GarcÃa Ordóñez
García Ordóñez († May 29, 1108 before Uclés ) was a Castilian nobleman in the 11th century. In the Cantar de Mio Cid, one of the major works of literary folklore of Spain, he is described as the personal enemy of Rodrigo Diaz " El Cid " de Vivar.
García was a son of Ordoño Ordóñez, who had served the king Ferdinand I of León - Castile as a banner carrier ( alférez ). In the year 1074 he is even twice as standard-bearer of King Alfonso VI. documentary called. The proximity of the family to the royal house was apparently justified by kinship, as they probably of King Ramiro III. descended.
Between the years 1074 and 1080 García is mentioned more in any royal charter, probably because he at that time when King Alfonso VI. had fallen into disgrace and had to go into exile. In the service of Moorish Granada Taifakönigs of standing, he led in 1079 along with two other Navarre exiles to attack the Taifakönig of Seville by, but it was in the Battle of Cabra by Rodrigo Diaz " El Cid " de Vivar, who was in the royal order was in Seville, defeated and taken prisoner. Only one year later, the situation had changed decisively García when he is mentioned in a document for the first time in Nájera in the position of Count this city, in which he is confirmed in a royal charter dated May 8, 1080. So he managed to not only return in the royal favor, but also the establishment of the de facto rule over La Rioja. At the same time there was a split between the King and the Cid, who saw himself in his turn forced to transition into exile. Apparently, Garcia was able to prevail in the struggle for power at court and strengthen its position as steward of the king. So his marriage coincided with the Infanta Urraca, daughter of King García III. of Navarre, and the appointment of his brother Rodrigo Ordóñez to the royal standard-bearer in the same time.
From then on, García appeared regularly as a witness to royal documents in. In 1096 he was commissioned together with Gonzalo Núñez de Lara, assist the Taifakönig of Zaragoza in the fight against King Peter I of Aragon, but they were subject to the 18 November at the Battle of Alcoraz. Finally, he was appointed tutor of the young heir to the throne Sancho Alfónsez, with whom he was May 29, 1108 killed at the Battle of Uclés against the Almoravids.