Will

Last Will and Testament of Juan Núñez de Valdés, 1548

My 14x-great-grandfather Juan Núñez de Valdés made his last will and testament in Navalcarnero, Spain (about 15 miles southwest of Madrid) on 4 June 1548. He named as his executors his wife Juana Martín(ez) and two of his sons, Alonso Martín de Valdés and Juan de Valdés. He named his parents and all of his children, which links his son Melchor, who emigrated to Mexico City, to the Valdés family of San Cucado, Asturias. Juan authorized his executors to sell any part of his est

May 143 min read

Last Will and Testament of Isabel Moctezuma, 1550

Isabel Moctezuma, or Tecuichpochtzin (aka Tecuichpo) in Nahuatl, was the legitimate daughter of Emperor Moctezuma. She made her last will and testament in Mexico City on 11 July 1550, but used the Nahuatl name for the city, Tenochtitlan. Because she was very ill, the document is rather brief but explained how she wished to convey her assets to her heirs after her death. She named her six legitimate children as: Juan de Andrada from her marriage with Pedro Gallego; and Pedro,

Feb 2611 min read

Last Will and Testament of Juan Montes Vigil, 1682

There are two known wills of Juan Montes Vigil III, native of Mexico City, the son of Juan Montes Vigil II and Catalina de Herrera Cantillana. He made the first one on 1 October 1682 in Zacatecas. In it, he named his parents, both natives of Spain (Castile), his sister María de Herrera Cantillana, and his “natural” son (born out of wedlock), Francisco Montes Vigil. He also named Carlos Vigil, a two-year-old orphan child who he and his sister cared for and raised in their hous

Jan 232 min read

Will and Disposition of the Estate of Juan Altamirano Pizarro, 1566-67

In our article in the June 2024 edition of the New Mexico Genealogist, Karen Bowman, Damien Aragon and I pieced together the genealogy...

Aug 16, 202510 min read

Last Will and Testament of Leonor Díaz de Benavides, 1531

Leonor Díaz de Benavides was the mother of Alonso de Benavides, conquistador of Mexico City, and Cristóbal de Benavente, fiscal of the royal audiencia of Mexico

May 27, 202514 min read