ABSTRACT
In 1272, a group of Castilian nobles held a secret meeting at Lerma (near Burgos), the seat of Nuno Gonzalez de Lara, the most powerful ricohombre in Castile and head of the most prestigious lineage within the kingdom’s nobility. Nuno Gonzalez paid no heed to the king’s words and, despite having benefitted from royal favour for decades, he led an uprising of nobles against Alfonso X. The king’s failure to come to any form of agreement with the nobles impelled them to leave the kingdom in order to force Alfonso X to accept their demands. The nobles’ rebellion of 1272 has been compared to the barons’ uprising against John I of England and the promulgation of the Magna Carta in 1215: both rebellions have been considered as the magnates’ response to the expansion of royal government. The nobles were the main beneficiaries of the king’s grace, receiving salaries, offices, and lordships in exchange for their loyalty and service.
