Alonso Pérez de Guzmán (1256–1309), known as ''Guzmán el Bueno'' ("Guzmán the Good"), was a Spanish nobleman and hero of Spain during the

medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with the fall of the West ...

period. Guzmán is the

progenitor In genealogy, a progenitor (rarer: primogenitor; or ''Ahnherr'') is the founder (sometimes one that is legendary) of a family, line of descent, gens, clan, tribe, noble house, or ethnic group.. Ebenda''Ahnherr:''"Stammvater eines Geschlec ...

of the Dukes of Medina Sidonia, the oldest extant dukedom in the

Kingdom of Castile The Kingdom of Castile (; : ) was a polity in the Iberian Peninsula during the Middle Ages. It traces its origins to the 9th-century County of Castile (, ), as an eastern frontier lordship of the Kingdom of León. During the 10th century, the Ca ...

Biography

Alonso Pérez de Guzmán was born on 24 January 1256, probably in León, bastard son of Pedro Núñez de Guzmán, ''adelantado mayor'' (governor) of Castile.

Origins

Although according to Spanish tradition, Guzmán was born in

Morocco Morocco, officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It has coastlines on the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to Algeria–Morocc ...

.Antonio Gil y Zárate, ''Guzmán el Bueno. Drama en Cuatro Actos'', 1901/1916 revised edition by Ginn and Company
annotated and edited by Sylvester Primer, with introduction in English, available online at Internet Archive of the Library of Congress Historians have since speculated that he was a Muslim. In a permit to export wheat signed in 1288, Guzmán was given permission to export the crop to where "he is from", very likely in

. A document from 1297 signed by the Spanish king refers to Guzmán as "a vassal", i.e. a non-Spaniard.''The Ancient World with Bettany Hughes – When the Moors Ruled in Europe'', 2005, Channel Four. The document was owned by the late Luisa Isabel Álvarez de Toledo, 21st Duchess of Medina Sidonia. A direct descendant of Guzmán, she said that she believed his history might have been "cleaned up" in the sixteenth century to alter his origins. She thought that would have made the hero more palatable to Spain's Christian society.

Royal grants

In 1294 Guzmán was granted

tuna A tuna (: tunas or tuna) is a saltwater fish that belongs to the tribe Thunnini, a subgrouping of the Scombridae ( mackerel) family. The Thunnini comprise 15 species across five genera, the sizes of which vary greatly, ranging from the bul ...

fishing rights by King

Sancho IV of Castile Sancho IV of Castile (12 May 1258 – 25 April 1295) called the Brave (''el Bravo''), was the king of Castile, León and Galicia (now parts of Spain) from 1284 to his death. Following his brother Ferdinand's death, he gained the s ...

in reward for his heroic defence of Tarifa. He built the Castle of Zahara de los Atunes and Palace of Jadraza as a defensive castle, which incorporated a seasonal residential palace and tuna processing facility.

Siege of Tarifa

In 1296 Alonso de Guzmán defended the town of Tarifa on behalf of

. Guzmán had been given charge of Tarifa, recently captured from the

Moors The term Moor is an Endonym and exonym, exonym used in European languages to designate the Muslims, Muslim populations of North Africa (the Maghreb) and the Iberian Peninsula (particularly al-Andalus) during the Middle Ages. Moors are not a s ...

, despite having fought for Alfonso X against the rebellion of his son Sancho IV. Guzmán held Tarifa's castle against the siege of the Moors and the Infante Juan, Sancho's rebellious brother. Guzmán's son had been placed under the care of Juan, who threatened to kill the captive unless Guzmán surrendered the city. According to legend, Guzmán rebuffed the demand with dramatic words. According to one rendition,

I did not beget a son to be made use of against my country, but that he should serve her against her foes. Should Don Juan put him to death, he will but confer honour on me, true life on my son, and on himself eternal shame in this world and everlasting wrath after death.

Guzmán an reportedly threw down his knife for the besiegers to use in killing his son. He was rewarded for his defense of the castle with large grants of Crown land. In 1309 Guzmán helped

Ferdinand IV of Castile Ferdinand IV of Castile (6 December 1285 – 7 September 1312) called the Summoned (''el Emplazado''), was King of Castile and King of León, León from 1295 until his death. Ferdinand's upbringing and personal custody was entered to his mother ...

capture Gibraltar from the Moors, who had held it for nearly 600 years since 711.

Dukedom of Medina Sidonia

The ducal title of Medina Sidonia was conferred by John II in 1445 on one of his descendants, Juan Alonso de Guzmán, count of Niebla.

Descendants

The addition "El Bueno" to the family name of Guzmán was used by several of his descendants, who have included statesmen, generals and colonial

viceroy A viceroy () is an official who reigns over a polity in the name of and as the representative of the monarch of the territory. The term derives from the Latin prefix ''vice-'', meaning "in the place of" and the Anglo-Norman ''roy'' (Old Frenc ...

s. Guzmán was the great-great-great-grandfather of Garcí Bravo de Medrano,

Catalina de Medrano Catalina de Medrano (15th century – 2 September 1547) was a wealthy noblewoman from the House of Medrano, a supplier of fine cloth for the Catholic Monarchs of Spain, a Businessperson, businesswoman, the widow of the Lieutenant Governor of Hav ...

, and Luisa de Medrano—the renowned poet, philosopher, and professor at the

University of Salamanca The University of Salamanca () is a public university, public research university in Salamanca, Spain. Founded in 1218 by Alfonso IX of León, King Alfonso IX, it is the oldest university in the Hispanic world and the fourth oldest in the ...

—as well as their other siblings, through their mother, Magdalena Bravo de Lagunas.

Legacy

*Guzmán and his life have been explored by numerous Spanish playwrights, including

Antonio Gil y Zárate Antonio Gil y Zárate (1 December 1793–27 January 1861) was a Spanish dramatist and pedagogue whose work is associated with Romanticism.

in his ''Guzmán el bueno. Drama en Cuatro Actos'', 1840s. * Luis Velez de Guevara (1570–1644), ''Más pesa el Rey que la Sangre'' * Moratín Sr. (1737–1780), play dated 1777 *The Guzmán el Bueno metro stop in Madrid is named in his honor, and a street where the Madrid Civil Guard barracks is. * Alonso appears in the scene of the dagger, in the play Anthology theatrical by the author Juan José Videgain, recognized as his descendant.

Notes

Sources

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Perez de Guzman, Alonso 1256 births 1309 deaths People from León, Spain Alonso Spanish generals