Luis Francisco de la Cerda y Aragón, 9th Duke of Medinaceli (2 August 1660, in El Puerto de Santa María – 26 January 1711, in

Pamplona Pamplona (; eu, Iruña or ), historically also known as Pampeluna in English, is the capital city of the Chartered Community of Navarre, in Spain. It is also the third-largest city in the greater Basque cultural region. Lying at near above ...

), 9th

Duke of Medinaceli Duke of Medinaceli () is an hereditary title in the peerage of Spain, accompanied by the dignity of Grandee. The Catholic Monarchs, Ferdinand II of Aragon and Isabella I of Castile, created the title and awarded it on 31 October 1479 to Lui ...

, was a Spanish noble and politician.

Biography

Eldest son of Valido Don

Juan Francisco de la Cerda ''Juan'' is a given name, the Spanish and Manx versions of ''John''. It is very common in Spain and in other Spanish-speaking communities around the world and in the Philippines, and also (pronounced differently) in the Isle of Man. In Spanish, t ...

and Doña Catalina de Aragón Folc de Cardona y Córdoba, he inherited the titles of his father:

, Duke of Alcalá de los Gazules, Marquis of Cogolludo, Marquis of Tarifa and Marquis of Alcalá de la Alameda, and from his mother

Duke of Segorbe Duke of Segorbe ( es, Duque de Segorbe) is an hereditary title in the peerage of Spain, accompanied by the dignity of Grandee and granted in 1469 by John II of Aragon to Enrique de Aragón, son of Infante Henry, Duke of Villena and Beatriz de ...

Duke of Cardona Duke of Cardona ( es, Duque de Cardona) is a hereditary title in the Peerage of Spain, accompanied by the dignity of Grandee and granted in 1482 by Ferdinand II to Juan Ramón Folch de Cardona, 5th Count of Cardona, as an elevation to dukedom ...

Duke of Lerma Francisco Gómez de Sandoval y Rojas, 1st Duke of Lerma, 5th Marquess of Denia, 1st Count of Ampudia (1552/1553 – 17 May 1625), was a favourite of Philip III of Spain, the first of the ''validos'' ('most worthy') through whom the later H ...

Count of Empúries Count (feminine: countess) is a historical title of nobility in certain European countries, varying in relative status, generally of middling rank in the hierarchy of nobility. Pine, L. G. ''Titles: How the King Became His Majesty''. New York: ...

, Marquis of Denia, Marquis of Comares, Marquis of Pallars, and twice

Grandee of Spain Grandee (; es, Grande de España, ) is an official aristocratic title conferred on some Spanish nobility. Holders of this dignity enjoyed similar privileges to those of the peerage of France during the , though in neither country did they ha ...

, making him one of the most important Spanish aristocrats of his time. During the reign of King

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 ...

he served in Italy, being ambassador to the

Holy See The Holy See ( lat, Sancta Sedes, ; it, Santa Sede ), also called the See of Rome, Petrine See or Apostolic See, is the jurisdiction of the Pope in his role as the bishop of Rome. It includes the apostolic episcopal see of the Diocese of R ...

Pope Innocent XII Pope Innocent XII ( la, Innocentius XII; it, Innocenzo XII; 13 March 1615 – 27 September 1700), born Antonio Pignatelli, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 12 July 1691 to his death in September 1700. He ...

, and Viceroy and Captain General of Naples. From 1699 he was a member of the

Spanish Council of State The Council of State ( es, Consejo de Estado), is the supreme consultative council of the Spanish Government. The current Council of State was established in 1980 according to the article 107 of the Constitution of 1978. The institution of the C ...

. When Charles II died, he was appointed Prime Minister at the beginning of the

War of Spanish Succession The War of the Spanish Succession was a European great power conflict that took place from 1701 to 1714. The death of childless Charles II of Spain in November 1700 led to a struggle for control of the Spanish Empire between his heirs, Phili ...

by the new

King Philip V of Spain Philip V ( es, Felipe; 19 December 1683 – 9 July 1746) was King of Spain from 1 November 1700 to 14 January 1724, and again from 6 September 1724 to his death in 1746. His total reign of 45 years is the longest in the history of the Spanish mona ...

. More and more opposed to the strong French influence at the Spanish Court, he leaked in 1710 a secret French plan to the English about efforts to conclude a separate peace with the

Dutch Republic The United Provinces of the Netherlands, also known as the (Seven) United Provinces, officially as the Republic of the Seven United Netherlands (Dutch: ''Republiek der Zeven Verenigde Nederlanden''), and commonly referred to in historiography ...

. For this, he was incarcerated in the Alcázar of Segovia and later transferred to the castle of

, where he died the next year. He married María de las Nieves Girón y Sandoval, daughter of

Gaspar Téllez-Girón, 5th Duke de Osuna Gaspar Téllez-Girón, 5th Duke de Osuna (25 May 1625 – Madrid, 2 June 1694), 5th Marquess of Peñafiel, 9th Count of Ureña and other lesser titles, was a Spanish general and a Grandee of Spain, title bestowed by king Philip II of Spain on 5 ...

, who survived him. There being no surviving children from the marriage, his titles went to his nephew Nicolás Fernández de Córdoba, son of his sister Feliche María de la Cerda y Aragón.

Art Collection

His collection included paintings now in the collection of the Prado.:
Prado website (www.museodelprado.es) * '' The Wine of Saint Martin's Day'' by Breugel * ''Las Hilanderas'' by Velázquez

References

Fundación Medinaceli

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cerda, Luis Francisco de la Dukes of Cardona Viceroys of Naples Dukes of Medinaceli 1660 births 1711 deaths Ambassadors of Spain to the Holy See People from El Puerto de Santa María Spanish art collectors Spanish politicians Spanish prisoners and detainees Grandees of Spain Spanish politicians convicted of crimes 17th-century Spanish nobility 18th-century Spanish nobility