According to the testimony of a number of authors who have written about the deeds of this King of Castile, he was very good at giving free rein to whatever his wild, unruly nature demanded of him, to such an extent that we could well be criticized for not being more discreet in our narration of other people's ill deeds, particularly those which cast upon them a wicked and shameful reputation, if we were to record in detail every ugly thing that could be said of him. Therefore, we shall leave aside many such deeds about which others have written and mention only the most important ones.

This king did not have any of the virtues and qualities which it is fitting for good kings to possess. People say that he was very lascivious, so much so that when a woman took his fancy, whether they were noblewomen, wives of knights, or even nuns or of any other state, he showed no respect for any of them. He greatly coveted what others had to the point of derangement, and only wanted in his Royal Council men who would praise his ideas and his actions. He had many good, honourable people put to death, some for foolish reasons, simply for giving him good advice, and others for no good reason, on the slightest suspicion, so that many worthy men avoided him, fearing for their lives. No man was safe in his presence, even if he had served him well and had been treated by him with honour and great generosity. Leaving aside the false accusations he brought against his victims in order to kill them, we shall speak briefly only of the executions and nothing else.

During the second year of his reign Doña Leonor Núñez de Guzmán was put to death. She had in the past been the mistress of his father and was the mother of Count Enrique [de Trastámara], who was later to become king. Although some people claim that this had come about on the order of King Pedro's mother, Queen Maria, it is certain that she would not have given an order of that nature without the consent of her son. The king gave all the possessions of Leonor Núñez to his mother.