Zabaleta family history

Zabaleta is a Basque surname of considerable antiquity. Students of Hispanic heraldry indicate that the name has appeared prominently in Iberian history for at least the last twelve hundred years. Basque surnames "are quite distinctive and most are derived from the ancestral country home's name or other prominent geographic feature."

     Fernando González-Doria described the name's meaning: "Zabaleta has its origin in the Basque country and while we do not know in which century it appeared, we do know that it is an ancient Basque surname." Zabaleta describes the people who live by a flat place in the mountainous Pyrenees. Another version translates Zabaleta as "the people who live by the mountain pass." When the surname-root, "Zabal,"" meaning a wide place, is combined with the maximizing ending "eta," it becomes "a very-wide place." Hence Zabal-eta is, "un lugar muy ancho." The Basque practice of associating place designators with extended families also allows us to know the exact location of the Zabaleta family in the Basque countryside, This research has located two families, one in the Basque Province of Navarre and the other in neighboring Guipúzcoa. The two families are related, and together they form the progenitor base for the extended Zabaleta family both in Spain and in the Americas.

     It should be noted here that the Zabaleta surname spelled with a "b" and Zavaleta spelled with a "v" have the same origin. Etymologically there is no difference between Zabaleta and Zavaleta. In fact, this change allows us to easily differentiate between Zabaletas born in Spain and Zavaletas born in the Americas (beginning around 1500), The nature of the Basque population, their geographic area of origin, and the uniqueness of their surnames make the records and references available beyond the ordinary. Documented family history now approximates two thousand years of direct descent.The earliest reference we have to the Basque family known as Zabaleta comes from the ancient accounts of the military campaigns of Charlemagne and of his defeat at the hands of the Basques at the Battle of Roncesvalles in 778 CE. The ancient account of Charlemagne's only defeat provides us with a twelve-hundred-year-old description of the Zabaleta family home and of El Camino de Zabaleta (the Zabaleta road running through the forest and the Roncesvalles Pass), near the modern border between Spain and France.

     Los cronistas carolingios universalizaron Valcarlos englobandolo en un pedazo del "Pirineo de los Vascones," que no conoc¡an por si mismos, sino por relatos de supervivientes y, en mayor medida, de gentes que oyeron contar las historias de primera mano. Pero, como dudarlo, fueron enormemente precisos en las referencias topográficas... la hondonada subyacente por la que corre un rumoroso arroyo que no se deja ver hasta la borda Zabaleta" (in this case the word "borda" translates as a small country cottage).

Approximate translation: The Carolingian chroniclers spread the word of Valcarlos, locating it in a part of the "Pyrenees of the Basques," which they did not know personally, but had heard of in the stories of survivors and mainly from people that had heard the stories told first hand. However, how can one doubt it, as they were extremely precise in the topographic references...the underlying hollow in which runs a roaring stream that is not seen until reaching the Zabaleta's cottage.

     The ancient account describes the battle in which Roland the nephew of Charlemagne was killed and provides a lyrical, even poetic, description of the home's country setting:

Con trazas de volver a pisar el trazado genuino, la senda gana la luz en otro claro del bosque, el a que forma un recoleto parado enmarcado entre gruesos castaños y dos caudalosos arroyos, conocido por Zabaleta (lugar ancho), un rincón cautivador por su sabor pastoral que preside una recia casona de piedra, hoy convertida en borda."

Approximate translation: With plans to return to walk along the actual layout, the footpath opens into the light in another clearing of the forest, one that forms a secluded stopping point, framed between thick chestnut trees and two mighty streams, known as Zavaleta (a wide space), a corner of the woods, captivating with its pastoral flavor that presides over a sturdy stone house, today converted into a cottage.

 

The Kingdom of Navarre and the Province of Guipúzcoa

It was not until the year 905 that Sancho Garcés I organized the Basque region around a European-style regional dynasty. It became known as the Kingdom of Navarre. McAlister states that, "The Kingdom of Navarre was created in the tenth century by Romanized Basques in the western Pyrenees; and the kingdoms of Castile and Aragon were both formed in the first half of the eleventh century, Castile from the east of León, and Aragon from a county of Navarre in the central Pyrenees." The principality of Navarre enjoyed independence for several hundred years while the eastern half of the Basque country was drawn more and more into the French realm, the western half, today located in Spain, included the regions of Navarre and Guipúzcoa, home of the Zabaleta family. By the twelfth century this region had been mostly Christianized and was comprised of farms with strong extended families. Slowly, Guipúzcoa and the entire Spanish Basque region became part of the Castilian world, and the Basques were poised to play a major role in the expansion of Castile in its colonization of the New World after 1492. Map searches indicate that the distance from the Zabaletas of Lesaca, Navarre, to those in Urretxu, Guipúzcoa, to be no more than 50km or 30 miles.

 

Urretxu Villa Real, Guipúzcoa

The Royal Village of Urretxu is located in inner Guipúzcoa, equidistant from the four Basque capitals. Urretxu is part of the region of the Upper Urola River Valley, and was built along the Urola River located at the base of the steep faced Mount Irimo. Urretxu lies along a narrow and elongated valley with an undulating topography. One of the earliest known references to the Zabaleta family is associated with the establishment of the Basque village of Urretxu and its designation as a Royal town. Urretxu was designated a "Royal Village" in 1383. The first known historical document from the region is its City Charter, signed by King Juan I of Castile (1358-1390) on October 3, 1383. In the early centuries after its formation, Urretxu was a stopping point for kings and armies along a main east-west route from the capitals of Europe connecting the Iberian Peninsula. One of the most distinctive Basque family country homes, or caser¡os, in the Urretxu region is the Caser¡o de Zabaleta, located on the approach to Mount Irimo, above the Hermitage of Santa Barbara. Many references to the origin of the Zabaleta family point to this very precise and easily locatable area in Guipúzcoa. "Zabaleta" is a geographic place name easily locatable on Spanish geodesic maps. This Basque country casona maintains its coat of arms on its facade to this day. En campo de sinople, una torre de argent; translated: a silver castle-tower on a green background (the tower is a clear allusion to the relationship with the Torre de Zabaleta in Lesaca). This house was the birthplace of many very illustrious family ancestors who were powerful regional lords and land owners. It is because of the historical importance of this family site that we know that the Zabaleta family is one of the earliest of the region. We are indeed fortunate to have available to us, Lope de Isasti's 1625 description of the house. The house is described as "truly monumental," having been constructed by only the most "accomplished stone masons":La casa Zabaleta se nos presenta ya próxima, mostrando su fachada de ladrillo rojo sostenida por recios muros de mamposter¡a y dos bellos arcos de sillares. Zabaleta sorprende por las medidas de su zaguán y sus establos, y la amplitude de las estancias en toda su primera planta. Pero es en la parte alta, en la gabar¡a, donde la casona deja ver su verdadera dimensión y la importancia que tuvo antaño, pues sus vigas y entramado, la estructura toda del tejado, en verdad monumental, no pudo ser obra mas que de consumados maestros.

Approximate translation: The Zavaleta house appears to us (walking along the road and toward the house)...showing its red brick fa‡ade maintained by strong walls of stone and two beautiful arcs of cast stones. The Zavaleta house surprises one with the size of its vestibule and its stables, and the amplitude of the rooms in the entire first story. But it is in the second story and above that the large house lets us see its true dimension and the importance that it had long ago, since its beams and framework, and the entire structure of the tile roof, which is truly monumental, could not have been built by anyone other than by consummate master builders.

The work of Jaca on the history of Urretxu documents the Zabaleta family descent line, beginning with the first "Señor" of the Caser¡o de Zabaleta, Joan de Zabaleta y Aguinaga, who fought in the war against France in 1524. He married Mar¡a de Iturbe Irigoyenin in Zumárraga in 1526. The couple was given the country home as a wedding gift by Joan's father Pedro. The gift of the house included "all the land, water rights, castañares, robledales, cubas, arcas, ajuar y bastago." Translation: orchards and house furnishings.

     Mar¡a Irigoyenin died in childbirth, and Señor Joan de Zabaleta y Aguinaga then married Mar¡a Joaniz de Zabalo y Legazpi, the daughter of General Legazpi the commander of the Royal troops in the Philippine Islands. This marriage created an even stronger Zabaleta connection to Legazpi. Joan and Mar¡a Legazip's firstborn son, Santuru, fought in the War of the Pyrenees in 1558, and he was designated by King Felipe II to escort the French princess, Isabel de Valois, from the border of France into Spain, via the camino real, which passed directly in front of his Zabaleta house. Santuru's son, Santos Zabaleta married Cathalina de Beydacar and became Capitán and payroll officer for the Royal Navy of Galleons. In 1613, he became Alcalde of Urretxu and then Alcalde of Bergara in 1615-1626. In 1615 he served as part of the official escort of King Felipe III through Guipúzcoa from the French border to Oñati. Juan de Zabaleta y Mondragón, a second son, married Mar¡a de Salinas in 1595, and named his son Pedro de Zabaleta y Salinas. Pedro served in the Indias for many years as Capitán in the Royal Spanish navy.

 

Casa Torre de Zabaleta, Lesaca (Lesaka), Navarre

The Casa-Torre de Zabaleta, located in Lesaca, Navarre, was constructed in the thirteenth century or earlier. In 1364, Lesaca town records note that the tower was being reconstructed: "A Tomas de Gárriz, maestro balador, 100 carlines prietos por restaurar las almenas del Palacio de Zabaleta.40 Translation: Pay to master estimator, Tomas de Garriz 100 coins for the restoration of the Zabaleta Palace. In 1444, Señor Ochoa López de Zabaleta defended the region of Navarre against the Guipúzcoans, who sacked and plundered his home. For his service to the Crown, the Zabaleta family was recognized by the monarchs of Aragon, and the funds to "restore" the casa-torre, damaged during the siege, were provided by King Juan II, in gratitude for Zabaleta loyalty and support. Around 1450, López de Zabaleta was granted a Captaincy, becoming the regional military commander, and was made responsible for the safety of Goizueta and "el Gobierno de las Cinco Villas," the Government of the Five Villas. Mosén Felipe Zabaleta the son of Ochoa López de Zabaleta became "El Señor del Mayorazgo de Zabaleta" and also the "owner" of the Palacio de Cabo de Armeria de la villa. Later he would receive the title of "Salvador de Lesaca y Capitán General de Filipinas". Felipe Zabaleta, who was also Señor de la casa-torre de Zabaleta, is recorded in Lesaca history through extant letters as having been the "Magnifico y Nuestro Especial Amigo," of Cardenal de Fox, Infant de Navarre, Bishop of Bayona and uncle to Queen Catalina. It is probable that the Caserio de Zabaleta in Urretxu was the Lesaca family's country estate. Lesaca, located in the Basque province of Navarre, lists the Torre de Zabaleta as one of the two most important historical monument buildings in the town. .

 

Zabaletas in Public Service to the Crown

With the establishment of the primary locations of Urretxu and Lesaca and their strategic importance to the Spanish Realm, the Zabaleta family began centuries of royal service, and established their social-economic and political dominance in the region. The Zabaleta family is both ancient and noble. "En el caso del apellido Zabaleta, todo y su antiguedad y desarrollo, posee t¡tulos nobiliarios, segun las fuentes bibliograficas."Translated: The surname Zabaleta, both in antiquity and through the years, possesses titles of nobility, according to the bibliographic sources.

     There is ample evidence in the historical record of the importance the Zabaleta family played. While the term Guipúzcoan "nobility" is merely an historical footnote, in reality the title opened the door for the Zabaleta family to develop social, economic and political status, and it facilitated family movement to the Indies in the sixteenth century. In 1499, a royal document authored by Queen Blanca and King Juan de Labrit confirmed and increased all the social, political, and economic privileges granted to the Zabaleta family by King Carlos, on October 1, 1202. Lesaca history notes that the town continued to thrive through the centuries because of these benefits to the Zabaleta family: "por los muchos servicios prestados por los vecinos de Lesaca a la Corona." From the family's earliest references, the Zabaletas are described as having been formally educated. They attended preparatory schools and universities run by religious orders, studied Roman Catholic doctrine and the law, read the classic literature, and were among the first to write the history of their people and their region. It was this education that led to successive generations of public office. Numerous sources suggest that many Zabaleta ancestors served as magistrates, "testigos," and "escribanos," and were witnesses and scribes for legal documents. In one recorded case, it is said that:"Beltran de Larrain y Galarza testo en Aranaz ante Matias de Zabaleta el 27 de diciembre de 1682, declarando que es Señor de la Casa de Larrain y que esta en su sano juicio. Pero enfermo del cuerpo."

Translated: Beltran de Larrain y Galarza testified in Aranaz before Mat¡as de Zabaleta on December 27, 1682, declaring that the Señor of the Casa de Larrain was in good health and mentally able to handle his affairs although he was physically ill.

     From the history of the Basque town of Aranaz, another example describes three Zabaletas involved in a legal document, in which the parish priest, Don Pedro Luys de Zabaleta, is named as the executor of the estate of his nephew Lino de Larrain. The document was witnessed by Juan Ferm¡n de Zabaleta and was notarized by Mat¡as de Zabaleta. The author says that it was notable that all of the notaries (attorneys) in Aranaz were Zabaletas, and that the position was past on from father to son. Records dating from the fourteenth century for the royal town of Urretxu through the present day indicate that the Zabaleta family played a substantial social, political, and economic role in the region and in the Americas. Basque and Spanish records list some of the positions and honors held by family members: Hidalgo, Military and Naval officer, Bishop, Monsignor, Priest, Familiar de la Inquisition, Royal Historian, Pagador de la Real Armada, Alcalde, Governor, Ambassador to the Court; Royal envoy; Professor, Author, Historian; Magistrate, Caballero de la Orden de Santiago, and Superintendent of Royal mints. Historical Basque notables born at the Zabaleta family home in Urretxu include General Gaspar de Jauregui, "el Pastor;" Francisco Domingo de Zabaleta, professor of the University of Alcalá in the seventeenth century; and Santuru de Zabaleta y Zabalo, special envoy of King Felipe II in 1565. Zabaletas are documented to have served the Realm as nobles, adventurers, religious, military, politicians, and intellectuals. They were called to serve the Kings of the house of Aragon, and to escort Queen Isabel through Guipúzcoa. When it was time to adventure out to the New World, Zavaletas are known to have been among the first to dare.

 

Ermita de San Juan and La Virgen de Zabaleta

The Caser¡o de Zabaleta was located on one of the principal pilgrimage routes to Santiago de Compostela. From the twelfth century to the present day, the family has maintained the hermitage of San Juan, located on family property and along the road that the pilgrims walk. Beginning in medieval times, the Zabaleta country house complex included a sanctuary for weary travelers, as well as a hospital for pilgrims.The family home was positioned along one of the most heavily traveled routes of the medieval world. Travelers of all social classes, including royalty, passed along this route and, visited the Virgen Negra de Zabaleta. (WS3)