Suero de Quiñones
Suero de Quiñones, called El del Passo, was a Leonese knight, nobleman, and author in the Kingdom of León. He gained fame for his Paso Honroso, a pas d'armes, at the Órbigo River in 1434.
Early life
Suero was born in 1409 in the Kingdom of León, the second of ten children of wealthy Leonese landowner, known as El Afortunado and scion of the, and his wife María de Toledo.By the 1420s, Suero and his elder brother were active participants in Castilian political life as members of the court of Constable of Castile Álvaro de Luna.
Adulthood
In 1431, Suero participated in Battle of La Higueruela, during which the forces of John II of Castile, led by Álvaro de Luna, attempted to take Granada as part of the Spanish Reconquista.Paso Honoroso
Suero's renown grew in 1434, when he established the, a pas d'armes, at the Hospital de Órbigo over the Órbigo River in 1434. From July 10 to August 9, Suero and ten companions encamped in a field beside the bridge over the Órbigo River, in the northwest of Castile. They challenged each knight who wished to cross the bridge to a joust. This road was on the Camino de Santiago, a pilgrimage route leading to the shrine to Saint James the Great at Santiago de Compostela. At this point in the summer, thousands of pilgrims from across Europe would cross the bridge. Suero and his men swore to "break 300 lances" before moving from the spot. After 166 battles, Suero and his men were so injured they could not continue and declared the mission complete.Town notary Don Luis Alonso Luengo kept a detailed first-hand chronicle of the events, later published as Libro del Passo honroso, bringing Suero and his men even wider fame in Europe.