Valera, Diego de [key], 1412?–1488?, Spanish adventurer and writer. Reared at the Castilian court, he was page to John II and later became one of his diplomatic agents. He took part in the campaigns against the Hussites. After the death of John II he retired to scholarly pursuits, but he returned to public life in 1474 to become majordomo to Isabella I and chronicler of Ferdinand II, whom he incited to the conquest of Granada. His works range from poetry to philosophy and genealogy, but his chief importance is as a historian. His Crónica abreviada, a universal history from the creation to John II, is continued by chronicles of the reigns of Henry IV of Castile and of Ferdinand and Isabella.
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