The Lordship del Castillo del Carpio (Sp: Señorio del Castillo de Carpio or the Señorio del Carpio) was a Spanish title of
nobility
Nobility is a social class found in many societies that have an aristocracy. It is normally appointed by and ranked immediately below royalty. Nobility has often been an estate of the realm with many exclusive functions and characteristics. T ...
established in 1325 by
García Méndez de Sotomayor.
The title lends its name to the
House of Carpio.
History
The lands consisting of the Señorio del Castillo de Carpio were conquered by King
Ferdinand III of Castile
Ferdinand III (; 1199/120130 May 1252), called the Saint (''el Santo''), was King of Castile from 1217 and King of León from 1230 as well as King of Galicia from 1231. He was the son of Alfonso IX of León and Berengaria of Castile. Through his ...
in 1240 as a part of the larger
Reconquista
The ''Reconquista'' (Spanish language, Spanish and Portuguese language, Portuguese for ) or the fall of al-Andalus was a series of military and cultural campaigns that European Christian Reconquista#Northern Christian realms, kingdoms waged ag ...
. Part of the lands conquered in Ferdinand III's Alcocer (Al-Qusayr) campaign were granted to one of the families that assisted in the campaign, namely the Meléndez or the House of Méndez de Sotomayor. By 1325, Garcia Méndez de Sotomayor managed to unite the lands granted to his family and built a tower at El Carpio to be used as the center of government for his lands. The tower was completed in 1325 which is also the date associated with the founding of the Señorio del Castillo de Carpio.
In 1559, the title was upgraded to the
Marquesado del Carpio in 1559 by King
Philip II of Spain
Philip II (21 May 152713 September 1598), sometimes known in Spain as Philip the Prudent (), was King of Spain from 1556, King of Portugal from 1580, and King of Naples and List of Sicilian monarchs, Sicily from 1554 until his death in 1598. He ...
to the relevant holder,
Diego Lopez de Haro y Sotomayor on 20 January 1559 in recognition of his services to the crown,
It is unclear whether the first Marques of Caprio was in fact
Diego López de Haro y Sotomayor. Some sources record Diego López as the I Marques
and others record Diego López' father
Luis Méndez de Haro y Sotomayor as the I Marques.
What does appear clear is that Luis Méndez was indeed the 9th Señor del Carpio inheriting the title from his parents and that his son Diego López was also the Marques. Whether the title was conferred upon the 9th or 10th Señor del Carpio appears to be the main question. Luis Méndez inherited the Señorio del Carpio from his mother
Beatriz Portocarrero Cárdenas in 1528 according to
Margarita Cabrera Sánchez.
If the date of the upgrade to a Marquesado is accurately put at 1559, it would seem that the first Marques of Carpio was indeed Diego López de Haro y Sotomayor, which is supported by the
Real Academia de la Historia
The Royal Academy of History (, RAH) is a Spanish institution in Madrid that studies history "ancient and modern, political, civil, ecclesiastical, military, scientific, of letters and arts, that is to say, the different branches of life, of c ...
.
Title holders
* This list is based on one single source which is contradicted by other sources. As such, it may be incomplete, inaccurate or missing persons.
See also
*
Marquesado del Carpio
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Senorio del Castillo de Carpio
Grandees of Spain