovar led the Castilian fleet against the Portuguese and took part in the siege of

Lisbon Lisbon ( ; ) is the capital and largest city of Portugal, with an estimated population of 567,131, as of 2023, within its administrative limits and 3,028,000 within the Lisbon Metropolitan Area, metropolis, as of 2025. Lisbon is mainlan ...

, where he died in 1384 from the plague.

Notes

References

* Fernández Duro, Cesáreo (1995) ''La Marina de Castilla''. Madrid (in Spanish) *Díaz González, Francisco Javier, Calderón Ortega, José Manuel (2001) ''Los almirantes del "Siglo de Oro" de la marina castellana medieval.'' Madrid (in Spanish) ISSN 0214-3038 {{DEFAULTSORT:Sanchez De Tovar, Fernando 1384 deaths Spanish admirals Spanish generals 14th-century deaths from plague (disease) 14th-century Castilians People of the 1383–1385 Portuguese interregnum Year of birth unknown Medieval admirals

Soldier of Castile

Admiral

See also

Notes

References