Calle de Lope de Haro

Lope Díaz III de Haro, born around 1245, was lord of Biscay and one of the most powerful nobles of thirteenth-century Castile. He backed Sancho IV in the dispute over the throne, and that closeness earned him the office of high steward and considerable sway over the kingdom. In June 1288, at Alfaro, that sway ended abruptly. During a meeting with the king, Lope drew a dagger and the knights and crossbowmen of Sancho IV struck him down. According to the chronicles, he took a slash to the hand and a blow to the head. He stood as one of the most exalted favorites of his time and, at once, as one of those who fell fastest. The street that bears his name is a modern cut through the Berruguete district. It starts at Calle de Bravo Murillo and dies at Calle de Villaamil. It reached this name through a quick change: on 1 January 1871 it was signed Santa Teresa, and barely four months later the city council rededicated it to the lord of Biscay.