Alonso Pita da Veiga

Who is Alonso Pita da Veiga?

Alonso Pita da Veiga, born in Ferrol in 15th century Galicia, Spain, was one of the most remarkable officers of the Spanish Tercios fighting under the orders of Count Fernando de Andrade in the Battle of Pavia, and in other battles of the Italian Wars between the years 1513-1525. He was granted the right to display a coat of arms, and was granted land and property in Ferrolterra, his birthplace, for having participated in the capture, on the battlefield, of the king of France, Francis I.

The decree granting a coat of arms to Alonso Pita da Veiga, was archived at the General Archive of Simanca and was issued by Emperor Charles V on 24 July 1529, four years after the Battle of Pavia. A verbatim text of the decree can be found in, among other 19th Century Spanish books, in the book, "Crisol historico espanol y restauracion de glorias nacionales", published in Havana, Cuba in 1862 by the Spanish historian José Ferrer de Couto. A summary of the document, in English translation, gives the following details:

"Alonso Pita da Veiga, Galician, and our vassal" served his majesty well in several battles including the Battle of Bicencio and the Battle of Vicoca. In regards to the Battle of Pavia, the decree states that Alonso Pita da Veiga recaptured the standard " ... of His Most Serene Infante Don Fernando, who is now King of Hungary, Our most dear and loved son and brother, which bore the insignia of Our Duchy of Burgundy, which the French had taken when the standard-bearer was killed”. This refers to the standard of Ferdinand, the brother of Charles V, whose troops fought at Pravia. For this action, Alonso Pita da Veiga was awarded 600 gold ducats.