Vela Jiménez
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Vela Jiménez who appears also as ''Vigila Scemeniz'', is documented on two occasions as
Count of Álava Count (feminine: countess) is a historical title of nobility in certain European countries, varying in relative status, generally of middling rank in the hierarchy of nobility.L. G. Pine, Pine, L. G. ''Titles: How the King Became His Majesty'' ...
between 882 and 883 in the ''
Codex Vigilanus The ''Codex Vigilanus'' or ''Codex Albeldensis'' (Spanish: ''Códice Vigilano'' or ''Albeldense'') is an illuminated compilation of various historical documents accounting for a period extending from antiquity to the 10th century in Hispania. ...
'', compiled in 881 with two large paragraphs added subsequently describing the events that took place in 882 and 883. There is a previous reference to another count in
Álava Álava () or Araba (), officially Araba/Álava, is a Provinces of Spain, province of Spain and a historical territory of the Basque Country (autonomous community), Basque Country, heir of the ancient Basque señoríos#Lords of Álava, Lordship ...
called
Eylo Eylo or Gilo (fl. 868) is the first attested count of Álava. He is known from the chronicle of Sampiro, written in the first third of the eleventh century, which presents him as a rebellious subject of the Kingdom of Asturias, strongly suggestin ...
who in 868 led a rebellion that was quashed by King
Alfonso III of Asturias Alfonso III (20 December 910), called the Great (), was king of Asturias from 866 until his death. He was the son and successor of Ordoño I. After his death, the Kingdom of Asturias was split between his sons, with García inheriting León, ...
and then taken to
Oviedo Oviedo () or Uviéu (Asturian language, Asturian: ) is the capital city of the Principality of Asturias in northern Spain and the administrative and commercial centre of the region. It is also the name of the municipality that contains th ...
in chains. Nevertheless, the references to Count Vela, the head of this lineage, are much more precise.


Family origins

He is assumed to have been a member of the royal house of Pamplona and a member of the Jiména dynasty and a relative of King Alfonso III and perhaps his brother-in-law. This placement is based solely on his common patronymic, and there is no documentary evidence whatsoever to support such relationships.


Count in Álava

The first
count of Castile This is a list of counts of Castile. The County of Castile had its origin in a fortified march on the eastern frontier of the Kingdom of Asturias. The earliest counts were not hereditary, being appointed as representatives of the Asturian king. F ...
was
Rodrigo Rodrigo () is a Spanish, Portuguese and Italian name derived from the Germanic name ''Roderick'' ( Gothic ''*Hroþareiks'', via Latinized ''Rodericus'' or ''Rudericus''), given specifically in reference to either King Roderic (d. 712), the la ...
who governed the
County 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 Cas ...
by mandate of King
Ordoño I of Asturias Ordoño I ( – 27 May 866) was King of Asturias from 850 until his death. He was born in Oviedo, where he spent his early life in the court of Alfonso II. He was probably raised in Lugo, capital of the province of Galicia, where his father, ...
and, according to documentary sources, it seems that the authority of this Castilian count and later that of his son Diego included parts of Álava, although it was not until 882 when someone held that title. By 882, the county was being governed by Rodrigo's son, Diego, while Vela Jiménez appears in 882 and in 883 in charge of the government of Álava:''Vigila Scemeniz erat tunc comes in Alaba''. In 882, while Count Diego defended the gorge at Pancorbo, Count Vela was responsible for defending the County of Álava from the castle at Cellorigo, from where he blocked the passage and defeated the Muslim forces led by Al-Mundhir of Córdoba at the Battle of Cellorigo.


Possible descendants

Although there is no document to confirm it, he is assumed to have been the father of: *
Munio Vélaz Munio Vélaz or Vigílaz (died before 931) was the Count of Álava and probably also of Biscay. The exact dates of his countship are unknown. Only one document, dated 18 May 919 in the cartularies of Valpuesta, names Munio as count in Álava. He r ...
, who appears from 913 as the count in Álava and in 919 as ''Monnio Uigilazi in Alaba'' in the'' Cartularios de Valpuesta''. Because of his patronymic and his title, he was probably one of Count Vela's sons. He could also have been same Munio who appears in the ''
Códice de Roda The ''Códice de Roda'' or ''Códice de Meyá'' (Roda or Meyá codex) is a medieval manuscript that represents a unique primary source for details of the 9th- and early 10th-century Kingdom of Navarre and neighbouring principalities. It is current ...
'' as Count ''Momo Biscahiensis'', that is, count in Biscay. * Nuño Vélaz. The medieval scholar Jaime de Salazar y Acha suggests that Count Vela could have been the father of a son named Nuño who settled in the
Kingdom of León The Kingdom of León was an independent kingdom situated in the northwest region of the Iberian Peninsula. It was founded in 910 when the Christian princes of Kingdom of Asturias, Asturias along the Bay of Biscay, northern coast of the peninsula ...
after the descendants of Count Vela Jimenez fled from Castile due to their differences with the Castilian count Fernán González, and became ancestor of the Vela (or Vélaz) family. According to the author, this would explain the
Basque Basque may refer to: * Basques, an ethnic group of Spain and France * Basque language, their language Places * Basque Country (greater region), the homeland of the Basque people with parts in both Spain and France * Basque Country (autonomous co ...
names such as Vela and Oveco in subsequent generations. This Nuño would have been the father of several children, including counts Vela Núñez,
Bermudo Núñez Bermudo Núñez (died 955) was a magnate from León and the first Count of Cea. He appears for the first time in 921 confirming a donation to the Monastery of San Benito in Sahagún from which it can be assumed that he was probably born near the ...
, the first count of Cea, and Oveco Núñez, Bishop of León.


References


Bibliography

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Jimenez, Vela Counts of Álava 9th-century Asturian nobility 9th-century births 9th-century deaths People of the Reconquista