Sancho VII of Navarre: Meaning (information, definition, explanation, facts)

Sancho VII of Navarre was king of Navarre from 1194 to 1234, surnamed "the Strong" ("Sancho el Fuerte" in Spanish, "Santxo Azkarra" in Basque).

He was the son of Sancho VI of Navarre, succeeding his father in 1194. He was the last male-line descendant of the first dynasty of kings of Navarre.

In the year 1200, he led an expedition in Africa. Taking advantage of his absence, the kings of Castile and Aragon invaded Navarre, which lost the provinces of Álava, Guipúzcoa and Vizcaya to Castile.

His leadership was decisive in the Battle of Las Navas de Tolosa in the year 1212.

Sancho went into retirement ("el Encerrado") at some point, when his sister Blanca took administration of the kingdom (see note in Kings of Navarre family tree).