Alfonso de la Cueva-Benavides y Mendoza-Carrillo, marqués de Bedmar (first name also spelled Alonso, often used was the title Bedmar) (Bedmar, now Bedmar y Garciez, province of Jaen, Spain, 1572 – Málaga, Spain, August 10, 1655[1]) was a Spanish diplomat, bishop and Roman cardinal. He was born in Bedmar, in what is now the province of Jaén. Alfonso was the son of Luis de la Cueva-Benavides, 2nd señor of Bedmar, and Elvira Carrillo de Mendoza y Cárdenas.
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At a young age, Alfonso pursued a military career at the side of his father, who was the captain general of the Canary Islands. After 1590, he took his father's place in his absence, and a year later was named captain of the Harquebusiers. After the death of his father in 1599, he became the 3rd lord of his house and became a commander of a Cavalry company.
On December 23, 1606[2], King Philip III of Spain made him the Spanish ambassador to the Republic of Venice. This was an important position due to the amount of information concerning European affairs which passed through the hands of the Spanish representative. On April 16, 1610, King Philip III awarded him the title of Knight of the Order of Alcántara. In 1614 , aged around 42, he was made Marqués de Bedmar, which he would resign when promoted to the cardinalate.
In 1618 king Philip III charged him with the devolution of the territories conquered by the Spanish forces in Piedmont to the duke of Savoy. In 1616 Venice concluded an alliance with France, Switzerland, and the Netherlands to counter Spain's power. Bedmar was instructed[3] to destroy this league and, with Pedro Téllez-Girón, 3rd Duke of Osuna, viceroy of Naples (1574–1624), and the Spanish Governor of the Duchy of Milan, Gómez Suárez de Figueroa, 3rd Duke of Feria, planned a naval invasion to bring the city closer to the Spanish sphere of influence. The scheme was to be carried out on Ascension Day in 1618 but was revealed by the French, and Bedmar, protected by his position from arrest, left Venice.
After the fiasco of Venice, Bedmar went to Flanders as president of the council. In 1622 he received the red hat of a cardinal[4]. Later, he became the ambassador extraordinary and counselor of Governor of the Habsburg Netherlands, Infanta Isabella Clara Eugenia and the Junta of War in Flanders.
The authorship of an anonymous work, Squitinio della libertà Veneta, published at Mirandola in 1612, has been attributed to him.
Created Cardinal Deacon in the consistory of 1622, September 5, under Pope Gregory XV,(9 January or 15 January 1554 – Pope 6 February 1621 - 8 July 1623), born Alessandro Ludovisi, de la Cueva, then around 51, did not participate in the Consistory of 1623 electing new Pope Urban VIII. He became a Cardinal Priest, receiving the title of San Martino ai Monti on July 18, 1633. De la Cueva opted for the title of Santa Balbina, July 9, 1635, and participated in the Consistory of 1644
De la Cueva opted however for the order of bishops and the suburbicarian see of Palestrina, on October 17, 1644. He was consecrated on Sunday, October 23, 1644. Named bishop of Málaga, retaining the diocese of Palestrina, July 27, 1648, he did not took possession of the diocese until 1651, staying thus longer in Italy and did not participated in the Consistory of 1655.
He was buried in the Cathedral of Málaga.