Pedro Téllez-Girón y Fernández de Velasco or Pedro Girón (died

Seville Seville ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Spain, Spanish autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Andalusia and the province of Seville. It is situated on the lower reaches of the Guadalquivir, River Guadalquivir, ...

, April 25, 1531), was a Spanish noble, 3rd Count of Ureña and a leader of the

Revolt of the Comuneros The Revolt of the Comuneros (, "War of the Communities of Castile") was an uprising by citizens of Crown of Castile, Castile against the rule of Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, Charles I and his administration between 1520 and 1521. At its hei ...

. He was the son of

Juan Téllez-Girón, 2nd Count of Ureña Juan Téllez-Girón, 2nd Count of Ureña (in full, ) (c. 1456 – 21 May 1528) was a Spanish nobleman. Juan Téllez-Girón was the third natural son of Pedro Girón, 1st Lord of Osuna and of Inés de las Casas. The children were legitimated by Pap ...

and Leonor de la Vega Velasco, daughter of

Pedro Fernández de Velasco, 2nd Count of Haro Pedro Fernández de Velasco, 2nd Count of Haro (in full, ) (c. 1425 – 1492) was a Spanish nobleman and military figure of the last stages of the Reconquista. Biography Fernández de Velasco was born in Burgos, the son of Pedro Fernández de V ...

. He married Mencía de Guzmán, daughter of

Juan Alfonso Pérez de Guzmán, 3rd Duke of Medina Sidonia ''Juan'' is a given name, the Spanish and Manx versions of ''John''. The name is of Hebrew origin and has the meaning "God has been gracious." It is very common in Spain and in other Spanish-speaking countries around the world and in the Philipp ...

. When his brother-in-law

Enrique Pérez de Guzmán, 4th Duke of Medina Sidonia Don Enrique Pérez de Guzmán y Fernández de Velasco, 4th Duke of Medina Sidonia (died 1512) was the son of Juan Alfonso Pérez de Guzmán, 3rd Duke of Medina Sidonia. He was Duke of Medina Sidonia from 1507. No issue by his wife María Tél ...

, died in 1512 without issue, Pedro Girón unsuccessfully claimed the title of Medina Sidonia through his wife. Pedro stated that

Alonso Pérez de Guzmán Alonso Pérez de Guzmán (1256–1309), known as ''Guzmán el Bueno'' ("Guzmán the Good"), was a Spanish nobleman and hero of Spain during the Middle Ages, medieval period. Guzmán is the progenitor of the Dukes of Medina Sidonia, the oldes ...

, son of the third Duke and his second wife, was an illegitimate child. Pedro Girón had contacted the ''Junta de Tordesillas'' to defend his claims on the Duchy of Medina Sidonia, and became thus one of the leaders of the

comuneros Comunero may refer to: * Revolt of the Comuneros, a rebellion in Castile in 1520–1521 * Revolt of the Comuneros (Paraguay), a revolt in Paraguay in 1721–1735 * Revolt of the Comuneros (New Granada) The Revolt of the Comuneros was a p ...

, together with

Juan de Padilla Juan de Padilla, OFM (1500–1542) was a Spanish Catholic priest and missionary who spent much of his life exploring North America with Francisco Vásquez de Coronado. He was killed in what would become Kansas by Native Americans in 1542 ...

and Antonio de Acuña. He was proclaimed unanimously Capitán General of the rebel army.

Leadership and defeat

In 1520, Pedro Girón led the comuneros army to

Medina de Rioseco Medina de Rioseco is a municipality located in the province of Valladolid, in the autonomous community of Castile and León and Spain. According to a 2011 census ( INE), the municipality has a population of 4,967 inhabitants. The city also has t ...

, establishing his headquarters at Villabrágima, only a mile away from the royalist army. On December 2, Pedro Girón moved his army from Villabrágima to

Villalpando Villalpando is a municipality located in the province of Zamora, Castile and León, Spain. According to the 2004 census ( INE), the municipality has a population of 1,624 inhabitants. Formerly the town was reputed for its saltpans, the Salinas ...

, and took that city without resistance. But this manoeuver opened the road to

Tordesillas Tordesillas () is a town and municipality in the province of Valladolid, Castile and León, central Spain. It is located southwest of the provincial capital, Valladolid at an elevation of . The population was c. 8,760 . The town is located on ...

for the royalist army, which in fact moved on Tordesillas and took it on December 5, overwhelming the small garrison left in the city. The loss of Tordesillas was a serious setback for the comuneros, who lost access to Queen

Juana I Joanna of Castile (6 November 1479 – 12 April 1555), historically known as Joanna the Mad (), was the nominal queen of Castile from 1504 and queen of Aragon from 1516 to her death in 1555. She was the daughter of Queen Isabella I of Castile ...

and the claim to fight in her name. Many leaders had also been captured or had fled. Pedro Girón was blamed for his troop movement and was forced to abandon his command. Some historians later accused Girón of not merely making an error, but rather intentionally betraying the comuneros and coming to an agreement with the leader of the royalist army, his maternal uncle

Íñigo Fernández de Velasco Inigo is a masculine given name deriving from the Castilian rendering (Íñigo) of the medieval Basque name Eneko. Ultimately, the name means "my little (man)". While mostly seen among the Iberian diaspora, it also gained a limited popularity ...

. This theory is considered possible, but not likely. On Resurrection Day, 1524, Pedro Girón was pardoned by King Charles I of Spain. When his father died in 1528, he became 3rd Duke of Ureña. He died 3 years later. With only one daughter from his marriage with Mencía de Guzmán, his titles went to his brother

Juan ''Juan'' is a given name, the Spanish and Manx versions of '' John''. The name is of Hebrew origin and has the meaning "God has been gracious." It is very common in Spain and in other Spanish-speaking countries around the world and in the Philip ...

Leadership and defeat

See also