Ferdinand II of León

Ferdinand II (c. 1137–1188), born in Toledo, was a younger son of Alfonso VII of León and Castile. When his father died in 1157 the realm was divided and Ferdinand received León and Galicia.

He warred with Castile, first under his brother Sancho III and later under his nephew Alfonso VIII, while campaigning south against the Almohads, taking Alcántara in 1164 and Cáceres in 1169 after capturing Afonso I of Portugal at Badajoz.

In 1170 he founded the Order of Santiago to protect pilgrims to Compostela. He made peace with Castile in 1180, and on his death in 1188 his son Alfonso IX succeeded him.