Berenguela of Castile and after the battle of Las Navas de Tolosa in 1212, settlers of several villages (Aberturas, Corral Rubio de Jabalón, Santa María de las Flores and Castilnuevo) moved to the area around the present Church of the Assumption, which had been an old castle. From that moment Valdepeñas belonged to the military Order of Calatrava and the first text it is mentioned in is the record of The Order of Calatrava in 1243. The new settlers came from the Kingdoms of Castile, León (Galicia mainly) and Aragón. The Order demanded conditions of establishment and right of citizenship, the continued care of the grapevine. In medieval times the Jewish community became important and this is reflected in the existence of at least two synagogues, one of which was eventually converted into the hermitage of Veracruz and the old building where the Parish of The Christ was located, behind its present location. Early modern age The Catholic Monarchs, Ferdinand and Isabella of Castille, lodged in Valdepeñas on 18 February 1488 at the mother of Alfonso de Merlo's house, and left to the care of the widow the infants during part of the conquest of Granada. The same Alfonso de Merlo was named Captain and went with more than two hundred men to the Conquest of Granada, funding the campaign with his own money. The Catholic Monarchs recognized and granted him the title of Knight. Some of his descendants moved to the New World and took important positions in Peru and Chile. Diverse religious and civil buildings from the 16th century such as the Trinitarians Covent can be found in the town. King Ferdinand the Catholic wanted to control the power of Military Orders, and Pope Adrian VI granted orders to the Kingdom of Castile, passing to Royal Jurisdiction an important patrimony: two cities, two hundred villas (Valdepeñas among them) and a hundred of villages, distributed in an ample territory. King Philip II sold the villa on 22 April 1575 to D. Alvaro de Bazán first Marquess of Santa Cruz, who became Lord of Valdepeñas. Valdepeñas would happen to be a "Señorío", secreting itself of the Order of Calatrava. The successive marquesses promoted the wines of Valdepeñas in the Spanish Court of the Austrian and its fame consequently extended all over the country. Valdepeñas' "clarete" became known as "aloque" at this time. Contemporary history Valdepeñas led a quiet existence until