Jaun Zuria (Basque for "the White Lord") is the mythical firstLord and founder of theLordship of Biscay,[1][2] who defeated theLeonese andAsturian troops in the also-mythical Battle of Padura, in which he chased off the invaders to the Malato Tree, establishing there the borders ofBiscay. There are three accounts of its legend, one by thePortuguese countPedro Barcelos and two by the chronicler Lope García de Salazar.[3] According to the legend, Jaun Zuria had been born from aScottish or English princess who had been visited by the Basque deitySugaar in the village ofMundaka.
It has been suggested that Jaun Zuria might have the same origin or be the same mythical figure asOlaf the White, anIrishVikingsea-king from the 9th century.[citation needed]
TheBasque chroniclerLope García de Salazar [es] (1399–1476) mentionsdon Çuria on hisBienandanzas e Fortunas, book that he begins to write in 1471.[3] He speaks of the daughter of aScottishking, who arrives by ship atMundaka and gives birth to a son in the village. Afterward, both mother and son move toBusturia, where the boy spends most of his childhood. When the son is 22 years old, the Biscayans choose him to be captain of their troops to stop the progress of the army of anAsturian king's son. He is chosen because of his royal blood, as it had been a requirement of the Asturian prince, in order to engage in a formal battle. The Asturian prince and his army are defeated inArrigorriaga on the Battle of Padura or Arrigorriaga. Thus, the Biscayans choose him to be the firstLord of Biscay and Lord ofDurangaldea,[4] and give him the Basque name ofJaun Zuria, that is the White Lord, because of the whiteness of his skin and hair.[3]
ThePortuguese Count of BarcelosPedro Alfonso speaks about a similar story on a similar background, on hisLibro dos Linhagems ("Book of the Lineages").[3] According to him, Biscay was a Lordship before even Castile had kings, but for a lot of time it remained without a lord. AnAsturian count named don Moñino knew about this situation, and thus forced the Biscayans to give him as a tribute a cow, an ox and a white horse every year. Soon thereafter, arrived by ship a brother of the king ofEngland named From. He came with one of his sons, named Fortun Froes, and they settled in the village ofBusturia. From, being told about the tribute, promised to defend the Biscayans as long as they called him Lord. The Asturian count then, engaged in battle against From and the Biscayans, and was defeated nearArrigorriaga. After From's passing, Fortun Froes became the Lord of Biscay.