Justice or Mob Rule?
In 1476 there was a small town in the present-day province of Córdoba ruled by a traitor to the Catholic Monarchs. The comendador, a type of governor, belonged to the Order of Calatrava. He had been placed in the town at the behest of the Monarchs. But he went against them, and tried to get the rest of the Order to go against them, as well. He went and conquered Ciudad Real for the rival of Isabel la Católica , Juana la Beltraneja, during the years the throne of Castile was in dispute. The Monarchs reconquered Ciudad Real and were deciding what to do with this rebellious man, when he was suddenly murdered. However much of a traitor, he was still a representative of the Monarchs and it was necessary to know the truth. The truth was that Fernán Gómez de Guzmán, the comendador , was a cruel governor as well as a traitor, and the entire town rose up against him. One night the enfervored crowd broke into his house and killed him. When the Monarchs were informed, they arrived with their c...