Pedro Fernández de Castro (

Algeciras Algeciras () is a city and a municipalities in Spain, municipality of Spain belonging to the province of Cádiz, Andalusia. Located in the southern end of the Iberian Peninsula, near the Strait of Gibraltar, it is the largest city on the Bay of G ...

, 1342), nicknamed ''el de la Guerra'' ('of the War'), was a Galician noble and military figure of the House of Castro, descended by illegitimate lines from the kings of Castile- Leon- Galicia. Pedro Fernandez de Castro was Lord (''Señor'') of Lemos and Sarria and served as '' mayordomo mayor'' (lord steward) of

Alfonso XI of Castile Alfonso XI (11 August 131126 March 1350), called the Avenger (''el Justiciero''), was King of Castile and León. He was the son of Ferdinand IV of Castile and his wife Constance of Portugal. Upon his father's death in 1312, several disputes ...

, ''

adelantado ''Adelantado'' (, , ; meaning 'advanced') was a title held by some Spain, Spanish nobles in service of their respective kings during the Middle Ages. It was later used as a military title held by some Spanish ''conquistadores'' of the 15th, 16th a ...

de la frontera'' (governor) of

Andalusia Andalusia ( , ; , ) is the southernmost autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community in Peninsular Spain, located in the south of the Iberian Peninsula, in southwestern Europe. It is the most populous and the second-largest autonomou ...

, Galicia and

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 ...

and ''pertiguero mayor'' (a title similar to the French

Vidame Vidame () was a feudal title in France, a term descended from mediaeval Latin . Like the ''avoué'' or ''advocatus#In France, advocatus'', the ''vidame'' was originally a secular official chosen by the bishop of the diocese—with the consent ...

) of the lands of

Santiago Santiago (, ; ), also known as Santiago de Chile (), is the capital and largest city of Chile and one of the largest cities in the Americas. It is located in the country's central valley and is the center of the Santiago Metropolitan Regi ...

. He was the father of Fernando Ruiz de Castro (''toda la lealtad de España''), Queen Juana de Castro (wife of

Peter of Castile Peter (; 30 August 133423 March 1369), called Peter the Cruel () or the Just (), was King of Castile and León from 1350 to 1369. Peter was the last ruler of the main branch of the House of Ivrea. He was excommunicated by Pope Urban V for h ...

), the controversial Inês de Castro (consort King

Peter I of Portugal Peter I (; 8 April 1320 – 18 January 1367), known as Peter the Just () or Peter the Cruel (), was King of Portugal from 1357 until his death in 1367. Early life Born on 8 April 1320 in Coimbra, Peter was the fifth child of Afonso of Portuga ...

) and

Álvaro Pires de Castro Álvaro Pires de Castro (c. 1310 – 11 June 1384 in Lisbon) was a powerful Kingdom of Galicia, Galician-Kingdom of Portugal, Portuguese nobleman, stem of the Portuguese branch of the House of Castro. He was the first Count of Viana (da Foz do L ...

Family Origins

Pedro Fernandez de Castro (''el de la Guerra'') was the son of Fernando Rodríguez de Castro and his wife Violante Sánchez of Castile, an illegitimate daughter of Sancho IV, King of Castile and Leon. He was the paternal grandson of Esteban Fernández de Castro, Lord of Lemos and Sarria, and his wife, Aldonza Rodríguez de León, granddaughter of Alfonso IX of Leon. On his mother's side, he was a grandson of

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 ...

, King of Castile and León, and his mistress María Alfonso Téllez de Meneses.

Biography

His father, Fernando Rodríguez de Castro, was killed in battle in 1304, while fighting against ''Infante'' Philip of Castile, son of

. On the death of his father, Pedro was sent by his mother to the

Kingdom of Portugal The Kingdom of Portugal was a Portuguese monarchy, monarchy in the western Iberian Peninsula and the predecessor of the modern Portuguese Republic. Existing to various extents between 1139 and 1910, it was also known as the Kingdom of Portugal a ...

, where he was raised and educated along with Infante D. Pedro,

Count of Barcelos Count of Barcelos (in Portuguese ''Conde de Barcelos'') is a title of nobility, the first to be granted in Portugal. It was created in 1298 by king Denis I and initially it was a non hereditary title, although most of the holders belonged to t ...

, an illegitimate son of King

Denis of Portugal Denis (, ; 9 October 1261 – 7 January 1325), called the Farmer King (''Rei Lavrador'') and the Poet King (''Rei Poeta''), was King of Portugal from 1279 until his death in 1325. Dinis was the eldest son of Afonso III of Portugal by his second ...

. Around the year 1319, Pedro Fernandez de Castro returned to Galicia and

gave him his ancestral manor of Lemos and Sarria and appointed him Lord Steward of the realm. In 1330, Pedro accompanied

King Alfonso ''Peppa Pig'' is a British preschool animated television series by Astley Baker Davies. Its characters are listed below. The Pigs * Peppa Pig (voiced by Lily Snowden-Fine in series 1, Cecily Bloom in series 2, Harley Bird in series 3–6, ...

on his campaign into Granada and led the Christian attack at the Battle of Teba In 1334,

Afonso IV of Portugal Afonso IVEnglish: ''Alphonzo'' or ''Alphonse'', or ''Affonso'' (Archaic Portuguese), ''Alfonso'' or ''Alphonso'' ( Portuguese-Galician) or ''Alphonsus'' (Latin). (; 8 February 129128 May 1357), called the Brave (), was King of Portugal from 1325 ...

invaded the kingdom of Castile and León, entering through the lands of Galicia. However, Pedro Fernandez de Castro refused to fight against him, due to the favors he received in the past at the court of Portugal. Alfonso XI gave him the County of Trastámara, which the sovereign had intended to give his son

Henry Henry may refer to: People and fictional characters * Henry (given name), including lists of people and fictional characters * Henry (surname) * Henry, a stage name of François-Louis Henry (1786–1855), French baritone Arts and entertainmen ...

. Due to his military skills, Alfonso XI sent Pedro Fernandez to fight Muslims in

, where he fought at the Battle of Salado in 1340, where tradition refers to Pedro Fernandez de Castro grabbed his spurs of gold from the

Marinid The Marinid dynasty ( ) was a Berber Muslim dynasty that controlled present-day Morocco from the mid-13th to the 15th century and intermittently controlled other parts of North Africa (Algeria and Tunisia) and of the southern Iberian Peninsula ...

sultan of Morocco,

Abu Al-Hasan Ali ibn Othman Abu Al-Hasan 'Ali ibn 'Othman ( – 24 May 1351), () was a sultan of the Marinid dynasty who reigned in Morocco between 1331 and 1348. In 1333 he captured Gibraltar from the Castilians, although a later attempt to take Tarifa in 1339 ended in f ...

. He participated in the siege of Algeciras in 1342, which he led his retinue in the company of Martín Fernández de Gres, Archbishop of Santiago de Compostela. Pedro Fernandez de Castro died in 1342, being a victim of an epidemic during the siege of Algeciras.

Marriage and offspring

His first wife was, Beatrice of Portugal, Lady of Lemos, youngest daughter of

Afonso of Portugal, Lord of Portalegre Infante Afonso of Portugal (8 February 1263, in Lisbon – 2 November 1312, in Lisbon; ; or ''Alphonse'') was a Portuguese ''infante'' (prince), the second son of King Afonso III of Portugal and his second wife Beatrice of Castile. He was titl ...

and Violante Manuel, granddaughter of King Ferdinand III of Castile and León. There were no children from this marriage. His second wife was, Isabel Ponce de Leon, daughter of Pedro Ponce de Leon, Lord of Cangas and Tineo, and his wife, Sancha Gil de Braganza. Their children were: * Fernando Ruiz de Castro ''toda la lealtad de España'' ("all the loyalty of Spain")(1377), Count of Lemos, Sarria and Trastamara, standard-bearer and steward of King

. * Juana de Castro (died 1374), first married Diego López de Haro, Lord of Orduña and Valmaseda, son of Fernando Díaz de Haro and Maria of Portugal and, after her husband's death, married King

in 1354. She is buried in the

Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela The Santiago de Compostela Archcathedral Basilica (Spanish language, Spanish and Galician language, Galician: ) is part of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Santiago de Compostela, Metropolitan Archdiocese of Santiago de Compostela and is an inte ...

. From his mistress, Aldonza Lorenzo de Valladares were born: * Ines de Castro, mistress and posthumous wife of

. She is buried beside her husband at the Monastery of Alcobaça *

. Count of Arraiolos. Lord of

Cadaval Cadaval () is a municipality in the Oeste intermunicipal community and Lisbon District of Portugal. The population in 2011 was 14,228,Ferreira and

Constable of Portugal Constable of Portugal ({{langx, pt, Condestável de Portugal) was an office created by King Ferdinand I of Portugal in 1382, to replace the High Standard-bearer ('' Alferes-Mor'') as the head of the Portuguese Military. It was also referred as the ...

. He married Maria Ponce de Leon.

Burial

At his death, the body of Pedro Fernandez de Castro was taken to Galicia and buried in the

. His remains were buried in the choir of the Cathedral. During 19th century his tomb was examined and found next to his remains were some pieces of silk, a brooch and gold spurs, which are supposedly those of

Sultan of Morocco This is a list of rulers of Morocco since 789. The common and formal titles of these rulers has varied, depending on the time period. Since 1957, the designation King has been used. The present King of Morocco is Mohammed VI of Morocco, Mohammed ...

, of which Pedro Fernandez de Castro had seized during the Battle of Salado.

Footnotes

References

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Fernandez de Castro, Pedro 1290s births 1342 deaths House of Castro