The Lordship of Villena ( es, Señorío de Villena) was a feudal state located in southern

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

, in the

kingdom 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 cent ...

. It bordered to the north with Cuenca and to south with the city of

Murcia Murcia (, , ) is a city in south-eastern Spain, the capital and most populous city of the autonomous community of the Region of Murcia, and the seventh largest city in the country. It has a population of 460,349 inhabitants in 2021 (about one ...

. The territory was structured in two political centers: the Land of Alarcón, to the north, and the Land of Chinchilla to the south. Less central were the towns of Iniesta, the Land of Jorquera,

Hellín Hellín is a city and municipality of Spain located in the province of Albacete, Castilla–La Mancha. The municipality spans across a total area of 781.66 km2. As of 1 January 2020, it has a population of 30,200, which makes it the second largest ...

Tobarra Tobarra is a municipality in the province of Albacete in Spain, with a population of c. 8,000 as of 2009. The area is famous for its "Moniquí" variety of apricots, its drum processions (''tamboradas'') and its Holy Week observances, declared by ...

Almansa Almansa () is a Spanish town and municipality in the province of Albacete, part of the autonomous community of Castile-La Mancha. The name "Almansa" stems from the Arabic (al-manṣaf), "half way of the road". The municipality borders with Al ...

Yecla Yecla () is a town and municipality in eastern Spain, in the extreme north of the autonomous community of Murcia, located 96 km from the capital of the region, Murcia. Toponymy The origin of the term Yecla comes from the Arabic Yakka, which ...

, Sax and

Villena Villena () is a city in Spain, in the Valencian Community. It is located at the northwest part of Alicante, and borders to the west with Castilla-La Mancha and Murcia, to the north with the province of Valencia and to the east and south with the ...

, which, despite giving the name to the lordship, was territorially peripheral, although it previously included the cities along Vinalopó river ( Sax,

Elda Elda is a city and municipality located in the province of Alicante, Spain. , it has a total population of 55,618 inhabitants, ranking as the 7th most populous city in the province. Elda joins together with the town of Petrer to form a conurba ...

Novelda Novelda (, ; ) is a town located in the province of Alicante, Spain. , it has a total population of 27,135 inhabitants. Novelda has important quarries and mines of marble, limestone, silica, clay and gypsum. It is a major centre of the marble ind ...

Elche Elche ( ca-valencia, Elx) is a city and municipality of Spain, belonging to the province of Alicante, in the Valencian Community. According to 2014 data, Elche has a population of 228,647 inhabitants,Villarrobledo Villarrobledo () is a Spanish city and municipality in the province of Albacete, part of the autonomous community of Castile-La Mancha. It's better known for having the world's largest area covered by vineyards (more than 30,000 has., approxima ...

Lezuza Lezuza is a municipality in the province of Albacete, Castile-La Mancha, Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = '' Plus ultra'' (Latin)(En ...

Munera Munera is a town and municipality in the province of Albacete, Spain; part of the autonomous community eu, autonomia erkidegoa ca, comunitat autònoma gl, comunidade autónoma oc, comunautat autonòma an, comunidat autonoma ast, comuni ...

Jumilla Jumilla () is a town and a municipality in southeastern Spain. It is located in the north east of the Region of Murcia, close to the towns of Cieza and Yecla. According to the 2018 census, the town population was 25,547. Geography The municip ...

and

Utiel Utiel is a municipality in the ''comarca'' of Requena-Utiel in the Valencian Community, Spain. According to the 2014 census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a ...

in the 15th century) and the loss of some other towns. The lordship has a double historical origin. On the one side, the towns and villages of the Land of Jorquera,

, Ves,

, Sax and

were owned by ''

Infante ''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 ...

Manuel of Castile Manuel of Castile (1234 – 25 December 1283, The first Lord of Villena and Peñafiel, Cuéllar, and Escalona, was an ''Infante'', son of Ferdinand III of Castile and his wife Elisabeth of Hohenstaufen. Life Born in Carrión de los Condes, ...

, so it began to be called the ''Land of don Manuel''. On the other side, the ''Land of Alarcón'' and Iniesta belonged to the crown during the 12th and 13th centuries, being incorporated to the lordship by

Juan Manuel, Prince of Villena Don Juan Manuel (5 May 128213 June 1348) was a Spanish medieval writer, nephew of Alfonso X of Castile, son of Manuel of Castile and Beatrice of Savoy. He inherited from his father the great Lordship of Villena, receiving the titles of Lord, D ...

, who had a very wide jurisdiction in his land and made it become a dukedom and, finally, a principate.

References

Bibliography

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Villena, lordship of Dukedoms of Spain Principalities Crown of Aragon Kingdom of Castile Villena