  ordoÃ±o i (c. 821 â 27 may 866) was king of asturias from 850 until his death. ==biography== he was born in oviedo, where he spent his early life in the court of alfonso ii. he was probably associated with the crown from an early age. he was probably raised in lugo, capital of the province of galicia, of which his father, ramiro, had been named governor. there he was educated, including in the military arts. ordoÃ±o was named governor of galicia when his father went to vardulia to marry paterna (his second wife). whilst away, alfonso died, and the nobles elected count nepocian as king. ordoÃ±o immediately began to raise an army to assist his father in claiming the throne. he could not leave his post in galicia to help, however, and his army went unused. when his father finally prevailed, he confirmed ordoÃ±o in his heretofore provisional position. on january 1, 850, ordoÃ±o succeeded his father as king. as he was his father's heir, he was the first king of asturias to ascend the throne without election. his first confrontation was with the basques, who rebelled with the support of the banu qasi of zaragoza. while returning to oviedo after defeating the rebels, he received news of an impending moorish assault on vardulias. before the moors could attack, he met them near the ebro and defeated them. these victories meant little in the long run, for the governor of zaragoza, musa ibn musa fortified the city of albaida (albelda). in 859, ordoÃ±o defeated him at albelda and besieged and razed the city. he supported the mozarab rebels, which cost him at guadacelete in 854. but this fiasco only incited him to consolidate the "desert of the duero", the depopulated region between the asturian cordillera and the river duero. he directed the repoblaciÃ³n of the towns of leÃ³n and talamanka,according to the anales castellanos primeros, which notes that in 860 rodrigo of castile razed the latter. astorga
866_deaths 9th-century_monarchs_in_Europe Asturian_monarchs Beni_Alfons People_from_Oviedo