The Kingdom of Galicia in the texts (413- 1845) III. The Division of the Realm.

Previously: https://budgetpixel.com/blog/the-kingdom-of-galicia-in-the-texts-413-1845-ii-the-princes-of-gallicia-move-the-seat-to-león?v=1778236190291 THE BURGUNDIAN PERIOD: FROM THE SOVEREIGNTY OF RAYMOND TO THE RISE OF THE HOUSE OF CASTRO. • COUNT RAYMOND OF BURGUNDY, DOMINUS, PRINCEPS & IMPERATOR GALLICI Æ ( 1090-1107 ). To understand the Kingdom of Galicia from the end of the 11th century onwards, it is essential to acknowledge the royal dignity with which the sources closest to its administration define Count Raymond of Burgundy. This authority is synthesized by Elisardo Temperán as follows: “Diego Gelmírez was the first Archbishop of Santiago. He was born, possibly in Santiago de Compostela, between 1067 and 1070; at around 24 years of age, he became the notary and secretary of Count Raymond, King of Galicia.” (Elisardo Temperán Villaverde: "La Liturgia propia de Santiago en el Códice Calixtino", 1997, p. 24, nota 19) . This record not only recognizes the title of King of Galicia for Raymond but also places the origins of Diego Gelmírez's political project at the very heart of his court. This framework of sovereignty marks the beginning of the Burgundian stage, a period in which the kingdom articulated its de facto independence under its own elite. The Kingdom of Galicia: Sovereignty and Identity in the Burgundian Period The formulas used by Raymond of Burgundy and Urraca —such as imperator/imperatrix , princeps , and dominus —are often downplayed by official historiography as subordinate to Alfonso VI’s title of imperator totius Hispanie . However, the primary sources reveal a deliberate intent to assert a sovereign dignity above any other authority save the Emperor himself, highlighting several key historical realities: 1. Distinct Entities: Hispania and Gallecia were recognized as two distinct geopolitical entities. This distinction dates back to 411/413 AD, when Galicia became the first kingdom in Western Europe—a historical fact often obscured in academic curricula to erase two centuries of independent peninsular history. 2. Ecclesiastical Independence: The sees of Iria-Compostela and Braga never accepted the authority of Toledo. Instead, they claimed their own apostolic primacy. The fall and subsequent recovery of Toledo by Arab forces fueled a long-standing confrontation between these sees, explaining the historiographical distortions used to justify Castilian centralism. 3. The Nature of Power: Raymond did not hold a mere administrative tenencia ; he received Galicia as a sovereign dowry through his marriage to Urraca. This consolidated the territories of Lugo, Iria, and Mondoñedo under a single authority—often linked to the House of Trastámara, Lemos, and the pertigueiría of Santiago—creating one of the most powerful jurisdictions on the Peninsula. 4. Sovereign Titles: The dual nature of the realm is explicitly documented in royal intitulations: “ego Urracha, Dei gratia totius Hispaniæ et Galleciæ regina... ego Adefonsus... Hispaniæ et Galleciæ Rex.” This underscores that the Emperor of Hispania did not possess sufficient land or legitimacy in Galicia to rule it without the specific homage of the Galician Church and nobility—a structural tension that would define the following centuries. « He (Alfonso VI) had three daughters, one legitimate and two natural, he married the first, named Urraca, to Raymond of Burgundy, and gave him as a dowry the Principality of Galicia [...] » ( Anonymous : "Annales", 1479). • « ego Raimundus Dei gratia comes et totius Gallecie dominus » « I Raymond, by the grace of God count and lord of all Galicia » (Coimbra Livro Preto 82, y. 1094) • « ego comes Raimundus totius Gallecie senior et dominus » « I, Count Raymond, lord and master of all Galicia » (Santiago de Compostela Tumbo A nº 72, y. 1095) • « serenissimus totius Gallecie comes R(aimundus) » « The most serene count of all Galicia, Raymond » (Carboeiro CD 3 nº 4/34, y. 1096) • « Ego Raymundus debito PRINCIPATUS honore TOTIUS GALETIE comes ac domnus » « I Raymond, with the honor of Principality due to ALL GALICIA , count and lord » ( Santiago de Compostela , y. 1098) • « ego infante Urraca, legionesis regis et toletani imperatoris filia, pariter cum consensu et precepto viri mei comitis totius Galletie domni Raimundi et filii nostri et vox nostra [---] » « I, the Infanta Urraca, daughter of the Leonese king and Toledan emperor, equally with the consent and precept of my husband, Lord Raymond, count of all Galicia, and of our son and our lineage [...] » (Samos Tumbo nº 22, y. 1102) • « regnante rege Adefonso prole Fernandi cum Helisabeth uxore sua in Legione et in Toleto, Regimundo comite cum infante domna Urraca in provincia Gallecie, comite Froila imperante Sarria [---] » « Reigning King Alfonso, son of Fernando, with his wife Isabel in León and in Toledo; Count Raymond with the Infanta Lady Urraca in the province of Galicia; Count Froila commanding in Sarria [...] » (Samos Tumbo nº 236, y. 1103) • « regnante Adefonsus rex Fredinandiz in Toletula cum Legione imperante et eius gener Raymundus comes Gallecia, sub suo imperio Suarius Ueremudiz comes in Rabadi [---] » « Reigning King Alfonso, son of Fernando, commanding in Toledo together with León, and his son-in-law Count Raymond in Galicia; under his empire, Count Suero Bermúdez in Rábade [---] » (Lourenzá Tumbo 191, y. 1104) • « serenissimus totius Gallecie comes Raimundus » « The most serene count of all Galicia, Raymond » (Samos Tumbo nº 85, y. 1104) • « Ego quidam comes Raimundus, imperatoris Adefonsi gener et totius Gallecie dominus » « I, Count Raymond, son-in-law of the Emperor Alfonso and lord of all Galicia » (Santiago de Compostela, y. 1105) • « ego comes Raymundus totius Gallecie dominus » « I, Count Raymond, lord of all Galicia » (Mondoñedo CD 9, y. 1106) • « ego quiddam comes Raimundus totius Gallacie domnus una cum coniuge mea donna Urraca Adefonsi totius Ispanie imperatoris filia » « I, Count Raymond, lord of all Galicia, together with my wife Lady Urraca, daughter of Alfonso, emperor of all Spain » (Tui, y. 1106) • « Reimundus regni totius Gallecie comes regisque gener confirmo » « Raymond, count of the kingdom of all Galicia and son-in-law of the king, I confirm » (Santiago de Compostela, Tumbo C nº 2, ano 1107) • « ego consul dominus Raymundus totius Galleti æ princeps » « I, the consul Lord Raymond, prince of all Galicia » (Santiago de Compostela, Tumbo C nº 4, y. 1107) • « ego consul domnus Raimundus, totius Gallecie princeps et piissimi regis domni Adefonsi Toleto regnantis gener » « I, the consul Lord Raymond, prince of all Galicia and son-in-law of the most pious king Lord Alfonso, reigning in Toledo » (Santiago de Compostela Tumbo A nº 77, y. 1107) • « ego comes domnus Raymundus totius Galleci æ imperator » « I, Count Lord Raymond, emperor of all Galicia » (Santiago de Compostela Tumbo C nº 3, ano 1107) The Sovereignty of the Kingdom: Analysis of the Primary Sources of Raymond of Burgundy The analysis of this series of primary sources allows us to draw conclusions that challenge traditional historiography and place the Kingdom of Galicia as a first-rate political entity in the 12th-century European context. The key points emerging from these documents are: 1. Territorial Unity: "Totius Galleciae" The almost obsessive repetition of the term "Totius Galleciae" (All Galicia) across all dioceses (Santiago, Mondoñedo, Tui, Coimbra, Lugo) proves that Galicia was not a cluster of scattered counties, but a compact political and jurisdictional unit . From the Cantabrian Sea to the Mondego River, there was a clear consciousness that the Kingdom possessed defined borders and a single command. 2. Diversity of Sovereign Titles Raymond did not limit himself to a mere administrative title. The alternation of Princeps, Consul, Imperator, Senior, and Dominus reveals a deliberate intent to assert original sovereignty. Princeps and Imperator: These indicate that he recognized no hierarchical superior within Galician soil. Consul: This title links his authority to the classical tradition of supreme magistracy, granting him a veneer of European prestige. 3. Galicia vs. Spain (Gallecia vs. Hispania) Several documents (such as the 1106 Tui charter) explicitly separate the Empire of Spain (Alfonso VI in Toledo) from the Dominion of Galicia (Raymond and Urraca). This distinction is fundamental: Alfonso VI is recognized as a superior figure in the dynastic hierarchy, but Galicia is described as a distinct political space with its own rights and laws. Galicia and Spain are treated as two entities that coexist but are not to be confused. 4. The "Sub Imperio" System The Lourenzá document (1104) shows that Raymond exercised his own potestas over the Galician nobility ( sub suo imperio ). This means that high-ranking magnates (such as the Bermúdez family) paid direct homage to Raymond. The Kingdom of Galicia possessed its own feudal pyramid, independent of that of León or Castile. 5. Legitimacy "Dei Gratia" The use of the formula "by the grace of God" in Coimbra (1094) is definitive proof that Raymond did not view himself as a simple royal official. This formula was reserved for those who exercised a sovereign power that did not depend solely on human delegation, but on a dignity inherent to the office of the Lord of Galicia. Conclusion: The documentation of Raymond of Burgundy describes a Sovereign Principality that operated as a de facto State. The importance of Santiago de Compostela as the center of this chancery, supported by figures like Diego Gelmírez , was the engine that allowed Galicia to maintain this regal identity throughout the Burgundian period. After the premature death of Raymond of Burgundy (y. 1107), Urraca assumed the government of Galicia until the coronation as King of Galicia of her son Alfonso VII (Santiago de Compostela, y. 1111). • « Regimundo comite cum infante domna Urraca in provincia Gallecie » « Count Raymond with the Infanta Lady Urraca in the province of Galicia » (Samos, y. 1103). • « ego infanta domna Vrraca, Adefonsi imperatoris filia, et totius Galleti æ domina » « I, the Infanta Lady Urraca, daughter of the Emperor Alfonso, and mistress [sovereign lady] of all Galicia » (Santiago Tumbo C nº 5, y. 1107) • « ego infanta Urracha Adefonsis magni toletani imperatoris filia tocius Galletie imperatrix » « I, the Infanta Urraca, daughter of the great Toledan emperor Alfonso, empress of all Galicia » (Lugo, Tumbo Vello 25, y. 1107) • ALFONSUS VII, REX & IMPERATOR GALLICIÆ AND IMPERATOR HISPANIÆ ( 1090-1107 ). A Historic Milestone on Television: The Coronation of the King of Galicia For the first time, Spanish public television (RTVE) broadcast a reconstruction of the coronation of Alfonso VII as King of Galicia (1111). This scene from the series El final del camino visually acknowledges a historical truth long suppressed by centralist narratives: that Galicia was a sovereign realm with its own royal unction and throne. The image captures the young monarch flanked by his mother, Queen Urraca, and the powerful Archbishop Gelmírez, symbolizing the political and religious independence that the House of Traba defended with the sword. • « ANFUS REX » The Stone and the Parchment: The Legitimacy of the Galician King Visible on the left side of this Romanesque sculpture at the Praterías Façade of the Cathedral of Santiago, the inscription «ANFVS REX» (King Alfonso) stands as a permanent testament to Galician sovereignty. Carved into the very stone of the Apostolic Cathedral, likely around the time of his coronation in 1111, it served as a public declaration to the medieval world: Galicia was a sovereign realm with its own legitimate monarch. This "monumental propaganda" linked the crown of Galicia directly to the authority of Saint James, defying any claims of subordination to other peninsular powers. • « ego Urracha , Dei gratia totius Hispaniæ et Galleciæ regina conf.- ego Adefonsus huius reginæ filius Hispaniæ et Galleciæ Rex et Toletani imperatoris domini Adefonsi nepos conf. » « I, Urracha, by the grace of God, Queen of all Spain and Galicia, confirm. I, Adefonsus, son of this Queen, King of Spain and Galicia and grandson of the Emperor of Toledo, Lord Adefonsus, confirm » ( Manuel Lucas Álvarez : "El Monasterio de San Martiño Pinario de Santiago de Compostela en la Edad Media" , Galicia medieval: Fontes. Publicacións do Seminario de Estudos Galegos, 6, Edicións do Castro, Sada-A Coruña, 2003, pp. 184 - 188 [Santiago, an. 1115]). By 1115, official documents like those from the Monastery of San Martiño Pinario confirm this dual status: Alfonso titles himself "King of Hispania and Galicia," explicitly distinguishing the two realms and grounding his authority in his Galician coronation and his lineage as the grandson of the "Toledan Emperor." • « Imperator quippe Galitiæ Sarracenos et ipse congreditur » « The Emperor of Galicia himself also goes out to battle against the Saracens » ( "Annales Cameracenses. A. 1158-1159" , MGH, vol. XVI, Georgius Heinricus Pertz, Hannover, 1858). • « Hanc solemnitatem celeberrime observabat Adelfonsus rex Galliciæ ; quia corpus apostoli III Kal. Ianuarii susceperat Galecia » « This solemnity was most famously observed by Alfonso, King of Galicia; because Galicia had received the body of the Apostle on the 30th of December » ( Helinandus Frigidi Montis : "Patrologia Latina. Chronicon. LIBER XLVIII" , vol. 212, J.-P. Migne, Paris 1855). • « ego Aldefonsus dei gratia rex Legionis et Gallecie » « I Alfonso, by the grace of God, King of León and Galicia » (Ourense, y. 1131; Toxosoutos, y. 1135). • « Temporibus Didaci, archiepiscopi Iacobite, et Adefonsi, imperatoris Yspanie et Galletie, et Calixti pape. [...] Yspaniam et Galleciam » « In the times of Diego, Archbishop of Santiago, and Alfonso, Emperor of Spain and Galicia, and Pope Calixtus. [...] Spain and Galicia » ("Codex Calixtinus. Lib. V.v", y. 1130-1145). • « imperante Adefonsus imperator in Gallecia » The Hollow Empire: Alfonso VII and the Galician Reality By 1154, as shown in the documents from the Monastery of Caaveiro , the title of Alfonso VII as "Emperor" had become a formal protocol rather than a political reality in Galicia. While he titled himself Imperator Hispanie in Toledo, the actual governance of the Galician realm had transitioned into the hands of the great noble houses, specifically the House of Traba (first Pedro and then Fernando). This textual evidence suggests that Galicia operated as a de facto independent Principality, eventually forcing Alfonso VII to recognize in his will (1157) that the Empire could not be maintained as a single unit, leading to the restoration of a specific monarch for the Kingdom of Galicia . • TAREIXA, REGINA PORTVCALIS & LIMIÆ (falsely called Teresa of León in official Spanish historiography) ( 1112-1128 ). Fig. Miniature of the monastery of Toxos Outos. Queen Tareixa of Portugal and her daughter infanta Urraca Henriques and the infanta's husband Bermudo Pérez de Traba Why Queen Theresa belongs to Galician History It is impossible to understand the Nuclear Galicia without the figure of Queen Theresa . Although modern history labels her as Portuguese, she was a Galician sovereign in every sense. She ruled over Portucale and Limia (extending into modern Ourense) when the Minho river was not a border, but the heart of the realm. Furthermore, her physical presence in the north was constant; she held a residence in Narón , close to the estates of Pedro Froilaz and the House of Traba. Her rule, alongside Fernando Pérez de Traba , represented the last great project of Atlantic unity. By studying her through the primary texts, we see not a "rebel countess," but a Queen fighting to keep the Galician-Portuguese axis intact against the fragmentation imposed by the imperial ambitions of the south. The Great Deception: From Kings of Galicia to "Adulterous Foreigners" A comparative analysis of the Chronica Gothorum , the Historia Compostelana , and the research of historians like José Mattoso reveals a systematic "historical erasure" designed to legitimize the fragmentation of Portugal and the centralizing power of Castile. 1. The Invention of "Otherness": Galicians as Foreigners The Chronica Gothorum describes Fernando Pérez de Traba and the Galician nobility as "indigni et alienigene" (unworthy and foreigners). As Mattoso points out, this is a radical false rhetorical tool : In the 12th century, a Galician nobleman was not a foreigner in Portugal; families, estates, and politics formed a single nuclear unit . The court of Coimbra was filled with Galicians, holding key political positions. The label of "foreigner" was a later invention to justify the Battle of São Mamede (1128) as a "national liberation" rather than what it truly was: a civil war between Northern and Southern Galicians . 2. Adultery as a Political Weapon The Historia Compostelana and subsequent Portuguese chronicles introduced the topos of adultery . Presenting Fernando Pérez and Queen Theresa as sinful lovers served two purposes: Delegitimizing Theresa's Government: By portraying her as a "bad mother" and a "loose woman," her 16-year reign could be dismissed as "chaos" that her son needed to correct. Justifying Afonso Henriques' Rebellion: Turning a power struggle into a fight for "family honor" made the future king a hero and his mother a witch or usurper. 3. The State Marriage in the Records of Sobrado Contrary to legends of sin, the documents from the Monastery of Sobrado and other early modern records rescue the truth: they were husband and wife . The Emperor himself sanctioned the union to grant Fernando Pérez the "command and government of the Kingdom of Galicia with the title of King." The alliance between the Traba family and the Burgundian bloodline (Theresa) was a State Marriage aimed at ensuring the stability of the Atlantic West against the greed of Toledo. 4. "Purity" as a Reason of State During the Iberian Union and later periods, Portuguese historiography "cleansed" Theresa's image to ensure the moral purity of their royal lineage, but shifted all the blame onto the Count of Traba. Fernando Pérez was demoted from Prince of Galicia to a "villainous adulterer" to keep the story of Portuguese independence flawless. 5. Misogyny as a Reason of State Like her half-sister, Queen Urraca, Theresa was a victim of a medieval "cancel culture." In a world dominated by Cluniac reform and patriarchal law, a woman ruling with autonomy was an anomaly. By reducing her 16-year reign to a tale of "female lust," history effectively erased her role as a visionary sovereign who fought to keep the Galician-Portuguese world intact. Conclusion: The image of Theresa and Fernando as "adulterers and usurpers" is a portrait constructed by layers of propaganda . Primary sources speak of a Queen of Galicia and Portucale with a defined policy and a Galician King/Prince who ruled alongside her. The birth of Portugal was not an escape from a foreigner, but the tearing apart of a thousand-year-old unity caused by the ambitions of Compostela and Castile, who preferred a divided West over one united under the powerful Traba-Theresa alliance. The Hidden Queen: André de Resende’s Evidence While the official history written by the Archbishops of Toledo (like Rodrigo Ximénez de Rada) labeled Jimena Muñoz as a mere concubine, Portuguese humanist André de Resende uncovered proof of a deliberate cover-up. In his Monarchia Lusitana , Resende reveals: The Lost Chronicle: He identifies a Spanish chronicle written 70 years before the official Toledo version. This older source explicitly names Jimena as a legitimate Queen and wife of Alfonso VI. The Power of the Dowry: Resende argues that the marriages of Jimena’s daughters (Theresa and Elvira) to the highest-ranking European and Galician nobles would have been impossible for "illegitimate" children. A Kingdom’s Worth: The massive territorial dowry granted to Queen Theresa (the County of Portugal) was not a gift to a mistress's daughter, but a royal inheritance consistent with her status as a legitimate Infanta. The Verdict: The "concubine" label was a political fiction created decades later to strip the Galician-Portuguese lineage of its imperial rights and justify the centralizing power of Toledo. ...[The Archbishop] of Toledo, Don Rodrigo, who speaks of the affairs of Portugal with little affection—as do those who followed his account—claims that Dona Elvira and Dona Tareja (Theresa) were born to Dona Ximena Muñoz, the King’s concubine . However, in my possession is an ancient Chronicle in the Old Castilian language , written seventy years before Archbishop Dom Rodrigo, in which it is expressly stated that Dona Ximena was the King's legitimate wife and Queen. These are the words of that ancient foundation: that Queen Dona Tareja was legitimate and held a rightful claim to the inheritance of León and Castile. This truth is further evidenced by the marriages of Dona Ximena’s daughters; they married such great lords, which confirms they were legitimate daughters. This is particularly visible in the dowry of Queen Dona Tareja , daughter of Dona Ximena, which was no less than an entire Kingdom. It further demonstrates that Queen Dona Tareja was a legitimate daughter and, consequently, her mother was married to King Dom Alfonso.... "...Of this same opinion is the licentiate Christovão Rodriguez Azinheiro [...] in the compendium he made of the Chronicles of Portugal during the time of King John III. He cites the same ancient Castilian Chronicle and another most ancient one from the Kingdom of Galicia , which he had in his possession. Both affirmed how King Alfonso had married Queen Dona Ximena . The same opinion is followed by Friar Jerónimo Romano in the life he composed of the Saint Infante Dom Fernando [...]. And finally, Duarte Nunes, who in confirmation of this, pointed out the following reasons: That it was the custom of King Alfonso, once one wife had died, to marry another immediately , even if she were not the daughter of a King; and that Dona Ximena was of such illustrious blood that she could well be the King's wife." The Source of the Deception. "...The first [argument] is drawn from the authority of Pelayo, Bishop of Oviedo , an ancient author who asserts that Dona Ximena, mother of Queen Dona Tareja (Theresa), was King Alfonso's concubine and not his legitimate wife. These are his words regarding King Alfonso VI: 'The King had two concubines; however, the first was most noble, and she was Ximena Muñoz , from whom he had Gelvira (alias Elvira), wife of Count Raymond of Toulouse [...] and Tareja, wife of Count Henry, from whom were born Urraca, Gelvira, and Alfonso. The second concubine was named Zaida , daughter of Abenabet, King of Seville... Thus far the words of the Bishop of Oviedo." The Bishop’s Gambit: The Geopolitical Fraud of Pelayo of Oviedo The "concubine" myth was not born from moral concern, but from a desperate territorial struggle. Bishop Pelayo of Oviedo , known to history as the "Prince of Falsifiers," faced a crisis: his diocese was being torn apart by the rival claims of Burgos, Toledo, Lugo , and especially Braga . To save Oviedo, Pelayo went on the offensive: The Target: The emerging power of the Portuguese-Galician axis centered in Braga. The Weapon: Historical erasure. By labeling Jimena Muñoz a concubine, Pelayo effectively branded her daughter, Queen Theresa , a bastard. The Goal: If Theresa’s lineage was illegitimate, her political authority—and the metropolitan status of Braga that supported her—was legally void. Pelayo didn't just write a chronicle; he invented a scandal to neutralize a rival kingdom and its church. This original lie was later swallowed whole by the chroniclers of Toledo, becoming the "official history" that erased the true Galician Queen from memory. Toledo’s Holy War: The Erasure of the Atlantic Realm The "concubine" myth reached its peak with Rodrigo Ximénez de Rada , the Archbishop of Toledo. His mission was simple: to ensure Toledo's absolute supremacy over Braga and Santiago de Compostela . To achieve this, he turned history into a battlefield. Vassalage through Legitimacy: By following Pelayo’s lie about Jimena Muñoz being a concubine, Ximénez de Rada stripped the Portuguese monarchy of its sovereign dignity. If the Portuguese kings were born of "sin," their kingdom was legally a vassal of the "Imperial" crown of Castile, headquartered in Toledo. The Attack on Compostela: At the Fourth Lateran Council (1215), the Archbishop went as far as to tell the Pope that St. James was never buried in Compostela , calling the magnificent cathedral a mere "little church" ( iglesiucha ). He even tried to block the French Way of the Pilgrimage to isolate Galicia economically and spiritually. Cultural Warfare: Toledo promoted the cult of Santa María (Toledo’s patroness) to eclipse the cult of St. James. He banned the Chansons de Geste (the epic tales of Charlemagne) because they linked the European identity with the Galician shrine, labeling the Frankish emperor an "enemy of Spain." The Verdict: The rewriting of Queen Jimena’s marriage was just one piece of a massive psychological operation. Toledo didn't just want to rule; it wanted to delete the Atlantic identity —its queens, its saints, and its independence—to replace it with a centralized, Castilian-led "Hispania." To understand Queen Theresa, we must look past the nationalist myths of both Spain and Portugal. Both nations, for different reasons, conspired to bury the truth: The Castilian Betrayal: Toledo labeled her a "bastard daughter of a concubine" to deny her imperial rights and keep Portugal as a vassal state. The Portuguese Betrayal: To build a heroic origin story for their first King (Afonso Henriques), Portuguese chroniclers accepted the slur of "adultery." They portrayed Theresa not as a sovereign, but as a victim of her own lust, led astray by the "foreign" Galician Count, Fernando Pérez de Traba. The Reality: Theresa was a Galician-Portuguese Queen who led a 16-year project of Atlantic unity. Her "sin" wasn't adultery, but sovereignty . She and the House of Traba represented the last great attempt to keep the West united before the artificial borders of the Minho River were drawn by the pens of biased monks and ambitious kings. The Goal: Restoring Theresa’s legacy is not just an act of historical justice; it is the rediscovery of the true, unfragmented Nuclear Galicia . The Royal Marriage in the Sobrado Records "...The Emperor [Alfonso VII] held them in such high esteem that he arranged the marriage of Don Vermudo to his cousin, the Infanta of Portugal, Doña Urraca, daughter of Queen Doña Teresa Alfonso. And to Don Fernando [he married] his aunt, the aforementioned Queen Doña Teresa , to whom he gave the command and government of the Kingdom of Galicia with the title of King , by virtue of the Queen, his wife." "...to which it differs greatly from the inscription, saying as follows: 'When King Don Sancho was killed in Zamora, King Don Alfonso, his brother who was in Toledo, returned to the land and became King of Castile, and conquered Toledo from the Moors, and took a Moorish woman as a wife, who was called Zaida , niece of Aben Aben Alfaga, and had by her a son, whom they called Don Sancho, and by surname they called him Sancho Alfonso, and afterwards the Moors killed him in the Battle of Uclés. And afterwards, this King had another woman, who was named Ximena Muñoz , and had by her two daughters: the Infanta Doña Elvira and the Infanta Doña Tareja [Teresa]. The Infanta Doña Tareja married Count Don Henrique, and they had as a son King Don Alfonso of Portugal , etc. And further on it adds: ' Ximena Muñoz died, and afterwards King Don Alfonso took another woman, the Queen Doña Constanza , etc.' And in another chapter it says as follows: 'After Queen Doña Ximena Muñoz passed away, King Don Alfonso married Queen Doña Constanza , who was from France, etc.'" In reality, there is a monumental conflict between the dates, which indicates they were indeed manipulated. The following example illustrates this perfectly: "...The accuracy of this statement is uncertain as, in the same passage, Sandoval states that the same source records the death in the same year "II Kal Jun" of "Sancius Rex filius Alfonsi Regis". This latter entry presumably refers to the death of Sancho, son of King Alfonso VI, at the battle of Uclés in 1108, but it casts doubt on the accuracy of the year of the death of Queen Inés. Another date is introduced by the Annales Compostellani which record the death "VIII Id Jun" in 1098 of “Regina Agnes”. This is the same day and month as stated in the tumbo negro, so it is possible that the year is wrongly given, although it is also possible that the Annales Compostelani are referring to the death of the wife of Pedro I King of Aragon (who must have died in 1097 or before). Reilly[489] says that Queen Constanza was buried next to Queen Inés, which implies that the latter predeceased her successor. The primary source on which this is based has not yet been identified, although if it is correct it does seem surprising that the repudiated queen remained in Castile until she died and that she was buried in the royal monastery. If Orderic Vitalis is correct, Queen Inés must have been repudiated by her husband and later returned to France where she married secondly (after 1099) as his second wife, Hélie Comte du Maine. Another possibility is that Orderic’s passage misstates the name "Agnetem" for "Beatricem", and that the second wife of Comte Hélie was King Alfonso VI’s widow Beatrix whose family origin is not otherwise recorded and who would therefore have been a younger daughter of Duke Guillaume VIII (see below). According to Kerrebrouck[490], Agnès d'Aquitaine never existed." I will try to propose a possible solution: y. 1077: Alfonso VI repudiated Agnes of Aquitaine. After the divorce proceedings, Agnes died the following year, in 1078, in a French monastery. November – December y. 1079: Hugues II of Chalon dies in Hispania fighting against the Moors in late November or early December 1079. The estimated date of his death is provided by a charter witnessed by 'Oddo dux', who succeeded him as Duke of Burgundy following the abdication of his brother Hugues (dated [October/November] 1079). Furthermore, the chronicles state that Constance of Burgundy, daughter of King Robert I of France, had been married for 14 years, having wed in 1065. This reinforces the fact that her first husband died in 1079, meaning she would have been required to observe a minimum of one year of mourning. June 27, 1080: Pope Gregory VII issues a letter to Alfonso VI, ordering the dissolution of his marriage—which he deems incestuous—and threatening military intervention if the monarch embraces Cluny [NOTE 2]. This is something the monarch would ultimately do; in fact, Dalmatius, a Cluniac monk, served as Bishop of Iria and the Apostolic See of Compostela (1094–1095). He is remembered in Jacobean history for securing from Pope Urban II the recognition of Santiago as the sole head of the Bishopric. The first Galician abbeys granted to the Cluniac Order in 1075 were San Salvador de Vilafrío and San Salvador de Soutomerille, located in the present-day municipality of Castroverde (Lugo). Meanwhile, Bernard of Sedirac—a French Cluniac monk who spearheaded the Gregorian Reform in the Hispanic Church—was the first bishop appointed by Alfonso VI following his brief conquest of Toledo. Years 1080–1081: Alfonso marries Constance of Burgundy, and in 1081, Urraca is born. By then, Alfonso already had two other daughters whom Spanish historiography—relying on medieval forgers—labeled as bastards, while their 'most noble' mother (as described by the deceitful Bishop of Oviedo) was dismissed as a concubine. Curiously, one of these 'bastards', Teresa, became Queen of Portugal, and the daughter she had with Prince Fernando Pérez of Galicia—Tareixa Fernández de Traba, also labeled a bastard—became none other than the wife of King Fernando II of León and Galicia. [ NOTE 1 ] We see this family relationship in these families and with a monastery that served as a family pantheon: the monastery of Ferreira de Pantón (Lemos, Lugo). In this monastery we see Sancho Nunes married to the infanta Sancha Henriques, and his brother Mendo Nunes belonging to the Braganza family, in a sale of several estates in Distriz, "in Palatio ad illas Morales, Territorio Lemabus (Lemos) sub alpe Castro Babel, discurrentes rivulos Cave et Cinisa", to the Abbess of Ferreira de Pantón. We see years before, in this same monastery, the Duke Fernando Fernandiz (Celanova), possibly of the same family, if not of the same Counts of Portucale, with the Infanta Elvira, the daughter of Alfonso VI, donating his part of the monastery to Cluny and where he claims that Count Fernando, his father, and his ancestors are buried there. The same Queen Tareixa donates family lands in Lemos and in the "Riboyra Sacrata", for the refounding of the Montederramo monastery. Fig. Now, we do not know who is the head of the family of those who all inherit this kinship that comes from or we see in the Eastern part of Porto, in the lands of Braganza, Flavias, Limia and Ribeira & Cabreira. [ NOTE 2 ]. This is something the monarch would ultimately do; in fact, Dalmatius, a Cluniac monk, served as Bishop of Iria and the Apostolic See of Compostela (1094–1095). He is remembered in Jacobean history for securing from Pope Urban II the recognition of Santiago as the sole head of the Bishopric. The first Galician abbeys granted to the Cluniac Order in 1075 were San Salvador de Vilafrío and San Salvador de Soutomerille, located in the present-day municipality of Castroverde (Lugo). Meanwhile, Bernard of Sedirac—a French Cluniac monk who spearheaded the Gregorian Reform in the Hispanic Church—was the first bishop appointed by Alfonso VI following his brief conquest of Toledo. Tarasia, regina Portucalensis. Through the papal bull issued by Paschal II in y. 1116, Tareixa was recognized as Queen of Portugal ( 'Tarasia, Regina Portucalensis' ), thus preceding her son Afonso Henriques in the royal title. • « infanti domne Orrache, filie comitis domni Anrrich et regine domne Tarasie » « To the Infanta Lady Urraca, daughter of Count Lord Henry and Queen Lady Tareixa » (Tumbo das Cascas, y. 1119) • « Regnante rege donno Adefonso in Toleto & Legione, in Portugali regina donna Tarrasia » « Reigning King Lord Alfonso in Toledo and León & in Portugal Queen Lady Tareixa » (Cathedral of Braga, y. 1121) • « ego regina Tarasia Ildefonsi regis filia » « I, Queen Tareixa, daughter of King Alfonso » (Coimbra, y. 1122) • « ego regina domina Tarasia una cum filio meo Afonse Anriquiz » « I, Queen Lady Tareixa, together with my son Afonso Henriques » (Coimbra, ano 1122) • « Ipso permanente in fidelitate reginae donnae Tarasiae [---] firmata in presencia regine domne Tarasie et comitis domni Fernandi et baronum Portugalensium » « He himself remaining in the fidelity of Queen Lady Teresa [---] confirmed in the presence of Queen Lady Teresa and of Count Lord Fernando and of the Portuguese barons » (Coimbra, y. 1122) • « facta ciuium collectione fauore regine domne Vrrace necnon filii eius regis Adefonsi et regine Tarasie et comitis Fernandi, Limiam regentis[---] » « Having gathered the citizens, with the favor of Queen Lady Urraca as well as her son King Alfonso, and [also] of Queen Tareixa and of Count Fernando, governor of Limia » (Cathedral of Ourense, 1/4, 1/5a e 1/10, y. 1122) • « regine domne Tarasie scripturam comutacionis et cambiacionis vobis domno consuli Fernando comitis domni Petri filio » « From Queen Lady Tareixa, a deed of exchange and bartering to you, Lord Consul Fernando, son of Count Lord Pedro » (Coimbra, y. 1123) • « ego Tarasia regis Alfonsi filia Portugalensium regina » « I, Tareixa, daughter of King Alfonso, Queen of the Portuguese » (Cathedral of Braga, y. 1124) • « Regnante Regina domna Tarasia in Portugale et Limia » « The reigning Queen Lady Tareixa in Portugal and Limia » (Allariz, y. 1124) • « ego Tarasia regina, Adefonsi imperatoris filia » « I, Queen Tareixa, daughter of Emperor Alfonso » (Cathedral of Tui, y. 1125) • « regnante regina domna Tarasia » « The reigning Queen Lady Tareixa » (Cathedral of Braga y. 1126) • « illa que mihi dedit regina domna Tarasia » « Those things which Queen Lady Tareixa gave to me » (Cathedral of Braga, y. 1130) • « pro anime regine jam dicte domne Tarasie » « for the soul of the already mentioned Queen Lady Tareixa » (Coimbra, y. 1131) • « infans domnus Alfonsus bone memorie magni Adefonsi imperatoris Hispanie nepos, comitis Enrici et regine Tarasie filius » « The Prince Lord Alfonso, of happy memory, grandson of the great Alfonso, Emperor of Spain, son of Count Henry and Queen Tareixa » (Cathedral of Braga, y. 1132) • « ego infans domnus Adefonsus, comitis Enrici et domine regine Tharasie filius » « I, the infante Lord Alfonso, son of Count Henry and of the Lady Queen Tareixa » (Guimarães, y. 1136) • « ego Veremudus Petriz una cum uxore mea infante domina Vrraca Henriquiz consulis et Tharasie regina filia » « I, Bermudo Pérez, together with my wife the infanta Lady Urraca Henriques, daughter of the Consul and of Queen Teresa » (Toxos Outos, 1137) • « Infans domna Sancia, Henrici consulis et Regine Tharasie filia [---] de avia mea domna Ensemena Munioz, matre mea eius filia Regina Domna Tharasia » « The Infanta Lady Sancha, daughter of Count Lord Henry and Queen Tareixa [---] from my grandmother Lady Ximena Muñoz, [and] my mother her daughter, Queen Lady Tareixa » (Cathedral of León, doc. 1436, y. 1109–1187) Miscellanea: References to the Kingdom of Galicia in European Literature (Medieval to Modern Periods): Stories of Charlemagne and Galicia. Otuel and Roland. Modern English Translation of this text: "...And the land of Galician people He gave to the Frenchmen, indeed, But they did not wish to dwell there. They forsook that same land To have it in their hands, For it was so costly. In Spain , Charles took All that were heathen there, That lived in false law; He did hang and draw them Very fast by the neck. Charles established there to be An archbishop in that city Where Saint James lies; And all the bishops in Spain , By the command of Charlemagne, And also in Galicia , Should be under him. And the Bishop Sir Turpin Hallowed that place, indeed, For there was no city before; Charles commanded that it should be Compostela of praise. And in the month of April, Charles commanded, far and near, In Galicia and also in Spain , That every house of power Should give twelve pence a year, By the command of Charlemagne, To Saint James of Galicia , And be quit of other service, To sustain that house. And so they did without delay; For Charles had set it so, No man dared oppose it." Roland and Vernagu. Modern English Translation of this text: "...They took leave of the emperor And thanked him with great honor, And to Aix in Gascony they went, There he dwelt, truly assured. So he beheld upon a night Up to the firmament; A way of stars he saw, indeed, Out of Spain into Galicia , As red as burning fire brand. He besought God in Trinity To send him grace to know what it might be With very good intent. And in the thought that he was in, There came a voice and spoke to him With a mild voice: 'James the apostle, by Christ, John the Evangelist's brother, God's disciple of heaven, Whom God bade preach upon the sea, Therefore Herod let me slay, Thereof I name to thee. My body lies in Galicia, Beyond Spain, truly indeed, More than seven days' journey.' The way of stars signifies, indeed, That of Spain and of Galicia Thou shalt be conqueror. Lorraine and Lombardy, Gascony, Bayonne, and Picardy Shall be in thy power.' Thus came the apostle James Thrice to Charles and said this, Who was so stout and fierce. Now Charles goes with his host Into Spain , with great boast, As you may hear forward..." L'entrée. Modern English Translation of this text: "...We have assaulted both Spain and Galicia : Only for one city that we have conquered [...] Which made us leap against the sorrowful Galicians. He who wants everything, loses everything, as you know, many times. Therefore, do you not know your Galicians and Spaniards , And who are Catalans and the Aragonese ? [...] And the French challenge like barons Aragon and Spain and Galicia all around. This was on a Tuesday, just as we find, When they encountered each other in a fierce clash..." The Carolingian Geopolitical Space and the Castilian Suppression of the Chansons de Geste Based on the provided Middle English and Franco-Venetian documentary archive ( Otuel and Roland , Roland and Vernagu , and L'Entrée d'Espagne ), the European Carolingian literary tradition reveals a geopolitical landscape that completely contradicted the centralizing agenda of Rodrigo Jiménez de Rada (c. 1170–1247), the influential Archbishop of Toledo, royal chronicler, and chief ideologue of the Kingdom of Castile. The documents demonstrate why Jiménez de Rada systematically banned and suppressed these chansons de geste within the Crown of Castile, as they actively undermined the foundational myths of Castilian hegemony. 1. The Geo-Political Map: Galicia vs. España Distinct National Sovereignty: The texts consistently separate the territories as independent entities using binary phrasing like "In Galys and ek in Spayne" and "Espaigne e Galise" . In the medieval European mindset, Galicia was a sovereign kingdom of equivalent geopolitical status to "Spain". Distinct National Identities: L'Entrée d'Espagne explicitly maps the peninsula’s demographics by putting Galicians ( Galliciens ) on the exact same political level as Spaniards ( Speignois ) , Catalans ( Catallains ) , and Aragonians ( Aragonois ) , omitting "Castilians" as the dominant group. The Sacred Terminus: In Roland and Vernagu , the Milky Way is a precise celestial highway leading through and out of Spain directly into Galicia ( "Out of Spaine into Galis" ), establishing Galicia as a distinct spiritual and physical terminus. 2. Reasons for Jiménez de Rada's Prohibition Erasing Frankish Imperial Claims: The texts frame the liberation of the Apostle's tomb as a direct command from Saint James to Charlemagne, granting the Frankish Crown divine right of conquest over the territory ( "That of Spaine and of Galis / Thou schalt be conquerer" ). This ruined Castile's narrative of a purely local, independent Reconquista . Diminishing Toledo's Authority: Otuel and Roland states that Charlemagne and Bishop Turpin founded the Archbishopric of Santiago de Compostela ( "An erchebyschop in that cyté / Ther that Sent James lys" ), ordering all bishops to be subordinate to it. To Jiménez de Rada, a French emperor establishing the supreme authority in Iberia was unacceptable. Neutralizing Galician Prestige: The European texts celebrate the independent wealth, religious centrality, and military resistance of the Galicians ( "al doloros gallois" ). As an ideologue constructing an official history to absorb the independent memory of the Atlantic arc, Jiménez de Rada censored this prestigious international literature to prevent it from validating Galicia's autonomous historical memory. Miscellanea: Kingdom of Galicia and the Medieval Cartography. The Cartographic Sovereignty of Galicia in the Rudimentum Novitiorum (1475) The map included in the Rudimentum Novitiorum , printed by Lucas Brandis in Lübeck in 1475, stands as a prime witness to how late-medieval European scholars perceived the geopolitical architecture of the Iberian Peninsula. Far from depicting a unified Spanish territory, this incunabula map clearly individualizes Galicia ( Galicia ) as a autonomous kingdom with its own territorial identity, separate from Hispania . In the graphic distribution of the European continent (located in the lower-left section of the circular map), the cartographer lists the regional and national powers of the Atlantic facade. Here, the name of Galicia occupies its own prominent position next to other independent spaces such as Anglia (England), Frisia (Friesland), or Francia , etc.. For the non-Spanish European elite of the 15th century, Hispania or Ispania was often understood either as a broad geographical term or strictly associated with the central and southern submeseta kingdoms. Galicia, on the contrary, maintained its status as a distinct maritime and political entity in the international consciousness, deeply rooted in its ancient Suevic and Orosian tradition. THE KINGDOM OF GALICIA: THE "PRINCIPATUS". FIRST DYNASTY, THE TRABA HOUSE. It must be admitted that the expression "principatus" , even when referring to geographical areas close to each other, served to define very distinct political structures: an independent kingdom or, as in the Asturian case, a territorial domain fully integrated into the Castilian "regnum" . In the first case, it was not necessary to adopt the title of king nor to be directly linked to the lineage of kings. It was not necessary, therefore, to adopt a posture of Neo-Gothic legitimism. Matrimonial alliances with preexisting royalty or the hereditary right of the "principatus" are also characteristic. These elements that characterize this political-administrative entity would occur in Galicia, with the particularity that it was already a legitimate kingdom and that the education of future monarchs in its territory was customary. The first mention of the "principatus" of Galicia properly speaking seems to be found in a mention during the minority of Ramiro III: “et perunctus est in regno filius ipsius Santionis nomine Ranemirus miniman et pusillam agens etatem qui nuper adhuc continens PRINCIPATUM quando hec exaravimus.” "and the son of Sancho himself, named Ramiro, was anointed in the kingdom, who was of the tenderest age, who still held the PRINCIPALITY when we wrote this." (Celanova, Tumbo 265: year 982). [1] ------------------ [1] Indeed, he must have still held Galicia, as it would soon be taken from him by Vermudo II, crowned king in Compostela in that same year of 982. We are speaking of a territory that at the time encompassed the dioceses of Iria and Lugo, that is, the current provinces of A Coruña and Lugo, the lands of “Castella” and “Bubal” in the north of the province of Ourense, and the northern half of the province of Pontevedra • PEDRO FROILAZ DE TRABA, PRINCEPS GALLICIÆ ( 1097-1133 ). • « In tempore regine Urrace qui tenebat Tolleto et Legione. Et Gallecia comes Petrus » « During the reign of Queen Urraca, who held Toledo and León, while Count Pedro held Galicia » (Caaveiro, tumbo 65: y. 1097). • « In tempore regine Urrace et comitis Reimundi, qui tenebat Tolletum et Legionem, et comes Petrus qui tenebat Galleciam » « During the time of Queen Urraca and Count Raymond, who held Toledo and León, and Count Pedro, who held Galicia » (Caaveiro, tumbo 68: y, 1100) • « Ego comes Petrus, principis Gallecie, una cum uxore mea comitissa domna Maior... » « I, Count Pedro, prince of Galicia , together with my wife, Countess Doña Mayor... » (Caaveiro, tumbo 177: y. 1110). • « ...Rex Alfonsus Aragonensis regnante in Castella, & Regina Urracha Regnante in Legione, & Alffena inter illos. Rex Petrus in Galetia. Ego Comite Domno Roderico Gonçalbus & vxor mea... » « King Alfonso of Aragon reigning in Castile, and Queen Urraca reigning in León, and Alffena between them. King Pedro in Galicia . I, Count Lord Rodrigo González and my wife, daughter of King Alfonso's lineage » (Sahagún, y. 1122) • « Regnante regem nostrum, filio Reimundo et mater eius Urraka, in Legione et in Tolleto, principis in Gallecia, comes Petrus, in sede Sancti Iacobi, archiepiscopus Didacus... » « During the reign of our king Alfonso, son of Raymond, and his mother Urraca, in León and Toledo; with Count Pedro acting as prince in Galicia , and Diego as archbishop in the see of Santiago... » (Caaveiro, tumbo 198: y. 1126). • « In tempore Adefonsi regis, Compostellanus archiepiscopus, Didacus Gelmirus, tenente Gallecia, comes domnus Petrus » « During the time of King Alfonso, when Diego Gelmírez was archbishop of Compostela, and Count Lord Pedro held Galicia » (Caaveiro, tumbo 30: y. 1133). • FERNANDO PEREZ DE TRABA, PRINCEPS GALLICIÆ ( 1128-1154 ). • « In tempore Adefonsus imperatoris. Principis Gallecie comes Fernandus. In sede Sancti Iacobi archiepiscopus Didacus » « During the time of Emperor Alfonso. Count Fernando acting as prince of Galici a , and Diego as archbishop in the see of Santiago » (Caaveiro tumbo 182, y. 1128). • « In tempore Adefonsi imperator qui regnabat in Tolleto et in Legione, et ego comes Fernandus in Gallecia. In sede Sancti Iacobi archiepiscipus Didacus » « During the time of Emperor Alfonso, who reigned in Toledo and León, and myself, Count Fernando, in Galicia ; with Diego as archbishop in the see of Santiago » (Caaveiro, tumbo 109, y. 1135). • « In temporibus imperatoris domini Adefonsi, in sede apostolica dominus Didacus archiepiscopus, in minduniense sede Martinus episcopus, princeps huius territorie comes dominus Ferdinandus » « In the days of our lord Emperor Alfonso; with Lord Diego as archbishop in the apostolic see, Martin as bishop in the see of Mondoñedo, and Count Lord Fernando as prince of this territory » (Xubia, tumbo 39: y. 1137). • « Imperante imperator domno Anfonso. In Galetia comes Fernandus. Vallebriense sede episcopus Pelagius » « Under the rule of Lord Emperor Alfonso. Count Fernando in Galicia , and Pelayo as bishop in the see of Mondoñedo » (Xubia: y. 1144). • « Regnante imperatore Ildefonso in Laione et in Toleto. Comes domnus Fernandus senior in maiore parte Galletie. archiepiscopus Compostelle Petrus » « During the reign of Emperor Alfonso in León and Toledo. Count Lord Fernando governing as lord over the greater part of Galicia , and Pedro as archbishop of Compostela » (Sobrado, tumbo 413: y. 1147). • « Regnante imperatore Toleto et Legione, Nagera et Ongronio, Baetia et Almaria, in apostolica catedra sacti Iacobi archidiaconus Pelagius Camondus tenens archidiaconatum, comes domnus Federnandus tunc tenens principatum Galecie » « During the reign of the Emperor in Toledo and León, Nájera and Logroño, Baeza and Almería; with Archdeacon Paio Camondo holding the archdeaconry in the apostolic cathedra of Santiago, and Count Lord Fernando then holding the principality of Galicia » (Carboeiro, n. 51: y. 1151). • « imperator Adefonso imperante in Toleto et in Legione. comes dompnus Fredenandus in Gallecia » « Under the rule of Emperor Alfonso in Toledo and León. Count Lord Fernando in Galicia » (Caaveiro, tumbo 41: y. 1153). • « In tempore imperatoris Adefonsi. Compostellano archiepiscopo Didacus. Principis Gallecie ego comes donnus Fernandus » « During the time of Emperor Alfonso. Diego as archbishop of Compostela, and myself, Count Lord Fernando, as prince of Galicia » (Caaveiro tumbo 191: y. 1154). « The strenuous Consul Fernando follows this host, governing the Galician laws with regal care . He was sustained by the guardianship of the Emperor's son; had you seen him, you would have already thought he was a King » Carmen de expugnatione Almariae urbis (Chronica Adefonsi Imperatoris). c. XII. « ...To Don Fernando [he married] his aunt, the aforementioned Queen Doña Teresa, giving them the command and governance of the Kingdom of Galicia with the title of King , by virtue of the Queen, his wife... » Fr. Esteban Fernández Rodríguez: "Suplemento al Tomo XIX de la España Sagrada del R.P.M.F.H. Flórez, tomo I. Contiene la vida de don Sisnando Menéndez, fundador del monasterio de san Salvador de Sobrado, obispo iriense compostelano, IV de los obispos de nombre Sisnando" (1791 - 1795) • FERNANDO II, REX LEGIONIS ET GALLICIÆ ( 1157 – 1188 ). He favored a true urban renaissance through the granting of municipal charters ( foros ) to towns such as Lugo, Pontevedra, Tui, Padrón, Noia, and Ribadavia. In this way, cities achieved a leading prominence in twelfth-century Galicia, breaking free from seignorial and ecclesiastical powers. His political project aimed to transform Galicia into a great commercial power—a project that would be continued by his son Alfonso VIII (wrongly named IX by official Spanish historiography [1] [2]). Educated by the prince Fernando Pérez de Traba, he was fond of the troubadour world and supported Master Mateo, the great Galician builder and architect of the period. [1] It is evident that, as a newborn kingdom, Castile should have begun its initial enumeration of monarchs just as Portugal did; thus, their Alfonso VIII was in reality Alfonso I, since they had never before had a king by that name. [2] Afonso VIII would be the promoter of the municipal charters ( cartas forais ) of Tui, Baiona, Lobeira, Ponte Caldelas, Melide, Monforte de Lemos, Sarria, Betanzos, A Coruña, Triacastela, or Castro Caldelas, which was drafted in Galician in 1228. • « Hic enim Ildefonsus ante mortem suam, quia tenere diligeret duos filios suos, divisit eis imperium et Sancio maiori tradidit Castelle et Tolete regnum, Fernando minori Galicie regnum , et Alesie (Constantiæ) assignavit infantaticum, portionem terre que solet esse imperatricum » « For this Alfonso, before his death, because he tenderly loved his two sons, divided the empire between them; he delivered the kingdom of Castile and Toledo to Sancho, the elder, and the kingdom of Galicia to Fernando, the younger, and assigned the infantaticum to Alesia (Constance), a portion of land that is customary for empresses » ( "E Radulfi Nigri Chronica Universali" , MGH, vol. XXVII, Societas Aperiendis Fontibus Rerum Germanicarum Medii Aevi, Hannover, 1885). • « Tenente Gallicie rex Fernandus » « King Fernando holding Galicia » ( Santiago Montero Díaz : "Colección diplomática de San Martín de Jubia" , Boletín de la Universidad de Santiago de Compostela, VII, nº 25, 1935, pp. 86-87 [Xubia, y. 1152]). • « Adefonsus Ymperator, una cum coniuge sua dona Riga dominante regnante in tota Yspania. Sancius rex in Castella. Fredenandus rex in Galicia . Urraka regina in Asturias » « Emperor Alfonso, together with his wife Lady Rica, ruling and reigning in all of Spain. Sancho, king in Castile. Fernando, king in Galicia. Urraca, queen in Asturias » ( P. Floriano LLorente : "Colección diplomática de Villanueva de Oscos 1ª, serie" , BIDEA 102, doc. 5, Oviedo 1981, [Vilanova de Oscos, y. 1153]). • « Imperatoris Adefonsus, regis Fernandi imperat Galletia » « Of Emperor Alfonso, [and] of King Fernando ruling Galicia » ( P. Floriano LLorente : "Colección diplomática de Villanueva de Oscos 1ª, serie" , BIDEA 102, doc. 6, Oviedo, 1981, [Vilanova de Oscos, y. 1155]). • « Adefonsus dei gratia hispaniarum imperator laudat et confirmat. Sanctius filius eius rex Castelle laudat et confirmat. Fernandus filius eius rex Galletie laudat et confirmat. Infantissa Domina Sanctia sive regina soror eius confirmat » « Alfonso, by the grace of God emperor of the Spains, approves and confirms. Sancho, his son, king of Castile, approves and confirms. Fernando, his son, king of Galicia, approves and confirms. The Infanta Lady Sancha, or queen, his sister, confirms » ( Pilar Solís Parga : "Estudio y catalogación de las fuentes documentales e historiográficas de la catedral de Lugo (735-1217)" , Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Madrid, 1999, [Lugo, y. 1155]). • « rex Sancius in Castella et rex donnus Fernandus in omni Galletia » « King Sancho in Castile, and King Lord Fernando in all of Galicia » (Sobrado dos Monxes, y. 1156) • « Imperator Aldefonsus in Laione et in Toleto filius eius Sancius in Castella. Alius filius eius Fernandus rex in Gallecia » « Emperor Alfonso in León and in Toledo; his son Sancho in Castile; his other son Fernando, king in Galicia » (Sobrado dos Monxes, y. 1156) • « ... inclitus rex Fernandus in Legione et Galletia. [---] Ego Fernandus Dei gratia rex Legionensium et Galletie princeps... » « ...the illustrious King Fernando in León and Galicia. [---] I, Fernando, by the grace of God King of the Leonese and Prince of Galicia... » (Sobrado dos Monxes, y. 1158) • « Ego Fernandus -Dei Gratia- Rex Legionensium et Galletie Dominator... » « I, Fernando, by the grace of God King of the Leonese and Ruler of Galicia... » (Lugo Tumbo Vello 31, y. 1158) • « Aldefonso rege in Toleto et in Castella et in Nagera, Fredinando rege in Gallecia , Sancio rege in Nafarra... » « King Alfonso [being] in Toledo, and in Castile, and in Nájera; King Fernando in Galicia; King Sancho in Navarre [---] » ( Antonio Urbieta Arteta : "Cartulario de Albelda" , Textos Medievales 1, Zaragoza, 1981, p. 96 [Albelda, y. 1167]). • « Ego Fernandus Dei gratia Rex Legionensium et Gallecorum , una cum filio meo Rege Adefonso » « I, Fernando, by the grace of God King of the Leonese and the Galicians, together with my son King Alfonso » ( José Luis López Sangil ; Manuel Vidán Torreira : "Tumbo Viejo de Lugo (transcripción completa)" , Estudios Mindonienses. Anuario de estudios histórico-teológicos de la diócesis de Mondoñedo-El Ferrol, nº 27, 2011, [Lugo, y. 1177]) . • « Los deschauzitz / ab las lengas esmoutas / non dupt'ieu jes, sil seignor dels galecs / an fag faillir, per q'es dreitz sil blasmam, / que son paren pres romieu, so sabem, / Raimon lo filh del comte, et aprendi / que greu faral reis Ferrans de pretz cobra / si mantenen nol solv e nol escampa » « The unprincipled ones with their sharpened tongues, / I do not doubt at all that they have made the lord of the Galicians fail, / wherefore it is right if we blame him; / for his relative captured a pilgrim, this we know, / Raymond, the son of the count, and I have learned / that King Fernando will hardly recover his merit (worth) / if he does not immediately release him and let him escape » ( Arnaut Daniel [trovador provenzal]: "Doutz Brais E Crirz" [fragmento]: y. 1180-1195). • « sed illi qui fuerunt in oppido Alcubaz exeuntes, tres Reges cum omni eorum exercitu percusserunt. Postea in vigillia beati Iacobi, Rex Macemunt audivit, quod Rex Galicie venerat, ut solus cum solo dimicaret » « But those who were in the stronghold of Alcobaça, coming out, struck down the three kings along with all their army. Afterwards, on the eve of Saint James, King Macemunt heard that the King of Galicia had come, so that he might fight with him hand to hand (one on one) » ( Matthaei Paris Monachi Albanensis : "Angli, Historia maior" , excusum apud Reginaldum Vuolfium, Londres, 1571, y. 1184). • « ... etsi Rex Franciae, & Rex Angliae, & Rex Aragonum, & Rex Castellae, & Rex Galleciae, & Rex Portugalis pariter convenirent, & pugnarent... » « ...even if the King of France, and the King of England, and the King of Aragon, and the King of Castile, and the King of Galicia, and the King of Portugal were to assemble and fight together in like manner... » "Chronicon Lusitano [Era 1222 = y. 1184] " . • « Circa natale Domini et rex Galiciæ terrae Sancti Iacobi occiditur a paganis, cum ipse tamen victor extitisset » « Around the Nativity of the Lord, the King of Galicia, [from] the land of Saint James, was also killed by the pagans, although he himself had emerged victorious » ( Anonymus : "Annales aevi Suevici: Annales Colonienses Maximi. A. 1188 vel Chronica regia Coloniensis. 25.37" , vol. XVII, MGH, Georgius Heinricus Pertz, Hannover, 1880, p.138). • « Era Mª. CCª. XXª. VI ª morió el rey don Ferrando de Galiçia » « In the Era 1226 [y. 1188], King Don Fernando of Galicia died » ( Antonio Ubieta Arteta : "Crónicas Navarras” , Estudios Medievales, nº 14, 1989, p. 67 . • ALFONSO VIII, REX LEGIONIS ET GALLICIÆ ( 1188 – 1230 ). This itinerary was, without a doubt, the one most frequently undertaken by the monarch, especially during the middle years of his reign. Let us remember that he was in Galicia when Fernando II died; it was there that he was dubbed a knight, and it was in Compostela, Galicia, where he was ultimately laid to rest. This city was precisely where the monarch resided the longest, where he attended the consecration of the cathedral, and where he held several royal councils (curias), including the one that assembled in the spring of 1211. Ultimately, he passed away at the Castle of Sarria in late September 1230. Alfonso was born in August 1171 from the first marriage of Fernando II to the Portuguese princess Urraca Alfonso, daughter of Alfonso I of Portugal. This marriage was annulled in 1175 due to consanguinity, forcing their separation. Shortly thereafter, the Leonese monarch began a long-standing relationship with the House of Haro, which culminated in 1187 with a new marriage to Urraca de Haro, from whom Infante Sancho was born. Thus, the two infant sons of Fernando II from different marriages, Alfonso and Sancho, both seemed destined for the succession. In September 1194, the monarch drafted a new legal ordinance in the city of León. However, its formal approval in concilium took place a month later in Santiago de Compostela. To this council in Santiago, we must add the Constitution of 1194, promulgated in the episcopal city of Lugo, which likely aimed to establish a specific legal framework for Galicia. Severe confrontations had already surfaced before the death of Fernando II. Prince Alfonso remained absent from his father's court during its final months, seeking refuge between Galicia and Portugal. He was closely supported by the Traba family and the Portuguese court, where his mother had previously taken shelter. In fact, the Leonese infante was in the lands of Limia when he received news of his father's death, whose body was transported to the Compostela pantheon in fulfillment of his last will. Santiago de Compostela would thus become the final resting place for Fernando II, while witnessing Infante Alfonso—now called to the throne—claim his crown. Consequently, the see of Compostela oversaw the first steps of the Alfonsine government, marked by a highly itinerant nature according to Julio González, and served as the true starting point of his reign. On November 11, 1211, accompanied by most of the bishops of the realm, the king went on a pilgrimage to Santiago. Years later, on January 6, 1217, the dowry for the infantas Sancha and Dulce was settled in Castelo Rodrigo, along the Portuguese border. The monarch must have always feared for the political fate of these infantas; a few years before his death, he supported the foundation of the Monastery of Villabuena by his ex-wife, Queen Teresa—a Cistercian institution that would eventually serve as a secure refuge for the infantas Sancha and Dulce. The Fabricated Royal Lineage: Alfonso X was actually Alfonso IX One of the most glaring pieces of evidence exposing the retrospective manipulation of the Castilian historical narrative lies within the masterwork of law and literature commissioned by the crown itself: the Siete Partidas. In the original text and contemporary records of his grandson, popularly known today as Alfonso X "the Wise," the monarch explicitly signed and identified himself as Alfonso IX. This structural detail shatters the monolithic, traditionalist timeline forced upon Iberian history. The modern numbering system—which labels him as the "Tenth"—was an artificial construction designed by later Castilian historiographers. Their goal was to retroactively absorb the independent, far older royal successions of the Kingdoms of Galicia and León into a singular, Castilian-centric pedigree. By counting Galician monarchs as if they were strictly Castilian ancestors, later chroniclers artificially inflated the antiquity and prestige of the Castilian crown. In reality, the ruler traditionally known in Galician-Leonese history as Alfonso VIII (IX of León) was recognized by his own descendants as the direct, legitimate predecessor in that precise numerical sequence. This intentional confusion allowed Castilian propaganda to mask what was, in essence, a dynastic usurpation by Ferdinand III and present the forced assimilation of the Atlantic realms as a natural, prehistoric inheritance. The Galician Roots of the University: The Intellectual Axis of Compostela One of the most transcendent achievements of Alfonso VIII of León and Galicia was the creation of the Studium Generale of Salamanca in 1218. While traditional historiography presents this as a purely Spanish or Castilian triumph, the primary sources and the university's own cartulary reveal a fundamentally different reality: the institution was structurally and intellectually Galician from its very inception. During the early 13th century, cathedral schools were common across the Christian realms. Between 1208 and 1214, Bishop Tello Téllez de Meneses established a Studium Generale in Palencia (within the borders of Castile). However, the continuous military and political clashes between the crowns of Castile and the Galician-Leonese realm made it virtually impossible for students from the Atlantic territories to attend. In response to this isolation, Alfonso VIII founded the Salamanca Studium Generale in 1218, which would later become the first European educational institution to officially hold the title of "University," granted by his grandson Alfonso X in 1252 and ratified by Pope Alexander IV in 1255. Crucially, this institution was not built from scratch; its structural foundation was the famous Cathedral School of Santiago de Compostela. Founded in the 11th century during the reign of Queen Sancha I of Galicia (1037–1065), Compostela was the true intellectual powerhouse of the Atlantic facade. The Cartulary of Salamanca confirms this deep Galician matrix: throughout the Middle Ages, the Archbishops of Santiago held the chancellery and rectorate of the University of Salamanca. Furthermore, the vast majority of its early professors were Galician scholars who had been trained in Santiago, Paris, or Bologna. This cultural hegemony is deeply tied to language. During this pivotal transition from Latin to the vernacular in public administration, the official language of Alfonso VIII’s court was Galician. The monarch himself spoke it, and it was already established as the undisputed language of the Cancioneiros, lyric poetry, and high culture across the entire peninsula. The birth of higher education in the realm was not a Castilian export, but an expansion of the Galician-Portuguese cultural and academic universe. • « Anno Domini 1224. In octabis vero sequentis pentecostes Iohannes rex Ierosolimitanus a Sancti Iacobi Turonis est regressus cum filia (Berengaria) regis Galliciensis , quam in illis partibus duxerat in uxorem » « In the year of our Lord 1224. On the octave of the following Pentecost, King John of Jerusalem returned from Saint James [of Compostela] to Tours, together with the daughter (Berengaria) of the Galician King , whom he had taken as his wife in those territories » ( "Ex Chronico Sancti Martini Turonensi" , MGH, vol. XXVI, Societas Aperiendis Fontibus Rerum Germanicarum Medii Aevi, Hannover, 1882). • « Alphonsum , regem Gallæciæ et Legionis , excommunicavit, propter nuptias cum sua consanguinea, filia Sanctii, Regis Portugalliæ, quas, licet a Pais damnatas, rescindere nolebat, teste Hovedeno. [---] Alphonsum , Gallæciæ et Legionis Regem , quia filiam Alphonsi, Castellæ Regis, neptem suam, duxerat, excommunicavit, et regnum interdicto sacro supposuit, mox in initio Pontificatus, donec Rex solverit matrimonium » « He excommunicated Alfonso, King of Galicia and León , because of his marriage to his own cousin, the daughter of Sancho, King of Portugal. Although this union had been condemned by the Pope, the King refused to annul it, as witnessed by Hoveden. [---] He excommunicated Alfonso, King of Galicia and León , because he had married his own niece, the daughter of Alfonso, King of Castile, and he placed the kingdom under a sacred interdict at the very beginning of his pontificate, until the King dissolved the marriage » ( Herman Venema : "Institutiones historiae ecclesiae Veteris" , T. VI, apud Samuelem et Johannem Luchtmans, 1782). • « Hoc item anno fuit agendum Cælestino Papæ apud Reges Hispaniarum, pro dissolutione matrimonii, quod Sancius Rex Portugallensis conciliaveiat inter Tarsiam filiam suam & Adelfonsum Regem Gallæciæ nepotem suum. Et licet multum laboratum esset a Summis Pontificibus ut separarentur, atque adeo Regem Gallæciæ refractarium excommunicassent, ac terram eius interdicto subiecissent; nihil ominus retinuit eam ipse per quinque annos, quibus tres ex ea genuit filios. Quosque insurgens in eum Adelfonsus Rex Castellæ, coegit eum relinquere illam & accipere filiam suam in uxorem » « In this same year, Pope Celestine had to take action with the Kings of Spain regarding the dissolution of the marriage which Sancho, King of Portugal, had arranged between his daughter Teresa and Alfonso, King of Galicia, his nephew. And although the Supreme Pontiffs labored greatly to separate them, even excommunicating the refractory King of Galicia and placing his land under an interdict, he nevertheless kept her as his wife for five years, during which time he fathered three children with her. He did so until Alfonso, King of Castile, rising up in arms against him, forced him to abandon her and to take his own daughter as his wife » ( Cesar Baronio : "Annales ecclesiastici: ex XII. tomis Caesaris Baronii, S.R.E. Presb. Cardinalis, Bibliothecarii Apostolici, in Epitomen redacti" , Posuel et Rigaut, Lugdunum, 1686). • « Rogerus de Houeden anno M.C.XCI. de Cælestini III. PP. exordiis. Eodem anno fuit laborandum eidem Cælestino Papæ in dissolutione matrimonii inter Reges Hispaniarum; cum videlicet Sancius Rex Portugallensis dedit Tarsiam filiam suam Adelfonso Regi Galliciæ , nepoti suo; in uxorem; de qua genuit tres filios. Et licet post Clementem Cælestinus Papa multum laboraret ut separarentur; tamen tenuit eam contra Deum & prohibitionem Domini Papa per quinque annos. Interim surrexit in prædictum Regem de S. Iacobo Adelfonsus Rex Castella & coegit eum relinquere uxorem suam, filiam Regis Portugallensis & dedit ei propriam filiam in uxorem permisione Domini Papæ Cælestini pro bono pacis. Sic enim iam laudatus Rogerus anno M.C.XCVIII. Defuncto Papa Cælestino Innocentius PP. III. substitutus, iterum suspendit Aldefonsum Regem de S. Iacobo & totam terram suam a celebratione diuini Officii propter uxorem suam, filiam Regis Castella erant enim consanguinei in tertio gradu » « Roger of Hoveden, for the year 1191, regarding the beginning of the pontificate of Pope Celestine III: In that same year, the same Pope Celestine had to exert great effort concerning the dissolution of a marriage between the Kings of Spain; namely, when Sancho, King of Portugal, gave his daughter Teresa to Alfonso, King of Galicia, his nephew, as his wife, by whom he fathered three children. And although Pope Celestine, following Clement, labored greatly to separate them, Alfonso nevertheless kept her for five years against God and the prohibition of the Lord Pope. In the meantime, Alfonso, King of Castile, rose up against the aforementioned King of Santiago , and forced him to abandon his wife, the daughter of the King of Portugal, and gave him his own daughter as a wife, with the permission of the Lord Pope Celestine for the sake of peace ( pro bono pacis ). Thus, as the renowned Roger records for the year 1198, upon the death of Pope Celestine, his successor Pope Innocent III once again suspended Alfonso, the King of Santiago , and his entire land from the celebration of the Divine Office because of his wife, the daughter of the King of Castile, for they were related by consanguinity in the third degree » ( Ioanne Iacobo Chifletio : "Vindiciæ Hispanicæ; in quibus arcana regia, publico pacis bono, luce donantur" , Ed. ex Officina Platiniana Balthasaris Moreti, 1647). • « Nam et A. MCXCIV. Henricvm VI. Imperatorem, et Leopoldum, Austriæ Ducem, ob captum in itinere Richardum, Angliæ Regem, et Alphonsum , Regem Gallæciæ et Legionis , ob incestas nuptias sacris prohibebat, et Philippum Augustum, Galliæ Regem, repudiatam uxorem, Ingelburgam, recipere, frustra licet, iubebat » « For indeed, in the year 1194, he [Pope Celestine III] banned from the holy sacraments Emperor Henry VI and Leopold, Duke of Austria, for having captured King Richard of England during his journey, as well as Alfonso, King of Galicia and León , on account of his incestuous marriage; he also commanded Philip Augustus, King of France—though in vain—to take back his repudiated wife, Ingelburga » ( Ignatius Brentano Cimarolo : "Epitome Chronologica Mundi Christiani" , Imprensis Georgii Schütter et Martini Happach, Vindelicia, 1727). • « Idem Regi Ildefonso Gallitiæ lætatur quod Toletana ecclesia Saracenorum iure liberata » « Likewise, he rejoiced with King Alfonso of Galicia because the Church of Toledo had been liberated from the rule of the Saracens » ( Catholic Church. Pope ( 1216-1227: Honorius III ), Pietro Pressutti : "Regesta Honorii papae III" , vol. 1, G. Olms, New York, 1978). • « Ego Adefonsus / Aldefonsus , Dei gratia rex Legionis et Gallecie » « I, Alfonso, by the grace of God, King of León and Galicia » ( Codolga : anos 1188 - 1198). • « ... Sancii, Regis Purtugale et Algarbi, et A ., Regi Legionum et Gallicie » « [...] of Sancho, King of Portugal and the Algarve, and of Alfonso, King of León and Galicia » ( Julio González González : "Alfonso IX" , Vol. 2 (Colección documental), Instituto Jerónimo Zurita; CSIC, Madrid, 1944, [ano 1191]). • « Ego Dei Gratia Adefonsus Rex Legionensium et Galletie » « I, Alfonso, by the grace of God, King of the Leonese and of Galicia » ( Codolga : Lugo, ano 1196; Ourense, Santiago TumboB/82, ano 1197). • « Ego Adefonsus , Dei gracia rex Legionis et Gallecie una cum uxore mea regina domna Berengaria » « I, Alfonso, by the grace of God, King of León and Galicia, together with my wife, Queen Doña Berenguela » ( Codolga : Astorga, León, Lugo, Mondoñedo, Monforte, Santiago, Uclés, ano 1199; León, ano 1200). • « Ego Adefonsus Dei gratia rex Legionis et Gallecie una cum filiabus meis infantibus domina Sancia et domina Dulcia [vel Alduncia] » « I, Alfonso, by the grace of God, King of León and Galicia, together with my daughters, the infantas Doña Sancha and Doña Dulce [or Aldonza] » ( Codolga : s/p, 1223; Oia, ano 1228). • GONZALO FERNÁNDEZ DE TRABA , PRINCIPIS GALLECIE ( 1153-1158 ). Hijo mayor de Fernando Pérez de Traba y de Sancha González de Lara, nieto del conde de Traba, Pedro Froilaz, de los que recibió el mayorazgo y, consecuentemente, el linaje de los Traba. Al igual que su padre fue conde de Traba, Aranga, Monterroso y Trastámara. A partir de 1153, Gonzalo Fernández de Traba comienza a figurar como sucesor de su padre, y es en un documento del 12 de octubre de dicho año cuando aparece ya como príncipe en Galicia. Medio-irmán da raiña Tareixa Fernandez de Traba. • « In tempore regis Fernandi. Principis Gallecie, comes Gundisalvus. Archiepiscopus Compostellanus, Pelagius Camundus » (Caaveiro tumbo 202, y. 1153). • GOMECIO GONZÁLEZ DE TRABA , PRINCIPIS GALLECIE ( 1158-1211 ). Fillo vinculeiro de Gonzalo Fernández de Traba, conde de Monterroso, Montenegro, Sarria, Traba e Trastámara. Mordomo de Afonso VIII de Galicia e León. • « in tempore Fernandus rex. Principis Gallecie comes Gomecius... » (Caaveiro tumbo 200, 199 y. 1158, 1160). • « in tempore regis Fernandi, principis Gallecie, comes Gomez... » (Caaveiro tumbo 173, y. 1160). • « ... regnante rege nostro Fernando. In cathedra Beati Iacobi, archiepiscopus Petrus Godesteci. Principis in Gallecia, comes Gomez... » (Caaveiro tumbo 169, 189, y. 1168, 1187 ). • « In tempore Fernandi regis. Principis Gallecie comes G[omez]. In sede Sancti Iacobi archiepiscopus Petrus Suariz... » (Caaveiro tumbo 170, y. 1181). • « In tempore Adefonsus rex. Principis Gallecie comes Gomez. Compostellano archiepiscopo Petrus... » (Caaveiro tumbo 174, y. 1198). • « Tempore regis Alfonsi. Principis Gallecie comes Gomecius. Archiepiscopus Compostellanus Petrus... » (Caaveiro tumbo 203, 204, y. 1204). • « In tempore Adefonsus regis. In sede Sancti Iacobi archiepiscopus Petrus. Principis Gallecie comes G[omez]... » (Caaveiro tumbo 171, y. 1211). • ROI GÓMEZ DE TRABA , PRINCIPIS GALLECIE ( 1220-1258 ). " Principis Gallecie domno Rodericus" • « In tempore regis Alfonsi. Principis Gallecie Roderico Gomez. Compostellano archiepiscopo Petrus Muniz. Minduniensis episcopus Pelagius » (Caaveiro tumbo 229, y. 1220). • « regnante rege nostro domno Fernando. Minduniensis episcopus, domnus Martinus. Principis Gallecie, domno Roderico Gomet » (Caaveiro tumbo 259, y. 1223). • « ... in presentia principis terre donue Roderici Gomet... » (Sobrado CD 905, y. 1223). • « regnante rege nostro Adefonso. in sede Beati Iacobi, archiepiscopus Bernardus. Principis in Gallecie, Rodericus Gomez » (Caaveiro tumbo 162, y. 1224). • « In tempore Adefonsus rex. Principis Gallecie Roderico Gomez. Compostellano archiepiscopo Bernardus » (Caaveiro tumbo 175, y. 1224). • « Tempore domni Adefonsi regis. Principis Gallecie Roderico Gomez. Compostellano archiepiscopo donno Bernardo. Episcopo Minduniensi domno Martino » (Caaveiro tumbo 228, y. 1225). • « In tempore regis Adefonsus. Principis Gallecie Roderico Gomez. Compostellano archiepiscopo Bernardus » (Caaveiro tumbo 172, y. 1226). • « In tempore regis Adefonsi. Principis Gallecie Roderico Gomez. In sede Sancti Iacobi archiepiscopus Bemardus. In sede Minduniensis episcopus Martinus » (Caaveiro tumbo 227, y. 1226). • « Tempore regis domni Fernandi. Principis Gallecie domno Roderico Gomez. Compostellano archiepiscopo domno Bernardo. Minduniensi episcopo donno Martino » (Caaveiro tumbo 230, y. 1231). • « Regnante rege nostro domno Fernando. Minduniensis episcopus domnus Martinus. Principis Gallecie domno Roderico Gomez » (Caaveiro tumbo 258, 289, y. 1232). • « In tempore regis domno Fernando. Archiepiscopus Compostellanus, domno Bernardus. Principis Gallecie donno Roderico Gomez. Minduniensis episcopus, domno Martino, qui presentes fuerunt » (Caaveiro tumbo 231, y. 1234). • « ...in tempore Fernandum regis. Principis Gallecie, Rodericus Gomez. Compostellano archiepiscopo, Bernardo... » (Caaveiro tumbo 216, y. 1234). • « ...regnante rege nostro Fernando. In sede Beati Iacobi, archiepiscopo Bernardus. Principis Gallecie, Roderico Gomez... » (Caaveiro tumbo 161, y. 1234). • « ...regnante serenissimo rege nostro domno Fernando. Episcopo Minduniensis, domno Martino. Principis Gallecie. donno Roderico Gomez » (Caaveiro tumbo 251, y. 1235). • « In tempore regis Fernandi. Principis Gallecie Roderico Gomez. Compostellanus archiepiscopus Bernandus » (Caaveiro tumbo 190, y. 1236). • « in tempore Fernandus rex. Principis Gallecie, Rodericus Gomez. Compostellano archiepiscopo, domno Bernardus » (Caaveiro tumbo 194, y. 1236). • « Regnante domno Fernando rex. Principis Gallecie domno Roderico Gomez. Compostellano archiepiscopo domno Bernardo » (Caaveiro tumbo 250, y. 1237). • « in tempore regis domno Fernando. principis Gallecie, domno Roderico Gomez. Cospostellano archiepiscopo, domno Bemardo » (Caaveiro tumbo 234, y. 1238). • « Regnante rege nostro domno Fernando in Legione et in Castella. Episcopus Minduniensis domno Martino. Principis Gallecie domno Roderico Gomet » (Caaveiro tumbo 261, y. 1239). • « Regnante rege nostro domno Fernando. Principis Gallecie, domno Roderico Gomez. Minduniensis episcopus, domno Martino » (Caaveiro tumbo 260, y. 1240). • « Regnante rege nostro domno Fernando. In sede Sancti Iacobi, archiepiscopus Iohannes Arie. Principis Gallecie, donno Roderico Gomez » (Caaveiro tumbo 213, y. 1240). • « Tempore regis Fernandi. Principis Gallecie Roderico Gomez. Minduniensis episcopus Martinus » (Caaveiro tumbo 225, 226, y. 1241). • « In tempore regis domno Fernando. Minduniensis episcopus domno Martino. Principis Gallecie domno Roderico Gomez » (Caaveiro tumbo 256, y. 1244). • « In tempore regis donno Fernando. Principis Gallecie, donno Roderico Gomez. Compostellano archiepiscopo Iohanne Arie » (Caaveiro tumbo 236, y. 1244). • « Regnante donno Fernando. Principis Gallecie, domno Roderico Gomez. Minduniensis episcopus, domnus Martinus » (Caaveiro tumbo 246, y. 1244). • « In tempore regis Fernandi. Episcopus Minduniensis, Martinus. Principis Gallecie, Roderico Gomez » (Caaveiro tumbo 254, y. 1245). • « In tempore regis Fernandi. Episcopus Minduniensis, Martinus. Principis Gallecie, Roderico Gomez » (Caaveiro tumbo 254, y. 1245). • « Regnante rege nostro domno F[ernando]. Principis Gallecie domno Roderico Gomez. Episcopus Minduniensis domno Martino » (Caaveiro tumbo 243, 244, y. 1245). • « Regnante rege Fernando in Castella et in Legione. Compostellano archiepiscopo, Iohannes Arie. Principis Gallecie, Rodericus Gomez » (Caaveiro tumbo 266, y. 1246). • « In tempore regis Fernandi. Principis Gallecie, Roderico Gomez. Compostellanus archiepiscopus, Bernandus » (Caaveiro tumbo 190, y. 1246). • « in tempore regis domno Fernando. Compostellano archiepiscopo, Iohannes Arie. principis Gallecie, domno Roderico Gomez » (Caaveiro tumbo 252, y. 1246). The Geopolitical Architect of the West: Prince Roi Gómez de Traba Just like his father during the reign of Fernando II, Lord Rodrigo Gómez de Traba stood as one of the three closest and most trusted advisors to King Alfonso VIII of Galicia and León. Along with Rodrigo Fernández de Valduerna and Fernando Gutiérrez de Lemos, this triumvirate of statesmen was tasked with the highly complex challenge of managing and containing the political maneuvers of the bastard children of King Sancho of Portugal, who exerted considerable influence across the Galician-Leonese territories. Rodrigo’s pedigree reflected the high international diplomacy of the medieval Atlantic and Pyrenean elites. He was the son of Count Gómez González de Traba and his second wife, Miraglia Ermengol, who was herself the daughter of Count Ermengol VII of Urgell and connected to the House of Foix. This direct link to the powerful independent counties of the northeastern marches provided the Traba lineage with immense prestige and diplomatic leverage outside the central peninsular kingdoms. Following the death of Alfonso VIII in 1230 and the forced enthronement of the Castilian usurper Ferdinand III, it was Lord Rodrigo who took direct charge of the governance of Galicia, consolidating his status as the de facto sovereign prince of the realm to safeguard its foral and institutional identity. The Phantom County: How Modern Historiography Downgraded the Princes of Galicia A striking example of how traditional Spanish historiography managed to distort the independent nature of the Galician realm involves the deliberate minimization of the role of Rodrigo Gómez de Traba. Academic works heavily rely on classifying him as the simple lord or holder of the "County of Trastámara" (and its extensions in Sarria and Lemos, which included the county of Montenegro, seized from the bastard children of Sancho I of Portugal). However, a rigorous critical analysis reveals that this so-called unified County of Trastámara was a territorial illusion—a historical chimera. In reality, during the 13th century, that specific geography was heavily fragmented. Large swaths belonged directly to the royal domain ( realengo ), other vast territories were under the jurisdiction of the Archbishopric of Santiago, and the rest was distributed among independent signorial houses (such as the Traba lineage itself, along with the rising estates of Altamira and Andrade). It was never a cohesive, single-lord county. The reason traditional chroniclers invented this overarching "Trastámara" label was to run a historical damnatio memoriae over Rodrigo's true, uninterrupted title: Prince of Galicia ( Principis Gallecie ). By reducing a supreme, overarching political office to a fragmented regional lordship, they successfully hid a fundamental truth: the Principality of Galicia was an institutional reality that had operated as a de facto regency for over a century. From Raymond of Burgundy, Pedro Froilaz, and Fernando Pérez, down to Gómez González and Rodrigo himself, this office was always exercised a título de rey (with the full executive prerogatives of a monarch). Silencing this lifelong, thirty-year governance was essential to make the subsequent Castilian assimilation of the Atlantic facade appear seamless, erasing the institutional shield that kept Galicia self-governing long after the central usurpation of 1230. The Aftermath of the Traba Lineage: The Geopolitical Legacy (1265–1315) Following the death of the last great Traba prince, Rodrigo Gómez, the territorial legacy of the lineage transcended its initial symbolic framework. By 1241, the region of Trastámara began to be labeled in written charters as a "comitatu" (county). However, as the academic evidence confirms, the territory of Trastámara was never, in a strict legal sense, an early-medieval comitatus , nor was it ever a unified administrative district. Instead, it was an artificial integration of several distinct jurisdictions whose boundaries shifted constantly over the decades. Yet, after the demise of the Traba line, this vast area was transferred as a singular entity, even though it preserved little more than the name of the immense domain once held by its original rulers. The control ( tenencia ) over Rodrigo’s Trastámara, alongside the strategic districts of Monterroso and Montenegro, was transferred to the Infante Lord Alfonso de Molina . Crucially, Alfonso acquired these rights by virtue of his marriage to Mafalda González de Lara , who was the direct niece of Prince Rodrigo Gómez . Records from 1265 identify Alfonso de Molina as the "obtinente" (holder) of Trastámara and Montenegro, and between 1264 and 1270 as the governor of Monterroso. Thus, these governance rights did not entirely abandon the Traba family network. This close kinship between Alfonso’s wife and the ancient counts of Galicia raises a critical historical question regarding how essential her lineage was in validating his authority over the region. Ultimately, placing both Trastámara and Monterroso under the jurisdiction of the Infante and Lord of Molina heavily contributed to fabricating the modern, centralized image of these domains as a conventional feudal lordship, hiding their original nature as an institutional shield of Galician autonomy. The Geopolitical Cover-Up: Fabricating a Dynasty to Hide a Regicide The creator of the title of county of Trastámara is Alfonso XI who, in 1327, grants it to Alvar Núñez Osorio. This appears as a successor in many of the territories that Alfonso XI gives him, from the Infante Felipe, deceased the same year, who had also been advanced Mayor and Mayor of Santiago. This last title he would have conferred authority over the Archbishop's Trastámara, however, no it is clear if he was able to have Trastámara under his administration realenga, in which Queen María de Molina had had one special interest. What is clear is that Infante Felipe would not have received him title of count of any of his lordships, even if there were any administered as such, case of Lemos and Monterroso, at least, and he doesn't even mention them like that in the documents he issues, which he does does with Ribera and Cabrera. But it does not refer to Caldelas either Valdeorras and it is known to us by the donation of Alfonso XI to Pedro Fernández who had possessed them, just like Vilalba, which fuels our doubts about him possible possession of Trastámara. A deep, critical analysis of the sources reveals the ultimate political motive behind the forced creation of the "County of Trastámara" narrative by Castilian-centered historiography. Traditionalist scholars intentionally avoid analyzing the Principality of Galicia ( Principatum ) because doing so would force them to acknowledge a cohesive, alternative state structure on the Atlantic facade—one that seamlessly integrated signorial lands, royal domains ( realengo ), and the massive jurisdiction of the Archbishopric of Santiago. Instead, the centralist narrative deliberately hyper-focused on the artificial label of "Trastámara." The reason for this is purely propagandistic: to legitimize the subsequent Trastámara Dynasty that seized the throne of Castile through bastardry and regicide. When Enrique II (the Bastard of Trastámara) brutally murdered his legitimate half-brother, King Pedro I, in 1369, the new ruling faction desperately needed a narrative of ancient, noble pedigree to wash away the stain of treason and illegitimacy. By retroactively inflating the fragmented Galician lands once held by the Traba family into a prestigious, singular "County of Trastámara," Castilian chroniclers manufactured a fictional historical baseline. They intentionally downgraded a supreme, overarching Galician Principatum —which had operated a título de rey —into a standard feudal title. This dual maneuver successfully erased the memory of Galician institutional sovereignty while simultaneously providing the new, bloody Castilian royal house with a clean, noble-sounding toponymic shield to obscure their origins as usurping bastards. The Collapse of Royal Domain: The Feudal Devouring of Galicia During the 15th century, the loss of royal land ( realengo ) within the ancient territorial matrix of the House of Traba was catastrophic. This immense geographical space, which had been transferred through shifting tenures into foreign hands—such as Castilian infantes and the House of Lara—was systematically dismantled. By the mid-1400s, the vast majority of this initially fictional "county" had been permanently absorbed by the dominant regional houses of Lemos, Altamira, Mariño, and Sarmiento. The sheer extent of this institutional bleeding is starkly preserved in the royal archives: "By the year 1477, the Crown had been unable to preserve more than two royal jurisdictions ( juzgados realengos ) in Soneira and Bergantiños, which were merely composed of scattered, fragmented parishes." (Archivo General de Simancas, RGS, leg. 147.710, 107). The Shield of the West: Why Castile Failed to Absorb the Kingdom of Galicia Ultimately, the institutional architecture of the Galician Principatum proved structurally impossible for Castile to colonize or subdue through standard bureaucratic means. As the genealogist and historian Guevara notes, a fascinating geopolitical phenomenon occurred: every single magnate or royal official sent by centralist interests to govern the northwest ended up being entirely absorbed by the local political fabric, actively emulating the independent modus operandi of the ancient House of Traba. The source of this immense, quasi-regal authority lay in two formidable instruments of local power: the Pertigueiría of Santiago —a military and administrative high-magistracy of the Archbishopric of Compostela whose massive network of properties and military commands extended as far south as Extremadura—and the sweeping episcopal encomiendas of the city of Lugo . The holder of these offices was far more than the lord of the fragmented, legally hollow "County of Trastámara" (which by the 15th century was split into countless cotos or jurisdictions without true central control). He was, as the renowned Aragonese Renaissance chronicler Jerónimo Zurita was forced to admit when describing the Count of Lemos during the reign of the Catholic Monarchs, the "Great Lord of Galicia" ( el gran señor de Galicia ). This internal resilience explains Castile’s desperate, often violent obsession with dominating the kingdom by force—a necessity dictated by the urgent strategic need to control the critical Atlantic port of Faro (A Coruña) . Consequently, throughout the 14th and 15th centuries, Galicia became the supreme geopolitical prize and a battleground for the great European powers during the Hundred Years' War: Portugal: King Fernando I of Portugal entered the realm to widespread acclaim from the Galician towns and nobility, ruling as the de facto sovereign prince for nearly three years. France: The legendary Breton marshal Bertrand du Guesclin was granted the nominal title of Prince [King] of Galicia by the usurper Enrique II of Trastámara as payment for his mercenary actions, which included the brutal regicide of Pedro I. England: John of Gaunt , Duke of Lancaster and son of Edward III, landed a massive fleet in A Coruña in 1386. Supported by the local elite, he was formally proclaimed and recognized in Santiago de Compostela as the rightful King of Galicia and León by virtue of his marriage to Princess Constanza. This international tug-of-war proves that Galicia was never a passive, assimilated province of a rising Spain. It remained an autonomous, highly coveted Atlantic crown, whose local rulers wielded a degree of authority that routinely defied and eclipsed the dictates of the Castilian court. Miscellanea: Viking Raids on Nuclear Galicia: History and Legend (858 – the beginning of the 12th century): " The Battle of Camporramiro" Fig. Castro Candaz, an ancient Celtic hillfort over which a castle was built. Place where the Galicians resisted the Vikings until the arrival of the troops of King Ramiro I of Galicia.