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- BIOGRAPHY
Bernardino, called 'the Great Constable' (Gran Condestable) for his exploits and influence, was born in 1454, the son of Pedro Fernández de Velasco, 2.conde de Haro, constable of Castile, and Doña Mencia de Mendoza. He was a member of one of the oldest and most powerful families of Castile.
In 1472 he married his first wife Blanca de Herrera, señora de Pedraza de la Sierra, daughter and sole heiress of Garcia de Herrera, señor de Pedraza de la Sierra, and Maria Niño. Blanca brought as her dowry the castle and the town of Pedraza and Talaván. Their son Pedro died young, but their daughter Ana would have progeny, marrying Don Alfonso Pimentel, 2.duque y 5.conde de Benavente.
Bernardino contracted a second marriage with Juana Maria d'Aragona, illegitimate daughter of Fernando II 'the Catholic', king of Aragón, by a mistress Doña Aldonza Roig de Iborre y de Alemany. Their daughter Juliana Angelica would marry Bernardino's nephew Pedro Fernández de Velasco y Tovar, 3.duque de Frias, son of his brother and successor Iñigo Fernández de Velasco, 2.duque de Frias, 4.conde de Haro, but this marriage did not result in progeny.
Bernardino had several children out of wedlock. By Inès Enriquez de Segredo he had a son Pedro who died aboard a galley of the plague. Apart from Pedro he had another son also named Pedro who died young, and Bernardino, Maria, Juana, Bernadina and Isabel.
Bernardino was an important figure at court, serving as viceroy and captain-general. He fought in the wars against Granada, and on 20 March 1492 the Catholic Monarchs gave him the title of the first Duke of Frias, as recorded in a charter signed on that date in Santa Fe (Granada).
He was a member of the triumvirate, along with Cardinal Cisneros and Pedro Manrique de Lara, 1.duque de Nájera, who acted as counsellors to Queen Juana I of Castile from 1506.
After being widowed for a second time, Bernardino considered marrying a daughter of Gonzalo Fernandez de Cordoba, the 'Great Captain'. Germaine de Foix, second wife of Fernando II 'the Catholic', king of Aragón, was critical that Bernardino would marry someone who, unlike his first two wives, had no royal blood. Bernardino replied that he was only imitating the king, who had done the same when he married Germaine.
He died shortly after this at Burgos on 9 February 1512. According to tradition he may have been poisoned by the ladies of the queen. Bernardino and his two wives were buried in the Monastery of Santa Clara in Medina de Pomar. After his death without a male heir, his title of Duke of Frias passed to his brother Iñigo Fernández de Velasco y Mendoza. After the death of Blanca de Herrera, Bernardino's first wife, the town of Pedraza also passed into the hands of Iñigo instead of to Ana, the daughter of his first marriage. Ana's husband Don Alfonso Pimentel, 2.duque y 5.conde de Benavente, violently clashed with Iñigo in 1512, claiming the rights of his wife, but he failed to obtain them.
In his will, Bernardino had included certain clauses so that, in case of his death without a male succession, his illegitimate sons could also inherit, to protect them from the rapacity of his younger brother Iñigo, his principal heir, married to Maria de Tovar, señora de Berlanga de Duero, who was herself a wealthy heiress. Bernardino's efforts were unsuccessful.
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