The House of Lara (Spanish: Casa de Lara) is a noble family from the medieval Kingdom of Castile. Two of its branches, the Duques de Nájera and the Marquesado de Aguilar de Campoo were considered Grandees of Spain. The Lara family gained numerous territories in Castile, León, Andalucía, and Galicia and members of the family moved throughout the former Spanish colonies, establishing branches as far away as the Philippines and Argentina.
The House of Lara were most prominent in the history of Castile and León from the 11th to the 14th century. Álvaro Núñez de Lara served as regent for Henry I of Castile. They were dispossessed of much of their land by Peter the Cruel, but most was returned by Henry II.
The family arose in 11th century Castile through a marriage that united the paternal lands around Lara de los Infantes belonging to Gonzalo Núñez with the inheritance of his wife, Goto Núñez, representing the holdings of the noble Álvarez and Alfonso families.[1] By the 13th century, the Lara family origin had been linked to the protagonists in the epic Cantar de los Siete Infantes de Lara (Song of the Seven Lara Princes), a 10th-century tale of revenge set around the lands subsequently held by the Lara family, but there is no evidence that the tale reflected historical events and the names in the legend cannot be matched with the family's known ancestry.[2]
The only branch of the family to survive the Middle Ages were the Manrique de Lara, who supported the Catholic Monarchs in their war against the supporters of the contender Joanna la Beltraneja. In 1520, Emperor Charles V raised the House of Lara to the position of grandee, as dukes of Nájera and marquesses of Aguilar de Campoo. Members of the family were to serve the crown as viceroys, captain generals, ambassadors and cardinals. The first Count of Paredes de Nava became Master of the Order of Santiago. The authors Gómez Manrique and Jorge Manrique belong to this branch of the Lara.
The original coat of arms is supposed to represent two cauldrons, which represent the ability of the family to sustain many followers.
^Ramón Menéndez Pidal, La Leyenda de los Siete Infantes de Lara, Madrid: Hijos de José M. Ducazel, 1896; Sánchez de Mora.
^Salazar y Castro (1696), Book II, Chap. XI, pp. 85–90
^Salazar y Castro (1697), Book XVIII, Chap. I, pp. 247–257
^Salazar y Castro (1696), Book II, Chap. XII, pp. 90–102
^Salazar y Castro (1696), Book II, Chap. XIII, pp. 102–106
^Salazar y Castro (1696), Book III, Chap. I, pp. 109–130
^Salazar y Castro (1697), Book XVI, Chap. I, pp. 5–14
^Salazar y Castro (1697), Book XVI, Chap. VIII, pp. 51–63
^Salazar y Castro (1697), Book XVII, Chap. I, pp. 79–84
^Salazar y Castro (1697), Book XVI, Chap. IV, pp. 24–31
^Salazar y Castro (1697), Book XVI, Chap. III, pp. 20–23
^Salazar y Castro (1697), Book XVI, Chap. XII, pp. 72–73
^Salazar y Castro (1697), Book XVI, Chap. IX, pp. 64–67
^Salazar y Castro (1697), Book XVI, Chap. XIII, pp. 74–76
^Salazar y Castro (1697), Book XVI, Chap. X, pp. 68–69
^Salazar y Castro (1697), Book XVI, Chap. XI, pp. 70–71
^Salazar y Castro (1697), Book XVI, Chap. V, pp. 32–34
^Salazar y Castro (1697), Book XVI, Chap. VI, pp. 35–37
^Salazar y Castro (1697), Book XVI, Chap. VII, pp. 38–50
Bibliography
Doubleday, Simon R. (2004). Los Lara. Nobleza y monarquía en la España Medieval (in Spanish). Madrid: Turner Publicaciones, S.L. y C.S.I.C. ISBN84-7506-650-X.
Estepa Díez, Carlos (2007). "Castilla de Condado a Reino". Alfonso VI y su época I. Los precedentes del reinado (966-1065) (in Spanish). E. Fernández González and J. Pérez Gil (Coord.). León: Universidad de León. Secretariado de Publicaciones. pp. 37–67. ISBN978-84-9773-339-7.
Martínez Díez, Gonzalo (1997). El Monasterio de Fresdelval, el Castillo de Sotopalacios y la Merindad y Valle de Ubierna. Burgos: Caja de Burgos, Área de Cultura. ISBN84-87152-39-2.
Menéndez Pidal de Navascués, Faustino (1984). "Los sellos de los señores de Molina". Anuario de Estudios Medievales. No. 14. pp. 101–120. ISSN0066-5061.