Juan López de Padilla

Juan de Padilla (* 1490 in Toledo, † April 24, 1521 in Villalar (now Villalar de los comuneros, Valladolid Province ) executed ) was a leader of the comuneros revolt against Emperor Charles V ( king of Spain was ).

Life

Padilla was born in Toledo, the son of a noble family. He did not manage to acquire the royal favor, and from a sense of bitterness, he became the captain of the rebel army. The rebels thought at first the formation of a national government under the leadership of Queen Joanna of Castile, called Joanna the Mad and conquered the castle of Tordesillas, where she was trapped. The cities in Castile tried to defend their traditional rights against the rising power of the king. The most extreme demands of the insurgents was the triennial convocation of the Cortes. Because of the distrust of the Flemish advisor to Charles (I.) V. there was a general dissatisfaction, which then contributed to the ferocity of the struggle. In the summer of 1520 the rebels have won some victories under Padilla. The widespread demand for a democratization of the movement alienated the nobles. After Padilla was ousted, he was called back after a defeat of the new captain. After some military successes, his troops were defeated in Villalar on 23 April 1521, the leaders fell in battle or were (like Padilla ) executed shortly thereafter. The Spanish nobility became the first comuneros revolt against waiting. However, when he took an anti-aristocratic turn, the nobility was united on the side of the monarchy.