Legend of the Traitor of Fuerteventura

The old kingdom of Fuerteventura was separated by a stone wall - La Pared - from where the village of today gets its name.

The wall kept apart the quarrelling two kingdoms of Guise, king of Maxorata, and Ayosa, reigning monarch of Jandia. The wall brought harmony to the two kingdoms and the fighting between them came to an end, each living peacefully on either side of the wall.

Both kings and their subjects held the great fortune teller Tiabiabin and her daughter Tamomante in great esteem and it was to them they went to discover what their fortune held.

Tamomante sacrificed a baby goat and brought the entrails to her mother to read the fortunes of each king.

Tiabiabin foretold of great men coming across the sea in white floating houses but not to be afraid of them.

Welcome them with open arms and they will bring benefits to the island, she told them.

 The fortune teller warned of great suffering if the Europeans were not welcomed and respected which meant taking on their ways

The ships arrived with the expeditions of Jean de Bethencourt and Gadafre La Salle shattering the peace of the island.

It did not take long for the Europeans to make their intentions clear – propelled by greed and a desire to enslave the island inhabitants and sell them to the highest bidder..

Soon there was fighting between the Europeans and the islanders. The battles were bloody and although at first it seemed the Kings had the upper hand, they soon began to suffer heavy casualties which they believed was a punishment for having disregarded the prophecies of the fortune tellers.

To save their kingdoms the kings resolved to surrender believing, as Tiabiabin had told them, a new era of prosperity and peace would come to the islanders.

However, the surrender brought in new customs and European religion – a practice that the old soothsayer had secretly believed in all along.

The two kings, who had once proudly ruled over the whole island, were given a few acres of land on which to scratch a living.

Tiabiabin received acres of land for her part in the plot for the surrender of Fuerteventura ….

Myths and legends