Nine Valleys lawsuit
| Part of History of Camtabria | |
Map of the merindades that existed in the territory of present-day Cantabria. The Nine Valleys were integrated in that of Santillana. | |
| Native name | Pleito de los Nueve Valles |
|---|---|
| English name | Nine Valleys lawsuit |
| Duration | 1544 - 1581 |
| Location | Santillana del Mar, Spain |
| Type | Lawsuit |
| Cause | Designation of Íñigo López de Mendoza as lord of the valleys and the claim of his realengo by the valleys themselves |
| Organized by | Chancellery of Valladolid |
| Participants | Asturias de Santillana Valleys against the Dukedom of the Infantado |
The Nine Valleys lawsuit (Spanish: Pleito de los nueve Valles) or simply Valleys lawsuit was a legal battle between the Nine Valleys of the Asturias de Santillana (present-day Cantabria, in Spain) and the Dukedom of the Infantado. It was initiated in 1544, and a ruling was issued in 1581 in favor of the Nine Valleys. This result was important in the process of the territorial configuration of Cantabria, since it achieved the independence of the valleys, which were constituted in the province of the Nine Valleys in 1589. This was later formed into the province of Cantabria in 1778, and caused the retreat of the manorial domains in the region. The memorial occupies 178 folios.
It is important to note that the Asturias of Santillana were organized in valleys perpendicular to the sea. That is to say, despite the rise of feudalism, the contemporary society did not have only the village as its nucleus, but there were connections between all the villages in a valley, with a sort of federation of councils. Each valley had its board and ordinances. When the neighbors of those territories litigated against the nobility, they did so therefore through the representation of each valley. The lawsuit was not isolated in time, as other regions of present-day Cantabria tried to shake off the lordly rule, as happened in Liébana.