Duke of Medinaceli

Dukedom of Medinaceli
Creation date	1479
Created by	Ferdinand II and Isabella I
Peerage	Peerage of Spain
First holder	Luis de la Cerda y de la Vega, 5th Count of Medinaceli
Present holder	Princess Victoria of Hohenlohe-Langenburg, 20th Duchess of Medinaceli[1]

Duke of Medinaceli (pronounced [meðinaˈθeli]) is an hereditary title in the peerage of Spain, accompanied by the dignity of Grandee. The Catholic Monarchs, Ferdinand II of Aragon and Isabella I of Castile, created the title and awarded it on 31 October 1479 to Luis de la Cerda y de la Vega. He also held the title of 5th Count of Medinaceli, which was first awarded in 1368 to his ancestor, Bernal de Foix.

In 1368, the King of the Crown of Castile bestowed the title of Count of Medinaceli on Bernal de Foix, the second husband of Isabel de la Cerda. Their grandson Luis, 3rd Count of Medinaceli, eventually inherited the title and changed his family name to "de la Cerda". Later on, Queen Isabella I of Castile raised the title from Count to Duke in 1479 for Luis de la Cerda y de la Vega, 5th Count of Medinaceli.

• Bernal de Foix, 1st Count of Medinaceli (d. 1381). He took the side of the royal bastard Henry of Trastámara in 1368 against Henry's legitimate half-brother, King Peter of Castile. A bastard of Gaston III, Count of Foix, Bernal de Foix chose to stay in Castile when Henry had King Peter executed in March 1369 at the Castle of Montiel. He was the second husband of the wealthy Isabel de la Cerda, who was of legitimate royal descent from King Alfonso X of Castile through her grandfather.
• Gastón de Béarn y de la Cerda, 2nd Count of Medinaceli (c. 1371–1404). He was a courtier under King John I of Castile and Henry III of Castile.
• Luis de la Cerda y Mendoza, 3rd Count of Medinaceli (bef. 1404 – after 1447). He was a courtier under King John II of Castile.
• Gastón I de la Cerda, 4th Count of Medinaceli (1414–1454). He was a courtier of King John II of Castile.
• Luis de la Cerda y de la Vega, 5th Count of Medinaceli (c. 1442–1501). On 31 October 1479, he became the 1st Duke of Medinaceli.

Luis de la Cerda y de la Vega, 1st Duke of Medinaceli (c. 1442–1501), Count in 1454 and Duke in 1479, was the first person awarded the title of "Duke of Medinaceli". He fought in battles against Portugal and the Moorish Kingdom of Granada.

Duke Juan I de la Cerda y Vique, the 2nd Duke of Medinaceli, was a bastard who was legitimated with Grandee by the Spanish Crown in 1520. He was a courtier under Queen Isabella I of Castile, her daughter Queen Joanna of Castile, and her son King Charles I of Spain. He took part in the battles for the "incorporation" of the Kingdom of Navarre on behalf of Ferdinand II of Aragon, the grandfather of King Charles I of Spain.

Duke Gastón de la Cerda y Portugal, died without issue. He married María Gómez Sarmiento, daughter of the 3rd Count of Salinas and Count of Ribadeo.

Juan de la Cerda, 4th Duke of Medinaceli, was Viceroy of Sicily (1556–1564), and Captain General of Sicily. He was later Viceroy of Navarra (1567–1572). He married Juana Manuel de Portugal (ca. 1520-1568), daughter of Sancho I de Noronha Portugal, 2nd Count of Faro on 7 April 1541, at Ocaña.

Duke Juan III Luis de la Cerda y Manuel de Portugal, 5th Duke of Medinaceli, was an Ambassador in Portugal and a Knight of the Order of the Golden Fleece. He was married four times. His first wife, Isabella d'Aragona (bef. 1543 - August 1578) was the daughter of Antonio d'Aragona, (1506–1543). His second wife was Duca di Montalto and after 1578, he married Juana de la Lama. His 4th wife was Marquesa de la Adrada, daughter of Gonzalo Fernández de la Lama.

Duke Juan Luis de la Cerda y Aragón, 6th Duke of Medinaceli (20 May 1569 - 24 November 1607) was a Knight of the Order of the Golden Fleece. He was an Ambassador to Germanic countries. He married twice, the first time in 1564, to Ana de la Cueva, daughter of the 5th Duque de Albuquerque, Gabriel de la Cueva, Governor of the Duchy of Milano (Italy). He got married for a second time in 1606, to Antonia Dávila y Colonna (d. 29 October 1625), daughter of Gómez Dávila y de Toledo, the 2nd Marqués de Velada (d. 30 January 1599), tutor of King Philip III of Spain.

Duke Antonio Juan de la Cerda y Toledo (25 October 1607 – 7 March 1671), 7th Duque de Medinaceli, Grandee of Spain, and Captain General of Valencia in 1641. He was married at the age of seventeen to Ana Francisca Luisa Enriquez de Ribera y Portocarrero, who was thirteen years of age. The marriage took place on November 28, 1625, in Dos Hermanas, province of Sevilla. Ana Francisca Luisa Enríquez de Ribera y Portocarrero (bef. 19 September 1613 - 21 May 1645) was later granted the title of hereditary 5th Duquesa de Alcalá de los Gazules, as daughter of Pedro Enríquez Girón de Ribera, a Knight of the Military Order of Santiago.

Juan Francisco de la Cerda y Portocarrero, 8th Duke of Medinaceli, (4 November 1637– 20 February 1691) was a Knight of the Order of the Golden Fleece. He was the Prime Minister of King Charles II of Spain. Medinaceli's strategies "produced fierce antipathy" between Marie-Louise of Orleans, the new Queen of Spain. He firmly believed in the rivalry of France and Spain and considered France the enemy. Therefore, he tried to isolate the young Queen from any french influence. In 1681, Medinaceli managed to have the Marquis of Villars, the french ambassador, removed from the spanish court. ^[2]

In 1685 he fell from power and was replaced by Manual Joaquín Álvarez de Toledo, 8th Count of Oropesa.^[2]

He was married at the age of sixteen to eighteen-year-old Catalina Antonia de Aragón y Folch de Cardona, 9th Duchess of Cardona, 5th Duchess of Lerma, 8th Duchess of Segorbe, on 1 May 1653 in Lucena, Province of Córdoba.

Duke Luis Francisco Tomás de la Cerda y de Aragón - Folch de Cardona, (1654 - in prison, in Pamplona fortress, 1711), was the 9th Duque de Medinaceli, 10th Duque de Cardona, 6th Duque de Lerma, 7th Duque de Alcalá de los Gazules, and 9th Duque de Segorbe.