Mosén Diego de Valera (1412–1488) was a

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Can ...

nobleman Nobility is a social class found in many societies that have an aristocracy. It is normally ranked immediately below royalty. Nobility has often been an estate of the realm with many exclusive functions and characteristics. The characteris ...

, author, and historian who has been described as having had "

chivalrous Chivalry, or the chivalric code, is an informal and varying code of conduct developed in Europe between 1170 and 1220. It was associated with the medieval Christian institution of knighthood; knights' and gentlemen's behaviours were governed by ...

adventures" that took him "as far as Bohemia" where he was a participant in the

Hussite Wars The Hussite Wars, also called the Bohemian Wars or the Hussite Revolution, were a series of civil wars fought between the Hussites and the combined Catholic forces of Holy Roman Emperor Sigismund, the Papacy, European monarchs loyal to the Cat ...

. He authored letters to Spanish Kings

John II of Castile John II of Castile ( es, link=no, Juan; 6 March 1405 – 20 July 1454) was King of Castile and León from 1406 to 1454. He succeeded his older sister, Maria of Castile, Queen of Aragon, as Prince of Asturias in 1405. Regency John was the ...

and

Henry IV of Castile Henry IV of Castile ( Castilian: ''Enrique IV''; 5 January 1425 – 11 December 1474), King of Castile and León, nicknamed the Impotent, was the last of the weak late-medieval kings of Castile and León. During Henry's reign, the nobles became ...

admonishing them to remember rulers who had been deposed for poor governance. He reminded the latter of various Old Testament kings who were chosen to rule, but were deposed nonetheless, and of thirteen Gothic kings who died at the hand of their

vassal A vassal or liege subject is a person regarded as having a mutual obligation to a lord or monarch, in the context of the feudal system in medieval Europe. While the subordinate party is called a vassal, the dominant party is called a suzerain ...

s due to despotic government. Without necessarily approving rebellion and deposition, he implied that such was the common fate of unworthy kings. His warning did not prevent King Henry IV from being deposed in 1465. One treatise written by Valera, ''Espejo de verdadera nobleza'' (1439–41), challenged some of the preconceived notions concerning nobility. Valera argues in favor of "true nobility" based on virtue and education in place of the medieval concept of "blood" nobility, showing the influence of Renaissance humanism in the early decades of fifteenth-century Castile. He also wrote one of the first known books on

fencing Fencing is a group of three related combat sports. The three disciplines in modern fencing are the foil, the épée, and the sabre (also ''saber''); winning points are made through the weapon's contact with an opponent. A fourth discipline, ...

, ''Treatise on Arms'', and a short history of Spain, the ''Crónica de España abreviada'' (1481), which itself relies on the '' Chronicle of 1344''. His chronicle was used as the main source for the '' Crónica popular del Cid'' (1498).

Books

''Memorial de diversas hazana: Crónica De Enrique IV (published by Espasa Calpe, 1491)''
* ''Espejo de verdadera nobleza (published by Atlas, 1959; ed. by Mario Penna)''Peters Jr., Michael F.
Virtue, "Nobility, and the Public Good: ‘de vera nobilitate’ and Spanish Humanism in Diego de Valera’s Espejo de verdadera nobleza"
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Bibliography

* .

References

Spanish male writers 15th-century Spanish historians 1412 births 1488 deaths {{Spain-bio-stub