Fortún Sánchez (c. 992 – 1 September 1054), called ''Bono Patre'' ("the godfather"), was a

Navarrese Navarre (; es, Navarra ; eu, Nafarroa ), officially the Chartered Community of Navarre ( es, Comunidad Foral de Navarra, links=no ; eu, Nafarroako Foru Komunitatea, links=no ), is a foral autonomous community and province in northern Spain, ...

nobleman and courtier (''curialis''). He had the same wet nurse as King Sancho Garcés III, and was a regular presence at his court from the start of his majority in 1011 until his death in 1035. He frequently signed first among the lords (''seniores'') of the realm, and occasionally before the king's sons (''

infantes ''Infante'' (, ; f. ''infanta''), also anglicised as Infant or translated as Prince, is the title and rank given in the Iberian kingdoms of Spain (including the predecessor kingdoms of Aragon, Castile, Navarre, and León) and Portugal to th ...

'') as well.Martínez Díez, ''Sancho III'', 242. He acted as ''aitona'' or tutor to the future García Sánchez III, and remained at his side throughout his reign, dying with him in the

Battle of Atapuerca The Battle of Atapuerca was fought on 1 September 1054 at the site of Piedrahita ("standing stone") in the valley of Atapuerca between two brothers, King García Sánchez III of Navarre and King Ferdinand I of Castile. The Castilians won and Ki ...

. On 21 April 1030, Fortún was present at Sancho's court in Leyre, on the rare occasion of a dual visit of Duke

Sancho VI of Gascony Sancho VI William (Basque: ''Antso Gilen'', French: ''Sanche Guillaume'', Gascon: ''Sans Guilhem'', Spanish: ''Sancho Guillén'') (died 4 October 1032) was the Duke of Gascony from 1009 to his death. His reign is most notable for the renewal of Ga ...

and Count Berengar Raymond I of Barcelona. In 1035 Sancho III granted Fortún rule over the ''

tenencia In medieval and early modern Europe, the term ''tenant-in-chief'' (or ''vassal-in-chief'') denoted a person who held his lands under various forms of feudal land tenure directly from the king or territorial prince to whom he did homage, as op ...

'' (fief) of

Nájera Nájera () is a small town, former bishopric and now Latin Catholic titular see, former capital of the Kingdom of Navarre, located in the "Rioja Alta" region of La Rioja, northern Spain, on the river Najerilla. Nájera is a stopping point on the F ...

, where his brother Íñigo (Énneco) Sánchez had governed in 1011–20. The ''tenente'' of Nájera in 1024–25, a certain Aznar Sánchez, may have also been a brother; he ruled

Grañón Grañón () is a village in the province and autonomous community of La Rioja, Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin ...

, in the

County of Castile The Kingdom of Castile (; es, Reino de Castilla, la, Regnum Castellae) was a large and powerful state on the Iberian Peninsula during the Middle Ages. Its name comes from the host of castles constructed in the region. It began in the 9th centu ...

, in 1031. Fortún ruled in Nájera throughout García III's reign. Two charters of García for the monastery of Santa María de Valbanera are dated to not only his rule but Fortún's also, as Fortún's fief lay on the river Valbanera that divided the old '' reino de Nájera'' from Castile: "King García reigning in Pamplona and in Oca; and under his

ule Ule is a German surname Personal names in German-speaking Europe consist of one or several given names (''Vorname'', plural ''Vornamen'') and a surname (''Nachname, Familienname''). The ''Vorname'' is usually gender-specific. A name is usually ci ...

Lord Fortún Sánchez ruling in Nájera."The first charter, dated Saturday, 5 May 1037, reads ''Regnante rex Garsea in Pampilona et in Oka, et sub eius, senior Fortun Sancioç dominans Nagera''. Since that date was a Thursday, the date may be corrected to 5 March, a Saturday. The second charter, dated Friday, 29 October 1037, records the donation of a vineyard at Valcuerna to the monastery dated ''Regnante rex Garsea in Pampilona et in Oka; sub eius, senior Furtun Sancioç dominans in Nagera''. Since this was a Saturday, the charter should be re-dated to 4 November, reading the clause ''IV kalendas novembris'' as counting forwards not backwards, unconventionally (Martínez Díez, ''Sancho III'', 186).

Notes

Bibliography

*Martínez Díez, Gonzalo. 2007. ''Sancho III el Mayor: Rey de Pamplona, Rex Ibericus''. Madrid: Marcial Pons Historia. {{DEFAULTSORT:Sanchez, Fortun 1054 deaths People from Navarre 990s births