Constable of Castile () was a title of a military nature created by

John I John I may refer to: People Religious figures * John I (bishop of Jerusalem) * John Chrysostom (349 – c. 407), Patriarch of Constantinople * John I of Antioch (died 441) * Pope John I of Alexandria, Coptic Pope from 496 to 505 * Pope John I, P ...

, King of Castile in 1382, as a result of the Third Fernandine War against the Portuguese and the English. The post substituted the title of ''Alférez Mayor del Reino'' and was more consistent with that of the French

Constable of France The Constable of France (, from Latin for 'count of the stables') was lieutenant to the King of France, the first of the original five Great Officers of the Crown (along with seneschal, chamberlain, butler, and chancellor) and the commander-in ...

. The constable was the second person in power in the kingdom, after the King and had supreme authority over the Army, as well as broad jurisdictional powers. In 1473,

Henry IV of Castile Henry IV of Castile (Spanish language, Castilian: ''Enrique IV''; 5 January 1425 – 11 December 1474), nicknamed the Impotent, was King of Kingdom of Castile, Castile and Kingdom of León, León and the last of the weak late-medieval kings of Ca ...

made the title hereditary for the Velasco family and the

dukes of Frías Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and above sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they are ...

. By that time, the position lacked any substance, and therefore it was decided that the title would cease to have any military or administrative connotations, and was simply an honorific title.

List of constables of Castile

* 1382–1391:

Alfonso of Aragon and Foix Alfonso de Aragón y Foix (1332 - Gandia, 5 March 1412) also called Alfonso I of Gandía "the old" and Alfonso IV of Ribagorza, was the eldest son of Count Peter of Ribagorza and Juana of Foix. He was the grandson of James II of Aragon and cousin ...

* 1393–1400:

Pedro Enrique de Trastámara Pedro is a masculine given name. Pedro is the Spanish, Portuguese, and Galician name for ''Peter''. Its French equivalent is Pierre while its English and Germanic form is Peter. The counterpart patronymic surname of the name Pedro, meaning ...

, son of

Fadrique Alfonso of Castile Fadrique Alfonso of Castile, 1st Señor de Haro (1334–1358), 25th Master of the Order of Santiago (1342–1358), was the fifth illegitimate child of Alfonso XI of Castile and Eleanor of Guzman. He was born in Seville. Biography Fadrique wa ...

* 1400–1423:

Ruy López Dávalos Ruy López Dávalos (Úbeda, Jaén Province, Spain, 1357 - in exile, Valencia, Spain, 1428), Count of Ribadeo since it was sold by the first count, the Frenchman Pierre de Villaines, who received it from Henry II of Castile on 20 December 1369, ...

* 1423–1453:

Álvaro de Luna Álvaro de Luna y Fernández de Jarava (between 1388 and 13902 June 1453), was a Castilian statesman, favourite of John II of Castile. He served as Constable of Castile and as Grand Master of the Order of Santiago. He earned great influence in ...

* 1458–1473: Miguel Lucas de Iranzo

Hereditary ceremonial title

* 1473–1492:

Pedro Fernández de Velasco, 2nd Count of Haro Pedro Fernández de Velasco, 2nd Count of Haro (in full, ) (c. 1425 – 1492) was a Spanish nobleman and military figure of the last stages of the Reconquista. Biography Fernández de Velasco was born in Burgos, the son of Pedro Fernández de V ...

* 1492–1512:

Bernardino Fernández de Velasco, 1st Duke of Frías Don Bernardino Fernández de Velasco, 1st Duke of Frías, Grandee of Spain (c. 1450 – 9 February 1512) was a Spanish nobleman and prominent military figure of the last stages of the Reconquista. The son of Fanciso Fernández de Velasco and Maria ...

* 1512–1528:

Íñigo Fernández de Velasco, 2nd Duke of Frías Íñigo Fernández de Velasco (1462–17 September 1528), 2nd Duke of Frías, Grandee of Spain, and Constable of Castile (), was a Spanish nobleman. Fernández de Velasco was the son of Pedro Fernández de Velasco and of Beatriz Manrique ...

* 1528–1559:

Pedro Fernández de Velasco, 3rd Duke of Frías Pedro Fernández de Velasco, 3rd Duke of Frías (c. 1485 – 10 November 1559), Grandee of Spain (in full, ) was a Spanish nobleman. Fernández de Velasco was the son of Íñigo Fernández de Velasco, 2nd Duke of Frías and of Doña María de Tov ...

* 1559–1585:

Íñigo Fernández de Velasco, 4th Duke of Frías Inigo is a masculine given name deriving from the Castilian rendering (Íñigo) of the medieval Basque name Eneko. Ultimately, the name means "my little (man)". While mostly seen among the Iberian diaspora, it also gained a limited popularity ...

* 1585–1615:

Juan Fernández de Velasco, 5th Duke of Frías ''Juan'' is a given name, the Spanish and Manx versions of ''John''. The name is of Hebrew origin and has the meaning "God has been gracious." It is very common in Spain and in other Spanish-speaking countries around the world and in the Philipp ...

* 1615–1652:

Bernardino Fernández de Velasco, 6th Duke of Frías Bernardino Fernández de Velasco, 6th Duke of Frias, Grandee of Spain,in full, (8 February 1609 – 31 March 1652), was a Spanish nobleman and diplomat. Biography Bernardino Fernández de Velasco was the oldest son of Juan Fernández de ...

* 1652–1696:

Íñigo Melchor de Velasco, 7th Duke of Frías Inigo is a masculine given name deriving from the Castilian rendering (Íñigo) of the medieval Basque name Eneko. Ultimately, the name means "my little (man)". While mostly seen among the Iberian diaspora, it also gained a limited popularity ...

* 1696–1713: José Fernández de Velasco y Tovar, 8th Duke of Frías

Sources

Portal de Archivos Españoles
Spanish noble titles Spanish Army Military history of Spain 1382 establishments in Europe 14th-century establishments in Castile {{Spain-hist-stub