Fernán González of Castile

Fernán González of Castile
Sculpture in Arco de Santa María of Burgos
Spouse(s)	Sancha Sánchez of Pamplona Urraca Sánchez of Pamplona
Noble family	Beni Mamaduna
Father	Gonzalo Fernández of Castile
Mother	Muniadona
Born	c. 910 Lara de los Infantes
Died	970 Burgos

Fernán González (died 970) was the first autonomous count of Castile, son of Gonzalo Fernández de Burgos, who had been named count of Arlanza and the Duero around the year 900, and by tradition a descendant of semi-legendary judge Nuño Rasura. His mother Muniadona was so well remembered that the later Counts of Castile would sometimes be recorded by Iberian Muslim scholars as Ibn Māma Duna (descendant of Muniadona).

Fernán González was a colourful character of legendary status in Iberia, and founder of the dynasty that would rule a semi-autonomous Castile, laying the foundations for its status as an independent kingdom. In the year 930, Fernán's name appears with the title of count inside the administrative organization of eastern the Kingdom of León.

Fernán González grew up in the castle of Lara, where his father had begun the process of reuniting the fractured counties of Old Castile. What had been a single county under count Rodrigo of Castile had been split after the death of the latter's son Diego Rodríguez Porcelos in 885. About 899, Gonzalo was named count of Burgos, and around 909 succeeded his kinsman Munio Núñez as count of Castile, representing a fraction of the previous county of that name. Following Gonzalo's 915 death, the counties would be held by Fernando Ansúrez, Gonzalo's brother Nuño Fernández, Fernando Ansúrez again, and Gutier Núñez. Fernán González was made count of Castile and Burgos before 931. The same year, Álvaro Herraméliz, count of Álava, Cerezo and Lantarón died, and Fernán succeeded him as well, thereby reuniting Rodrigo's county. He also married Álvaro's widow, Sancha Sánchez, the sister of the García Sánchez I of Pamplona. One of the daughters of Sancho I of Pamplona and Toda of Navarre, she had been twice widowed, having first married king Ordoño II of León late in his life as his third wife — two of her sisters, Onneca and Urraca, would marry Sancha's step-sons, Ordoño's sons Alfonso IV of León and Ramiro II of León. Following Ordoño's death in 924, she had married count Álvaro Herraméliz. Her marriage to Fernán not only allowed him to unite Castile, but reinforced political alliances across the Christian north.