Beatriz de Bobadilla (1440–1511) was a Spanish noble and

courtier A courtier () is a person who attends the royal court of a monarch or other royalty. The earliest historical examples of courtiers were part of the retinues of rulers. Historically the court was the centre of government as well as the official ...

. She is known as the

confidant The confidant ( or ; feminine: confidante, same pronunciation) is a character in a story whom a protagonist confides in and trusts. Confidants may be other principal characters, characters who command trust by virtue of their position such as ...

of Queen

Isabella I of Castile Isabella I ( es, Isabel I; 22 April 1451 – 26 November 1504), also called Isabella the Catholic (Spanish: ''la Católica''), was Queen of Castile from 1474 until her death in 1504, as well as Queen consort of Aragon from 1479 until 1504 b ...

. She was the childhood friend of Isabella, and remained at her court as her

adviser An adviser or advisor is normally a person with more and deeper knowledge in a specific area and usually also includes persons with cross-functional and multidisciplinary expertise. An adviser's role is that of a mentor or guide and differs categor ...

throughout her reign, once being subjected to an

assassination Assassination is the murder of a prominent or important person, such as a head of state, head of government, politician, world leader, member of a royal family or CEO. The murder of a celebrity, activist, or artist, though they may not have ...

attempt when mistaken for the queen.

Life

Beatriz de Bobadilla was born in 1440 to Mosén Pedro de Bobadilla and Beatriz de Corral. Her father was

castellan A castellan is the title used in Medieval Europe for an appointed official, a governor of a castle and its surrounding territory referred to as the castellany. The title of ''governor'' is retained in the English prison system, as a remnant ...

of , where Isabel de Trastámara, future Queen regnant of Castile, grew up and was schooled. The two girls became close; as Beatriz was a decade older than Isabella, the former filled the role of an older sibling for Isabella. They would be lifelong friends. According to apocrypha, during the short-lived betrothal of Isabella to Pedro Girón Acuña Pacheco, many years Isabella's senior and infamously lecherous, Bobadilla is said to have threatened to kill Girón to preserve Isabella's health and happiness. Bobadilla participated in Henry IV's attempts to keep Isabella and

Ferdinand II of Aragon Ferdinand II ( an, Ferrando; ca, Ferran; eu, Errando; it, Ferdinando; la, Ferdinandus; es, Fernando; 10 March 1452 – 23 January 1516), also called Ferdinand the Catholic (Spanish: ''el Católico''), was King of Aragon and Sardinia fro ...

separate.

Juan Pacheco Juan Pacheco, 1st Duke of Escalona (1419 – 1 October 1474), better known as Juan Pacheco, Marquess of Villena, was a Castilian noble of Portuguese descent who rose to power in the last years of the reign of Juan II of Castile and came to d ...

convinced Isabella's ladies-in-waiting that the marriage was perilous, as it could deliver Castile into the hands of Ferdinand's father, King John II.

Family

The

Bobadilla family The Bobadilla family was one of the wealthiest and most influential families within the Kingdom of Spain, particularly during the Age of Discovery. Overview The family had a long history of service and ties to the crown of Castile. They were mem ...

was one with a long history of service to the

Crown of Castile The Crown of Castile was a medieval polity in the Iberian Peninsula that formed in 1230 as a result of the third and definitive union of the crowns and, some decades later, the parliaments of the kingdoms of Castile and León upon the accessi ...

. Bobadilla's niece was Beatriz de Bobadilla y Ossorio, Governess of

La Gomera La Gomera () is one of Spain's Canary Islands, located in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Africa. With an area of , it is the third smallest of the eight main islands of this archipelago. It belongs to the province of Santa Cruz de Tene ...

, who was known as "the Huntress" for her amorous exploits at the Castilian court. Other prominent relatives include Francisco Fernández de Bobadilla and

Isabel de Bobadilla Isabel de Bobadilla, or Inés de Bobadilla (c. 1505–1554) was the first female governor of Cuba from 1539–1543. Background Isabel was born to a family closely associated with the exploration and conquest of the Americas. She was the third ...

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Life

Family

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Further reading