Pedro González de Lara facts for kids
Pedro González de Lara (died 16 October 1130) was a very powerful noble from Castile. He started his career serving King Alfonso VI. Later, he became a close companion of Alfonso's daughter, Queen Urraca, who ruled the kingdom. Pedro might have joined the First Crusade, a big religious war, with Raymond IV of Toulouse. This journey may have earned him the nickname el Romero, which means "the wanderer" or "pilgrim."
At the peak of his power, Pedro was one of the most important people in the kingdom, second only to the monarch. Many old documents from 1120 to 1127 show how much power he had in Castile. He did not support Urraca's son, Alfonso VII, becoming the next king. This disagreement led to his early death.
Pedro was one of the first people in Spain to use a family name based on a place, called a toponymic, instead of just a name based on his father, called a patronymic. He was the first in his family to use "de Lara," and his children continued this tradition. For example, a royal document from 1124 called him "the respected Count Don Pedro de Lara."
Contents
Early Career as a Royal Standard-Bearer (1088–91)
Pedro González was the son of Count Gonzalo Núñez de Lara and his wife, Goto Núñez. Gonzalo was the first well-known member of the Lara family. Pedro also had a brother, Count Rodrigo González de Lara. Their family owned lands in Old Castile.
From late 1088 to late 1091, Pedro served as the king's alférez, which means he was the royal standard-bearer. This was an important job, carrying the king's flag in battle. By the end of his service, he was signing royal documents right below the most important counts in the kingdom. He was replaced as alférez by Gómez González in early 1092.
Journey to the Holy Land (1092–1105)
Around 1092, Count Raymond IV of Toulouse married Elvira, who was King Alfonso VI's daughter. When Raymond decided to join the First Crusade in 1095, he was joined by "a group of Spanish knights." Pedro González might have been one of them. He disappears from records in Castile–León around this time and doesn't appear again until 1105. This fits with the time Raymond died (in 1105), which led Elvira and her young son, Alfonso Jordan, to return to Europe.
There isn't much proof from that time that Spaniards joined the First Crusade. However, a book from the late 1200s called Gran conquista de Ultramar mentions "a company of Spanish knights" at the Siege of Nicaea in 1097. It says their leader was "Lord Pedro González the Roamer, who was a very good knight in arms, and was born in Castile."
The book also tells a story from the Siege of Antioch (1097–98). It says that when Robert II, Count of Flanders, lost his horse and had to fight on foot against many Turks, two knights came to help him. One was from France, and the other was Pedro González. The story says Pedro arrived first and struck a "Moor" so hard with his lance that it went through him, leaving him dead. This story might mix up Pedro González with other knights or events from the Crusade.
Count of Lara (1107–29)
By 1107, Pedro was ruling the area of Lara and was given the title of Count. He also ruled other important places like Medina del Campo (1110), Peñafiel (1113), Palencia (1122), Torremormojón (1124), and Portillo (1125). Later, under King Alfonso VII, he ruled Dueñas and Tariego from 1127 to 1128.
In the mid-1110s, Count Pedro became very close to the ruling queen, Urraca. He became one of the most powerful people in the kingdom. Pedro and Queen Urraca had two children together: a daughter named Elvira and a son named Fernando Pérez Furtado. Fernando was sometimes called "Furtado," which meant "robbed," because he couldn't inherit his father's titles in the same way as other children. Elvira later married Bertrán de Risnel, a marriage arranged by her half-brother, King Alfonso VII.
Sometime before 1127, Pedro González married Countess Eva (Ava). She was the young widow of Count García Ordóñez, who had ruled Nájera and was killed in the Battle of Uclés. Eva might have been from France. With Eva, Pedro had several children, including four sons: Manrique, Nuño, Álvaro, and Rodrigo. He also had daughters named Milia and Maria. One of his sons, Rodrigo, later became a religious leader in a monastery.
Pedro also made important decisions for the people living on his lands. For example, in 1127, Pedro and Eva gave a special set of laws, called a fuero, to the village of Tardajos. In 1128, they gave another fuero to Jaramillo Quemado. These laws helped organize life in the villages and set out what the villagers owed to the count.
The last record of Pedro ruling Lara is from April 1129. Within a year, he would be involved in a rebellion.
Rebellion and Death (1126–30)
When Alfonso VII became king in March 1126, some nobles in León did not want him as their ruler. They preferred to be ruled by Pedro and his brother Rodrigo, perhaps hoping to support Pedro's son with Queen Urraca. Eventually, the nobles gave up, and Pedro and Rodrigo had to promise their loyalty to the new king.
In 1130, after King Alfonso VII had a son, Pedro, Rodrigo, and their supporters rebelled again. They hoped to get help from Alfonso I of Aragon and Navarre. Pedro and his son-in-law Bertrán de Risnel took the city of Palencia. Other family members and supporters also rebelled in different areas. However, King Alfonso VII quickly took back Palencia and arrested Pedro and Bertrán. Their lands were taken away, and they were sent into exile. The other rebels soon made peace with the king.
Pedro spent his exile serving Alfonso of Aragon. He followed him to the siege of Bayonne. There, he was challenged to a duel by Alfonso Jordan, the Count of Toulouse. This was the same Alfonso Jordan who was the son of Raymond IV and Elvira, the people Pedro might have traveled with on the Crusade. King Alfonso of Aragon allowed the duel to happen, and Pedro González was killed during the fight.
Images for kids
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A miniature painting showing a siege, from an old book called La gran conquista de Ultramar.
See also
In Spanish: Pedro González de Lara para niños
