Velasgutto de Ayala

Who is Velasgutto de Ayala?

Belasgytto, Vela el Santo or Velasco was the legendary founder of the house of Ayala. He is said to be illegitimate son of Sancho Ramirez of Navarre in an Ayala history of the fourteenth century, . He is said to have been sent to the marches of Biscay, where he or his son became vassal of king Alfonso VI of Castile, receiving the Ayala lands. While a descent from the Kings of Aragon is unsupportable and the true origins of the Ayala in the region seem to predate the time of Sancho and Alfonso, it has been speculated that this may reflect a confused memory of feudal links to the similarly named King of Viguera, Sancho Ramírez of Viguera.

The House of Lords in Ayala, supposedly founded by him, produced many prominent and distinguished royal officials of the Spanish/Castilian military class, and renown figures in the Arts. The best known was Pero Lopez de Ayala.